[Gocamino] Transportation from Santiago to Lisbon

[Eldor Pederson]

There are several ways to get between Santiago and Lisboa overland via either bus routes or rail connections. It used to be necessary to change trains at the border, but check the RENFE website (www.renfe.es<about:blank>) as there may now be through service. A little knowledge of Portuguese is helpful if you plan a coastal bus trip as connections between the smaller towns are by local companies.

>From north to south, there are a bunch of places worth stopping enroute. Still in Spain, the town of Padron, ancient Iria Flavia, is where the stone boat carrying the bones of St. James reputedly washed ashore. Pontevedra is a medium sized city and reasonably pleasant. For no specific reason, I am rather fond of Vigo, a city that is a little reminiscent of Bellingham, set on the Rias Baixas, narrow fjords with offshore islands. There is not a lot to see or do, but it is a pleasant small city. 

Once into Portugal one would be hard pressed to do everything worth doing in a month let alone just a week. For starters, there are lovely beaches along the coast, and two cities on the must see list: Oporto (Porto, be forewarned, if you go by train, the station is quite a distance from the center, as it is in Lisboa). ), the largest with a dramatic site on the Douro is a well-preserved old city, Portugal having been mostly spared the various wars that damaged so many cities elsewhere in Europe, and Coimbra the ancient university town. Other potential town stops include Viana do Castelo, and the ever popular pilgrimage site at Fatima  between Coimbra and Lisboa. As a trip out of Oporto, the wine country of the Douro Valley is certainly worth seeing; the narrow terraces on which the grapes for port wine are grown are most amazing. Close to Lisboa is the peninsula with Sintra at its center, and no trip to Portugal is complete without seeing that area. Lisboa itself is is a pleasant place to spend time, somewhat less hectic than other European capitals but well-endowed with things to do, great places to eat, etc. Its central area is a creation of the 18th century, an immense set of earthquakes and tsunamis in 1755 having destroyed much of it necessitating rebuilding (read Voltaire's Candide where the earthquake and events following it are a major part of the story). The resultant Pombaline Lisboa is a magnificent example of town planning and late 18th century architecture, a center overlooked by the parts of the city on the steep hills around the center reached by an absolutely amazing variety of urban transportation choices. Lisboa also has a fantastic and often overlooked museum in the Gulbenkian Foundation and between that museum and the center one of the finest botanical gardens in the world. Before leaving home, get a copy of (Nobel prize for literature winner) Jose Saramago's book on his journey around his native Portugal (sorry I do not have an exact citation at hand).

If you have other questions, contact me.


E. O. Pederson
Seattle, WA



  My wife and I will be walking the Camino this summer from SJPP.  Our flight
  back to the US leaves from Lisbon about a week after we expect to arrive in
  Santiago.  Does anyone have suggestions about getting to Lisbon by public
  transportation and getting to enjoy stops through Portugal along the way?
  Is there good bus transportation from Santiago along the coast of Portugal
  to Lisbon?

  Our trip through Portugal will be our opportunity to spend some time
  relaxing on the beach and to celebrate the completion of our journey.  Any
  suggestions of places we should see along the way?

  Brad & Sandra Hubbard
  Bellingham, Washington