We decided to start Camino 2019 in Faro. Because we had heard that this Camino was shrouded in mystery? Gleaming with unseen treasures? Boasting the best views in Europe? The most fantastic scenery? Well, perhaps a main decider was that after a thorough search of Skyscanner looking at all flights from the UK to Spain or Portugal we found that Jet2 Airlines was offering flights from cold, grey Birmingham (the city we had resided in for the festive period) for 32 euros all in. It was decided, we would start this new adventure in Faro, down in the Algarve.

The weather forecast for the next ten days in Portugal promised average temperatures of between 15 and 17°C for the next ten days. That’s a full 34 degrees up on Liisa’s native Estonia… The forecast showed ten gleaming yellow sunshine symbols all in a row, not a cloud in sight. Deal done! 

There was some element of sensible decision making in choosing the Camino Portuguese aside from the cheap flights. The terrain is fairly flat and that combined with the good weather means we shouldn’t have to cross any blizzard infested mountains. Also, this Camino is the second most popular after Camino Frances. That said, the statistics show that over the whole of January 2018 a total of only 276 (16,95%) pilgrims walked Portuguese, and I would assume most of them started in Porto, not Faro! This compares to 995 (61,12%) pilgrims walking the Camino Frances. The figure for the Camino Portuguese that follows the coast shows just 36 (2,21%) pilgrims braved the Atlantic winds over the same period. It seems common sense that the less people there are, the less albergues (or hostels) will be open and so we’re counting on Camino Portuguese being our best bet after Frances of surviving the next couple of months and finding a roof over our heads. The steady daytime temperatures drop sharply by night to an average of just 4 or 5°C so we do not want to be sleeping out! Having packed light and cheap our sleeping bags are more decorative than functional!! There seems no statistics on how many pilgrims start from Faro, if any! It may well be that we have to try to pick up AirB&Bs for a while…We have no idea! We will let you know… 🙂