Book accommodations advance or not?

[Ron762]

Having just completed the Camino Frances from SJPdeP in May/June this year I'm now at the planning stage for the Portuguese Way from Lisbon, probably in September/October. On the French route the general advice given was that albergues/hostels/pensions etc didn't need to be booked in advance because there were plenty of them and you'd never not get a bed. This was so wrong! The bed race was real! Thankfully I'd mostly booked ahead and in the places where I hadn't I left early morning to arrive where I planned to stay by about 1pm and was able to get a bed. By 3pm though everything was taken. Advice I've seen on the Portuguese route suggests that there are not many places to stay between Lisbon and Porto and it may be advisable to book in advance for this part but from Porto to Santiago there are plenty of albergues/hostels etc and booking isn't necessary. I'm wondering if, like the French Way, this advice is out of date and I'd appreciate learning of the experience of anyone who has completed the Portuguese route recently.

 

[henrythedog]

If it were late September into October, I’d say no. The April peak period on the Frances seemed (anecdotally) to extend a couple of weeks longer than usual, but September is similar, and the Portuguese and Ingles seem to be getting much more traffic now than a few years ago.

The crowds are concentrated on the last 100 as usual. So IMHO:

From Lisbon up to the border you’ll be OK as it’s not usually packed and if you’re crossing into Spain in October you’ll be OK. (Based on historic numbers)

 

[Kiwi-family]

"By 3pm everything was taken" - everything in the hostel you were in or did you walk round town and check out the municipals and parrochials that can't be booked too? I walked at the same time, primarily stayed in municipals and they were rarely full.
Even by your description, it seems if you are happy to arrive before 3pm (which is great for getting washing dry), you'd have got a bed. In sixty days of walking I only missed out on a municipal bed once, but there were still 15euro beds in a private next door (and even that was not full) - this was in Los Arcos. Two ladies I had been walking with bussed ahead one night because they did not get a bed - this was in Ventosa, a small place with no municipal option and no other lowcost options either, which is exactly why it was one of the few nights I did book!
Maybe you could have a look at Gronze and see just how many non-bookable beds are available where you are going. My experience suggests this factor greatly impacts the need to book or not.

 

[Ron762]

"By 3pm everything was taken" - everything in the hostel you were in or did you walk round town and check out the municipals and parrochials that can't be booked too? I walked at the same time, primarily stayed in municipals and they were rarely full.
Even by your description, it seems if you are happy to arrive before 3pm (which is great for getting washing dry), you'd have got a bed. In sixty days of walking I only missed out on a municipal bed once, but there were still 15euro beds in a private next door (and even that was not full) - this was in Los Arcos. Two ladies I had been walking with bussed ahead one night because they did not get a bed - this was in Ventosa, a small place with no municipal option and no other lowcost options either, which is exactly why it was one of the few nights I did book!
Maybe you could have a look at Gronze and see just how many non-bookable beds are available where you are going. My experience suggests this factor greatly impacts the need to book or not.

Examples, arrived Ages on 14th May around Noon. No beds available. Walked on to Atapuerca where we found a municipal that was opening at 1pm on a first come first served basis. By 3pm people were having to walk on because everything in Atapuerca was filled, including the more expensive hotel rooms. Canadian couple on the 2nd night in Zubiri had to take a taxi forward (not sure if it was to Pamplona or not) as there was no beds in Zubiri. In Foncebadon, an Irish guy I'd befriended arrived around Noon and got the last bed in the village at the Donativo Albergue. Guess you were just lucky.

 

[FLEUR]

On the Portuguese (Porto to SdC) with 3 others, booking beds 24hrs ahead worked well.
That's apart from Fernanda's which we booked weeks ahead.

 

[lt56ny]

It seems like you are lucky in that you can choose when you would like to walk. I walked from Lisbon but that was 7 years ago so I think my albergue experience is not much help today. I would say if you started from Lisbon in early October you would have a much easier time finding a place to stay as most people start in Porto. By the time you get to Porto the pilgrims will be far fewer but definitely more then from Lisbon. I walked the coastal last November and never had a problem finding an albergue open. But that would be a few weeks later than when you get to Porto. (I started from Porto about November 7 or 8.
I would say whenever you have concerns if a place you want to sleep in is open call or whatsapp ahead. I think that Buen Camino and Wise Pilgrim and Gronze.com do an excellent job of keeping up with open and closing dates, but you never know what an owner may decide to do. I always look on Gronze first for places to sleep. Then I may text just to find out if they are open. From my experience more people speak English in Portugal than Spain. I speak more than enough Spanish so it is not a problem. In Portugal I will use Google translate and put both the translation and the English in whatsapp. Keep it simple and there will be no problem. I also have called many times and rarely have I had a problem communicating in English.

 

[David Tallan]

I haven't walked from Lisbon to Porto but, based on my experience with other less-walked routes, the suggestion to book ahead may be less about worrying that places are full and more about ensuring that albergues are ready to receive you.

I did walk from Porto on in early October, a few years ago. In general, I would say that booking ahead is not necessary. But if there are particularly desirable albergues that take reservations and you want to be sure to be able to stay in them (e.g. Casa da Fernanda), it may be wise to book those.

I acknowledge that you asked for the experience of people who have walked recently. But traffic patterns on Caminos don't just vary year to year, they vary month to month. If you are going to walk in October, the experience of someone who walked in October in a recent year may be more applicable than that of someone who walked in May/June this year. Your experience of the Camino Frances starting from SJPP in May (one of the busiest times) will be very different from that of someone who starts from the same place in mid-October or November.

 

[trecile]

Examples, arrived Ages on 14th May around Noon. No beds available. Walked on to Atapuerca where we found a municipal that was opening at 1pm on a first come first served basis. By 3pm people were having to walk on because everything in Atapuerca was filled, including the more expensive hotel rooms

I think these anecdotes are mostly because you started walking from SJPdP during one of the very busiest times of the year - the beginning of May. I was in the same area two weeks later, and no one I met had any problems finding a bed.

 

[SusieP]

Having just completed the Camino Frances from SJPdeP in May/June this year I'm now at the planning stage for the Portuguese Way from Lisbon, probably in September/October. On the French route the general advice given was that albergues/hostels/pensions etc didn't need to be booked in advance because there were plenty of them and you'd never not get a bed. This was so wrong! The bed race was real! Thankfully I'd mostly booked ahead and in the places where I hadn't I left early morning to arrive where I planned to stay by about 1pm and was able to get a bed. By 3pm though everything was taken. Advice I've seen on the Portuguese route suggests that there are not many places to stay between Lisbon and Porto and it may be advisable to book in advance for this part but from Porto to Santiago there are plenty of albergues/hostels etc and booking isn't necessary. I'm wondering if, like the French Way, this advice is out of date and I'd appreciate learning of the experience of anyone who has completed the Portuguese route recently.

I would also like to know this since we are walking from Porto to Santiago from either end of August through September or beginning of September. It has taken a ton of reading to figure out how to book flights and where to fly into and out of. I also saw something about different apps to book albergues.

Hoping to hear from others! Susie

 

[C clearly]

On the French route the general advice given was that albergues/hostels/pensions etc didn't need to be booked in advance because there were plenty of them and you'd never not get a bed. This was so wrong! The bed race was real!

I notice that you walked the Camino Frances in May/June. The generalized advice that you say was "so wrong" was wrong because no generalized advice can cover the differences in different months, on different sections of the Camino, and for private rooms vs. albergues. That is a point that so many newcomers seem to miss! It is outlined well in this thread.

The situation may be quite different for the Portugues.

 

[stevewa]

Hi Ron. We are starting in Lisbon on 2 October walking to Porto. Having walked 4 previous Caminos including Porto to SDC and done some research, we do not anticipate pre booking as a necessity. The first day out of Lisbon has a lack of accommodation so we anticipate using the train part way to Vila Franca. The train line is handy to the route over the first few days so you have the option to train ahead (inexpensive and often) and return next morning to recommence where you left off.
Bom Caminho