W
Wanderer64
Guest
Like most other CF pilgrims, I had every intention to stay mostly in shared dorm lodging (albergues) during my walk, but as an older guy who has lived abroad and travelled extensively, I'm wise enough to know that life on the road often doesn't go according to plan, so I budgeted accordingly.
The first week of my Camino I stayed only in albergues, but after that my tolerance for shared dorm sleeping diminished. I'm a very light sleeper and prone to insomnia as it is and the best earplugs money can buy do not work for me.
By the time I reached Leon, I had all but abandoned albergues in favour of cheap private rooms at hostals and pensions. And I'm glad I did because this saved my Camino. I have no doubt in my mind that had I tried to tough it out at albergues, I would have abandoned my Camino before Santiago. There is often much joking about this issue of dorm sleep hardships, but sleep deprivation is a killer, can lead to serious mental and physical health issues. It kills your mood, lowers your immune system and results in a really lousy overall experience.
After resigning myself to stay only in private rooms, my Camino improved dramatically as I was able to regain my purpose and focus of why I was doing this walk.
There were other incidents in my initial stays at albergues that encouraged my transition to private rooms. I had a couple articles of clothing snatched from my bag. One fellow pilgrim reported having her scallop shell snipped from her backpack at the albergue in Pamplona. In one sleepy backwater albergue in the Meseta, a fellow pilgrim was robbed of all his cash while he slept. I heard later that others had also been robbed at that albergue. I also found some, not all, large groups of pilgrims to be annoyingly disrespectful of shared dorm etiquette, treating the dorm as their own private bedroom well after 10pm.
The difference in cost between an albergue and a private room can be as little as €10. The benefits of getting consistently sound sleep, for me, are almost immeasurable.
So, if you are worried about this issue, play it safe and budget for stays in private rooms just in case you need to go this route. I was paying anywhere from €17 to €35 per night, which is pretty damn good by European lodging standards.
The other benefit of private rooms is that you do not get caught up in the 5am race for limited beds from albergue to albergue during peak season. I always left each morning on my own terms and never ever had to worry about not finding a bed at the next stop.
And ignore those who insist you are missing out on the "true" Camino experience by not staying exclusively in albergues. There's absolutely nothing wrong, bourgeois, anti-social or anti-Camino about doing what you feel you need to do to get through your Camino.
The first week of my Camino I stayed only in albergues, but after that my tolerance for shared dorm sleeping diminished. I'm a very light sleeper and prone to insomnia as it is and the best earplugs money can buy do not work for me.
By the time I reached Leon, I had all but abandoned albergues in favour of cheap private rooms at hostals and pensions. And I'm glad I did because this saved my Camino. I have no doubt in my mind that had I tried to tough it out at albergues, I would have abandoned my Camino before Santiago. There is often much joking about this issue of dorm sleep hardships, but sleep deprivation is a killer, can lead to serious mental and physical health issues. It kills your mood, lowers your immune system and results in a really lousy overall experience.
After resigning myself to stay only in private rooms, my Camino improved dramatically as I was able to regain my purpose and focus of why I was doing this walk.
There were other incidents in my initial stays at albergues that encouraged my transition to private rooms. I had a couple articles of clothing snatched from my bag. One fellow pilgrim reported having her scallop shell snipped from her backpack at the albergue in Pamplona. In one sleepy backwater albergue in the Meseta, a fellow pilgrim was robbed of all his cash while he slept. I heard later that others had also been robbed at that albergue. I also found some, not all, large groups of pilgrims to be annoyingly disrespectful of shared dorm etiquette, treating the dorm as their own private bedroom well after 10pm.
The difference in cost between an albergue and a private room can be as little as €10. The benefits of getting consistently sound sleep, for me, are almost immeasurable.
So, if you are worried about this issue, play it safe and budget for stays in private rooms just in case you need to go this route. I was paying anywhere from €17 to €35 per night, which is pretty damn good by European lodging standards.
The other benefit of private rooms is that you do not get caught up in the 5am race for limited beds from albergue to albergue during peak season. I always left each morning on my own terms and never ever had to worry about not finding a bed at the next stop.
And ignore those who insist you are missing out on the "true" Camino experience by not staying exclusively in albergues. There's absolutely nothing wrong, bourgeois, anti-social or anti-Camino about doing what you feel you need to do to get through your Camino.