How Much Money For Food On The Camino?

When I start decided I wanted to walk the Camino, finances were an afterthought.

Every business concern in my brain was full-bodied towards whether or not I'd be able to make it to Santiago. The Camino felt like it was going to be such a task for me that I barely even considered how much it would cost.

It was a pleasant surprise, then, when I touched downward in Spain and discovered this walk was seriously cheap. I'm talking €5 a nighttime adaptation, €two breakfasts, and a canteen of wine included with every dinner.

Today, I want to dive into how much it costs to walk the Camino de Santiago, whether you're looking to walk on a tight budget or ensure you lot have a reasonable amount of condolement. I'm using a whole bunch of data for this postal service, cross-referencing figures from my Camino Primitivo walk with my swain's expenditure from walking the Camino Frances, Portuguese, Finisterre, and parts of the Mozárabe.

Let'due south kick things off with how much I spent on the Primitivo.

My cheapest day on the Camino: €17

Breakfast: €2, lunch: €3, dinner: €7, accommodation: €5

My virtually expensive 24-hour interval on the Camino: €45

Breakfast: €3, tiffin: €4, dinner: €8, accommodation: €thirty

My average daily expenses on the Camino: €33

Breakfast: €3, lunch: €4, dinner: €9, adaptation: €17

Albergue on the Camino Primitivo — I paid €v a night to stay in this 11th century monastery that'd been converted into an albergue

The Cost of Accommodation on the Camino

Accommodation tin can be exceptionally cheap on the Camino. While I didn't gear up out planning to walk as a strict budget traveller, I still found myself spending €5 a night fairly regularly.

If you lot're planning on walking the Camino de Santiago, you'll demand to accustom yourself with the word albergue(al-bur-gay).

It's the Castilian term for hostels, but on the Camino, they're used exclusively past pilgrims. If you don't have your pilgrim passport to mitt, for case, you won't even be able to stay in them. Similar most hostels around the world, many have both private rooms and dorms on offer, with most walkers opting to stay in the latter.

Albergues autumn into three categories.

Beginning, you accept the municipal albergues, which are owned past the local government of that boondocks and usually run by volunteers. They're cheap, basic, come up in various states of busted, but tend to take a real community feel. The best thing about the municipal albergues, though, is that they operate on a beginning come, first served basis, so tin't exist booked in advance. I wrote near the Camino bed race in my post nearly walking the Primitivo, and it was ever proficient to know that when everyone was booking their accommodation, there would still be a municipal albergue with some infinite available.

There are parochial albergues, besides — religious hostels that have been converted from monasteries, convents, and churches. Again, these are basic, sparse, and run by volunteers. They usually accept donations rather than accuse a fixed cost, and I strongly recommend donating somethingto pay the volunteers for their time. I recommend €5, plus an appropriate amount if meals are included.

Finally, you have individual albergues, which are privately owned and are usually clean, fun, and modern. These are much newer and shiner — think flashpacker rather than bare-basic — and come with a larger cost tag. Some of them even accept swimming pools.

Hither'due south how much you can expect to pay each night at the albergues:

Municipal albergue dorm bed: €5-7
Municipal albergue single room: €25
Municipal albergue double room: €35

Private albergue dorm bed: €10-xv
Individual albergue single room: €35
Private albergue double room: €45

In larger cities, yous'll take far greater options for accommodation, so could potentially splash out and splurge on a good night'southward sleep, if you're craving it. I stayed in a mid-range hotel in Oviedo for €45 a night, booked a fancy hotel for my fellow's birthday in Lugo for €60 a night, paid for a private double with swimming pool in A Brea for €35 a night, and stayed in a mid-range guesthouse in Santiago for €40 a night.

Y'all tin book accommodation in advance through Booking.com, which is what I did when the Camino bed race began to stress me out.

Here's what yous can expect to spend on accommodation for various different budget levels:

Budget traveller:If you're a budget traveller, you'll virtually likely boilerplate effectually €7 a nighttime for your accommodation costs. You'll spend your time in dorms, taking reward of the low prices and switching it upwards betwixt municipal and individual albergues.

High-finish traveller:If y'all want to spend your Camino getting a decent night's sleep and relaxing in comfortable surroundings, y'all'll exist looking at effectually €25 a night when travelling with somebody else. Information technology'll be more like €35 a nighttime if you lot're going solo. Dave and I would often opt for a private room in an albergue purely because our combined costs would exist €30 for ii dorm beds or €forty for a private room. It wasn't very hard to justify spending an extra €5 each to ensure we were well-rested.

Mid-range traveller:A mid-range traveller will split their upkeep betwixt the lower and higher ends, spending four or 5 nights a week in a dorm room, then splurging on a individual room whenever the snorers start to get them down. In this case, you'll exist looking at an average of €15 a nightfor accommodation across the Camino, and effectually €20 a nighttime if yous're walking lonely.

food on the camino de santiago — Clockwise from top-left: a chicken and fries-themed dinner that was in desperate demand of some vegetables; a typical tortilla and jamon breakfast; pork, fries, and eggs for dinner one dark, and a delicious tuna sandwich for luncheon!

The Cost of Nutrient on the Camino

Food is besides affordable on the Camino, and yous'll too need to set up yourself for some especially large meals for the price. Equally someone with a somewhat small appetite, I was often overwhelmed by how much food I was presented with at the end of each day.

Allow'southward take a look at some typical prices for different meals.

Breakfasts were always small and speedy, grabbed from whichever cafe was open along the way. I'd usually commencement walking an hr earlier dawn and cross off a solid v-vii km before I decided to stop for breakfast, so the buffet I chose was but wherever was open when I started getting hungry. Much of the cafes are much of a muchness on the Camino, with the same three dishes up for grabs. Most of the time, I'd opt for a murphy tortilla — just potato and egg cooked up into a big omelette-type slice — otherwise, I'd grab a lycopersicon esculentum or ham sandwich to keep me going. Sometimes I'd get an orange juice with my meal, but I'd usually just stick to water. Breakfast for me was always priced betwixt €2 and €3, but can get as high as €4 if y'all drink java.

Lunches were typically a quick snack grabbed from a cafe along the fashion, and that usually meant a bocadillo or salad — normally the former considering I needed the calories. I'd normally have a Coke at this signal — over again for the calories — and together the meal would normally cost around €4.

Dinners were uniformly enormous on the Camino. Here, y'all're going to desire to go for the carte del peregrino — the pilgrim menu — and prepare your stomach for food. For around €10, you'll be served a 3-course meal with a bottle of wine to wash it downwards. Starters were typically soup, salad or pasta, mains were meat/fish and potatoes, and desserts were tarts, cakes, or water ice cream.

Wine is uncommonly cheap on the Camino. When Dave and I both opted for a carte del peregrino one evening and Dave ordered white vino while I went for cerise, we were delighted when the waiter grabbed us one full bottle of white and i of red. A canteen of wine, starter, chief, and dessert, for only €10 each? I was pretty impressed.

Don't worry about paying for water on the Camino, every bit the tap h2o is drinkable and you lot tin can commonly find potable h2o sources forth the trail. If I was running low on water in my hydration sack, I'd always ask the cafe owner to refill my pocketbook later on my meal, which they were ever happy to do.

There'south and so many limitations on what you can eat on the Camino that you lot'll commonly eat the same every bit everyone else, whether you're on a tight upkeep or high-cease travelling. Ofttimes, there'll merely be ane or two places to eat, and there'll all be serving the same inexpensive dishes.

The Price of Miscellaneous Stuff

Pilgrim passport: €2

This is one essential yous'll need for the Camino de Santiago. You can buy it in advance online for like, €10, but there's no need to spend that much. Just pick one up from the cathedral or a local albergue when you arrive — they're easy to buy in person.

You'll apply your pilgrim passport to stay in albergues and collect stamps from every adaptation you stay in, every bit well every bit some cafes and restaurants along the way. This is how y'all prove to the pilgrim part in Santiago that you walked the full distance, so you'll want to make sure you lot become a postage stamp or two every day.

Laundry:While I did laundry by hand near every twenty-four hours afterwards walking, I did pay to have my apparel done and dried mid-way through my time on the Camino. I paid €3 to use the washing machine and €3 for the dryer and separate the toll with Dave. This was pretty much what it toll in every albergue along the manner.

Luggage transfer:If you're struggling with the weight of your backpack, there are baggage transfer companies that'll choice upwardly your pack and transfer it to the side by side albergue on the walk. You lot'll accept to know exactly where y'all'll be heading that day in lodge to use the service, and it costs about €5 per mean solar day to do so. If you lot're having a hard time and know yous have a long day of walking ahead of yous, there'due south no shame in making things easier for yourself every now and so.

Travel insurance:Of course you need travel insurance for the Camino de Santiago! What if you autumn and twist your ankle and need to be rescued? What if y'all drop your make new iPhone and blast its screen? What if your high-finish walking poles become stolen from the albergue? You'll want to be protected and it's e'er better to be safe than lamentable.

I used World Nomads when walking the Camino. I've used them for seven years without result while travelling total-fourth dimension, and they've always been a pleasance to bargain with when making a claim.

The Toll of Buying New Gear for the Camino

I'm a big fan of making utilize of the gear you already take at abode, so if you already have everything yous need for your walk, you're all set. Unfortunately, I wasn't a big walker pre-Camino, and then I needed to invest in plenty of new gear. There's no need to buy whatever of this if you already accept alternatives! Simply here's what I bought specially for my trip:

An Osprey Lumina backpack: €250
- This is the lightest backpack out there, and I love it!
Merrell Accentor II walking shoes: €100
- These shoes were the well-nigh comfy of any I tried on. I highly recommend Merrells for the Camino!
Sea to Summit women's sleeping bag: €350
- This sleeping bag weighs only 300g and keeps you warm downwardly to 4°C.
A basic poncho: €vii
- I didn't own one, and I still don't, considering I threw information technology out every bit soon as I tried walking with information technology.
Lots of Compeed: €25
- A Camino essential!
Osprey hydration pack: €35
- This fabricated staying hydration on the Camino so easy!
Osprey toiletry pocketbook: €twenty
- For keeping all of my shower products organised in grotty bathrooms.
Icebreaker hiking wearing apparel: €200
- Icebreaker makes Merino wool clothes, which are amazing for Caminos! They dry a chiliad times faster than cotton.

You can as well check out my Camino packing list for a full rundown of all the gear I walked with. Plainly, you'll likely demand different stuff to me, then I haven't gone into a huge amount of depth hither.

What Else to Know About Coin on the Camino

For a long time, cash has been king of the Camino, but this is starting to change. I was able to pay by bill of fare in ii thirds of the albergues I stayed in, and virtually of the cafes and restaurants accepted card payments, too. Municipal albergues are ever cash-only, so keep that in listen as you walk.

ATMs tin can be found in any major town or city, and so take the time to stock up whenever you encounter i. I made sure I always had effectually €100 to hand at all times, in instance of emergencies.

And then, How Much Does it Cost to Walk the Camino?

Not very much at all! I averaged €33 a mean solar day on the Primitivo, which makes the Camino one of the virtually affordable trips I've had in a long fourth dimension. Here'south how much I'd plan to spend for three different budgets:

Budget travel: €22 a 24-hour interval

You'll be looking at spending around €7 a day for accommodation, leaving €15 to spend on food. If yous have a reaaaaally tight upkeep, you could cutting your nutrient spending downward to around €seven a day by buying groceries and cooking in albergue kitchens, but most pilgrims were too tired to do so. You'll wash your laundry by hand across the Camino.

Mid-range travel: €35 a twenty-four hours

I define mid-range travellers equally pilgrims who spend virtually of their time in the albergue dorms, but are as well happy to splurge on individual rooms every iii or four days. In that case, you'll be looking at around €15 a night for accommodation, and €20 a solar day for nutrient. You lot'll pay to accept your laundry washed every couple of weeks.

High-end travel: €41 a twenty-four hour period

If dealing with loud snorers and farters for weeks on cease sounds like your idea of hell, I hear y'all. It's definitely mine, as well. On the higher-terminate of the scale, you'll exist able to stay in individual rooms for most nights and bask in what it feels like to be well-rested. Higher-end travellers will boilerplate €30 a night for accommodation if they're travelling solo, or €20 a dark if they're travelling with a partner. Y'all'll be looking at €20 a solar day on food, and can get your clothes laundered every three or four days.