Camino de Santiago Q&A: Tips, Advice, Packing List, Costs, When to Walk (FAQ) 

This is the best advice ever. Especially about the boots and blisters and the earplugs. Great breakdown of the costs. Thank you, David.

The “Not to judge”, very wise counsel!!! We can’t love others if we choose to criticize them. If we go back to the story of the Camino... was about love, love for God our Father and Jesus Christ our Savior. Thank you so much for all of your insides.

Hi David! I’m walking a short Camino in July, Sarria to Santiago. Thank you for your video, i can feel your passion and sincerity for the Camino in your voice. This will be my first time walking any long distances and I’ve been training 4-6 miles a day slowly building my stamina. I value your comment about how you initially were hurrying to get to the next town so you have a place to sleep. You said you missed out on the “experience” when rushing. I can see that in myself and you’ve reminded me to slow down and take it all in. After watching many videos on the Camino, yours is one of my favorites!!

Thank you David for sharing your experience with us! I cried watching this video, because I found it so beautiful how the Camino has a lot to teach us about the path we're walking on this life. Pack light, don't judge when you see people doing things differently, enjoy every encounter, conversations, challenges, leave burdens behind and remember that Santiago isn't the point! Simple and profound tips! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

What struck me the most on the Camino Is that people are utterly open and have no problem sharing their stories. All relations last for a day or two and they tend to go straight to the point. Like - What brings you to the Camino? - I got divorced and lost my job. No small talk. Everybody is real and doesn't hold anything to themselves. That made me believe in people again.

This was such a good video. A very positive message, lots of good information, no overdrawn stories but plenty of friendly chat and background. Most importantly, insight into the emotions of the experience. Thank you very much.

I couldn't agree with you more: it's all about the journey. That "almost sad" feeling for arriving in Santiago really does happen. But also at that moment, I suppose, is when the biggest lesson starts and you have to begin living your daily life under this new point of view that the Camino had showed you. It's the flick of the switch. Great vídeo, David. Thanks for sharing.

This is THE best advice I’ve found about a Camino. Thank you David so much; very clear, very informative and really like your say about being respectful and non judgmental. Although my wife and I aren’t doing the Camino de Santiago, we are planning to walk the Via Francigena next year once Covid is more controlled. And your comments apply aptly to all Caminos. Many thanks, David & Ena

This was so genuine and honest. Thank you David!!!

The Journey IS the destination.

You really nailed it! I wish I had watched a video like yours before I went on my Camino back in 2016 because everything you said was spot on. I was very excited to reach Santiago, but it was when I arrived that I too realized that it wasn't about the destination. It was the journey! I'm planning my second Camino as soon as the Covid-19 pandemic is over & it is safe to do so. Thank you & Buen Camino! I will re-watch your video before I head back.

Thank you for making this video, David. This video made me want to do the Camino, really .. its so inspiring to hear you stories about this pilgrimage! 🙏🏻

This is the best video I have ever seen here about the Camino. Thank you so much.

David , David , David very well done. Planning my first camino and you said exactly what camino is all about. The most important thing to remember is Santiago is not camino nor a result, camino is you living camino every minutes with no end. Thx a million

Hi David! Thanks, this is great, a good summary. Like your view, and your tips. Greetings from Sweden!

David you rock . Thanks for a wonderful video . I m going in September as well this year. I only hope I’ll meet as many good people as you . Thanks for your presentation, and experience.

one of the best videos on #camino and your other video. thank you

Thank you David for these great tips 💕

Thank you for this video - most insightful and considerate. So looking forward to making my Way.

tks a lot the best advice!

David: Thanks a lot for expressing your feelings and ideas about the journey of the Camino de Santiago. Your recommendations have been very useful for my preparation to this amazing road. I have been thinking and planning for a long time but really now I consider is my right time, now I realized that I do not have all my life for this decision. And you give me the last push to go ahead. Great!!

Watching this in April 2021 and really hoping I can experience this journey in late summer, beginning of fall. Great video!!

What a special video. And very informative and helpful. Thank you

I have walked many Camino’s and will walk many more, if able. Your words ring so very true, your surmise is spot on, my congratulations on a well presented piece which I will recommend as required listening.

Thank you so much for this David. I am thinking about walking my first Camino next September. 😌

Wow David. Such a young wise man. Very informative. I really enjoy your videos.

This was great commentary! Thank you, David!

Great advice, David. Thanks for emphasising the importance of the journey over the destination

Wow 🤩 thanks so much for the tips!!

Thank you for sharing your journey. Thank you for your wise and informative comments.

Thank you, David, for sharing with us your experience. :) And keep un the good work.

Very well put together David, very useful insight

Thanks for the video! 👍

Thanks for this precious information David ...

Thanks for your advice David

Good advices from such as peaceful man. Thanks

Hello, I really liked your video, it shows that you have lived it with your heart. I hope to finish it this year 2022 and then continue the other roads that lead to Santiago, greetings from Malaga (Spain)

Thank you so much for sharing your video!!!

Thx for great tips!

Very helpful David! I will be walking the camino this year! 🙏

Nice assessment of the journey . Well said .

Amazing video. So helpful! Thank you :)

Beautiful. Thank you 🙏🏻

Nicely done, I totally enjoyed your presentation. 👍

Great advice. Thanks for being impartial. The full camino is on my bucket list but for now work will only permit a minimum 100km for 7 days... Other videos can be judgey about luxury camino and the 7 day camino... For some people a 40 day leave from work is a luxury in itself. Each of us has a story to tell... Buen camino everyone 👋

Great video my friend! I walked October 2019. So wonderful!

Great video- good advice

Thanks for posting this video. Great tips! The pilgrim's menu is the way to go for sure and also sharing the cooking meals in the Albergues. Sleeping in the Albergue can be a better experience, it was for me! Buen Camino

Hello David. Thank you so much for this and your other videos. I'm a fan. I have yet do walk the camino and I am looking forward to it so much. I haven't decided which route yet but I'm sure that will become clear the closer I get to that time. And I truly hope there will be more than one camino for me. I have a prosthetic leg and although I'm an avid hiker I have never walked for 6 or 7 hours a day...day after day, so we'll see how it goes. I like who you are. Keep up this wonderful work.

Very useful thank you

Don't judge those who choose to do the Camino differently. Loved that part. That's so mature. Enjoy the journey. Enjoy the people. Good advice. Everything along the way is the Camino, not what's at the end. I want to do this someday.

Excellent!!!

Great video! I walked the Frances late Sept 2019. Buen Camino 👣

Hey my friend really enjoyed your video, thank you for all the good advice.

Very useful video I'm planning way ahead to go in 2023 so I can train all 2022 Walking a little more every day Great tips Thank you

Hi David, September 2019 was when I did my most recent chunk of the Camino....St Jean to Leon, having previously completed Leon to Santiago in 2015. I always take the "not judging" of others to be one of the most important things, as I know people are likely to judge me. Fingers crossed for another couple of weeks on the camino late this year!

Great video 🥰

Excellent advice Thank you 🙏 💚☘️✨

Never was about walk, but about life

👏👏👏 grazie mille!

Hello David! Thank you so much for your practical, useful, yet very sensitive approach. I'm going to walk my first Camino in June. And after - certainty not - accidentally I run into this video of yours, I checked your channel and happily noticed about your ongoing Camino from Porto. I was just hesitating which Camino to take, but not anymore: I already voted for Camino Portuguès. 😊 Thank you again for your beautiful and well elaborated videos 🙏, and I wish you to gather remarkable memories and experiences during your journey. 🌞

Thanks Dave, we are planning to go next year.

Great video David I'm walking the short Portuguese or the short French camino ..not sure , in Sept 2022 you have been a great help !

Hi David, I've really enjoyed the/your video's...

Hi David, thanks for your advice, I am planning to travel to the EU after this pandemic. your videos are so helpful. I didn't even know Camino before watching your videos. I have a big passion for trekking and hiking, hope I could finish the camino route like you did.

Very useful. We’ll done!

Wonderful.

Congratulations on completing the Camino. And thank you for the information. I long to go too. I hope to go!

There are so many Camino blogs, FAQS, and videos that cover the tactical and logistical stuff, and while you've done a bit of that here (great overview and tips!), I love the introspection. You've done a wonderful job with this video and delivering the message about the journey vs. the destination. Thank you!

Love your tips, thank you!! Especially about less crowded time to walk and about judging!! Cos for sure I would be the weird one judged 😆. But thanks God I don't care!! I am also thinking to do Camino at least once in my life, or at least part of it. But I know I can be difficult person sometimes, I don't like crowds and like my privacy (doesn't mean I'm bad or unfriendly, actually I am very caring and love to help people), so I wouldn't like to sleep in those hostels with so many people, and I would like to do it in my own pace, without any plans like today we have to do 20 and next day 40km... I like to be independent and my own boss. I call this idea "my private Camino". I was wondering if would be possible to "do it my way", but definitely I'll try one day... 💪🏼

Great video thank you for sharing your experience with us. How many miles did try to cover in a day?

Thank you so much for your video... your epilogue reminded me this poem by Konstandinos Kavafis a great Greek poet. I am really sorry for the long comment but the poem is a masterpiece so i didnt want to crop it :) stay safe. Ithaka (English) As you set out for Ithaka hope the voyage is a long one, full of adventure, full of discovery. Laistrygonians and Cyclops, angry Poseidon-don’t be afraid of them: you’ll never find things like that on your way as long as you keep your thoughts raised high, as long as a rare excitement stirs your spirit and your body. Laistrygonians and Cyclops, wild Poseidon-you won’t encounter them unless you bring them along inside your soul, unless your soul sets them up in front of you. Hope the voyage is a long one. May there be many a summer morning when, with what pleasure, what joy, you come into harbors seen for the first time; may you stop at Phoenician trading stations to buy fine things, mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony, sensual perfume of every kind- as many sensual perfumes as you can; and may you visit many Egyptian cities to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars. Keep Ithaka always in your mind. Arriving there is what you are destined for. But do not hurry the journey at all. Better if it lasts for years, so you are old by the time you reach the island, wealthy with all you have gained on the way, not expecting Ithaka to make you rich. Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey. Without her you would not have set out. She has nothing left to give you now. And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you. Wise as you will have become, so full of experience, you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

Thanks David for your very useful tips , one question that I need to ask is , do you need to pre book accommodation in the abergues or there will always be a bed available ? Have a wonderful life brother

Hi David, thank you so much for your tips & advices. We plan to do the last 100kms from Sarria in 2023. I would like to ask you if continuing our trip to Lisbon & Madrid is a good idea since we are already there. We are also from CA😊. Goodluck to your channel😊

Very good video, thank you so much! I was concerned that it was necessary too book everything in a advance and that the hostels might be full when you get there, but it seems like I don't have to worry about that? :) I'm planning on starting the last week in august this year and I really want the Camino to be spontaneous and not have to book everything in advance. I am so excited for this, seems like it will be a life changing experience and that is also my reason for doing it.

very nice video! I agree with most what you said, you seem to have achieved quite some knowledge and insight in a single camino, that's great. Just a few things. ATM can be found almost every day, for sure every other day. Not June und July are the busiest months on the camino frances, but May, August and September. The numbers of the pilgrims office in SJPP show that clearly. Hope you'll come back to the camino :-)

Thanks for the great advice,Any future hikes planned?

Thanks for the video! How many KM you usually walked per day?

Hey David, thanks so much for this video. My wife and I are also Californians from Sonoma. We have been talking about the Camino for over 5 years, but my wife had an issue with her hip. She had a replacement in December, so we are hoping to do the camino in the fall or next year. I've heard others say that September is a good month, and I share your opinion about hiking when it's too hot. We are considering the northern route, at least part of it. Did you speak with others that did some or all of the northern route?

I have done it twice in September. Then headed on over to Munich for Oktoberfest!

Hey man! I absolutely love your video & vibes!🤙 you got me SOOO much more excited about it!! I am kind of in the same boat as you- I’m an American who moved to Spain(Catalonia) I’ve lived here for almost 3 years and I’m planning on doing the Camino for the 1st time this summer, hopefully with no Covid restrictions....you think the path will be open this summer, no? Hopefully everything will be okay🤞 what is the best way to get to St Jean du Port from Pamplona/Spain? I couldn’t find a direct bus there....🤔

Would I be called weird for walking this route just for the scenery? A sort of "walking holiday" through Northern Spain. Start in Paris, train down to St Jean then do the walk.

Great videos. I'm doing the Camino next summer. Did you need a sleeping bag or blanket? or do the hostels have enough linens to keep one warm?

Thank you. I’m going adept 2022, do I need a blanket with the sleep sack?

Hello David,great video. I have a question :) What about tent and wild camping,is it possible,did you saw someone doing it? Thanks!

Hi David, I was a bit worried about your "do not bring boots but trail runners". Having blisters has little to do with wearing boots or trail runners, it is more about foot care and how you use your shoes. Perhaps you were lucky with the weather but if is raining, boots will prevent your feet getting soaked (no blisters) and trail runners will get you into trouble (blisters). Apart from that: a lot of the Camino is indeed not technical but I have seen many people with ankle injuries, even people air lifted from mountains, which I think might have been prevented with proper guidance. It seems that I live around the corner of your Amsterdam home so if you want to have a talk about Camino's, give me a shout .

I loved your explanation ...your "look" about the "Camino". What do you think about to do the Camino in the pandemic time? Do you know about ? Because I Felt a "called" to do the way... And the albergues say that the Camino never close and in this last year a lot of people did It.

Thank you for your insights 🙏🏻 can you tell me how you got back from Santiago to Amsterdam? Kind regards Nicky

Hey David! I've enjoyed so much your Camino Portugués series, that is the same Camino I'm planning to do next year! I do appreciate the details and input you provide for those of us who have yet to experience the Camino. I do have questions regarding where and when you get you pilgrim passport stamped. Does it come with a cost? Where exactly along the Camino Portugués did you get a stamp? Hope to hear from you!

I hope the pandemic didn’t, wouldn’t change this... social distancing and all... thank you for . One of the best videos on camino ive seen. May i ask how did you get to SJPDP? Did you fly to Paris or any otehr European City? And any recom for accommodation especially on your first few days? Any good shoes, socks and back pack recom too? I’m a traveller but first time ill be embarking on a pilgrimage (Aug-Sept this year) and i haven’t hiked before so im kinda overwhelmed by this.

Thank you, David, You answered all the questions I asked in your earlier video. The only one left is - If I will do it with my daughters and/or friends. How do we get started? Looks like it is more economical and also adventurous doing it on our own than with a travel agency.

Hi David, thank you for your sharing your experience n expenditure with us. To walk the Camino is in my bucket list. However I wouldn't be able to in so many days. Can you advice me on a shorter journey, starting point n my ultimate goal would be the Cathedral. I am from Malaysia and which airport should I fly in to begin my walk. Thanks.

Is it safe to carry cash on us throughout the journey? What is the ATM machine does not work

Thanks for this great, informative video David. Did you just bring a sleeping bag liner and if so was it warm enough? I'm debating whether to bring a lightweight sleeping bag or just a liner for my walk in September - October.

Thanks David, for all your tips and follow ups of your journey. I wanted to know if you could charge your phone at albergues? Also, I was wondering if you could shower at albergues. I really hope to one day walk the camino, and your videos have been really helpful and inspiring, so thank you for that 🤗

I always wanted to walk it but I can't get over the religious aspect of it, I could ignore it but I am just that shallow :) I see those shells on/in the ground here in Haarlem. going to do the Pennine way in Britain someday.

At Cruz de Ferro I totally lot my shit! LOL. I strted blubbering like a baby. Not sobbing. Not whimpering. But out right wailing. It was the most emotional place on the camino.

I walked it twice had..no blisters. I wore hitec sandels (with backstrap) with pantihose and socks

long hikes is ok with me, whats disabling for me is my phobia of heights, will this be a concern for camino?

Can I buy a map or book on each section and town names where I stop each night Thanks