How do I get to Oviedo?
We flew from Frankfurt to Madrid because the flight was cheaper and from there we traveled to Oviedo by train. After the Camino de Santiago, we also flew back from Madrid. However, many roads lead to Oviedo. You can also take the bus from Madrid, which is cheaper, but it takes longer. It would be even quicker to use the airport near Oviedo. There is also an airport near Santiago de Compostela. If you don’t have the cathedral in Compostela as your destination, but rather the route itself, you can possibly save money by flying to Santiago and traveling back from Oviedo. When I was looking for flights in spring 2024, the difference was €100-150 per person if the return flight was from Oviedo.
The first night in Madrid and the journey from the airport to the train station
Getting to the Camino Primitivo was a little more complicated than expected. Surprisingly, Deutsche Bahn was not a problem this time: apart from a 10-minute delay, everything went smoothly until we reached Frankfurt airport. But after baggage drop-off, security check and boarding, the chaos began. Our plane was unable to take off due to an electronic fault. After an aborted take-off attempt, our plane was surrounded by ambulances and the fire department and we had to return to the terminal. The next take-off attempt did not take place until 23:00.
We finally landed in Madrid at 1:15 am and checked into the hotel for the first night at around 2:30 am. The Hotel Don Louis cost €90, but was a bit run-down. Next time I would choose a different place to stay. The walking distance to the airport was an advantage though, especially in the middle of the night when we arrived. Madrid seemed quite expensive overall.
Because of the short night, we decided to take a Cabify cab to the train station the next morning. The journey cost €14. Alternatively, we could have taken the shuttle bus to Terminal 4 and from there taken the train to the main station, which would have only cost around €3, but would have been a lot more hassle.
The train journey to Oviedo
Rail travel in Spain is a little different from Germany. There are security checks for luggage and you are only allowed on the platform when the train is ready – at least that’s the case in Madrid. Each passenger also has an assigned seat. As we wanted to save the €10 for the seat selection, not only did we not sit next to each other, we even sat in different carriages. For the return journey, we paid for the seat selection after all and didn’t regret it. By the way: The €10 applies to both tickets together, not per person. The trains were so fully booked on both journeys that it would not have been possible to sit next to each other without reserved seats.
Arrival in Oviedo
After about 3.5 hours on the train through beautiful Spain, we were pretty exhausted. We decided to spend an extra night in Oviedo before starting the Camino. We went out for a bite to eat, picked up our pilgrim’s pass from the tourist information office and walked around the city. This gave us the opportunity to start the Camino more rested the next day. Oviedo is a cute little town where you can easily spend a little time.
Our tips
- Buy trekking poles: If you’re traveling alone and need trekking poles, it’s probably cheaper to buy them at Decathlon in Oviedo instead of booking an extra piece of luggage.
- Oviedo is worthwhile: A night in Oviedo is definitely recommended.
- Pilgrim’s passport: The pilgrim’s passport is free if you get it from the tourist information office. Don’t let anyone talk you into it.
- Madrid is expensive: Although our flights were cheaper, the train journey and the two overnight stays in Madrid ultimately saved us nothing. Our original plan to visit Madrid before we left also didn’t work out.
