Finding albergues in the winter

[peregrina2000]

Update in Dec. 2024:
The posted list http://www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno/ is still valid. This list is maintained each year from about November 1, through the winter. (The web link remains visible through the rest of the year, but there is no information on the page.)
__________________

Original post...

Since Kanga just posted about the closure of the Napoleon Route through Orisson, it reminded me that winter pilgrims also need updated news on the status of albergues. I think Reb was the one to introduce us to this website and I know it is a godsend. It is updated regularly, as soon as new info is available. A student of mine walked with his mom and sister last year over the holidays and told me that they would have really been in deep trouble without this. So, winter pilgrims, enjoy and buen camino, Laurie

http://www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno/

 

[mlhhome]

It is an opportunity for solitude, but pray for heat (water & dormitories) and blankets. Sleeping bags are an absolute necessity.

 

[mspath]

It is an opportunity for solitude, but pray for heat (water & dormitories) and blankets. Sleeping bags are an absolute necessity.

In cold weather never choose a bunk placed against an exterior wall since old walls are often uninsulated and thus frigid. All night heating is not the norm hence make a cozy 'sandwich' for sleeping by folding a blanket in half the long way, place your sleeping bag on top of the bottom half and pull the top half over all. If there are no blankets put your poncho beneath the bag to block the cold air from rising.

Runner's winter tights, a long sleeve runner's shirt and loose socks and a warm hat are great to wear to bunk/bed wben it is really cold. Over past caminos the coldest I have ever slept was late February 2006 in the then unheated Hornillos del Camino municipal albergue. Breath hung white in the frigid interior air and ice formed in the toilet bowl. Nevertheless dressed as above I was snug in my sleeping bag and liner.

For more tips re sleeping in cold weather see this earlier forum thread.
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/sleeping-system-for-cold-weather.40968/

 

[HedaP]

Not planning to walk in winter but just in case the opportunity ever arises, what’s the situation with private accommodation in winter? I actually like staying in albergues but every now and then it’s nice to have a big towel night.

 

[Pheilhans]

I have done the frances many times and now I am wondering if I should do it again from mid november. Reading all the warnings on this board about all the closed albergues has put me a bit off the idea. But I suddenly remembered that when starting in St. Jean Pied de Port you get a list of accommodation. This list has all the closing and opening dates. I have a copy of this list from october 2017. The list from Amies de chemin says there are albergues open out november and december in Roncevalle, Zubiri, Pamplona, Puenta de la Reina, Estella and the list continues. Many of these cities has many albergues open these months. With all the warnings on this board I am starting to wonder if there is something I do not comprehend. When the big towns and main villages on the camino frances has municipal albergues open, then they are open as normal? I read somewhere online (can't remember where) that the albergue municipale in Viana was listed as open but a policeman had the key and did not show up before late at night to let in the pilgrim. Is this normal practise or will there be hospitalieroes/staff to welcome People in most Places listed as open? As far as I can see there should be sufficient albergues open to do the Camino without any problems, or is there something I do not grasp? I also see that People Write there are very few pilgrims, but when small villages like Zubiri has Three albergues open out november and one of them open out december, then they can not all be empty? (Sorry my first Language is not English).

 

[C clearly]

Reading all the warnings on this board about all the closed albergues has put me a bit off the idea.

It is very important not to assume all albergues will be open! However, you only need one bed each night and that will not be hard to find, with a modest amount of planning each day.

 

[grayland]

Since Kanga just posted about the closure of the Napoleon Route through Orisson, it reminded me that winter pilgrims also need updated news on the status of albergues. I think Reb was the one to introduce us to this website and I know it is a godsend. It is updated regularly, as soon as new info is available. A student of mine walked with his mom and sister last year over the holidays and told me that they would have really been in deep trouble without this. So, winter pilgrims, enjoy and buen camino, Laurie

http://www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno/

I walked the CF in January last year. I was very surprised at the number of pilgrims walking.

The http://www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno that Laurie posted is an excellent resource to finding open albergues. It is, of course, not completely accurate at all times due to changes by the individual owners and hospitalaros.
You will also be given a pretty up to date list by the Pilgrim Office in SJPP..if you ask. If you use both lists..you will have a good source of info.
If you start after St. Jean it may be a good idea to ask other pilgrims if they have the list and then add the differences to your copy of the
Acogida list above.

There usually was something open everywhere...but I do recall a couple of towns where there were nothing open, including pensions even though the lists indicated there were beds there. It required moving on to the next village so checking ahead is a really good idea.

 

[Pheilhans]

Thank you

 

[grayland]

A few years ago there were few winter pilgrims..thus few albergues found it appropriate to stay open.
Now...there are enough pilgrims to justify staying open.
An example is that there were 18 pilgrims in the municipal albergue in mid January when I started in SJPP. They had just one dorm open and it was full. This was common to just have the albergues partially open as the numbers are far fewer than the busy months.

I was the only returning pilgrim out of the 18 in the SJPP muni. The others were all 1st time pilgrims.

 

[Deleted member 43985]

You will also be given a pretty up to date list by the Pilgrim Office in SJPP..if you ask. If you use both lists..you will have a good source of info.
If you start after St. Jean it may be a good idea to ask other pilgrims if they have the list and then add the differences to your copy of the
Acogida list above.

Do you think it would be possible to get a copy of the winter list from SJPDP electronically from them to print out while I'm still at home? I'm starting in Roncesvalles in January as my knee has decided day 1 on the Pyrenees isn't a good idea this year but I'd still like to have a copy in hand. I wonder if they would consider adding a page to their website with this important information...?

 

[Danilo76]

This post is a great gem for me,i will be on the Camino nest sunday and you gave me very precious info,thamk you

 

[RevBarbaraG]

The website talks about albergues open up to 28th January. Does that mean that in March there will be more?

 

[grayland]

The website talks about albergues open up to 28th January. Does that mean that in March there will be more?

Many albergues open during March as the number of pilgrims pick up.

Most are open by April 1st.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

The website talks about albergues open up to 28th January. Does that mean that in March there will be more?

Easter is early, so some will open a week before to get some revenue from the surge of pilgrims, mostly León onward. The Easter pilgrim is mostly Spanish, and they are mostly 100 km pilgrims.

 

[RevBarbaraG]

I’m starting from SJPdP on 22nd March.... so it’s probably only the first week I’ll need to check individual Albuergues for, then, from what you say.

 

[grayland]

I’m starting from SJPdP on 22nd March.... so it’s probably only the first week I’ll need to check individual Albuergues for, then, from what you say.

The Pilgrim Office in SJPdP will have a pretty current list of open albergues to hand out along with some other information.

As someone posted above, be open to using other accomondation in the event that an albergue is not available at some point.
That way you can eliminate the stress of "having" to find an open albergue.

I have walked the CF several times in March and have not had any problems with a mix of accomondations.

 

[Derek Booth]

I have done the frances many times and now I am wondering if I should do it again from mid november. Reading all the warnings on this board about all the closed albergues has put me a bit off the idea. But I suddenly remembered that when starting in St. Jean Pied de Port you get a list of accommodation. This list has all the closing and opening dates. I have a copy of this list from october 2017. The list from Amies de chemin says there are albergues open out november and december in Roncevalle, Zubiri, Pamplona, Puenta de la Reina, Estella and the list continues. Many of these cities has many albergues open these months. With all the warnings on this board I am starting to wonder if there is something I do not comprehend. When the big towns and main villages on the camino frances has municipal albergues open, then they are open as normal? I read somewhere online (can't remember where) that the albergue municipale in Viana was listed as open but a policeman had the key and did not show up before late at night to let in the pilgrim. Is this normal practise or will there be hospitalieroes/staff to welcome People in most Places listed as open? As far as I can see there should be sufficient albergues open to do the Camino without any problems, or is there something I do not grasp? I also see that People Write there are very few pilgrims, but when small villages like Zubiri has Three albergues open out november and one of them open out december, then they can not all be empty? (Sorry my first Language is not English).

You say that English is not your first language.
Please do not apologise. Your written English is much better than the spoken speech I hear every day.
Thank you.

 

[wcsjms]

Maybe I am too late for the link to winter albergues to work but I have clicked on it multiple times from the original poster and subsequent posters and it open to an email contact but no list. Is it necessary to actually contact the original poster to receive the list?

 

[C clearly]

The list of albergues that expect to be open in the winter is maintained each year from about November 1, through the winter. (The web link remains valid through the rest of the year, but there is no information on the page.)

Even with this list, it is wise to confirm the details close to the time, because circumstances can change!

Translation of the introductory paragraph on that site:

This list is periodically updated and can be found on www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno and on Facebook: Aprinca Albergues Invierno. There may be other places that we do not know about or do not want to be included in it.​

If you find an error in this list, please communicate it to hostinvierno@gmail.com​

 

[Former member 59618]

Just saw on Instagram that Albergue Casa Susi in Trabadelo will take winter pilgrims if you are 4 or more ppl. Just send them a WhatsApp message ahead of time to arrange!

 

[Myra13]

I see only albergues till Santo Domingo??

 

[trecile]

I see only albergues till Santo Domingo??

I see albergues up through Pedrouzo.

 

[frannie z]

Here is the updated list of albergues that expect to be open in the winter. This list is maintained each year from about November 1, through the winter. (The web link remains valid through the rest of the year, but there is no information on the page.)

Even with this list, it is wise to confirm the details close to the time, because circumstances can change!

Translation of the introductory paragraph on that site:

This list is periodically updated and can be found on www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno and on Facebook: Aprinca Albergues Invierno. There may be other places that we do not know about or do not want to be included in it.​

If you find an error in this list, please communicate it to hostinvierno@gmail.com​

I'm not sure how to use this site but hope my message gets to you. I tried to open the albergues site and could see nothing listed. Can you help me?

 

[Myra13]

When I follow the link, I don't see the complete list. But I went to the website, I got the complete (quite short) list.

 

[Kathor1]

You need to scroll the list of albergues to see all the entries. This is obvious on my desktop computer where the familiar scroll bar is visible on the right. On my mobile phone it is less obvious. Put your thumb or index finger on the list on the screen and you can move up and down the list.

Currently, the first entry is Valcarlos and the last entry is Pedrouzo-Arco-O Pino.

 

[C clearly]

Touch the link and a page opens, you can see a partial list. Touch the middle of the page and move your finger up. The list will scroll down.

(Cross posted with @Kathar1na )

 

[NicP]

Hi - just wondering when "winter" ends, for the purpose of albergues being open or not.... I'm starting walking around March 12 on the Camino Frances, probably from Roncesvalles or St Jean PdP, and hoping not to have to book ahead if possible. I see some people mention easter as the time many albergues open - thats not until 7 April this year. Any advice from around whether or not I'm making life difficult for myself by not wanting to book ahead? Thanks in advance!

 

[Kanga]

Hi - just wondering when "winter" ends, for the purpose of albergues being open or not.... I'm starting walking around March 12 on the Camino Frances, probably from Roncesvalles or St Jean PdP, and hoping not to have to book ahead if possible. I see some people mention easter as the time many albergues open - thats not until 7 April this year. Any advice from around whether or not I'm making life difficult for myself by not wanting to book ahead? Thanks in advance!

The Route Napoleon (from SJPDP to Roncesvalles) is closed until 1 April, so that is the date that I think of as "open season". Until that date pilgrims have to use the historic route, via Valcarlos.

From the information provided by @Bradypus and others who have been walking during winter, it seems that booking ahead is not so much the issue as actually finding albergues that are open. @Bradypus mentioned that there was only one night when the albergue he was planning on was full, and he found an alternative, private room. It sounds as if the main issue was having to walk longer stages than planned, because there was simply no accommodation open in some places. Booking ahead does not solve that problem.

 

[NicP]

Thanks @Kanga - I appreciate the reply. I guess I wasn't sure whether mid-March still counts as "winter" in camino terms.... It sounds like it might! I was planning on walking the Valcarlos route, unless the weather is particularly awful, in which case the idea was to start at Roncesvalles. I'm planning on walking longer days anyway - I only have about 28 days in total available to me for walking - I figure I can manage that, having done some pretty lengthy days on the VDLP in the past.

 

[trecile]

@NicP - you can use Gronze to see what albergue opening dates are, as every place will set its own open/close dates. And a number of albergues are open year round.

El Camino de Santiago | Gronze.com

Bienvenido a Gronze, tu Guía del Camino de Santiago: Información práctica, actualizada y participativa de los principales Caminos de Santiago.

www.gronze.com

 

[Kanga]

Thanks @Kanga - I appreciate the reply. I guess I wasn't sure whether mid-March still counts as "winter" in camino terms.... It sounds like it might! I was planning on walking the Valcarlos route, unless the weather is particularly awful, in which case the idea was to start at Roncesvalles. I'm planning on walking longer days anyway - I only have about 28 days in total available to me for walking - I figure I can manage that, having done some pretty lengthy days on the VDLP in the past.

I might book ahead for the first few days - I see that @Bradypus mentioned that the only open albergue at Zubiri was nearly full. It always seems busiest in the first days after SJPDP.

 

[David Tallan]

The Route Napoleon (from SJPDP to Roncesvalles) is closed until 1 April, so that is the date that I think of as "open season". Until that date pilgrims have to use the historic route, via Valcarlos.

From the information provided by @Bradypus and others who have been walking during winter, it seems that booking ahead is not so much the issue as actually finding albergues that are open. @Bradypus mentioned that there was only one night when the albergue he was planning on was full, and he found an alternative, private room. It sounds as if the main issue was having to walk longer stages than planned, because there was simply no accommodation open in some places. Booking ahead does not solve that problem.

I've always thought that the Camino "season" starts after Easter.

 

[hueppi]

Casa Paderborn in Pamplona will reopen on March 1st

 

[Sha]

I'm not sure how to use this site but hope my message gets to you. I tried to open the albergues site and could see nothing listed. Can you help me?

Same

 

[Kathor1]

Same

Below is what I see when I click on http://www.aprinca.com/alberguesinvierno/ . Which device are you using and what do you see instead? I noticed that it says in my web browser "not secure" but my browser let me open this website without fuss. Perhaps the reason why you can't see anything?

 

[trecile]

The website is poorly designed.
This is what it looks like in my Android phone.



When I try to scroll down to see the list if I put my finger in the blue area to scroll then nothing happens. You have to scroll only within the white area. Then you will see the list.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

The website is poorly designed.

Yes. I viewed the source code for the webpage and noticed that it embedded another webpage to control its appearance, likely to just add a picture at the top. The page you want to view is

https://www.aprinca.com/Subir/subidas/albergues.htm

 

[trecile]

Yes. I viewed the source code for the webpage and noticed that it embedded another webpage to control its appearance, likely to just add a picture at the top The page you want to view is

https://www.aprinca.com/Subir/subidas/albergues.htm

Wow, what a difference!

Here's what it looks like when you use the URL that @Rick of Rick and Peg posted.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Wow, what a difference!

Here's what it looks like when you use the URL that @Rick of Rick and Peg posted.

FYI: I have since followed the chain of posts on this thread. I now think the site design was to accomplish having a permanent webpage up so links left around the web would still work but a simple change such as renaming the albergues.htm to albergues-old.htm would cause the list of winter albergues to not be listed once the winter season was over. I would do things differently but the way they chose would be easy for non-website people to implement.

 

[walkingagain]

According to the list, you need to walk full stages in the winter to find open accommodations (for the most part). Very helpful to know. Thank you

 

[henrythedog]

According to the list, you need to walk full stages in the winter to find open accommodations (for the most part). Very helpful to know. Thank you

Assuming you’re staying in albergues - if you look for other accommodation there is plenty of choice.

 

[Bradypus]

Assuming you’re staying in albergues - if you look for other accommodation there is plenty of choice.

Not my experience in January 2023. In many of the smaller places there was no private accommodation available either. You can find yourself having to walk significantly longer stages than in summer months.

 

[roving_rufus]

In some places during winter private accommodation on the CF is widely available- in other spots nearly nonexistent. In January 2024 I was walking from Mansilla onwards - it was possible in many spots to break up stages with albergues and private accommodation- but Rabanal and Foncebadon had nothing open for a few days (lots of pilgrims bussed around the mountains).
This year in January 2025 I am heading backwards from Castrojeriz on CF- and there is minimal options on the mesata even some of the 'winter' albergues can be closed, and most private accommodation is shut. Truthfully I walked the mesata in winter 10 years ago and I feel less is now open (eg Tardajos municipal is closed in winter, the municipal albergue in Boadilla no longer exists - both of which operated in winter years ago).
Pretty much you are lucky to stick to main stages.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Yes, the camino is changing, as pilgrims change and the marketplace adjusts to meet their demands. Albergues close because not enough people use them in winter to make it worthwhile. Volunteer hospitaleros are hard to find in winter, and the for-profit places can't make it pay.
The pilgrim adjusts.
The Aprinca page is maintained by a volunteer who's been caring for pilgrims since the 1980s, and the info it contains is supplied by people who are not paid. Criticizing their IT skills is not cool. They're doing this for you. They don't have to.