You've spent months dreaming about the Camino: the stages mapped out, the hostel booked, your legs in shape. And just when everything falls into place, up pops the question nobody wants to face: how do I actually get my bike there? If you're looking for a way to send your bike to the Camino de Santiago without the drama, you've probably already realised that the usual options come with a catch.
Taking your bike on the train is a nightmare: compulsory covers, limited spaces, changing trains with fifteen kilos on your back and the constant feeling that you're in everyone's way. And by plane? Extortionate special-luggage fees, endless queues at the oversized-baggage desk and, worst of all, knowing your bike will travel in the hold, where one badly placed knock can bend your derailleur or scratch your frame… if it doesn't end up lost among the conveyor belts altogether. Starting your pilgrimage by collecting a damaged bike isn't the sign you were hoping for.
Sending Your Bike to the Camino de Santiago, Step by Step
There's a far simpler alternative: send it protected in its box so it travels on its own while you travel light. At Logística Mazarrón, an official GLS agency in Puerto de Mazarrón, we've turned it into a four-step process:
- Work out your price online in 30 seconds. Enter the weight, dimensions and origin-destination in the calculator and you get a fixed price with VAT included, from 23 €. No registration needed.
- Book and pay online. You receive your shipping label by email: just print it and stick it on the box.
- Collection at your door. A GLS network driver comes to your home, or to your trusted bike shop, anywhere in Spain, and takes the parcel away. If it suits you better, you can also drop the box off yourself at a GLS collection point or at our agency in Puerto de Mazarrón.
- Step-by-step tracking. You follow the journey in real time until your bike arrives at the hostel or hotel where your route begins.
What's more, you get a 48-hour price guarantee: the amount you work out today still stands even if you book the day after tomorrow.
How to Pack Your Bike So It Arrives in Perfect Condition
Good packaging is 90% of a successful shipment. You don't need professional materials, just a bit of method:
- Get hold of a cardboard bike box. Cycling shops usually give them away for free: they're the same ones their new bikes arrive in.
- Remove only what's necessary: pedals, front wheel and saddle. Turn the handlebars parallel to the frame to cut down the volume.
- Protect the weak spots. The derailleur hanger, the chainstays and the fork are the first to suffer: wrap them in bubble wrap or foam.
- Secure every part to the frame. Nothing should move around inside the box; internal knocks do more damage than external ones.
- Check the weight. The maximum is 30 kg per parcel, plenty of margin for almost any well-packed bike.
Note down the exact dimensions of the box before you work out the price: the cost depends on the weight and the dimensions, and a few extra centimetres can change the rate.
Common Mistakes Worth Avoiding
- Not warning your accommodation. Check with your hostel or hotel that they're happy to receive the parcel in your name and note down their exact address.
- Cutting it too fine. Schedule the collection with time to spare before your start date: arriving to find your bike already waiting for you is exactly the peace of mind you're after.
- Leaving electronics or tools loose. Your GPS, lights and multi-tool are better off in your rucksack or firmly secured inside the box.
- Forgetting your tyre pressure. Let a little air out of the tyres: they'll cope better with any squeeze during transport.
A Service Designed for Pilgrims, There and Back
The Camino de Santiago runs through Spain, so your bike travels as a domestic shipment with all the reliability of the GLS network. Starting on the Portuguese Way? We also deliver to Portugal and across the whole EU, with no customs to deal with thanks to the single market. And once you reach Santiago, that same bike delivery service sorts out your return trip: you send it home and travel back luggage-free.
If you'd rather sort it out in person, you'll find us at Av. Dr. Meca 107, local 2, Puerto de Mazarrón, Monday to Friday from 9:30 to 13:30 and 16:30 to 19:00, and on +34 910 80 62 29. We're happy to help you in Spanish or English.
Your Camino begins long before the first pedal stroke: it begins the moment you stop worrying about logistics. Work out now how much it costs to send your bike, lock in your price with VAT included, and save your energy for what really matters — the riding.
