JustOneGuy
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Aug 2024: GR130, Apr 25: Camino Primitivo?
Remove ads on the forum by becoming a donating member. More here. |
---|
You just book two people in a mixed dorm if I understand you correctly. Same price. If you check in together you are highly likely to be in same dorm.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
I should have been more precise. I was thinking of this in the context of Spanish and Portuguese albergues. I am aware that segregated arrangements exist elsewhere.Yes loads of hostels have sex segregated dorms. Not so common on Camino but in cities it is very common even in Europe. Many offer mixed and female only. Some parts of world stricter than others and don’t offer mixed.
Ah sorry!! Certainly pretty sure segregated dorms plentiful in the cities in those countries but not seen too many on Camino!I should have been more precise. I was thinking of this in the context of Spanish and Portuguese albergues. I am aware that segregated arrangements exist elsewhere.
The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.do the "real" thing
I cannot think of any response to this that isn't going to make me look like a boring, stuffy old fuddy duddy!The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
Yes I am struggling to remember any segregated albergues on Camino. Non Camino hostels in towns and cities are a totally different breed to the ones on camino. Anything can and often does happen! Camino Hostels are very civilised by comparison! I had someone be sick over my clothes and leg in Mexico City once!! Sorry I know it’s breakfast time on the east coast.I never saw a segregated albergue. -- Before I walked my first camino, I was a bit concerned about the hostel culture, having had experience of craziness in Harare and other spots many decades ago-- and I was walking with my 13 yo son. But it's pretty quiet. I didn't hear any um.. "real thing" going on at all. Nor did I see much drunken carousing. Over all, people are pretty quiet and tired. If you are looking for a place to canoodle you can get a private room somewhere I suppose. Hotels abound!
The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
Had this conversation in an albergue last year. When we were kids the top bunk was the ultimate prize!Funny: when I was a child I remember there was always a race to “conquer” the top bunk on school trips.
I would still prefer it, I guess. Am I the only one?
Thin walls of many pensiónes, hostales or hoteles (and not only on the camino) only help with the 'no seeing' aspect of the ''real'' thing, they don't help at all with the 'not hearing' one.The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
Funny: when I was a child I remember there was always a race to “conquer” the top bunk on school trips.
I would still prefer it, I guess. Am I the only one?
please note my post #11. There has been a misunderstanding about what I meant with the "real thing"...Thin walls of many pensiónes, hostales or hoteles (and not only on the camino) only help with the 'no seeing' aspect of the ''real'' thing, they don't help at all with the 'not hearing' one.
we understand.please note my comment #11. There has been a misunderstanding about what I meant with the "real thing"...
No worries! Some of us had a good laugh anyway!Thin walls of many pensiónes, hostales or hoteles (and not only on the camino) only help with the 'no seeing' aspect of the ''real'' thing, they don't help at all with the 'not hearing' one.
You? No way!I cannot think of any response to this that isn't going to make me look like a boring, stuffy old fuddy duddy!
Beat be to it.Albergue del convento de las Carbajalas in Leon offers separate dorms for men and women and a separate dorm for “couples”.
You can get a private room in an albergue or we have also took a 4 person room (say it was 15/person, we paid 60 and got the room for a good nights sleep when needed.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
Thank you! I am surprised that with the shortage of places they allow it.You can get a private room in an albergue or we have also took a 4 person room (say it was 15/person, we paid 60 and got the room for a good nights sleep when needed.
that's interesting. How did you confirmed that? Just declaring it?Walking the Via de la Plata last fall, we experienced st least two albergues where men and women's rooms were separated. Two others permitted us to be in the same room after we confirmed we were married - I think we would have been in separate rooms had we given a different answer. So it may vary by route.
I have stayed in albergues where women and men are required to sleep in separate dorms, married or not, didn’t matter. It’s up to the albergue to make the rules. If it’s not your preference, there are always other places to stay.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
They just took our word for it. We were both wearing rings on our left ring fingers, so I don't know if that helped convince them we were telling the truth. Those were in parroquial albergues.that's interesting. How did you confirmed that? Just declaring it?
ops... we don't wear rings!They just took our word for it. We were both wearing rings on our left ring fingers, so I don't know if that helped convince them we were telling the truth. Those were in parroquial albergues.
Fantastic! I doubt the rings made a difference, and you could always explain as you did in your post. And sleeping in separate rooms if it ever comes up is really not a big deal. It's not like you're confined to the room for very much waking time - you just sleep and shower there.ops... we don't wear rings!The paradoxical thing if they will eveer deny it, is that on the night of our wedding my wife and I slept in a hostel...
We married in NZ, actually, in total solitude: just the Justice of the Peace and her daughter-in-law serving as witness. Then, on the night of our wedding, celebrated in a little cove near Christchurch, NZ, we went to sleep in a... YHA hostel near Akaroa. That hostel was more beautiful to us than a five-star hotel. We had a room to ourselves, two floors, with a bathroom and a wonderful view of the bay in front.
It was a wonderful experience. No wedding preparation stress, and no money thrown out the window. We are still together 42 years after we started our relation.
I cannot think of any response to this that isn't going to make me look like a boring, stuffy old fuddy duddy!
I agree with Dougfitz on this: I'd like to stay away from replies on this subject, other than it reminds of booking a flight by phone a number of years ago. They'd ask inappropriate questions.The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
No, you’re not. Having witnessed the partial collapse of the top bunk in an Irish hostel when a hefty, visibly and audibly inebriated pilgrim was trying to roll into it, I’d rather cede the right to the bottom bunk to anyone heavier than I am.Funny: when I was a child I remember there was always a race to “conquer” the top bunk on school trips.
I would still prefer it, I guess. Am I the only one?
The bed shortage is localized and season-dependent, rather than being a general/widespread situation. Each albergue manages their beds as appropriate.I am surprised that with the shortage of places they allow it
Lol I like this as I’ll be turning 50 on my Camino next year. Like moving your graduation cap tassel to the other side, I get to move from the top bunk to the bottom.Slight tangent but I stayed in an albergue last week that saved lower bunks for those over 50! It’s great when local managers implement those type of working practices locally (where practical).
Well, where there‘s a will, there‘s a way.The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
Santa Clara in Sahagun is segregated. They do have a double room, maybe it is not.I never saw a segregated albergue. -- Before I walked my first camino, I was a bit concerned about the hostel culture, having had experience of craziness in Harare and other spots many decades ago-- and I was walking with my 13 yo son. But it's pretty quiet. I didn't hear any um.. "real thing" going on at all. Nor did I see much drunken carousing. Over all, people are pretty quiet and tired. If you are looking for a place to canoodle you can get a private room somewhere I suppose. Hotels abound!
When my wife and I passed through Leon last spring, we read on Gronze that sleeping accommodations there were still segregated and chose a different albergue. So yes, they still do apparently.In 2018 I stayed with the Benedictine nuns at Santa Maria albergue in Leon and we were separated in male and female sections. It was basically one huge room with a partition halfway down - men by the entrance side, ladies further down. I guess so the guys wouldn't see us in our PJs on the way to the shower(although we walked right through their section coming and going).
No idea of thet still do this. Anyone been there lately? Their website says nothing, but I have some vague idea I was aware of this before I checked in.
Hi pilgrimA question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
I have also experienced the beds pushed together, enforcing an intimacy that few would relish. Worse than this, however, were the last two bed spaces in SJPdP that my peregrino friend and l secured on my first camino. They turned out to comprise the lower section of a one-up two-down family bunk bed. While this arrangement might well suit the OP and partner, it proved a source of discomfort for us, a pair of pilgrims who were not partners, and a source of amusement to the occupant of the upper bunk who soon intuited our embarrassment.I have only experienced one segregated dorm on any of my Caminos and it was on the Norte in 2016 at the Izarbide Aterpetxea.
Also on the Camino Frances, one municipal albergue had assigned bunks and they were pushed together two by two like a matrimonial bed. I was next to a single gal. When very few other people showed up and the hospitalera left, the few of us staying moved to separate beds since we had our own sleeping bags anyway and the dorm was mostly empty. It would have been rather awkward sleeping next to a stranger who was a man if all other beds were full.
Think of the person in the albergue bottom bunk, I had some nightmare experiences over the years.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
There was no shortage. An empty 4 bed room next doorThank you! I am surprised that with the shortage of places they allow it.
It had been a longer than normal day in the rain when we arrived at a municipal alberque, the only option in the small village. The entry of the alberque was filled with about 15 other dripping wet Pilgrims, but the Hospitalera noticed us; asking are you a couple? Yes, I said, and she said I have a cama matrimonial for you, follow me. I couldn't believe it an alberque with a double bed (cama matrimonial is literally a wedding bed.) So we followed her upstairs, where they pulled two of the bunkbeds together, and the Hospitalera said, my wife and I had the bottom two beds. We spent the night in our wedding bed, sharing the room with seven men and 4 women.Think of the person in the albergue bottom bunk, I had some nightmare experiences over the years.
I never liked the top bunk, even as a child... I have an irrational fear of falling from itFunny: when I was a child I remember there was always a race to “conquer” the top bunk on school trips.
I would still prefer it, I guess. Am I the only one?
Such rudeness. They've been away from a private room for probably two nights and can't resist their urges.Well, where there‘s a will, there‘s a way.
I remember 2 years ago in Roncesvalles (180 beds in three large dorms with cubicles), two separate sources told me that they had been kept awake in the same dorm by certain noises…
Get a „cama para dos“ I would say.
When I go on Camino with my son and we are staying in an albergue(less often than in the past), if we cannot get side by side bottom bunks, he always takes the top and well he should, being a generation younger than me.Thankfully, my wife always takes the top bunk and lets me have the bottom. Ditto when I walk with my daughter or my son in law. It's a Buen Camino for an old guy.
It's not irrational. When I was a boy I had a friend who fell out of the top bunk while sleeping and broke his arm.I never liked the top bunk, even as a child... I have an irrational fear of falling from it
I rather sleep on the floor
from https://www.monash.edu/muarc/archive/our-publications/reports/muarc123:It's not irrational. When I was a boy I had a friend who fell out of the top bunk while sleeping and broke his arm.
from https://www.duffyfirm.com/blog/bunk-bed-recalls-and-injuries-the-stats#:~:text=On average, there are 36,000,kids ages 6 and under. instead:It is estimated that, in Australia, there are at least 3,850 injuries annually, in the under fifteen age-group, associated with bunk beds, that are treated by hospital Emergency Departments or by general practitioners. Of these, it is estimated that about 390 cases result in hospital admission. Almost half of all bunk bed injury cases occur (1900) in the 5-9 year age group and, of these, at least 180 result in hospital admission.
On average, there are 36,000 reported injuries annually related to bunk beds. Note - those are just the ones reported. Three-quarters of children who fall from bunk beds are hurt, and half of all injuries occur with kids ages 6 and under. Students aged 18-21 also make up a large portion.
Absolutely!But I'm going to challenge the OP on one comment. If OP and partner want to sleep in albergues to save money, more than fine. I did. If OP and partner want as communal an experience as humanly possible, then more than fine - although I think OP better have a real long talk with his partner about expectations before they come. My husband knows that continuous communal living drives his introvert wife insane in short order.
But sleeping in albergues to " do the real thing?" That’s not required. A "real" Camino will be defined by your intention, not by where you sleep.
Forgot about that one. I've been lucky enough to be in the women's room four times there. Occasionally there is a benefit to being old.I've stayed in albergues that have somewhat segregated dorms, but if they run out of room in one or the other they end up mixed.
The donativo in Ponferrada had a women's only dorm, but it was already full when I arrived.
On the Norte the Albergue Izarbide had men's and women's dorms, but when I arrived with another peregrina only upper bunks were left in the women's dorm, while there were plenty of lower bunks in the men's, so we were give the choice of which one we wanted to sleep in.
I tend to think that a person who can walk 800km is very likely to be able to get into a top bunk. I don’t like top bunks - but only because there is often nowhere to put a phone or glasses etc. (I stayed in a hostel in Cairo last year where there were ‘stairs’ (a ladder with flat ‘steps’) to the top bunk, rather than a vertical ladder with those foot-hurting rungs. Fabulous!)Slight tangent but I stayed in an albergue last week that saved lower bunks for those over 50! It’s great when local managers implement those type of working practices locally (where practical).
The rungs to the top bunks were pure torture on my feet. Thankfully I didn't have to climb them too often.there were ‘stairs’ (a ladder with flat ‘steps’) to the top bunk, rather than a vertical ladder with those foot-hurting rungs. Fabulous!)
Perhaps you missed this bit?The problem with many couples is that when they decide to share a bed in albergues, they can't do the "real" thing quietly. Or maybe they think they're doing it quietly, but in fact everyone in the albergue can hear it.
(in separate bunk beds, of course!)
They were still doing it last year.In 2018 I stayed with the Benedictine nuns at Santa Maria albergue in Leon and we were separated in male and female sections. It was basically one huge room with a partition halfway down - men by the entrance side, ladies further down. I guess so the guys wouldn't see us in our PJs on the way to the shower(although we walked right through their section coming and going).
No idea of thet still do this. Anyone been there lately? Their website says nothing, but I have some vague idea I was aware of this before I checked in.
In general, some people who are quite happy walking long distances in good shoes have challenges with the ladder rungs in bare feet or socks, or have challenges in climbing down from the top bunk and positioning themselves to do so, or have challenges doing both quietly in a way that won't disturb others if they have to get up in the middle of the night (multiple times for some people) in order to use the washroom. What we tend to think doesn't always match everyone's lived reality.I tend to think that a person who can walk 800km is very likely to be able to get into a top bunk. I don’t like top bunks - but only because there is often nowhere to put a phone or glasses etc. (I stayed in a hostel in Cairo last year where there were ‘stairs’ (a ladder with flat ‘steps’) to the top bunk, rather than a vertical ladder with those foot-hurting rungs. Fabulous!)
(I overheard a young woman on the French Camino last year saying somewhat wistfully to another that they were probably going to have to get used to being in the upper bunk during their trip…)
Yes that’s exactly me. I am generally ok with 800km at 30km a day, but up and down a ladder is quite tricky. Mixture of an arm/rib issue, coming down and lowering one leg down and landing on it (physically painful and psychology an issue) and so on. Even though I have good balance and coordination, the only Camino injuries I have had thus far have been bruised shins from going up and down top bunks! That’s before waking up the person below! Oh, and the painful feet on the rungs!In general, some people who are quite happy walking long distances in good shoes have challenges with the ladder rungs in bare feet or socks, or have challenges in climbing down from the top bunk and positioning themselves to do so, or have challenges doing both quietly in a way that won't disturb others if they have to get up in the middle of the night (multiple times for some people) in order to use the washroom. What we tend to think doesn't always match everyone's lived reality.
I stayed with them during holy week in 2017, we were not segregated, but I think they had opened a spare room in the basement. I helped clear out stuff so we could get to the bunks.When my wife and I passed through Leon last spring, we read on Gronze that sleeping accommodations there were still segregated and chose a different albergue. So yes, they still do apparently.
I would have agreed with this when I walked my first camino nearly 15 years ago, and perhaps even five years ago I would not have had too much difficulty, albeit I might have needed to use the toilet at least once during the night. But somehow over the last couple of years, I have had greater difficulty, and this year I gave up trying to get into the top bunk at one place. Fortunately, there was a couch available that I was able to repurpose as a bed.I tend to think that a person who can walk 800km is very likely to be able to get into a top bunk.
Nice recovery.
no, let me clarify.
By “real thing” I meant doing a Camino frugally, aka sleeping in Albergues, not in (expensive) hotel. We can do that “real thing” easily and more comfortably at home.
The Albergue of San Nicolas Flue in Ponferrada has a smallish segregated women’s’ dorm with shower, toilet etc. about 20 places if I remember well. It fills up really fast !Yes I am struggling to remember any segregated albergues on Camino. Non Camino hostels in towns and cities are a totally different breed to the ones on camino. Anything can and often does happen! Camino Hostels are very civilised by comparison! I had someone be sick over my clothes and leg in Mexico City once!! Sorry I know it’s breakfast time on the east coast.
Haha my first Camino I started in Leon at this alberge. I met my wife who started in France. When we signed in we said we were married. After the nun checked that our last names matched on our passports she said we could stay in the 'matrimonial section'. We were wondering what that was and excited to see. Just to find it's tje area all the way down the hallway, same as the other areas, but with married couples in the same bunk beds.In 2018 I stayed with the Benedictine nuns at Santa Maria albergue in Leon and we were separated in male and female sections. It was basically one huge room with a partition halfway down - men by the entrance side, ladies further down. I guess so the guys wouldn't see us in our PJs on the way to the shower(although we walked right through their section coming and going).
No idea of thet still do this. Anyone been there lately? Their website says nothing, but I have some vague idea I was aware of this before I checked in.
A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
Just go for a walk.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
I was there in April, still that way. Not many pilgrims there, thoughts . I paid an euro more and had a smaller room, larger bed. Turns out I was the only occupant.In 2018 I stayed with the Benedictine nuns at Santa Maria albergue in Leon and we were separated in male and female sections. It was basically one huge room with a partition halfway down - men by the entrance side, ladies further down. I guess so the guys wouldn't see us in our PJs on the way to the shower(although we walked right through their section coming and going).
No idea of thet still do this. Anyone been there lately? Their website says nothing, but I have some vague idea I was aware of this before I checked in.
And how old are you? I finished the last 200 miles of the Frances in April at 79. Getting into a top bunk is not always that easy!I tend to think that a person who can walk 800km is very likely to be able to get into a top bunk. I don’t like top bunks - but only because there is often nowhere to put a phone or glasses etc. (I stayed in a hostel in Cairo last year where there were ‘stairs’ (a ladder with flat ‘steps’) to the top bunk, rather than a vertical ladder with those foot-hurting rungs. Fabulous!)
(I overheard a young woman on the French Camino last year saying somewhat wistfully to another that they were probably going to have to get used to being in the upper bunk during their trip…)
So this one time I was taking a shower at the muni in O'Ceb. The thing about that place is the signage can be confusing, and it is "locker room" style, meaning no stalls just rows of shower heads. I was alone for a bit and then this woman walks in, takes off her clothes, and proceeds to cleanse about two shower heads down from me. I looked at her, she looked at me, and neither of us gave a sh*t.Shower rooms yes .
or in the forest trails
no, let me clarify.
By “real thing” I meant doing a Camino frugally, aka sleeping in Albergues, not in (expensive) hotel. We can do that “real thing” easily and more comfortably at home.
Correct.The first line of your question suggests that this doesn’t apply to same sex couples for some reason?
No! It’s not just the climbing for me… at 76 but rather the trips to the loo in the early hours that make a lower bunk mandatoryAnd how old are you? I finished the last 200 miles of the Frances in April at 79. Getting into a top bunk is not always that easy!
I think that @JustOneGuy thought that perhaps all of the dorms were segregated by sex in the albergues. In that situation a same sex couple would automatically be put in the same room, but a hetero couple would not. But, since sex-segregated dorms are rare, it's really not an issue.The first line of your question suggests that this doesn’t apply to same sex couples for some reason?
We would start out putting males and females in separate rooms, but most days, we were too full to keep it that way. Plus, we would give up on the idea when a mixed group showed up, as they generally would prefer not to be split up.I never saw a segregated albergue. -
I guess a married person would (or should) know their spouse's personality. I'm an introvert who was never bothered by night after night in albergues/hostels.My husband knows that continuous communal living drives his introvert wife insane in short order.
In Italy for example, there are albergues with separated bedrooms for man and woman.A question for couples of different sexes: do you sleep separately in the albergues? Do you pay more, and/or is it more complicated to book, to sleep in the same dorm (in separate bunk beds, of course!), with your partner?
Obviously we could choose to go to a hotel, but in the spring we would like to do our first Camino and my partner is a bit perplexed at the idea of sleeping in albergues for this, but at the same time we like to be frugal and do the "real" thing.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?