El Camino French Way - The Maths

Preparations – Let’s do the Maths

How much does it cost to complete the Camino? How much should I bring along?

Hiking on El Camino is not cheap. Walking around doesn’t cost a cent, but getting to the trail and then back home is already quite expensive, even if we manage to arrange it the cheapest possible way. We also have to spend on the accommodation and the food (and eating is a crucial point in case of such an adventure), and we also have to buy at least some parts of our equipment. For example, borrowing a pair of boots is impossible, while our state of health and the success of the pilgrimage might depend on the quality of our boots.

According to my calculations, the travelling and the insurance can be covered by 500Euros, about what you can read further here. Experienced pilgrims estimate the average daily expenses to be ca. 30 Euros – of course, one might do it cheaper and more expensive, too. I’m calculating with this 30 Euros. This means that the 30-day-hike will cost around 1000 Euros/dollars.

Source: 4feet2mouths

Altogether ca. 46.6 USD/person/day, (almost the same in Euros)

The costs of the equipment varies from person to person, but let’s suppose we don’t have anything necessary for the trip (like me), and we have to buy everything. The price of the equipment changes in a very large range, which is heavily influenced by blind luck – as it happened with me, too. I have come across some pretty good sales, and my friends also helped me a lot, for example Balu with choosing the right backpack. But let’s face it, even if we find a lot of cheap stuff, the total sum will still be significant. That is, if we buy everything. Borrowing this and that will make it cheaper, of course.

All in all, even if we have all the cool, super light, and comfy hiking stuff, we shouldn’t think that this one-month-long hiking trip will cost 1-2 hundred thousands. According to my calculations, the adventure (minus the equipment) will cost around 1.500Euros/USD at the minimum, which means that the chart above seems to be valid with its 46.6 USD – this includes the travelling, too, but divided by the days. At least, this is what I think. Soon it will turn out if I was wrong.

UPDATE: After several Caminos (French Way, English Way, Portuguese Way from Lisbon and Camino del Norte) I have to say the amount is quite accurate. Approximately it costs about 1 euro/ 1 km (1,6 euros/mile) if you dont spend too much.

Some useful things to read:

Choosing the right backpack
Choosing the best boots for El Camino
Planning the trip to El Camino