Le Puy again or Vezelay september/october ??

[Katia Taam]

Hi
I've walked the Le Puy route last may/june with my husband and we loved each day !!
This year we will walk again but starting first week of september.
We are wondering if the Vezelay route is as good as Le puy route... Are there many pilgrims on the route or we will be more alone? Is it as dificult or easier?
Thanks for your help
Katia

PS We have walked the portuguese and the french ways many times befor, we are camino addicteds

 

[Purky]

Personally I enjoyed the Vezelay route very, very much, but the consensus seems to be that the Le Puy route is more beautiful and therefore more popular. I haven't walked Le Puy (although I spent time in the region in earlier years) so I can't really compare. But it'll be different...
The Vezelay route can be very quiet and solitairy. I haven't met many pilgrims (five pilgrims in an aubergue is a full house, and that happened to me only once), but I was looking for silence, so that worked out well.
As far as infrastructure goes: you'll find a bed easily enough, but need to plan/call ahead, especially for the weekends. The same goes for food; not as many restaurants, bistro's or bars as in Spain, and more expensive.
Waymarking overall is decent to very good, and with a good guide you won't have any problems. As I said, I loved it, and so do a lot of others. Check out this thread by GunnarW, who posted a lot of pictures of the section Vezelay-Limoges.
If you have more questions, feel free to ask!

 

[jdpiguet]

Hi Katia,

I haven't walk the Le Puy route, but I have been on the Vézelay one (10 years ago...).
The Vézelay one is physically less challenging, but a little longer.
It's surely much less frequented, last year there were around 400 pilgrims.
There is now several albergue/gîtes on the way, but you will have to do some planning in order to have a bed every day...
The MiamMiamDodo is a very useful tool on this way!

Buen Camino, Jacques-D.

 

[Kitsambler]

Have you thought about Switzerland or Germany? If you're looking for well-supported scenic walking, and you've already done the main routes in France and Spain, they bear consideration.

 

[newfydog]

Vezelay is way, way less travelled.

 

[Katia Taam]

Thanks...
I think this year I'll walk from Le Puy again... maybee Vezelay in 2018...

 

[Magnara]

Have you thought about Switzerland or Germany? If you're looking for well-supported scenic walking, and you've already done the main routes in France and Spain, they bear consideration.

What would you suggest here, in a bit more detail? They sound very interesting.

 

[Kitsambler]

What would you suggest here, in a bit more detail?

As you can see here (http://www.deutsche-jakobswege.de/wege-uebersicht.html), Germany is covered by a spiderweb of Jakobsweg routes. The Germans love to hike, so these are well-built, well-marked (in the German fashion, which is not as frequent as the French and certainly not as frequently as in Spain) routes through forests and fields, going from one town center square in front of the church to the next. There are route guides with maps, elevation profiles, and some lodging suggestions available for all these routes from Conrad-Stein (https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/p/verlag/programm_jakob.html) in the famous little yellow books that are available in every bookstore in German-speaking lands (including Amazon.de). Lodging and logistics support is richly available in every town. The lodging rates are more expensive than in France, but it includes an enormous breakfast of cold meats and cheese and breads and usually soft-boiled eggs - that often has enough for lunch as well.

In Switzerland, the route is called the Via Jacobi. The scenery in eastern Switzerland is not to be missed. The routes are also well-built and marked, and covered in the Conrad-Stein guidebooks. The routing dodges the towns, however, so one must leave the route for overnight lodging and logistics. The Swiss offer the full gamut of price options, from sleeping on straw in old dairy barns, to glamorous resort hotels.

I've walked from Prague, across Bavaria from Tillyschantz to Lake Konstanz, and across Switzerland through Einsiedeln to Geneva. Details of staging and lodgings in my blog, of course.

 

[Kitsambler]

There are also nice routes along the Rhine valley that connect with the Vezelay route; some go up the Mosel. Geneva connects to the Le Puy route.

 

[Magnara]

As you can see here (http://www.deutsche-jakobswege.de/wege-uebersicht.html), Germany is covered by a spiderweb of Jakobsweg routes. The Germans love to hike, so these are well-built, well-marked (in the German fashion, which is not as frequent as the French and certainly not as frequently as in Spain) routes through forests and fields, going from one town center square in front of the church to the next. There are route guides with maps, elevation profiles, and some lodging suggestions available for all these routes from Conrad-Stein (https://www.conrad-stein-verlag.de/p/verlag/programm_jakob.html) in the famous little yellow books that are available in every bookstore in German-speaking lands (including Amazon.de). Lodging and logistics support is richly available in every town. The lodging rates are more expensive than in France, but it includes an enormous breakfast of cold meats and cheese and breads and usually soft-boiled eggs - that often has enough for lunch as well.

In Switzerland, the route is called the Via Jacobi. The scenery in eastern Switzerland is not to be missed. The routes are also well-built and marked, and covered in the Conrad-Stein guidebooks. The routing dodges the towns, however, so one must leave the route for overnight lodging and logistics. The Swiss offer the full gamut of price options, from sleeping on straw in old dairy barns, to glamorous resort hotels.

I've walked from Prague, across Bavaria from Tillyschantz to Lake Konstanz, and across Switzerland through Einsiedeln to Geneva. Details of staging and lodgings in my blog, of course.

Thank you - I feel like a child looking at a jar full of lollies!

 

[Kitsambler]

Thank you - I feel like a child looking at a jar full of lollies!

More coming up! I forgot to put up the links for Switzerland. https://www.jakobsweg.ch/en/eu/ch/ . and http://www.wanderland.ch/en/routes/route-04.html

And then there's Austria, which has a route running the length of the country from Vienna through Melk, Salzburg, and Innsbruck, connecting to the Swiss routes through Rorsach. I haven't walked it, but the Conrad-Stein books are available to cover it. http://www.weitwanderwege.com/jakobsweg/

 

[MarkL]

Personally I enjoyed the Vezelay route very, very much, but the consensus seems to be that the Le Puy route is more beautiful and therefore more popular. I haven't walked Le Puy (although I spent time in the region in earlier years) so I can't really compare. But it'll be different...
The Vezelay route can be very quiet and solitairy. I haven't met many pilgrims (five pilgrims in an aubergue is a full house, and that happened to me only once), but I was looking for silence, so that worked out well.
As far as infrastructure goes: you'll find a bed easily enough, but need to plan/call ahead, especially for the weekends. The same goes for food; not as many restaurants, bistro's or bars as in Spain, and more expensive.
Waymarking overall is decent to very good, and with a good guide you won't have any problems. As I said, I loved it, and so do a lot of others. Check out this thread by GunnarW, who posted a lot of pictures of the section Vezelay-Limoges.
If you have more questions, feel free to ask!

Purky has hit the nail on the head. I walked from Vezelay to Marsac this July (2017). I have nothing to add to this perfect description besides enjoying the varied beauty of the landscape. Not for those who need to be entertained... Bon Route!!

 

[Purky]

Purky has hit the nail on the head. I walked from Vezelay to Marsac this July (2017). I have nothing to add to this perfect description besides enjoying the varied beauty of the landscape. Not for those who need to be entertained... Bon Route!!

Cheers Mark! Will you finish the Vezelay route one day?

 

[MarkL]

Cheers Mark! Will you finish the Vezelay route one day?

I believe so. I have a couple weeks next summer that I could continue walking… We will see how it goes. Peace!