Water: whether you like to use a bladder or Nalgene bottle, ensure you have something to carry water in.
Headlamp and spare batteries: useful in albergues or starting early to avoid the summer heat. Use the red infrared setting, if possible, in albergues when others are sleeping.
Towel: take a lightweight, quick-drying compact towel.
Electronics: take a European travel adaptor if coming from abroad, and although common-sense, never leave anything unattended while it’s charging.
First aid kit: take a compact kit including plasters, painkillers, anti-inflammatories, antihistamines, antiseptic cream, scissors, tweezers, Imodium and any medicine you require on a daily basis.
Toiletries: you’ll need shampoo (travel-size bottles or a Lush shampoo bar), multi-purpose soap (for clothes and body), toothbrush, toothpaste, tissues, sunscreen, lip-balm, brush/comb and any sanitary products.
Other gear: consider also taking trekking poles, hat, sunglasses, buff/scarf, antibacterial hand-gel, zip-lock bags (for rubbish), utensils (spork and cup), ear plugs, eye mask, camp-pillow, safety pins (for hanging wet clothes on your pack), needle and thread (for blisters or sewing), clothes pegs.
Luggage transfers
Companies operating a luggage transport service, from accommodation to accommodation, include Tuitrans www.tuitrans.com and Camino Facil www.caminofacil.net (Porto–Santiago) or Paq Mochila through the Spanish postal system, www.elcaminoconcorreos.com (Tui–Santiago).
Waymarking and GPS
Various waymarks along the Camino; the blue boot signals left for Fátima, the yellow one right for Santiago
If starting from Lisbon, you’ll be following blue Fátima arrows as well as yellow Santiago arrows until Santarém when the two routes split. After Santarém, if you’re ever unsure whether you’re going the right way and you haven’t seen a yellow arrow, look behind – if you see a blue Fátima arrow (heading south) you’ll know you’re on the right track.
For the most part, the Camino is well waymarked with yellow arrows and scallop shell markers, or an ‘X’ meaning wrong way. Desvio means detour and will often be accompanied by a map displaying the available options.
Extra detailed descriptions have been given in this guide for entering/exiting cities as the arrows (on street lamps, behind road signs, painted on the pavement) can easily be hidden behind cars, posters etc. Outside of built-up areas, arrows may be painted on rocks, trees, signs… you’ll get used to looking for them everywhere! There are new brown waymarks on the pavement through many towns on the Coastal Camino in Portugal, although they’re not as obvious as the blue/yellow waymarks so you may need to look more carefully.
A GPS is not required, although GPX tracks are available online if you would like to download them to a smartphone or tablet: www.cicerone.co.uk/932/GPX.
In an effort to move the Central route away from busy roads and highways, the route has been changing and improving with pilgrim-friendly infrastructure each year. Every effort has been made to provide up-to-date, accurate and clear directions, and further updates will be posted online at www.cicerone.co.uk/932/updates.
Using this guide
Each stage begins with an information box giving the start/finish points, distance, total ascent/descent, difficulty rating (easy, moderate or hard – based on a combination of distance, ascent and walking time), duration, details of any cafés and accommodation, and special notes. Distances for cafés and accommodation are cumulative; for example, ‘Coimbra (28.7km)’ indicates that from the start of the stage to the accommodation in Coimbra is 28.7km, and ‘Conímbriga (12km +210m)’ indicates that the accommodation is a 210m detour off the Camino.
Following the information box is a short introduction with an overview of the stage, and then detailed route directions. Stage maps are provided at a scale of 1:100,000, as well as elevation profiles. Points of interest along the way are noted, as are any facilities that you may pass. (All prices are accurate at the time of writing in autumn 2017. Accommodation prices when stated are based on starting prices for one person, and star ratings are ‘official’ regional ratings rather than recommendations.) Keywords in bold in the route description relate to features that you will also see on the map for that stage, so you can cross-reference where you are. The following abbreviations are used: ‘KSO’ – keep straight on, ‘LHS’ – left-hand side, ‘RHS’ – right-hand side, and ‘NM’ – national monument.
In the route descriptions, distances in brackets (2.2km) within paragraphs measure from the previous given distance, while distances at the end of paragraphs – for example 6.2km/22.8km – represent first the total distance described in that paragraph (6.2km) and then the total cumulative distance for the stage (22.8km).
Throughout the route description, as well as on road signs and many maps, Portuguese national highways have the prefix ‘N’ followed by the highway number (N1, for example), and ‘M’ is used for municipal roads (M538). You may also see the same roads denoted with ‘En’ (Estrada Nacional), ‘Em’ (Estrada Municipais) or CM (Caminho Municipais).
The Galician spelling of names for places such as churches, chapels and bridges, which differs slightly from the Spanish, is used in the Galician section of the route description as this is what you’ll encounter first on signs in that region.
Leave no trace
Pilgrim numbers have been increasing year-on-year and the Portuguese Camino is now the second most-walked Camino after the Camino Frances – which, sadly, also means an increase in rubbish along the way. Zip-lock bags are handy for disposing of tissues/rubbish. Leave only footprints!
CENTRAL CAMINO
Cloister in Convento de São Francisco, Santaróm (Central Camino Stage 4)
LISBON, 2M, POP. 547,733
Europe’s westernmost capital, Lisbon is a hilly cosmopolitan city by the River Tagus with deep historical roots. Known as ‘Olisipo’ to the Phoenicians, it was designated a municipium under Julius Caesar, called Felicitas Julia. In 1147 Afonso Henriques ‘recaptured’ Lisbon from the Moors, and it became the capital from 1255. The city was extensively destroyed on All Saints Day in 1755 by a devastating earthquake (and subsequent fires and tsunami) and rebuilt by the Marquês de Pombal; the Convento do Carmo serves as a haunting reminder.
A ship with two ravens adorns lamp posts, street tiles and Lisbon’s coat of arms; it’s believed to be from the 12th century when the remains of Lisbon’s Patron Saint, St Vincent were brought from the Algarve by ship, followed by two ravens. Lisbon actually has two Patron Saints, St Vincent and the more popularly known St Anthony.
No trip to Lisbon would be complete without visiting the picturesque suburb of Belém, where the caravels set sail on their voyages around the world. Some 8km west of Lisbon’s Praça do Comércio, it is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Mosteiro dos Jerónimos and Torre de Belém. It’s also the location of the MAAT Museum, Pastéis de Belém (custard tarts) and much more.
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