Is a credential needed to stay in private albergues?

[Camino Chrissy]

I will be walking from Oviedo on the del Norte this spring with two other family members and we will have credentials to be stamped along the way.

In Santiago two more family members will be joining us and we all will be walking on to Muxia, Lires and Finesterre. I have secured lodging for the five of us in a variety of lodgings, including a couple of private albergues, all through booking.com

I am wondering if the two newbies joining us in Santiago need to have credencials to stay in the private albergues as I am unsure.
EDIT- We are not interested in getting certificates for completing these stages.
Thanks for any input.

 

[trecile]

I will be walking from Oviedo on the del Norte this spring with two other family members and we will have credentials to be stamped along the way.

In Santiago two more family members will be joining us and we all will be walking on to Muxia, Lires and Finesterre. I have secured lodging for the five of us in a variety of lodgings, including a couple of private albergues, all through booking.com

I am wondering if the two newbies joining us in Santiago need to have credentials to stay in the private albergues as I am unsure. Thanks for any input.

Gronze.com will say if the albergues are exclusively for pilgrims or not. I would assume that pilgrim exclusive albergues would require a credential.
Why don't you just order credentials from either American Pilgrims on the Camino (free, but they ask for a donation), or from the forum store?

 

[dougfitz]

If you intend that everyone collect the Muxia and Fisterra certificates, your friends will need to have some form of credencial. The Xunta Tourist Office used to have guide booklets that served as a credencial for these routes, and I am assuming they still do.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Gronze.com will say if the albergues are exclusively for pilgrims or not. I would assume that pilgrim exclusive albergues would require a credential.
Why don't you just order credencials from either American Pilgrims on the Camino (free, but they ask for a donation), or from the forum store?

Thank you, Trecile. I do order our credentials from APOC, but the family joining us in Santiago are only staying in three private albergues on our walk, it seemed pointless to order them one if not needed. I thought only municipal albergues require one in order to stay in their facilities. We are not interested in gaining certificates of completion for these final stages anyway.
I will check Gronze.

 

[NorthernLight]

When you are in Santiago, pick up the free booklet/map from the Xunta tourist office, one for each of them. This will serve as their credential - as dougfitz says - and will be a souvenir of their trip.

 

[SYates]

... The Xunta Tourist Office used to have guide booklets that served as a credencial for these routes, and I am assuming they still do.

Yes, they are still available and they are free ;-) so, no harm picking them up in the TO in the pilgrims' office ;-)
BC SY

 

[lt56ny]

When you are in Santiago, pick up the free booklet/map from the Xunta tourist office, one for each of them. This will serve as their credential - as dougfitz says - and will be a souvenir of their trip.

Yes I agree with Northern Light and Ms Yates get the booklet map at the tourist office. It may come in very handy especially if you get somewhere and the only albergue available is a pilgrim one. Who knows maybe they will enjoy having the stamps to look back on and maybe they may decide to get the certificates for walking when they get to Muxia.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I will pick them up one then in Santiago! I've been to what I thought was the main tourist office before...is that the same one as the Xunta tourist office?...I assume so.
Do any of you have a picture to show me? Is it styled like a credencial, or only a piece of paper...just curious.

 

[SYates]

I will pick them up one then in Santiago! I've been to what I thought was the main tourist office before...is that the same one as the Xunta tourist office?...I assume so.
Do any of you have a picture to show me? Is it styled like a credencial, or only a piece of paper...just curious.

No picture, but it is like a paper brochure with a foldout part - very light. I am not sure if you can get it in the main TO, but you can get it in the Xacobeo TO in the same building as the Pilgrims' Office.
BC SY

 

[trecile]

No picture, but it is like a paper brochure with a foldout part - very light. I am not sure if you can get it in the main TO, but you can get it in the Xacobeo TO in the same building as the Pilgrims' Office.
BC SY

One year I remember some friends picking them up at The Last Stamp albergue. I don't know if they still have them.

 

[gmag]

Hi Camino Chrissy, we have a albergue privado (turistico).

There are two kinds of private hostels on the Camino de Santiago, Albergues turisticos and Albergues de los Caminos a Santiago. In the "turisticos" it is possible sleep more than one night and they admit non-pilgrims, in those of the Caminos a Santiago, only one night and only pilgrims. In the tourist it is not necessary credential, but in those of the Caminos it is necessary. They are recognized by the symbol at the door, although there are private tourist albergues that put the symbol of the Caminos a Santiago, (although it is illegal and is a way of deceiving), because it is more commercial and more beautiful. In practice they are the same, in our hostel only 0.3% have not been pilgrims to Santiago, they were cyclists touring the region.