Travel to the start of the Camino de Santiago

Camino Guide Part 4: How to travel to the Camino de Santiago

Part 4: Travel Information

It is easy to access the Camino de Santiago; no matter where you are travelling from. With so many different Caminos on offer, there is an infinite amount of possibilities when it comes to getting to a starting town of one of the Camino. Flight carriers mentioned below are of course subject to change as airlines update their routes, but should routes have changed www.skyscanner.net is a helpful resource for flight information.

Visas and Passport

All nationalities require a full passport or ID card valid for at least three months after your intended departure from Spain. Citizens of countries in the European Union and the European Economic Area and the European Free Trade Association do not need a visa for Spain. Australians, US Citizens and Canadians do not need a visa as long as their stay is not for more than 90 days. Passport and visa requirements do change so although this information is supplied in good faith. Please check with your local Spanish consulate or advice authority.

Travel Insurance

No matter where you are travelling from, make sure you arrange travel insurance for peace of mind.

How do I get to St Jean Pied de Port?

With the beginning of the Camino Francés on the French-Spanish border there are several different ways of getting to St-Jean-Pied-de-Port.

Travelling Internationally

When travelling from US you must fly to London, Madrid, Barcelona or Paris where you will then connect to St Jean Pied de Port.

Arriving at:	Transfer:
London	Fly to Biarritz from London Stanstead. From Biarritz Airport take a bus to the town of Bayonne. From Bayonne you can connect with St Jean Pied de Port by Mountain Railway.
Madrid	Public transport from Airport to Atocha Train Station 3hr train journey from Atocha train station to Pamplona or 5hr bus journey from Terminal 2 Madrid to Pamplona, From Pamplona take a local Bus to Roncesvalles From Roncesvalles you must take a taxi to St Jean-Pied-de-Port.
Barcelona	Public Transport or Taxi to Sants Train Station or Barcelona Nord Bus Station. 3-4hr train journey to Pamplona or more than 6hrs bus journey to Pamplona. From Pamplona take a local Bus to Roncesvalles From Roncesvalles you must take a taxi to St Jean-Pied-de-Port.
Paris	· Bus/Train/Metro to train station TGV (high-speed train) from Central Paris to Bayonne. · Once at Bayonne, a mountain railway takes you to St Jean Pied De Port. · There is also a TGV from Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport to St Jean Pied De Port via Bordeaux & Bayonne.

We Recommend: flying to Paris (Airport Charles De Gaulle) and then taking a high speed train (TGV) to Bayonne in the Pyrenees. From Bayonne you can then take the mountain railway to St Jean Pied De Port.

How do I get to Sarria?

You can fly into Santiago Airport from London Stansted with Ryanair, London Gatwick with Easyjet, or internally from many other operators. Fly from Madrid, Barcelona and Paris with Iberia or Vueling. Ryanair also fly internally Madrid-Santiago. To reach Sarria take a bus from Santiago de Compostela to Lugo. From Lugo you connect to Sarria with a local bus: www.monbus.es/index2.htm To reach Sarria from Santiago can catch the ALSA bus to Lugo and then another bus to Sarria. Total journey time from Santiago to Sarria: 3hrs

To Reach O’Cebriero

On www.alsa.es/portal/site/Alsa/ O’Cebriero’s stop is called ‘Piedrafita do Cebreiro’. From here it’s about a 5km walk or taxi journey up the hill to O’Cebreiro

Returning from Santiago de Compostela

Ryanair operate a regular direct service up to 5 times a week between London Stanstead Airport and the Airport Santiago de Compostela.
Easyjet operate a direct service up to 3 times a week to London Gatwick
Veuling fly direct from Santiago de Compostela to Paris CDG.
Veuling and Iberia airlines fly direct from Santiago de Compostela to Madrid and Barcelona.
You can also take a trains or bus from Santiago de Compostela to Madrid.

From here you can then connect to your flight to US.

Return to Madrid/Barcelona:

Train journey to Madrid - 7hrs. Bus journey to Madrid - 8hrs. You can consult www.aena-aeropuertos.es/csee/Satellite/infovuelos/en/which which will give you a comprehensive list of other airlines and destinations.

Travel links:

Rail Europe: www.raileurope.com French Rail: www.sncf.com Spanish Rail: www.renfe.com Spanish Bus network: www.alsa.es Portuguese Rail: www.cp.pt

Travelling to the Alternative Routes

Camino Portugés is easily accessed from the airports of Lisbon and Porto.
The Via Podiensis can be reached from the airports of Paris or Lyon by train via St Etienne.
The Camí de Sant Juame is one and a half hours by train from Barcelona.
The Camino del Norte and the Camino Primitivo can be reached from the airports of Biarritz, Bilbao, Santander and San Sebastián.
The Camino Finisterra and Camino Inglés can be reached from the Airport in Santiago de Compostela.
The Via de Plata can be reached from the Airport of Seville and the Camino Levante from the Airport of Valencia.

For more information on which route to take you can view our Camino Tours on our website to see which inspires you!