gittiharre said:
Thank you Neville, that seems soooo expensive, a lot of the pilgrim and sleeping in straw accommodations are around 20 to 30 Swiss Francs, is the food really that expensive to beef the cost up to 100 francs per day????? Scary!!!! Gitti
I agree that 100SF is expensive. I seem to remember this is what she spent but it has been a couple of years. It is very possible that you could keep the cost under 80SF as you suggested but much of this depends on where you actually end up staying and where you end up eating.
Working from memory, there are only a handful of pilgrim/hostel style accommodation places along the route and yes the average bed rate is approximately 20-25SF per person which normally does not include breakfast. Add another 10SF for breakfast. There was only 1-2 places that offered "sleep in the straw" and after what my wife experienced, it may or may not be your thing. The one place was actually off the trail, so keep this in mind. Cost again is generally about the same.
Beyond this, you are faced with getting a single bed in a B&B - cost is average 50SF (includes breakfast) or worst a single room in a small hotel - cost is 50-80SF. Single bed in B&Bs and hotels are hard some times of the year to get and you maybe forced to get a double room.
Dinner varies depending if you buy something at a restaurant (most expensive and not recommended) or buy something at the local Migros food store - average cost is 25-30SF. Keep in mind not all places have a Migros or Coop with a deli sections. Buying food and cooking it only works if the place you are staying at has cooking facilities - and many place do not.
My wife and I have traveled to Switzerland a number of times (this past May being the latest time - she has some extended family there). Generally we spend 100SF for 2 beds at a B&B and 50-100SF for food and other things. Local transportation while excellent can also eat up the budget - so keep in this mind. My wife bused through a couple of sections in the east (between the terrain and weather - it rained for a solid week in September). Train travel in Switzerland is an average 1/2 SF per kilometre for second class.
Buying hot/cold drinks and snacks also eats into the budget. A simple small coffee can cost you 3SF and a snack - 6SF. It is these little things in Switzerland that seem to burn through our budget. So in the past I have generally used 100SF per person as a base and most often we have stayed under this number. Nice to come home with a bit of money and not some outstanding Visa bills to pay.
Honestly you could get by with a budget less than 100SF, maybe as little as 75SF, if you plan ahead and pick the right time of the year to walk. July and August are the busy months so I would select either June or September.
Trust this helps
PS the scenery is to die for and even though it was expensive as compared to other caminos, and it rained for the first week, my wife never regretted it and throughly enjoyed the experience.
