Figuring the Cost of the Camino

Pilgrim dinner at San Anton, one of my favorite stops! Donativo!

Today, someone asked on Facebook, 

"What does it cost to do the entire Camino?"
Answers varied from $1000 to $6000- and up.
And honestly, that's right.
It just depends on you!

Are you a person who needs a private room every night?
Are you willing to sleep on a mat on the floor?
Are you willing to take a tent and sleep under the stars?
Must you eat restaurant food each night 

or could you picnic?
How often do you need a shower?

Are you already covered by medical insurance?
Are you a person who needs travel insurance?

These are all considerations 

when figuring the cost of the Camino.

I will cover travel insurance in another post, but it can come in handy. Last year while on the Camino, my sister in law died and I could not get home without paying a huge amount of money. You can often purchase travel insurance directly from the airlines when you purchase your ticket. Or check with AAA if you are in the USA.

Every year, I walk one of the routes of the Camino 

as well as taking a small group for 21-24 days.

I suggest you do a spreadsheet on Excel or even on paper and calculate your costs ahead of time.

Here are the things you need to consider. 

I think in Euros when in Spain, 

so add these costs up separately, 

then look at the current exchange rate for Euros 

to your country's currency to find out 

your approximate cost, 

then pad it a bit for emergencies 

like taxis and special dinners out.

AIRFARE.  First and foremost, consider flying out in shoulder season.  Before May 15 and after September 15, your tickets are going to be as much as 20%-50% less.  In tourist season, the fares shoot up! And honestly, it's nicer walking the Camino in early spring or late fall when there are fewer pilgrims.

I buy my airfare at least 150 days early. 

The earlier you buy the ticket, the less it is. 

So figure out when you can leave and get that ticket.

The closer you get to your departure date, 

the higher the fares will be.

Don't buy the first ticket you find.  

Shop around.  

I use CheapOAir and have found some exceptional deals. Despite what people say, airfare is a good value right now. Last year, I spent only $650 round trip to Madrid 

in March.  

I spent $970 on my round trip ticket to Madrid the year before.

  In 1996, I flew to Portugal 

and the round trip ticket was over $700. 

That's almost 20 years ago! 

So I'm not complaining about airfare.

Try different airlines and different routes. Once I found a round trip ticket to Madrid on Aer Lingus (an Irish airline) and the only issue was it went through Dublin. If you can sleep anywhere, you can get really good fares if you're willing to make stops along the way.  Long layovers can be a blessing if you're flying from the West Coast of the US. They give you a chance to get out of your seat and walk around, find food, even get a hotel for the night or explore a US city you've never seen. Just budget it into your trip.

Try flying out of a SMALLER international airport. When I fly out of Fresno, California instead of Los Angeles, I can often save $200 !!  Why? The airport taxes are much less because they want to encourage people to use it.

If you plan even earlier, you can use mileage credit cards to help.  Sign up for a credit card that gives mileage, then use those to help on the cost of your ticket.

BUS OR TRAIN MADRID TO PAMPLONA.  

No matter where you fly in, you'll have to get to St. Jean Pied de Port or to Roncesvalles. Experience has shown me that the BEST way for me to arrive from the USA is to fly into Madrid, then bus to Pamplona and catch a bus or taxi to St. Jean or Roncesvalles.

I love seeing Pamplona first for two reasons. 

I stay there a couple of days to adjust to the time change. 

If you see Pamplona first, then when you're walking the Camino, you can just walk right through and stay in the very cool albergue at Trinidad de Arre (before Pamplona) or in Cizor Menor (after Pamplona). Getting to the point you walk "between" the stages in Brierley's book will get you out of the herd of pilgrims 

who follow the stages like a Bible, 

and into a place you don't have to rush 

for a bed each night!

There are buses all day long from the Madrid airport Terminal 4 (T4) to Pamplona.  You literally just have to walk outside the terminal to find the bus.  The bus is nothing like the nasty old Greyhound bus we have here in the USA. Spain has excellent, beautiful Mercedes buses with HUGE sightseeing windows. The trip to Pamplona is very comfortable and it will give you an opportunity to see the scenery.  The cost from the airport to Pamplona at this time runs around €35.  So add €35-40 to your costs.

I do not suggest the train unless you are planning on staying a night or two in Madrid. The train is more expensive and it's more difficult to catch. You must take the Cercanius (do a search on this blog) to the Atocha train station then catch a train to Pamplona from there. 

The bus goes directly from the airport to Pamplona.

PAMPLONA TO SJPP or Roncesvalles.  Book a hostal that first night in Pamplona. Add this to your costs. Go onto www.booking.com and find an inexpensive place in the old section of Pamplona and book it.  Look for a place near the bus station so you can just walk to the station from your hostal.  You will have to give a credit card number, but if you are careful, you can book a place that allows you to cancel up to 48 hours before the stay.  Add this cost to your spreadsheet. For a bed in a hostal, you will pay €5-25. For a single room you will pay €25-upwards. If you're with a friend, you can almost always find lodging for €30-upwards 

and split it!

If you know when you will arrive, book it NOW, not later. Prices go up as you near the date and lodging is filled up.

During the season, there are buses that go directly from Pamplona to SJPP or Roncesvalles. They cost €25-40. Add this to your costs.

If there are several of you, consider booking a taxi. 

Up to 8 people can go in one taxi and the cost can be split. If you are interested in this option, email me for more information. 

Marapi taxi runs this service 

and up to 8 people can fit in a bus taxi.
Caminofacil also runs and taxi 

and there are others.

The First Night in SJPP or Orisson or Roncesvalles.  Whether I'm staying in SJPP or Orisson, I ALWAYS book my first night.  In SJPP and Orisson, you can expect to pay €18 upwards for a bed. 

In Roncesvalles this year (2023) it is €14 for a single pilgrim at the albergue plus €11 for dinner. 

Book on their website and 

book your dinner is my advice.  

There are under 200 beds at Roncesvalles and often there are over 400 pilgrims that stop in SJPP.  

There are also several nice hotels in Roncesvalles

and you can find them online along with their fees. 

But they fill up FAST.  Add this to your spreadsheet.

Orisson will book you a bed or "half-board." This means you get dinner, your bed, and breakfast next morning. Since there is no other place to eat in Orisson, unless you bring a picnic, you will need to book the half board. 

Orisson fills up fast. 

I'd book the minute you know when you'll arrive, months in advance if possible.

If Orisson is full.  If Orisson is full, you have options. Try booking at BORDA which is 1 kilometer past Orisson. It's a WONDERFUL place and the price includes a nice family style dinner.

You can walk via Valcarlos and stay in their albergue.

Or you can book TWO nights in SJPP.  

You will walk up to Orisson the first day, then shuttle down around 2 pm. (Be sure to book your shuttle!) Next morning, you shuttle back up to Orisson, then continue walking to Roncesvalles.

The next 32 stages:

Figure out how many days you think you'll need private lodging (if any). A private room is a wonderful way to treat yourself. It's especially nice in the larger cities, where you can take a rest day and tourist around.  I often will find a fellow pilgrim and split the cost of a room in one of the larger cities. But you can find inexpensive private rooms in most villages and cities with no problem.  Figuring high, I'd multiply the number of days you want a private by €75. But if you're careful, you can find a private room for under €40 pretty easily, especially if you book early, as much as a year in advance.

Then multiply the remaining days by €20.  

This is an average. 

Some days will be donative (which does not mean FREE, but means leaving a donation on €10-€20, 

depending on if they feed you. 

Some days might be more. 

But €20 will work out as a good average cost per night in albergues and refuges.

If you are willing to sleep out or carry a tent, you can save most of the lodging costs. You could stay in a donativo refugio every few days to shower. I have slept out under the stars on the Via de la Plata and it is a wonderful memory! Last year, I watched for camping spots and found that if a person is stealthy, you can camp along most of the Camino. Tip: Most of the good camping spots are AFTER the villages. That's a good thing. You can shop for your food or eat at a bar, then walk on to find a place to pitch the tent or lay your sleeping bag. Just please carry out your trash and leave no trace!

Do a search on this blog for camping information - 

there is a blog post dedicated to it.

On the other hand, 

a night in a Parador can be quite spendy!

But it just might be worth it to treat yourself 

once on the trip…

On my first Camino, walking the meseta was a cold, windy experience and I was sick. I got into Santo Domingo frozen and weary and the albergue didn't open until 4 pm!!!  I made an on-the-spot decision to go to the Parador. I didn't even ask the price. I just laid down my credit card and sighed with relief at the big cushy white bed and REAL bathtub!  I took 3 hot baths that night and was treated to breakfast in bed next morning. When I got the $300 bill back home, I almost had a heart attack, but you know what? It was worth every penny!

A night at the Parador with bathtub and this breakfast cost me $300!

FOOD.  My personal food budget is €20-30 per day and I manage fine. I have a coffee and pastry or a slice of tortilla in the morning. I find a Menu del Dia for lunch (a better value than the Pilgrim Plate dinner), buy or make a bocadillo for dinner, and I picnic often.

Joe enjoying a picnic

Menu del Dia is a 3 course meal and averages €8-14. Pilgrim Plates for dinner range from €10 to €18, depending on where you are. A picnic lunch can be as little as €5 for bread, cheese, meat, and wine or juice. I've made pasta, sauce, bread and wine for €3 with food left over to share. See my blog on Desayuno (breakfast), and Almuerzo (lunch) on the Camino.

Pilgrim meal for 2 =  €3

Many albergues have a kitchen where you can cook.  You can buy inexpensive food, like pasta and sauce or sandwich makings at the tiendas along the way.

A €7 bowl of caldo verde
and a €2 glass of wine
can go a long way in satisfying you!

Some of the best meals and the most FUN meals I've had have been in donativo refugios, where there are family style meals served. You can't beat the company, especially if there's wine and a guitar!

Anyway, decide what type of meals you would like, multiply it by the number of days and add this to your budget. But for me, €20-30 is a good average.

It also depends on which route you're walking.

After dinner wine at San Nicholas

Paella with our host, Pepe

Lodging in Santiago.  You can find lodging in Santiago for €16 and up, depending on your tastes. If you are adventurous, you can walk into a bar OUT of the tourist area and ask if they know of rooms.  I found a wonderful room a couple of years ago for €15 this way.

If you aren't that bold, I would book private lodging ahead here. If you want a pilgrim room at San Martin Pinario, you can book via email. The cost is €26-30 and it includes a huge buffet breakfast. The rooms are sweet, clean, simple, ensuite and the Hospederia is gorgeous!  Again, consider sharing a double or triple with other pilgrims and you can save quite a bit of cash.

Pilgrim room at SMP. Sometimes the window is much smaller, but the room is clean and ensuite!

Train or bus BACK to Madrid.  There are trains and buses from Santiago to Madrid each and every day.  I do not like the night train. It's noisy and uncomfortable, and I like to see the scenery.  But there is an afternoon train.  I prefer the lovely Mercedez Benz buses in Spain!  

Find bus ticket costs on www.alsa.es or on www.movelia.es.   

Don't forget to add this cost in.

By the way, if you're booking bus tickets on ALSA, 

use Paypal. 

They don't like credit cards unless they are Spanish.

If you're flying out of Madrid, consider adding a day of touristing. Lots to see in Madrid and if you book early, you can get a hostal right near the Atocha station so you can just train back to the airport when you are ready to leave. Check booking.com for prices.

I add in a couple of hundred bucks for incidentals 

and that's it.

This budget can have a wide range, 

but this will get you started.

If you're really wanting to go SUPER inexpensively, 

do the following:

1) Shop around and buy airfare early

2) Buy gear at Goodwill or borrow it

3) Use what's in your closet - 

you do NOT need special gear

4) Eat picnic style

5) Carry a featherweight tent and camp

6) Research and stay in parochials when possible.

Remember, if the albergue or parochial feeds you, please leave a generous donation from your food budget as well as your sleeping budget. They don't run on air! Tomorrow's pilgrims will eat according to what you donate tonight - so please pay it forward.

If all of this overwhelms you, 

consider walking with one of our small groups.

We do "the best" of the Camino.

Check our website for spaces. 

Learn about that here:

Anniewalkers Camino

I know I haven't covered everything,

but this will sure get you started.

Have fun planning and BUEN CAMINO!

Feel free to post questions.