Accommodation recommendations needed

[HDo]

Hello everyone,

My friend and I (both mid 30s) are planning for the Camino Ingles from Ferrol in late August. We want to stay in hotels/pensions along the way rather than the public alburgues and are looking for recommendations at the following points. Doesn't need to be fancy, but clean and with a private bathroom a must!

We're planning to stop off the 'main' stopping points to shorten the distances walked each day, so we're thinking:
START: Ferrol
STOP 1: Neda
STOP 2: Miño
STOP 3: Presedo
STOP 4: Buscas
STOP 5: Marantes

Any accommodation advice (or alternative places to stop without having to walk more than 22km per day) would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks,

HDo

 

[VNwalking]

@HDo there are lots of threads and information here; it just takes a bit of digging.
Beginning with what @SabineP posted the other day:
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...list-of-2018-hostales-pensiones-ingles.54586/

 

[HDo]

Thanks, I've seen plenty of threads with accom in all the major stops...I've been searching for days now, but as we want to walk shorter stages it's harder to find reliable, recent info.

It looks like in Presedo, the only available option is the alburgue... so an alternative stopping point between Miño and Buscas would be gratefully received!

 

[mylifeonvacation]

You are correct - Presedo isn't even a town, just a few houses and the albergue. The map of Galicia is a little deceiving ... with so many places named it seems like there are lots of towns, but they are just small villages of a few houses (called "aldeas" in Galician).

Seems like the easiest way to do stops 3 & 4 would be to stay in Betanzos or Meson do Vento and utilize taxi to fetch you from / return you to the route. The two hotels in Meson do Vento will also pick you up/ return you to the route as part of lodging there, which makes that option quite appealing.

Buen Camino to you!!

 

[HDo]

You are correct - Presedo isn't even a town, just a few houses and the albergue. The map of Galicia is a little deceiving ... with so many places named it seems like there are lots of towns, but they are just small villages of a few houses (called "aldeas" in Galician).

Seems like the easiest way to do stops 3 & 4 would be to stay in Betanzos or Meson do Vento and utilize taxi to fetch you from / return you to the route. The two hotels in Meson do Vento will also pick you up/ return you to the route as part of lodging there, which makes that option quite appealing.

Buen Camino to you!!

Thanks for the advice, I'm looking into some other options. Do you happen to know if there is available accommodation in Leiro? Searches are coming up empty, which I suppose means there is nothing...?

Thanks so much, I am newbie to this as you can probably tell!

 

[peb]

www.northerncaminos.com/accommodations

has a good list of accommodation options along the Ingles, which I used as a reference to booking (you need to scroll down the page to find the Camino Ingles)

At the places that you wish to stay, where I stayed:

Ferrol - Hotel el Suizo - I would stay there again - good breakfasts, they have compostelas in a cabinet to the right of reception, if you need.

One option you may want to consider for Neda and Mino is to catch the train back to Ferrol at the end of the day to a hotel 'base' at Ferrol and then catch the train back to Neda / Minol in the morning. The train fare is ridiculously cheap like 3 Euros each way, but at the start, it may help that you do not need to carry everything and repack for the first two days

Stop 4 - Buscas - Casa Rural Dona Maria - modern clean accommodation - wonderful home cooking made by the hosts, at an hour when you want. Some of the larger rooms have a washing machine. Only downside is no rooms have no bath, if you desire a soak.

Stop 5 - Marantes - Hotel San Vicente - It was cold, noisy and bleak in spring, and I regret staying there instead of soldiering on further to Santiago, but it may be more pleasant in the summer.

 

[mylifeonvacation]

Do you happen to know if there is available accommodation in Leiro? Searches are coming up empty, which I suppose means there is nothing...?

Yes, that's exactly it. That's what I was saying before, this route is extremely rural. Leiro is basically a church, a cemetery, a couple of houses, and a covered picnic area. Oh, and some cow pastures.

Take a look at the link @peb provided, the Groze guide (https://www.gronze.com/camino-ingles), or Johnnie Walker's guide for the complete list of accommodations.

Buen Camino!

 

[peb]

Looking again at your proposed schedule, I think that you would be missing out if you just walked through and did not stay one evening / night at both Pontedeume (a lovely old town by the sea) and at Betanzos, the old capital of Galicia.

Plus, the two killer uphill stages are now the exits from both Pontedeume and Betanzos, and it is better to do these first thing after a good breakfast, rather than in the middle of a stage.

The walk all the way from Ferrol to Pontedeume on the first day killed me. Maybe you should look at the following:

Day 1 - Ferrol to Xubia (Hotel Kensington)
Day 2 - Xubia to Pontedeume (either Hotel Eumesa or Pension Casa Apilladeira)
Day 3 - Pontedeume to Betanzos (Hotel Garellos - the suite has a Jacuzzi bath that will renew all tiredness in your legs before the big stage 4).
Day 4 - Betanzos to ...... ? If you must have a private bathroom, then you need to get to Meson de Vento or Buscas (33km from Betanzos), as the alberges at both Presedo (the obvious cut off point) and Hospital de Bruma do not have private rooms. I made it to Buscas in 9 hours from Betanzos and am 20 plus years your senior, so if I can do it, anyone can, and remember, the new route to Hospital de Bruma missed out the killer hill after Bar Julia. This is no longer the fearsome stage of old.
Day 5 - Meson de Vento / Buscas to Sigueiro (Alberge Camino Real which has private rooms en suite).
Day 6 Siguiero to Santiago .... and splurge somewhere good to reward yourself (the NH Santiago de Compostela with swimming pool was much cheaper than expected).

 

[HDo]

Thanks so much, this is all really helpful information. The small 'towns' certainly are deceiving so it seems we are in for at least one big walking day. We can probably manage that, we were just hoping not to completely kill ourselves in the process...

I like the look of the plan above, so will investigate this further. I definitely don't want to miss out on the highlights of the route. This will be my first Camino and I want to stay away from the busier Camino Frances but I can see why first timers might choose it for ease of planning! Luckily the language at least won't be a problem as I am a Spanish speaker, it seems there is also little English spoken on this route compared to others.

Thanks again everyone, excellent and helpful advice!!

 

[peb]

Less busy was one of the reasons why I did the Ingles, plus you can walk the whole route, which gives a greater sense of achievement. Because the Ingles is less busy, then I do not think there is the need to stay in places which are not at the end of a stage in guidebooks, as with the Frances.

Definitely stay for the evening / night, and labour in both Pontedeume and Betanzos - they are real highlights of the trip. As I keep saying, the 28 km to Meson de Vento or 33 km to Buscas from Betanzos are not as bad as you think on the route, because the killer hill after Bar Julia is no longer there.

I walked 1.5 hours further than Hospital de Bruma down to Buscas to Casa Rural Donamaria, which was 9 hours from Betanzos (the extra 1.5 hours was mainly on a flat country road). Casa Rural Donamaria was the best place I stayed en route - a lovely fresh home cooked fish evening meal made by the proprietors at an hour of my choice, so it was worth the extra 1.5 hours slog to reach from Hospital de Bruma, and it also made the next day to Sigueiro a short 6 hour walk, with an even shorter walk the next day to Santiago. Lovely garden at the back of the Donamaria, I can imagine resting on a summer's evening or morning for a while.

9 hours walking is 8am till 5pm (and this included stops for snacks and lunch), just walking at a steady pace, although I confess I was not doing this in the heat of the summer. If you look after your legs and feet, you will be surprised how far you can walk on the Camino, especially after a few days, when there is nothing else to do, and reaching your sleeping point depends upon it.

Consider also transporting your luggage each day by the postal service, Correos, so that you only need to walk with a day rucksack with provisions. It can be done online, in English, does not cost much and is reliable, and makes a huge difference.

 

[Sixwheeler]

If you haven't already you may wish to join the Camino Inglés and Celtic Camino - Official English Speakers' Group on Facebook, you may well find your answers already there but if not just ask.
Ultreïa