Wonderful albergue in Vilaserio

[peregrina2000]

I have stayed in the albergue O Rueiro in Vilaserio several times. It's about 32 from Santiago, so if you want to go to Finisterre or Muxia in three days, it's a good way to even out the stages.

This year I'm in a new albergue that seems to be taking away all of O Rueiro's business. It's virtually two houses away, Casa Vella, an old stone house lovingly restored as an albergue. It was built by the owners' great great great grandparents, so I don't know how old that makes it. It's really nice with lots of space between bunks, spotless bathrooms, and lots of outside space for relaxing.

Bed is 12€, dinner 8.5. Haven't eaten it yet, but the smells are great and as much of the food as possible cones from their garden. I will attach a couple of pics when the wifi is better. But absolutely, if you walk to Muxia or to Finisterre, I'd highly recommend it.

 

[Oppis]

Stayed there late October last year. The huge fireplace was lovely that time of the year. Remember the gorgeous breakfast, too. The dormitory was completely full also when we stayed there. They have a couple of double rooms, too upstears, as I remember correctly. And sweet cats in the garden.
Sleep well there, Laurie..
Kimmo and my wife...

 

[nycwalking]

Peregrina2000,
So happy you decided to walk on.
Buen camino

 

[peregrina2000]

Let's see if I can add a few pics. It's so nice

 

[Theatregal]

Two lovely albergues almost door to door in such a tiny place! I stayed at O Rueiro this past March and thought it was wonderful. Had a very good meal in their bar. Now I want to go back and stay at Casa Vella!

 

[peregrina2000]

Two lovely albergues almost door to door in such a tiny place! I stayed at O Rueiro this past March and thought it was wonderful. Had a very good meal in their bar. Now I want to go back and stay at Casa Vella!

As far as meals go, O Rueiro may be the better choice for some. The albergue dinner at Casa Vella was a vegetable purée, salad and chunk of tortilla española and applesauce for dessert. Water to drink and wine from a box was 1.5 per glass extra. Some of the young men found the dinner to be skimpy and unfilling. Fine for me, but O Rueiro may be better value (though some of the ingredients were from their garden).

 

[mspath]

How lucky pilgrims are to have two fine new private albergues open during "the season"; Vilaserio has not always been so comfortably equiped.

Mid December 2011 when walking towards Finisterre I met a Korean woman who was close to exhaustion. Together we crossed the cold, bleak forest landscape to Vilaserio halting at the old school which was then the only open albergue and very minimal. (The impossible alternative was to walk in the frigid dusk 20km further to the next accommodation at Olveiroa.)

The school had a toilet, shower, floor mattresses, and electricity but NO heat! Outside it was sleeting; inside on the tile floor the persistent cold was hardly bearable! Multiple cups of strong hot tea and soup heated with my trusty electric coil were our only relief throughout that endless night.

Next morning a thin layer of treacherous ice stretched to the horizon. After calling a taxi for her I SLOWLY waddled across the crackling ice with personal tenacity and an electric coil confirmed as musts haves for every future camino.

 

[peregrina2000]

And from what I saw it looks like the municipal has undergone a serious reformation. New windows, freshly painted, so I'm assuming there were some upgrades inside as well.

Buen camino (written while finishing up my coil-made cup of coffee )

 

[skox]

How lucky pilgrims are to have two fine new private albergues open during "the season"; Vilaserio has not always been so comfortably equiped.

Mid December 2011 when walking towards Finisterre I met a Korean woman who was close to exhaustion. Together we crossed the cold, bleak forest landscape to Vilaserio halting at the old school which was then the only open albergue and very minimal. (The impossible alternative was to walk in the frigid dusk 20km further to the next accommodation at Olveiroa.)

The school had a toilet, shower, floor mattresses, and electricity but NO heat! Outside it was sleeting; inside on the tile floor the persistent cold was hardly bearable! Multiple cups of strong hot tea and soup heated with my trusty electric coil were our only relief throughout that endless night.

Next morning a thin layer of treacherous ice stretched to the horizon. After calling a taxi for her I SLOWLY waddled across the crackling ice with personal tenacity and an electric coil confirmed as musts haves for every future camino.

And from what I saw it looks like the municipal has undergone a serious reformation. New windows, freshly painted, so I'm assuming there were some upgrades inside as well.

Buen camino (written while finishing up my coil-made cup of coffee )

Nope!!! Still just an empty house with matresses on cold tiles- also seems not to get cleaned that often. Mold on the walls, no kitchen, no dishes... Just barely better than sleeping on the street. The worst of all the municipal albergues on whole of camino! I am close to thinking that the other two private albergues are lobbying for this one to be abandoned, because if it wasn't that bad- nobody would stay in a private albergue for 12€ where you don't get sheets, that has no kitchen or any dishes... in a middle of nowhere. Basically the private ones are forcing you to eat in their restaurants! I don't find this so great!

 

[peregrina2000]

Nope!!! Still just an empty house with matresses on cold tiles- also seems not to get cleaned that often. Mold on the walls, no kitchen, no dishes... Just barely better than sleeping on the street. The worst of all the municipal albergues on whole of camino! I am close to thinking that the other two private albergues are lobbying for this one to be abandoned, because if it wasn't that bad- nobody would stay in a private albergue for 12€ where you don't get sheets, that has no kitchen or any dishes... in a middle of nowhere. Basically the private ones are forcing you to eat in their restaurants! I don't find this so great!

Hi, skox, welcome to the forum!

My bet is that it’s the other way around, that the poor condition of the municipal albergue was the reason why the private sector jumped in. I’ve stayed in both of the privates and throught their standards were quite high. My picture shows sheets on the bed in the new Vilaserio albergue, and I thought I remembered paper sheets on the other one, but I could be wrong.

To each his own, but for me the few hours spent outside in the garden “in the middle of nowhere” were extremely pleasant. And I don’t think any municipal albergues in Galicia have any cookware, so that cannot be the result of private sabotage.

Hope you enjoyed your walk to the coast, is it Finisterre or Muxia for you?

 

[skox]

I am walking back from Finisterre to Santiago now, after I did the Portugese Camino. I stayed in many municipal albergues and every one of them had at least some basic kitchen so you can make yourself a cup of tea. For instance last night in Olveiroa there is basic but lovely kitchen with fridge and stove and some dieshes, with nice sitting area- you get a bed there for 6€ with paper sheets. In Santiago even you get a bed in municipal (Seminario Menor) for 15€ and they have a full fledged kitchen and space to relax, read etc. - and this is Santiago, the most expencive destination on the camino.
Considering that- I think that spending 22€ ( bed+ menu you are forced to take, cause there are no shops around and no way to prepare even instant soup) for some time in nature (which you have anyway all the time on the camino) in some village that has nothing to offer in terms of sightseeing- well, I thought it to be quite a high price.
That said- the O Rueiro is clean- I'll give them that. We sadly have a great number of flies in the room- maybe 20-25 that wouldn't leave us be- but i don't think it's a result of bad hygiene. Maybe because people were snacking in their beds, cause there's no other place to sit. We got paper sheets- but thats it.
The municipal one in this village looks like a squat where drugs addicts hang out. Really not an option. I don't think it should be even listed in the albergue list.

 

[KinkyOne]

...
That said- the O Rueiro is clean- I'll give them that. We sadly have a great number of flies in the room- maybe 20-25 that wouldn't leave us be- but i don't think it's a result of bad hygiene. Maybe because people were snacking in their beds, cause there's no other place to sit. We got paper sheets- but thats it.
The municipal one in this village looks like a squat where drugs addicts hang out. Really not an option. I don't think it should be even listed in the albergue list.

I don't have experience of sleeping in muni or Casa Vella in Vilaserio but as a person who used to spend a lot of time with drug addicts and as a Camino addict I would be happy with the muni as you described it if there wouldn't be any other option

If you are staying in O Rueiro you can sit in the patio of the restaurant because you are their guest, it's the same owner. I and all the others did it in 2011.

And there is (was) a shop in Vilaserio. If you are returning from Fisterra that would be the last house in (above) the village on the Camino just before you hit the tarmac road. At least it was freshly opened in summer of 2016. This year I walked by but it looked closed, maybe just for a siesta, I didn't check.

 

[skox]

We asked about a shop and the hospitalero said there are none. But I will check that out now.

 

[Theatregal]

I really enjoyed my stay at O Rueiro. I remember a small sitting area downstairs at the entry, as well as a lovely patio beside the cafe. For me, 22 euro was incredible value for a clean, comfortable quiet albergue and a wonderful meal provided by the kind friendly people who worked there. It all balances out with the lower priced albergues along the way. Supporting the people and businesses that support us with the services that sustain our walk is so important. I tend to expect higher prices in the smaller places sometimes, keeping in mind that there are months when they have no business.

 

[KinkyOne]

I really enjoyed my stay at O Rueiro. I remember a small sitting area downstairs at the entry, as well as a lovely patio beside the cafe. For me, 22 euro was incredible value for a clean, comfortable quiet albergue and a wonderful meal provided by the kind friendly people who worked there. It all balances out with the lower priced albergues along the way. Supporting the people and businesses that support us with the services that sustain our walk is so important. I tend to expect higher prices in the smaller places sometimes, keeping in mind that there are months when they have no business.

Exactly!
I had some luck with dinner in 2011 because I was sitting outside the albergue as you described it and I was invited to a local fiesta that took place at the restaurant patio. A lot of grilled meat and vegetables

 

[skox]

Well, lets just put it this way- if you are travelling on a tight budget, you should plan to do those two 32 km sections in a row without any extra stops At the next stop in Negreira, some other kind, hard working people will be happy to support your camino for just 5€

 

[skox]

I am afraid that the camiñeros who are happy to pay 22€ for a bunk bed could gentrify the rest of out of this activity within a couple of years

 

[KinkyOne]

Well, lets just put it this way- if you are travelling on a tight budget, you should plan to do those two 32 km sections in a row without any extra stops At the next stop in Negreira, some other kind, hard working people will be happy to support your camino for just 5€

You don't have to do 32km stages. First Negreira municipal, then maybe Sta.Marina (10€ in very nice and clean albergue), and Olveiroa municipal, Cee (11€) or Corcubion (donativo muni) and then to Fisterra. Plenty of cheap options.

PS (I'm always on budget )

 

[Theatregal]

I am afraid that the camiñeros who are happy to pay 22€ for a bunk bed could gentrify the rest of out of this activity within a couple of years

Well no...12 for the bed and 10 for the meal. I am always on a budget as well but also prepared, through research ahead of time, for all the variables along the camino.

 

[David Tallan]

I am walking back from Finisterre to Santiago now, after I did the Portugese Camino. I stayed in many municipal albergues and every one of them had at least some basic kitchen so you can make yourself a cup of tea. For instance last night in Olveiroa there is basic but lovely kitchen with fridge and stove and some dieshes, with nice sitting area- you get a bed there for 6€ with paper sheets. In Santiago even you get a bed in municipal (Seminario Menor) for 15€ and they have a full fledged kitchen and space to relax, read etc. - and this is Santiago, the most expencive destination on the camino.

There seems to be some confusion here. Seminario Menor is not a municipal albergue. It is not run by the municipal or the regional government. It is run by the church. In Galicia, most people use "municipal" to refer to the albergues run by the Xunta (regional government). I haven't stayed at many of them myself, but I have heard it is common for them to have empty kitchens without plates or pots. If I remember correctly, that was the case in O Cebreiro where we stayed in a Xunta albergue.

Also, I didn't find Santiago de Compostela to be significantly more expensive than any other city on Spain (unless you stay in the parade of the Reyes Catolicos). The albergue we stayed in in 2016 was not an unusual price. And when I got a room for myself at the end of my 1989 Camino, it was *by far* the cheapest room I was able to find in Spain. (I think it was around 200 pesetas.) I wasn't able to find anything close to that in places like Burgos or Leon.

 

[Via2010]

Hi,

I arrived in Santiago on June 25 th 2018, then continuing to Fisterra/Muxía. I also did Santiago-Muxía last August.

The albergues in Santiago are a bit more pricy than elsewhere (i. e. 18 € in The Last Stamp, 14 € in Seminario Menor).

There was a shop in Vilaserío last August, it was in the first house of the village when you came from Negreira, still in the forest. But this June I saw no more signs, that there is a shop in it. So I think it has permanently closed.

The municipal albergue in Vilaserío is in the old school building, very simple, but still ok. There is no kitchen and so no opportunity to prepare a hot meal. I slept there in 2007 and in 2010. Both times I had my evening meal at O'Rueiro Restaurant and enjoyed it.

BC
Alexandra

 

[KinkyOne]

We asked about a shop and the hospitalero said there are none. But I will check that out now.

And?

 

[Patri Ire]

We stayed at Casa Vella in June 18 and can highly recommend it. The dorms are light ,airy and spotlessly clean .However we were in need of a little luxury that night so we opted for the beautiful double room (en suite) which if you want to treat yourself is worth every cent ...45 euros per night. We arrived early afternoon and were the first to arrive . The owner offered us coffee and afterwards made us sandwiches as we had not eaten a proper meal since breakfast. During the afternoon we were joined by other pilgrims and we enjoyed being able to sit on the terrace with a beer ( euro per bottle) exchanging camino stories. The menu was basic , veg soup,tortilla ,salad apple puree and bread. Everything was home made and and sourced from their garden. We were able to avail ourselves of the benefits of the huge open fire as many of us had wet shoes and outer clothes due to the previous ...and subsequent days being very wet. ! The owner even provided clothes maidens for us to hang our clothes overnight. This a unique Albergue with a wonderful atmosphere and we will return when we make our return visit to this Camino. Finally as a point of information for other pilgrims. Approximately three killometers before Vilaserio there is a sign offering an alternative route of equal distance and without asphalt. Be warned it is not of equal distance...seeming to be much longer and also far hillier than indicated. This is not only our opinion but that of our fellow pilgrims who took that route.

 

[peregrina2000]

We stayed at Casa Vella in June 18 and can highly recommend it. The dorms are light ,airy and spotlessly clean .However we were in need of a little luxury that night so we opted for the beautiful double room (en suite) which if you want to treat yourself is worth every cent ...45 euros per night. We arrived early afternoon and were the first to arrive . The owner offered us coffee and afterwards made us sandwiches as we had not eaten a proper meal since breakfast. During the afternoon we were joined by other pilgrims and we enjoyed being able to sit on the terrace with a beer ( euro per bottle) exchanging camino stories. The menu was basic , veg soup,tortilla ,salad apple puree and bread. Everything was home made and and sourced from their garden. We were able to avail ourselves of the benefits of the huge open fire as many of us had wet shoes and outer clothes due to the previous ...and subsequent days being very wet. ! The owner even provided clothes maidens for us to hang our clothes overnight. This a unique Albergue with a wonderful atmosphere and we will return when we make our return visit to this Camino. Finally as a point of information for other pilgrims. Approximately three killometers before Vilaserio there is a sign offering an alternative route of equal distance and without asphalt. Be warned it is not of equal distance...seeming to be much longer and also far hillier than indicated. This is not only our opinion but that of our fellow pilgrims who took that route.

I will add a little note, because this kind of story warms my heart. I too got there early enough for a long rest out in the garden and struck up a conversation with the owner’s daughter and her husband, who come out from Santiago to help frequently. The daughter told me that her dad had died several years ago and that her mom was in a downward depressive spiral, just giving up interest in life. Then came the idea of the albergue. Two years’ work to gete it ready and now the running of it, and she told me her mom is a new person with a purpose and love of life.

I took the alternative and think it is not much longer but it isn’t much prettier. The one advantage was off road instead of along the pavement.

The one newer alternative that I would definitely recommend is the one from Negreira. It turns right, either right before or right after the river, so you don’t go up the road to the albergue. That was kms along a river and through green as opposed to the official route on the side of the road. It was a newly signed alternative the last time I went through a couple of years ago, and I wonder if the signage is still good or if it was a burst of municipal energy followed by municipal inattention.

 

[KinkyOne]

I will add a little note, because this kind of story warms my heart. I too got there early enough for a long rest out in the garden and struck up a conversation with the owner’s daughter and her husband, who come out from Santiago to help frequently. The daughter told me that her dad had died several years ago and that her mom was in a downward depressive spiral, just giving up interest in life. Then came the idea of the albergue. Two years’ work to gete it ready and now the running of it, and she told me her mom is a new person with a purpose and love of life.

I took the alternative and think it is not much longer but it isn’t much prettier. The one advantage was off road instead of along the pavement.

The one newer alternative that I would definitely recommend is the one from Negreira. It turns right, either right before or right after the river, so you don’t go up the road to the albergue. That was kms along a river and through green as opposed to the official route on the side of the road. It was a newly signed alternative the last time I went through a couple of years ago, and I wonder if the signage is still good or if it was a burst of municipal energy followed by municipal inattention.

That's really very nice for that lady she got something in her life to hang on

I saw both those alternatives this year and next time I'm gonna walk to Fisterra/Muxia I sure am going to check them out.