How cheap can I go?

[tomalexander]

I am looking to start late April and want to do the whole walk. Time is not a problem but I will have only 250 euro? I don't mind sleeping under the stars and making my own simple food. Are the markets cheap for fruit and bread? Is it possible to camp i fields or must i pay at a camp site? I really want to do this and will be any way but would be good to get some advice! Thank you

[HuskyNerd]

It'll be tough with your budget, sad to say. If you do the average 35 day Camino (I assume you're starting from St. Jean) that'll mean you only have about 7 Euros/day. That's barely enough for food, not to mention albergues and incidentals. You might be wiser to start later, say in Astorga or Hospital de Orbigo and spread your 250E over 2 weeks rather than a month.

[Covey]

I did not think that my previous posts discussing the relative cost of Gin & Tonics along the way qualified me to opine on the subject of a budget walk!

One thing which catches out a number of pilgrims is the cost of medicaments in the pharmacies. Ibruprofen is cheap, but sun burn cream was ?12 for a smallish tube. I bought it for a Slovak pilgrim who was trying to get by on ?15 a day. Some pilgrims will end up spending around ?5 a day in the pharmacy.

In some places a beer will cost ?2.50 and up to ?4-5 depending which bar you are in.

One of the things you look forward to is going out with a group for your evening meal, and the average Pilgrim Menu in a bar will be ?8 - ?11. If you are trying to do the Camino on ?15 a day, there will be no money for a shared meal or a beer, and that puts you on the outside looking in!