Bed sheets? Are they always available?

[Anthony Coyne]

I will be starting the full Camino Francés on 16th May 2025.
I cannot get a sense of whether sheets/bedclothes are provided in all Albergues or not.
If not, I can see the logic of bringing a (light) sleeping bag or bag liner.

Can anyone advise please?

 

[Anhalter]

Usually you are provided bedsheets and pillow casings. Many times one-use plastic ones. Sometimes cotton ones. Sometimes cotton ones that are already on the bed and maybe not only for that very day.

Usually you can find some sort of blanket. Usually it is not freshly washed. Sometimes it is. Sometimes there is even a case for it. Sometimes that has also been freshly washed.

Personally, while i don't think there is a correlation between the "freshness" of the "linen" and the risk of bedbugs and the likes... i like to have my own liner and own sleeping bag.

 

[Anthony Coyne]

Usually you are provided bedsheets and pillow casings. Many times one-use plastic ones. Sometimes cotton ones. Sometimes cotton ones that are already on the bed and maybe not only for that very day.

Usually you can find some sort of blanket. Usually it is not freshly washed. Sometimes it is. Sometimes there is even a case for it. Sometimes that has also been freshly washed.

Personally, while i don't think there is a correlation between the "freshness" of the "linen" and the risk of bedbugs and the likes... i like to have my own liner and own sleeping bag.

Thanks

 

[Tincatinker]

I gave up on getting a sense of anything a very long time ago now. Shortly after the creation of the World Wide Web as I recall. On Camino I always carry a lightweight down sleeping bag. Even if I have booked private accommodation from Barcelona to Fisterra.

 

[AML]

I think these disposable bed covers are a terrible waste.
Are they recycleable at all, i doubt it?
Some albergues provide proper cloth sheets and covers.
I've stayed in albergue in Monreal recently, the disposable covers were optional for the cost of 1.50 e
Is it good for pilgrims to carry the disposable sheet with them to the next albergue and reuse it a few times to save waste?
I met one pilgrim who carried his own cotton pillow cover.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I met one pilgrim who carried his own cotton pillow cover.

A note to the OP: In case that you think that this is a good idea be aware that Spanish pillows are very long.

Is it good for pilgrims to carry the disposable sheet with them to the next albergue and reuse it a few times to save waste?

It probably is not a good idea to reuse these paper sheets because of the possibility of transporting bed bugs. We did reuse some but it was only a couple years later, on this forum, that I become aware of what I might be doing.

 

[trecile]

Always available? No, unless you stay exclusively in private rooms.

 

[CWBuff]

As stated no not always. On my CF I recall about 2 or 3 instances
Just bring a light sleeping bag or a bag liner
Good luck and Buen Camino

 

[J Willhaus]

At albergues, you will usually be given a "fitted" or bottom disposable sheet and pillow case to cover the mattress and pillow or you may be given a cloth sheet and pillowcase that is laundered by the hospitalero. No top sheets. Blankets are not guaranteed so it is good to have a sleep sack of some kind (even if it just a silk liner bag.)

Yes, I also dont like the disposable sheet thing, however they do save water and electricity. In a small albergue that's several loads of linens to wash. In a big albergue thats LOTS of loads. If fortunate with weather, they can usually be dried outside as long as there are clotheslines. It they must be machine dried, that is even more electricity.

Drawbacks to both.

 

[David Tallan]

I think these disposable bed covers are a terrible waste.
Are they recycleable at all, i doubt it?

I'm not sure if they are recyclable, but the instructions I was given by the previous hospitalera at the albergue I am currently at was to make sure the ones we give out go into the municipal paper recycling receptacles.

 

[David Tallan]

At albergues, you will usually be given a "fitted" or bottom disposable sheet and pillow case to cover the mattress

In the albergue in Salamanca, I was surprised to discover that the package of disposable sheets included a top sheet as well. Luxury!

 

[J Willhaus]

In the albergue in Salamanca, I was surprised to discover that the package of disposable sheets included a top sheet as well. Luxury!

Yuck! I can't imagine what it feels like to snuggle up in those!

I think some could be recycled per my reading. Not sure all can be. I have only volunteered where we laundered sheets or had only mats on the floor with no sheets though.

 

[t2andreo]

I like and highly recommend this rectangular, microfiber sleeping bag liner. It has a full zip and is machine washable.

Rectangle Liner

Oversized sleeping bag liner

alpsmountaineering.com

It also folds down to fit, compressed, at the bottom of my rucksack in a three liter or one gallon ziplock bag.

By itself, it makes an excellent summer sleeping bag. In the hip seasons, I wear some of my clothes for the next day, including my fleece layer if needed. I also always have a microfleece beanie and gloves. Using all these bits together, I can endure all, but the coldest nights.

Hope this helps,

Tom

 

[Jodean]

I will always take my light sleeping bag. Even in May, it can be very cold at night and besides, I want my own, soft, snuggly bag and not some random blanket next to my face. I hate the disposable sheets and my last 2 walks, found a lot of albergues are switching to real bottom sheets. Even the municipal in Vila Cha on the Portuguese had real linens and towels.

 

[Zordmot]

I will be starting the full Camino Francés on 16th May 2025.
I cannot get a sense of whether sheets/bedclothes are provided in all Albergues or not.
If not, I can see the logic of bringing a (light) sleeping bag or bag liner.

Can anyone advise please?

The disposable bedsheets have been treated with an insecticide for bedbugs.

 

[trecile]

The disposable bedsheets have been treated with an insecticide for bedbugs.

Are you positive about that?

 

[Getwood]

[snip]

Yes, I also dont like the disposable sheet thing, however they do save water and electricity. In a small albergue that's several loads of linens to wash. In a big albergue thats LOTS of loads. If fortunate with weather, they can usually be dried outside as long as there are clotheslines. It they must be machine dried, that is even more electricity.

Drawbacks to both.

Water in particular is a constant problem in smaller places along the CF, and Spaniards pay multiples of what we pay for a kWh of electricity. In such situations, disposable bed linens can be a perfectly sensible/responsible trade-off.

 

[J Willhaus]

The disposable bedsheets have been treated with an insecticide for bedbugs.

I have not heard that or read it on the packaging. Perhaps @David Tallan can advise if his sheets say that.

 

[jeenok]

I will be starting the full Camino Francés on 16th May 2025.
I cannot get a sense of whether sheets/bedclothes are provided in all Albergues or not.
If not, I can see the logic of bringing a (light) sleeping bag or bag liner.

Can anyone advise please?

I know for a fact that fitted bed sheet and pillow case are reused and not washed daily at the municipal albergue in Frómista. In the morning while I was getting ready, a person came in and straightened out the bed sheet and pillow case of adjacent empty beds. After seeing this, I just felt itchy all over. Upon further reflection, I think it is unreasonable to expect hopitaleros to wash and dry 50 or so bed sheets and pillows cases every day. After that day, I was happy to use paper covers.

 

[J Willhaus]

Ewwee .If you ever stay at the albergue that I may be working at, you will get a laundered sheet and pillowcase.

 

[dick bird]

The disposable bedsheets have been treated with an insecticide for bedbugs.

That´s the first I heard of it. They are designed for use in clinics and doctor´s surgeries, so I don´t see the point.

 

[Joynz]

I think these disposable bed covers are a terrible waste.
Are they recycleable at all, i doubt it?
Some albergues provide proper cloth sheets and covers.
I've stayed in albergue in Monreal recently, the disposable covers were optional for the cost of 1.50 e
Is it good for pilgrims to carry the disposable sheet with them to the next albergue and reuse it a few times to save waste?
I met one pilgrim who carried his own cotton pillow cover.

Those bedcovers are polypropylene (so made from non renewable fossil fuels) and they are just thrown away after one use. However, carrying the disposable sheet is possibly a risk for carrying bedbugs to the next hostel.

 

[Joynz]

I know for a fact that fitted bed sheet and pillow case are reused and not washed daily at the municipal albergue in Frómista. In the morning while I was getting ready, a person came in and straightened out the bed sheet and pillow case of adjacent empty beds. After seeing this, I just felt itchy all over. Upon further reflection, I think it is unreasonable to expect hopitaleros to wash and dry 50 or so bed sheets and pillows cases every day. After that day, I was happy to use paper covers.

Those aren’t paper covers - they are polypropylene. Non-recyclable.

 

[Joynz]

The disposable bedsheets have been treated with an insecticide for bedbugs.

What is your source for this claim? I believe it to be incorrect.

 

[David Tallan]

I have not heard that or read it on the packaging. Perhaps @David Tallan can advise if his sheets say that.

They do not. But then again, there is no wording at all on the package. They don't smell like that, though. And they are apparently recyclable as paper (I don't know if that would be the case were they permeated with insecticide). And the albergue is clearly relying on other methods to control the spread of bedbugs.

I don't think they would do that without some indication available to pilgrims or hospitaleros in case of sensitivities to the ingredients.

 

[trecile]

However, carrying the disposable sheet is possibly a risk for carrying bedbugs to the next hostel.

No more so than carrying a sleeping bag or the clothes that you slept in to the next hostel.

They do not. But then again, there is no wording at all on the package. They don't smell like that, though.

If they were treated with permethrin (which I doubt) they wouldn't have an odor.

 

[t2andreo]

If you bring your own rectangular liner, as I mentioned above, you do not need whatever they provide. I go this route in any accommodation where I do not have a catered private room. So, I do not need to use my field expedient sleep system every night.

Also, and I forgot to mention earlier, using my poncho as a top cover adds several degrees of warmth, as it acts as a vapor barrier to keep my body heat in.

No one is ever going to be happy with the native sheet and or blanket policies. I use my own system, laid out on top of theirs. My microfiber liner can be machine-washed as a lavadora becomes available.

Going self-contained makes the most sense to me. Less drama too.

Hope this helps.

Tom

 

[J Willhaus]

I have also used my poncho as an extra cover. Works OK.

 

[cathal Ferris]

I will be starting the full Camino Francés on 16th May 2025.
I cannot get a sense of whether sheets/bedclothes are provided in all Albergues or not.
If not, I can see the logic of bringing a (light) sleeping bag or bag liner.

Can anyone advise please?

Your Journey has started on the Camino I started in May on two occasions where the advice would be to bring a liner or sleeping bag make sure you grease the zip with candle wax nothing worse than a stuck zip at 5.30am on a dark morning. Not all alberqes carry sheets or blankets in my experience best to have a light 2 season bag or liner as it can be cold at night time specially over the mountain ranges or at higher altitudes. I would suggest keeping it light as possible your feet will thank you for it. I also used pyretherum to treat my gear prior to leaving to reduce impact with the dreaded bed bugs enjoy your time planning and dont forget to look back going up over the pyrenees to enjoy those views Buen Camino

 

[Kathy F.]

I thought carrying a lightweight sleeping bag or liner was standard equipment. OP, are you considering not bringing either?

 

[Anthony Coyne]

I thought carrying a lightweight sleeping bag or liner was standard equipment. OP, are you considering not bringing either?

Just trying to get a sense of what the sleeping situation is in albergues. I'm probably going to go with a light sleeping bag

 

[dick bird]

Just trying to get a sense of what the sleeping situation is in albergues. I'm probably going to go with a light sleeping bag

Which is what 99% of us would take if we were going to sleep in albergues.

 

[dougfitz]

Those aren’t paper covers - they are polypropylene. Non-recyclable.

Both PET and polypropylene are used in these non-woven fabrics. Both products can be recycled. The major issue seems to me that they aren't. Much would depend on what measures are in place for their disposal.