Pilgrims hosting Pilgrims

[SYates]

What about having a thread where people can offer (non-commercial) hospitality to other pilgrims? Info on the publicly viewable thread could be restricted to:

Where (town/camino)
What (bed/room/food etc)

Everything else like contact could be handled via private message ...

What do you think?
BC SY

 

[Tincatinker]

I keep offering SY. But then I'm not in Spain and I am really scary

Any Pilgrim passing through West Sussex is welcome to PM me. If I can help I will. My rules are easy. Do as you would be done by.

 

[mspath]

Here in France there is a Chain of Local (donativo) Hospitality offered for passing pilgrims. See more in French here. Those who offer such hospitality do so for the pleasure of meeting/greeting pilgrims as well as helping them find their way.

For example my husband and I live in a small Champagne village, facing the Marne river.
We have a b & b but also provide simple family hosting for passing pilgrims. My first pilgrim shell hangs at our door marking the path.

Just send me a PM for more info!

 

[Sheffield James]

I stayed with a number of pilgrim host families while walking the via francigena through northern France. They provided me with some of my best memories of the pilgrimage and they certainly helped me find a comfortable place to sleep in areas where commercial lodgings were hard to find. A readily available list of such places sounds like a great idea.

 

[Sheffield James]

I keep offering SY. But then I'm not in Spain and I am really scary

Any Pilgrim passing through West Sussex is welcome to PM me. If I can help I will. My rules are easy. Do as you would be done by.

I’m on my way!

 

[KinkyOne]

What about having a thread where people can offer (non-commercial) hospitality to other pilgrims? Info on the publicly viewable thread could be restricted to:

Where (town/camino)
What (bed/room/food etc)

Everything else like contact could be handled via private message ...

What do you think?
BC SY

I like the idea, Sybil!
Anyway I already hosted two pilgrims in my house (bed & food etc.) and met few more for a drink or even a walking/car trip over here (Slovenia).

The topic has already been discussed I think a couple of years ago. I'm too sleepy right now to find the link but I do remember that Ivar didn't want to have anything with it because of different reasons but mostly about possible glitches between hosts and guests and then he/forum would be somehow related to or liable for that. And then the initiative sank somewhere in the history of the forum threads...

 

[Dorpie]

Lovely idea. As soon as I'm established again in London I'd be happy to host people (most likely en route to the camino) if they can put up with rather basic accomodation.

 

[mette]

What about having a thread where people can offer (non-commercial) hospitality to other pilgrims? Info on the publicly viewable thread could be restricted to:

Where (town/camino)
What (bed/room/food etc)

Everything else like contact could be handled via private message ...

What do you think?
BC SY

What A great idea.
I live in Copenhagen, Denmark and we do have a Camino, so everybody feel free to contact me.
I don’t have a big house, but I will figure something out

 

[Rebekah Scott]

You have to be very careful with things like this. The wrong person happens on this, and he puts you on his subscriber list of "Secret Insider Free Lodgings" and you find yourself hosting freeloaders from all over the world. This is why I had to remove myself from the CouchSurfing network, which went within a few months from fun, curious people sharing experiences to my house becoming a free crash-pad for cynical cheapskates on their way to the Costas from the Santander ferry.

 

[Paladina]

You have to be very careful with things like this. The wrong person happens on this, and he puts you on his subscriber list of "Secret Insider Free Lodgings" and you find yourself hosting freeloaders from all over the world.

Hospitality sites can work perfectly provided the host states clearly what s/he is willing and able to provide and what s/he expects of the guest. I have been a member of 5W (Women Welcome Women Worldwide) for 20 years, and of WarmShowers (hospitality for touring cyclists) for the the past 5 years, and have never yet encountered a freeloader. Both organisations have a few basic rules and recommendations for hosts and guest, e.g. no turning up unannounced, no outstaying your welcome (5W), and guests must arrive by bicycle (WS). Camino forum members, especially those accustomed to off-season municipal albergues, are welcome to stay in my west of Ireland cold-comfort farmhouse, where I can promise them minimal facilities, plenty of mud and floods, and no transport. PM me for further horrid details.

 

[ritaj]

I traveled many years ago as a Servas traveler (with Servas hosts). Check it out on the web -- it is a lovely way to meet people from all over the world, promote cultural exchange, and generally work for peace. There is no charge and visitors are expected to spend at least 2 nights in order to avoid those who would just use it for free lodging. It might provide an excellent format for developing a camino walkers' exchange.

 

[Karl Oz]

You have to be very careful with things like this. The wrong person happens on this, and he puts you on his subscriber list of "Secret Insider Free Lodgings" and you find yourself hosting freeloaders from all over the world. This is why I had to remove myself from the CouchSurfing network, which went within a few months from fun, curious people sharing experiences to my house becoming a free crash-pad for cynical cheapskates on their way to the Costas from the Santander ferry.

You have a point. In the early 80's I met a person in Europe who was a member of a group called 'Globetrotters' or similar. Members were supposed to offer hospitality to fellow members passing through their part of the world. The individual I met was a hard-nosed and opportunistic freeloader who was aggressive in insisting on his right to a meal/accommodation, no matter how inconvenient to the prospective host. He traveled around the world on the proverbial 'smell of an oily rag', unsurprisingly making his own funds stretch for a considerable period. Like some examples? He slept in Victoria train station in London because it was free and the police would not bother him. And he delayed needed dental treatment until he arrived in the then-USSR, as he knew it was provided free there. It certainly takes all types...

 

[Ellann]

You have to be very careful with things like this. The wrong person happens on this, and he puts you on his subscriber list of "Secret Insider Free Lodgings" and you find yourself hosting freeloaders from all over the world. This is why I had to remove myself from the CouchSurfing network, which went within a few months from fun, curious people sharing experiences to my house becoming a free crash-pad for cynical cheapskates on their way to the Costas from the Santander ferry.

Same thing happened to me living on the south coast of NSW in Australia. I had argument with one couple who wanted to hang out for days, and if eventually discovered they gatecrashed someones place further down the coast where they proceeded to "move in". she had to get the Police involved. Not your average situation, but when one lives in a tourist destination, it can happen.

 

[Kiwi-family]

I’ve hosted pilgrims in NZ and while I like the idea of a worldwide Pilgrims Hosting Pilgrims, if @ivar has some reservations, we should bring this thread to his attention before it runs away.
Hosts could insist on seeing a compostela from prospective pilgrims;-)

 

[ksam]

I’ve hosted pilgrims in NZ and while I like the idea of a worldwide Pilgrims Hosting Pilgrims, if @ivar has some reservations, we should bring this thread to his attention before it runs away.
Hosts could insist on seeing a compostela from prospective pilgrims;-)

Or pilgrim passport if they are on their way to the Camino!! ;-)

 

[Kiwi-family]

Or pilgrim passport if they are on their way to the Camino!! ;-)

I’m guessing most first-time pilgrims pick a route that has reasonable accomodation so they might not need/want this - unless there’s someone in Paris or Madrid. Questions about those places occur fairly frequently.

 

[David Tallan]

You have to be very careful with things like this. The wrong person happens on this, and he puts you on his subscriber list of "Secret Insider Free Lodgings" and you find yourself hosting freeloaders from all over the world. This is why I had to remove myself from the CouchSurfing network, which went within a few months from fun, curious people sharing experiences to my house becoming a free crash-pad for cynical cheapskates on their way to the Costas from the Santander ferry.

It seems to me that people are talking about two different types of "Pilgrims hosting pilgrims". On the one hand, we have pilgrims living on camino routes offering space to pilgrims walking caminos. mspath, Sheffield James, and mette seem to be talking about this type of arrangement. If one is concerned about freeloaders, one might ask to see a ceredencial in this type of situation.

The other is people offering space off of any of the marked camino routes to fellow pilgrims who happen to be travelling in the area. KinkyOne, Dorpie, Paladina, and Kiwi-family seem to be talking about this kind of arrangement. Someone has made the suggestion that a compostela could be brought to establish bona fides but it seems to me that many might not want to take their compostelas travelling with them. Maybe you ask them at the door which camino they walked and when. It seems to me that anyone taking someone up on this type of offer would reasonably expect to spend some time with their hosts reminiscing and discussing caminos. Freeloaders who got the address from some list somewhere would not be able to do that.

In any case, I don't think that posting one's address in a list like this can be considered any sort of promise of accommodation bringing with it "rights" as described in any of the warning stories above. People may arrive when hosts are on vacation, entertaining others, or otherwise don't have time to take on visitors. Hosts can have house rules and if guests don't like them, they are free to lodge elsewhere. The same goes if guests have requirements that hosts aren't willing to meet - the prospective guests can find other lodgings that meet their requirements. The arrangement, it seems to me, could be cancelled by either side for any reason they want. It has to be mutually acceptable. I think we can trust the kind of forum member who would offer this kind of thing not to turf someone into the street in the middle of the night unless the situation was dire.

 

[LesBrass]

I live near the Vezeley route. If anyone is stuck between Perigueux and Mussidan I'm happy to help If I can (and happy to be on a list)

 

[Tincatinker]

I understand the hesitations, warnings and caveats that some have posted in this thread. Opening your home to a stranger carries risk, as does seeking shelter in the home of a stranger. The rules of the tribe bind me.

If anyone from the forum PM's me seeking shelter then, obviously, I'll check how many "likes" they've given me, and whether they have agreed with all my pontifications. ;0)

Aside from that I'll just put another log on the fire and another bowl and tumbler on the table.

Freeloaders are no different from "tourists" on the Caminos - they're just Pilgrims who have not yet found their Way

 

[LesBrass]

... they're just Pilgrims who have not yet found their Way

Oh crikey... how I love that!

 

[KinkyOne]

It seems to me that people are talking about two different types of "Pilgrims hosting pilgrims". On the one hand, we have pilgrims living on camino routes offering space to pilgrims walking caminos. mspath, Sheffield James, and mette seem to be talking about this type of arrangement. If one is concerned about freeloaders, one might ask to see a ceredencial in this type of situation.

The other is people offering space off of any of the marked camino routes to fellow pilgrims who happen to be travelling in the area. KinkyOne, Dorpie, Paladina, and Kiwi-family seem to be talking about this kind of arrangement. Someone has made the suggestion that a compostela could be brought to establish bona fides but it seems to me that many might not want to take their compostelas travelling with them. Maybe you ask them at the door which camino they walked and when. It seems to me that anyone taking someone up on this type of offer would reasonably expect to spend some time with their hosts reminiscing and discussing caminos. Freeloaders who got the address from some list somewhere would not be able to do that.
...

Not really so in my case. There is a (Slovenian) Camino de Santiago just over the hill from my house and peregrina on her way "in opposite" direction slept over.
Other encounters were with pilgrims on EPW (European Peace Walk), once I walked two stages of it (different branch though) with fellow forum member and just one time a forum member and pilgrim who came to my city for a marathon was given some of my time and hospitality.
Anyway I would offer B&B to anyone that would need it. To Caminoists even more so.

 

[jdpiguet]

I'm living on the Jakobsweg in Switzerland and have a room available for pilgrims...
And as @tinkatinker said, I put a log in the fire and a bowl on the table when necessary!
Buen Camino, Jacques-D.