Camino de Santiago Maps: Camino Frances: St Jean - Santiago

Great basic guide

Perfect

This was a present for my wife's birthday, as she is planning to do the walk next year. As far as I can see it is one of the best guide books out there and appears stuffed with well laid out information and maps.On taking it out of the packaging, I could see that there was an obvious crease on the cover. And as her birthday is too soon to return the book, I will have to make do. I know it seems petty, and the book will, no doubt, be subjected to rigorous use on the walk, but the carelessness in packing is not acceptable. If I had time, I would return it for a replacement. In fact, I may do that after I have given it to her, so she can have a pristine copy!

The authors oddly chose to document 31 stages while the Brierley guide uses 33. So, it you elect to carry this lightweight, useful, minimalist book understand that you likely will not match up with the pilgrims using Brierley's after the first 12 stages. I gave my wife a copy of this lightweight guide for easy storage/retrieval while on her pilgrimage - while I kept a 2nd copy of the guide in the States. It was not until stage 12 that we realized that the Brierley guide she used for planning (and left at home) was not perfectly aligned - and she then was not perfectly aligned stage-by-stage (page-by-page) with the many friends she made along the French Way. Perhaps the difference was akin to using a different scale map - which is a simple matter except at the end of a long day. And perhaps the difference was required by the authors to avoid copyright issues. (Note: The wife was without a useful guide for the subsequent four days she walked to Finisterre and Muxia. EDIT: well, if I'd known she was going to walks to Muxia maybe I would have purchased the available guide that went to the coast!)

This is the only book on the camino you will ever need. It has everything that all the other books have and more.