Plan Your Journey: Research Tickets And Transport Tips
Preparing a trip is far from being easy, you could even say its kind of an art!Seasoned traveler have knowledge and tricks they can use to make planning easier and faster. Here are some of those, to make your life easier, help you find the perfect means of transport and get to Saint Jean Pied de Port like a pro!
How Long Should I Stay In St Jean Pied De Port
St. Jean Pied de Port is a picturesque village located in France, just before the France/Spain border. On the first day of the Camino Frances, pilgrims leave SJP and head through the mountains towards the border. Depending on how long you prefer to walk, youll reach Spain within 1-2 days walking.
Depending on the time of your arrival, we recommend you stay 1-2 nights in St. Jean Pied de Port. First, youll want to rest before your first days walk. Jet lag can be a killer! Since the hike over the Pyrenees is one of the hardest of the entire journey, we suggest you start out with plenty of energy for the walk so as not to injure yourself.
A second reason to stay in SJP is to finish any last minute preparations for the journey. You may need to get some last minute gear from a sporting goods store. For example, if you didnt bring trekking poles or a poncho, you can buy them. You can also pick up your credencial from the tourist office.
The town will be abuzz with other pilgrims eager to start walking. Although youll be excited, take a minute to take a breath. Meet other pilgrims, have a good meal and wine, and get a good nights sleep! As a matter of fact, many pilgrims make friends for the journey in SJP.
Now that youre ready to head to SJP, dont forget to protect your trip by purchasing travel insurance. Unfortunately, things happen. From bags getting lost to injuries on the trail, its a good idea to purchase insurance.
How Do I Get To Sarria
You can fly into Santiago Airport from London Stansted with Ryanair, London Gatwick with Easyjet, or internally from many other operators. Fly from Madrid, Barcelona and Paris with Iberia or Vueling. Ryanair also fly internally Madrid-Santiago. To reach Sarria take a bus from Santiago de Compostela to Lugo. From Lugo you connect to Sarria with a local bus: www.monbus.es/index2.htm To reach Sarria from Santiago can catch the ALSA bus to Lugo and then another bus to Sarria. Total journey time from Santiago to Sarria: 3hrs
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Public Transport Routes That Require A Change
- From Biarritz: You can take a bus from Biarritz to Bayonne and then take the train from Bayonne to St Jean Pied de Port.
- From Hendaye or Irun: Take a train from Hendaye to Bayonne and then another train from Bayonne to St Jean Pied de Port. From Irun, walk across the border to Hendaye.
- From San Sebastián: Take a Euskotren to Hendaye (just on the other side of the French border. Then take a train to Bayonne and then another train to St Jean Pied de Port. This sounds difficult but all parts of the trip are short.
- From Bilbao: Take a bus from Bilbao to San Sebastián and then follow the above directions from San Sebastián to St Jean Pied de Port. Alternatively, go to Pamplona and follow directions from there.
- From Zaragoza: Go to San Sebastián and follow directions from those cities.
- From Barcelona: Go to San Sebastián and follow directions from those cities.
- From Madrid: Go to San Sebastián and follow directions from there.
Other Itineraries In Spain
- Barcelona Pamplona Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Bilbao Pamplona Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Bilbao Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Bilbao Saint Jean Pied de Port
- San Sebastian Pamplona Saint Jean Pied de Port
- San Sebastian Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- San Sebastian Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Irun Hendaye Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
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The Highs And Lows Of Completing A Long
It goes without saying that the end of any long-distance walk invokes a mixed range of emotional responses gratitude and relief that youve made it safely that tomorrows weather doesnt matter so much that tomorrows schedule may allow a luxurious sleep-in and blisters and stiff muscles can finally start to recover.
Two fellow walkers, arriving in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port moments before me
But all endings carry an element of sadness that the new friends youve made over the past weeks will be going their own ways that tomorrow may actually need some sort of plan and activities more complicated than putting one foot in front of the other and remembering to keep your water bottle topped up.
Porte Saint-Jacques
Whether youve come 750 kilometres from le-Puy-en-Velay, broken the journey into shorter stages or youre continuing on across northern Spain to Santiago, take a moment to celebrate and raise a glass to acknowledge your achievement!
Rue de la Citadelle
Preparations Before Leaving Australia
- Check all your travel documents, passport and tickets. Make sure that you can carry these securely, particularly if planning to use the RER or Metro trains in Paris.
- Acquire some Euros in notes. Its handy to have some on arrival to use for transportation, food and drink. It may take some time to find an ATM.
- Purchase your ticket from Paris to Bayonne before leaving Australia. The cost is often less than the over the counter price.
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First Fears At St Jean Pied De Port
This is the view that most pilgrims first get of St Jean Pied de Port as they get off the train. I remember it quite clearly, I was wondering what was ahead of me. I had not read much about the Camino before heading off there for a month, my flat mate and college friend had been my sole source of information.
At St Jean my short lived fear set in. I had done some planning, packed way too much, stopped over in Paris to see a friend, and now here I was ready to walk across Spain. What have I done, I though. Fear has always been there in my life, I still do things but I am aware of its background noise. It is odd that I didnt expect it to be there on the Camino, perhaps it is so subtle that I have no expectation of it till it makes it presence felt. But as usual I trudge on, and I did.
I had imagined me walking in wilderness, I had wondered how I would cope not talking to other people for days on end oh I was so wrong about the whole experience. I was not committed to walking the whole Camino I had decided if it was too hard or if I did not like it I was off somewhere else I had some money in the bank and a completely free sumer in front of me, I was treating it just like a walking holiday it can be and it can be more than that, so much more.
Eurail From Paris To Saint
To travel by Eurail from Paris to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, please read the following information and blog posts. Use our information about train types and the schedule planer tool. On TGV high-speed trains a reservation is required.
Your travel route could be like that.
691 km
How to use the following information: we show you the best routes and where to buy tickets. On longer routes you may need more than one ticket. Book your tickets step by step as explained. If you have questions about the route from Paris to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, please ask in our forum. Of course, sometimes there are as well other travel routes possible.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train connections : popular connections travelled by other users
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Getting To St Jean Pied De Port From Pamplona
Pamplona is the closest large Spanish city to St. Jean Pied de Port. Thus, you may fly, train, or bus into Pamplona to get closer to the starting point of the Camino. Sometimes, the bus to SJP leaves Pamplona just once a day, but often more in the high season. Depending on your arrival time, you may choose to stay in Pamplona overnight to catch it the following day. You may also take or share a taxi or private car.
Since the options from Pamplona are the same no matter how you get to town, weve consolidated them in one section. Check out the options below.
Other Possible Itineraries In France
- Bordeaux Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Bordeaux Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Toulouse Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Toulouse Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Pau Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Pau Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Lourdes Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Lourdes Saint Jean Pied de Port
- Hendaye Bayonne Saint Jean Pied de Port
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How Do I Get To The Starting Point Of The Camino
In order to start your journey on the Camino Frances on the Way of St. James, you need to know how to get to St. Jean Pied de Port. Located some 500 miles/770 km away from Santiago, its best to fly into airports nearby rather than Santiago.
The most popular major international airports to fly into to get to St. Jean Pied de Port are Paris, Barcelona, and Madrid. From there, the smaller nearby cities to fly into are Biarritz, Pamplona, and San Sebastian. In the following sections, well give details on how to get to SJP from each of these cities.
The methods of getting to SJP once youre in France or Spain are up to you. Well cover flights, trains, busses, taxis, and private shuttles. Before you write off a certain method as too expensive or uncomfortable, take a look at all your options. Sometimes what you think is the cheapest option actually isnt really or will cause you to have to stay overnight at a hotel, which could be more expensive in the long run.
That being said, check out the following options, and decide which is best for you! But, always check schedules ahead of time as things change from time to time. Plus, daytime schedules often differ from weekend or holiday schedules. As well off-season and on-season schedules and prices may differ. Schedules and prices up to date at the time of writing.
Which Major Airport Do You Fly Into For Saint Jean Pied De Port
There is no magical best way to get to Saint Jean Pied de Port. The nearest airport to Saint Jean Pied de Port is in Biarritz. But flying into Biarritz isnt necessarily the cheapest or fastest way to get to St Jean.
The closest major transcontinental airports to St Jean are Paris, Barcelona and Madrid. Regardless of which major airport hub you choose, getting to St Jean will require at least three connections, with some combination of air, train and bus.
If you can catch reasonable connections, it takes roughly the same amount of time and transfers getting to St Jean from any of the three airports. The cheapest option is the train from Madrid Atocha station and the most expensive is a plane to Biarritz, France. The options noted below range from 55-245 and require 6-8 hours.
So, pick the airport that offers you the cheapest or most convenient routing from home.
You may also want to think about where youd like to spend a night burning off the jet lag on the front end OR resting up and sightseeing on the back end.
You can also look into whats called an open jaw return fare. This means that you go into one airport and out of another such as into Paris and out of Madrid. These routes are worth checking out because they are sometimes no more expensive than going out and back from the same airport.
Once youve made a decision about your international hub, its time to sort out your on-the-ground logistics for how to get to St Jean Pied de Port.
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How To Get To Saint Jean Pied De Port From Pamplona
Most pilgrims get to Saint Jean Pied de Port from Pamplona. The city has an airport located 6km away with connecting flights to Madrid and Barcelona through Iberia and Air Nostrum airlines and from Portugal through TAP. You can also get to Pamplona by train, with several daily conections with Barcelona and Madrid or by bus from cities like Madrid , Barcelona or Bilbao .
From Pamplona to Saint Jean Pied de Port by bus.From March to the beginning of October, the bus company Alsa has several connections per day. The rest of the year, Autocares Artieda has a regular bus line from Monday thru Saturday between Pamplona and Roncesvalles, with a duration of 1 hour 10 minutes. From Roncesvalles, the only option is to take a taxi.
From Pamplona to Saint Jean Pied de Port by taxi. Many pilgrims choose to make the journey Pamplona-Saint Jean Pied de Port by taxi. There are several companies that depart from the Pamplona airport, the train station or the bus station: Teletaxi San Fermín – which gives the option to share taxi with other pilgrims, Navartrip or Taxi Pirineos.
Its also possible to get to Saint Jean Pied de Port from different French localities that may be of interest to pilgrims or from other Spanish cities close to the border, like San Sebastián.
Stopping In Paris Check Out These Tours
If you have the time, why not check out Paris for a day or two? Lots of pilgrims stop and get over jet lag before starting their Camino, see the sights, and eat yummy macaroons!
Whenever I only have a day in a city, I consider taking a tour. Although they might cost more than wandering on my own for the day, day tours allow you to cover a lot of ground quickly! By taking a tour, you can get a good enough feel for the city to determine if youd like to return for an extended period.
Check out these hand-picked tours for Paris.
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