Camino del Norte accommodation

[Happy Hiker]

We want to walk the Camino del Norte. However being of senior years & not carrying sleeping bags we will require accommodation like cheap hotels & B&B's & hostel private rooms.
Has anybody done it this way recently ? Is it possible? What were the stage lengths? What are the best months to do it? Any info will be helpful.

 

[trecile]

We want to walk the Camino del Norte. However being of senior years & not carrying sleeping bags we will require accommodation like cheap hotels & B&B's & hostel private rooms.
Has anybody done it this way recently ? Is it possible? What were the stage lengths? What are the best months to do it? Any info will be helpful.

Yes, it's possible to stay in only private rooms. Summer is high tourist season on the north coast, so prices are higher than during other seasons. Consult Gronze.com for information on stages, accommodations, etc. Gronze is in Spanish, but if you use the Chrome browser it will automatically translate to English.

Camino del Norte | Gronze.com

www.gronze.com

 

[oursonpolaire]

Aside from the Irun-Bilbao stretch at the beginning, the del Norte is very flexible and well-provided, with pensions and casas rurales all along the way every 10km or so. I had the impression that fewer albergues had private rooms than on the Francese, but Gronze.com will give you all the details.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

My son and I had no problem finding beds in spring 2016 and we "winged it" the whole way except for the first and last night.

 

[Happy Hiker]

My son and I had no problem finding beds in spring 2016 and we "winged it" the whole way except for the first and last night.

Thank you.
Do you happen to have a list of the villages where you stayed? 25/27 klms a days is fine but some of the 40klm days in hills would be too much.

 

[trecile]

If you look at Gronze stages (not that you have to follow them), they only have a couple that approach 40 km. For instance Santander to Santillana del Mar is 37.1 km. But if you look at the Gronze page for this stage you will see that there are plenty of intermediate towns to stop in.

Santander - Santillana del Mar | Camino del Norte | Gronze.com

Etapa muy larga y que discurre por zonas bastante urbanizadas, aprovechando aceras y carriles peatonales; sin embargo, podemos dividirla gracias a varios albergues existentes en localidades intermedias. La salida de Santander resulta aburrida, pero después avanzaremos entre paisajes agradables...

www.gronze.com

You can use RutasaSantiago.com to plan your own stages.

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[Camino Chrissy]

Thank you.
Do you happen to have a list of the villages where you stayed? 25/27 klms a days is fine but some of the 40klm days in hills would be too much.

Our stages:
San Sabastian, Orio, Zumaia, Ermita Del Calvario, Markina, Gernika, Lezama, Bilbao, bus to Castro Urdiales, Liendo, Noja, Guemes, Santander, bus to Santillana, Comillas, Unquera, taxi 1/2 stage to Llanes, Ribadesella (longest stage 30k), Colunga.
Turned on to Primitivo.

 

[Heikki]

We are on the Norte now, though on final stages. Only small number of hotels were open, but we found a place to sleep for every night. We have used booking.com for finding a place to sleep. Prices were 30-50 euros per night for a double. In Galicia we have used Xunta albergues and a sleeping bag is essential there. Tomorrow we are in Santiago.
Buen Camino,
Heikki

 

[NomadBoomer]

Buen Camino Heikki! I hope you have a fantastic last day walk.
I am one of the sad camino addicts who find the last day hard as the walk is over. Virus permitting will be finishing the norte in July.

 

[backpack45scb]

We did this in 2015 and 2016 and are in 70s-80s. Here is link to 2015 stages. A little complicated as we had to leave and come back. We finished Norte and did Primitivo in 2016. You could google Susan Alcorn writer for more info. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...UQ0XQpbiB0Z6dqouZD6i_Z6uuCI/edit?usp=drivesdk

 

[Happy Hiker]

Thank you all for your info. I am almost 73 & we have the Francais & the Via de la Plata ticked off so far. I will really have to research this one in the next few months & look at it post Coronavirus.

 

[oursonpolaire]

My stages in 2017 were: Irun - San Juan de Pasajes 20; to Igueldo 18; to Zarautz 18; Deba 22; Markina 25; to
Guernica 25; skip by local train to Bilbao; to Castro Urdiales 20; to Liendo 20; to Santoña 12; to Noja 15; to Guemes 16; to Somo 18; skipping to Mogro and walking to Santillana del Mar 19; to to Comillas 20; to San Vicente de la Barquera 13 to Columbres 20 (another time stopped at Serdio); to Llanes 20; to Nueva 17; to Ribadesella 15; to Islares 20; to Villaviciosa 21; skipping to Gijon and Aviles by train, then walking to Soto del Barco 20; to Aguilar for a beach break 12; to Soto de Luiña 20; to Cadavedo16; to Luarca 16; to Navia 20; to Tapia de Casariego 23; Ribadeo 15; to Villamartin Grande 19; to Mondoñedo 18; to Abadin 12 or 17; to Vilalba 21; to Baamonde 19; to Miraz 15; to Sobrado de Monxes 25; to Arzua 22. Then you're on the Frances. I was 64 when I did this fairly leisurely trek and stayed in private accommodation in all places, although sometimes in private rooms at albergues. The first week to Bilbao is physically the toughest, but do remember that Correos can take your pack for 5 euro a stage, which can mitigate some of the pain-- it's a great Camino and a paradise for seafood lovers. The pilgrim population is much less North American and Spanish than the Frances, but there's plenty of English speakers among the Germans and the younger French.

 

[AJGuillaume]

We want to walk the Camino del Norte. However being of senior years & not carrying sleeping bags we will require accommodation like cheap hotels & B&B's & hostel private rooms.
Has anybody done it this way recently ? Is it possible? What were the stage lengths? What are the best months to do it? Any info will be helpful.

We walked the Norte in 2018, and we found a lot of information about alternatives in this forum, leading to some amazing views. My advice: don't always follow the yellow arrows and check out the information here: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/coastal-alternatives-to-the-nortes-asphalt.49578/
We are slow walkers, didn't carry sleeping bags either. We started in Hendaye, and did a deviation to Oviedo, which is really worthwhile. Here are our stages, where we stayed and the distance in km:
Pasajes AirBnB 21.5
San Sebastian Pensión Amaiur 6.2
Orio Mailan Casa Rural 16
Zumaia Albergue Santa Klara 15.7
Ibiri Izarbide Pilgrims Hostel (this is the only dormitory, but we paid for sheets) 19
Markina-Xemein Hotel Antsotegi 19.1
Munitibar Gerrikaitz Casa Rural Garro 11.5
Gernika Pension Akelarre Ostatua 13.9
Lezama Hotel Rural Matsa 21.9
Bilbao Ibis Bilbao Central 10.5
Portugalete (via Ria del Nervion) Gran Hotel Puente Colgante 12.4
Pobena Mugarri Rural Apartments 13
Castro Urdiales (via Miono) Pension La Mar 15.9
For the next two stages, you may wish to follow the official path:
Oriñon Chez Mano, Las Campas 68, Oriñón (AirBnb) 16.4
Laredo (via Monte Candina, coast) Hotel Ramona 11.5
Noja (via Santoña) Hotel Maria del Mar 13.6
Guemes (via Castillo & Bareyo) Posada Camino del Norte 15.4
Santander (via Somo) Hospedaje Magallanes 14.6
Liencres Hospedaje La Picota 19
Polancos Rolisas 22.2
Santillana del Mar Posada de la Abadia 11.8
Cobreces Pension Bella Vista 13.2
Comillas Posada La Montañesuca 10.4
Serdio Hosteria El Corralucu 19.6
Buelna Casa de Aldea El Valle 17.8
Llanes Hotel Don Paco 17.3
Nueva Hotel Luna del Valle 18.3
Ribadesella/Ribeseya Pension Arbidel 15.9
Colunga Hotel Villa de Colunga 22.6
Villaviciosa Hotel Carlos I 17.9
This is where we dipped down to Oviedo
Valdedios Hospederia Valdedios 9.9
Vega de Poja Casa Rural El Calero 15.4
Oviedo Hotel Rosal 20
And back towards the Norte:
La Miranda - Llanera Hotel Royal 16.6
Aviles Hotel Palacio Valdes 14
Muros de Nalon Casa Carmina 22.5
Soto de Luina Apartahotel Rural La Hortona 18.4
Ballota Hotel Casa Fernando III 12.8
Barcia Hotel Casa La Fonte 21.6
Puerto de Vega Hotel Pleamar 21.3
La Caridad Hotel Rural Casa Xusto 23.1
Ribadeo Hostal Linares 23.8
Villamartin Grande Tentempe Peregrino 18.7
Mondonedo Hotel Montero 17.7
Abadin Pension Casa Goas 13.4
Vilalba Parador de Vilalba 20.6
Baamonde Hostal Ruta Esmeralda 18.8
Miraz O Abrigo Hostel 16.6
Reguela Bi Terra 14
Sobrado dos Monxes Monasterio Cisterciense de Santa María de Sobrado (in a private room, not in the dormitory) 15.8
A Gandara (Boimorto) Casa da Gandara 11.8
Arzua Cima do Lugar 10.2
O Pedrouzo Pension 9 de abril 19
Santiago de Compostella 19

I hope this helps.
Buen Camino!

 

[johngaul]

We walked the Norte in 2018, and we found a lot of information about alternatives in this forum, leading to some amazing views. My advice: don't always follow the yellow arrows and check out the information here: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/coastal-alternatives-to-the-nortes-asphalt.49578/
We are slow walkers, didn't carry sleeping bags either. We started in Hendaye, and did a deviation to Oviedo, which is really worthwhile. Here are our stages, where we stayed and the distance in km:
Pasajes AirBnB 21.5
San Sebastian Pensión Amaiur 6.2
Orio Mailan Casa Rural 16
Zumaia Albergue Santa Klara 15.7
Ibiri Izarbide Pilgrims Hostel (this is the only dormitory, but we paid for sheets) 19
Markina-Xemein Hotel Antsotegi 19.1
Munitibar Gerrikaitz Casa Rural Garro 11.5
Gernika Pension Akelarre Ostatua 13.9
Lezama Hotel Rural Matsa 21.9
Bilbao Ibis Bilbao Central 10.5
Portugalete (via Ria del Nervion) Gran Hotel Puente Colgante 12.4
Pobena Mugarri Rural Apartments 13
Castro Urdiales (via Miono) Pension La Mar 15.9
For the next two stages, you may wish to follow the official path:
Oriñon Chez Mano, Las Campas 68, Oriñón (AirBnb) 16.4
Laredo (via Monte Candina, coast) Hotel Ramona 11.5
Noja (via Santoña) Hotel Maria del Mar 13.6
Guemes (via Castillo & Bareyo) Posada Camino del Norte 15.4
Santander (via Somo) Hospedaje Magallanes 14.6
Liencres Hospedaje La Picota 19
Polancos Rolisas 22.2
Santillana del Mar Posada de la Abadia 11.8
Cobreces Pension Bella Vista 13.2
Comillas Posada La Montañesuca 10.4
Serdio Hosteria El Corralucu 19.6
Buelna Casa de Aldea El Valle 17.8
Llanes Hotel Don Paco 17.3
Nueva Hotel Luna del Valle 18.3
Ribadesella/Ribeseya Pension Arbidel 15.9
Colunga Hotel Villa de Colunga 22.6
Villaviciosa Hotel Carlos I 17.9
This is where we dipped down to Oviedo
Valdedios Hospederia Valdedios 9.9
Vega de Poja Casa Rural El Calero 15.4
Oviedo Hotel Rosal 20
And back towards the Norte:
La Miranda - Llanera Hotel Royal 16.6
Aviles Hotel Palacio Valdes 14
Muros de Nalon Casa Carmina 22.5
Soto de Luina Apartahotel Rural La Hortona 18.4
Ballota Hotel Casa Fernando III 12.8
Barcia Hotel Casa La Fonte 21.6
Puerto de Vega Hotel Pleamar 21.3
La Caridad Hotel Rural Casa Xusto 23.1
Ribadeo Hostal Linares 23.8
Villamartin Grande Tentempe Peregrino 18.7
Mondonedo Hotel Montero 17.7
Abadin Pension Casa Goas 13.4
Vilalba Parador de Vilalba 20.6
Baamonde Hostal Ruta Esmeralda 18.8
Miraz O Abrigo Hostel 16.6
Reguela Bi Terra 14
Sobrado dos Monxes Monasterio Cisterciense de Santa María de Sobrado (in a private room, not in the dormitory) 15.8
A Gandara (Boimorto) Casa da Gandara 11.8
Arzua Cima do Lugar 10.2
O Pedrouzo Pension 9 de abril 19
Santiago de Compostella 19

I hope this helps.
Buen Camino!

Can you share your route into and out of Puerto de Vega?

 

[AJGuillaume]

Can you share your route into and out of Puerto de Vega?

Unfortunately, I didn't record any tracks, but Google did record where we walked.
I'm not at home to check details of our walk, so hopefully these two screen shots will help.

 

[johngaul]

Unfortunately, I didn't record any tracks, but Google did record where we walked.
I'm not at home to check details of our walk, so hopefully these two screen shots will help.View attachment 143751View attachment 143752

Thxs, I found some great google earth tracks last night someone has posted.