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Camino's,  Tech

Best navigation apps to use – Camino Portugues

When you are walking either the Coastal Camino Portugues or the inland one then it is very handy to have a navigation app on your phone. This helps in a great number of ways and is in my opinion hard to do without. The apps I list down below are great for finding your nearest Alberque, water, nearest point of interest and additional information you will need along the Camino Portugues.

What Phone do you need?

All you need is an Android Smartphone, get one with a decent camera and processor and your good to go. I did the Camino with my already bought Nokia 6.1. The pictures with good lighting are alright and GPS never really let me down. If you like taking pictures and movies then I would suggest getting one of the latest iPhones or high end Samsung / Oppo / Oneplus phones. But you can base your decision on popular tech channels like Marques Brownlee on YouTube. They are much more knowledgeable then me on this subject.

Which Apps are Free to use and do you need?

I made use of 2 Smartphone apps on the Camino de Santiago from Porto, Portugal. The first one is Buen Camino which I used pretty much multiple times a day to check where I was. And when I arrived in a Alberque to check for the one that I was gonna stay the next day in.

buen camino app
Click on the image to redirect to the Google Play store

The Buen Camino App has pretty much all the different Camino’s in it, for some you have to pay a small sum to purchase the route. For the Camino Portugues Coastal route at the time of writing is available for free.

I do not think I could have done the Camino without this app. Mostly because I like to know where to sleep in advance. When you scout out the municipal ones then your price for the night is also gonna be cheapest.

Maps.me App

Maps.me app for the camino
Click on the Image to go to the Play store.

This is a very popular navigation App and most people are probably already familiar with it. This App is useful on its own but really makes it as a Camino app with the Camino information that you can download on the following link:

https://www.santiago.nl/downloads#portugal

This link takes you to the Dutch Pelgrims Organisation that has maps available and more helpful Camino stuff on their website. You will need to download the KML options on your smartphone. Then simply open them to add them to Maps.me.

santiago nederlandse site

After that you will have the precise way on the Portuguese coastal camino and the Alberques. Buen Camino I used for this the most part, for true navigation I used Maps.me and these maps.

Even with the help of these apps I lost the way 2 times. But its very easy to get back on the camino in Portugal and Spain, just ask the nearest native in butchered Spanish and Portuguese that you learned from Duolingo and your all set. When in doubt on the Portuguese Coastal Camino, head for the coastline! And else just use the Maps.me app to get your bearings again.



Well I hope you find these Apps as useful as I did and I hope you have a wonderful experience on the Portuguese Coastal Camino! I sure did.

I'm Frank, the main guy and owner of this website. Loves hiking, gear and bushcraft. And can get quite nerdy about them. In the woods several times a week preparing for my next hike. Always searching for another hill, which is quite difficult in the Netherlands. That's why I search around several countries. More about me on the about page.

2 Comments

  • Ronald Drone

    Hello Frank. Thank you for your inputs regarding GPS APPs to use in Portugal. I am 62 years old and have planned my Camino since 2012. God willing, I’ll walk the Portuguease Camino from Porto in April 2022. It will be my first camino.

    What do you recommend for a sleeping bag? A liner only or both a bag + liner?

    Sorry to have missed your Appalachian Trail walk in 2018. We live in the mountains of east Tennessee, USA and I work less than 1 mile from the Trail. I walk it as often as I can.

    All the best on your adventures. I love your site.

    Ronald

    • Frank

      Hello Ronald, thanks for reading and the nice comment. That’s what makes it worth it!
      You can make the Camino Portugues happen, im rooting for you. Like any Camino it will change your life in some way, shape or form.

      Regarding the sleeping bag, yes, definitely in April. Make sure you take a spring sleeping bag, so 5 degrees and above should be fine. Look at my Gear reviews to find the one from Aegismax, affordable down option, that I still use and recommend. Nice and light for the Camino. Otherwise, just have fun, the Camino provides.
      Bon Camino!

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