shops etc open on Sundays and May festival days?

[speyview]

Does anyone know if any of the shops are oepn, at any time, on Sundays and the 1st and 8th May?
I am leaving for Le Puy tonuight so would appreciate any help!
Thank you
Barbara

 

[KiwiNomad06]

Does anyone know if any of the shops are oepn, at any time, on Sundays and the 1st and 8th May? I am leaving for Le Puy tonuight so would appreciate any help! Thank you Barbara

Shops are pretty much always shut on Sundays along the Le Puy route. Around holidays like May 1st and May 8th places often close for more than one day. If you can, you will probably find it easier to stay at a gîte that provides an evening meal and breakfast as part of demi-pension, which is quite a common option on the Le Puy route. You might want to carry a small amount of food eg tin of sardines, some fruit, in case you can't buy any.
Margaret

 

[Tia Valeria]

May 1st we are aware of. What fiesta is on May 8th please? Is it general or local? We will be on the Primitivo near Salas probably.
Thanks,
Tia Valeria

 

[laurie]

In France, bakers, especially those selling cakes, and some other food shops are often open on Sunday mornings. On the other hand some such shops close on Mondays.
Laurie

 

[Kitsambler]

1 May - May Day
8 May - Victory (in Europe) Day
13 May (2010) - Feast of the Ascension) This always falls on a Thursday and so frequently results in a long weekend.
23 May (2010) - Feast of Pentecost (Whitsunday). In many places Whitmonday is also a holiday. This is a major holiday, and can also result in a long weekend.

 

[lanval]

When I was walking in 2008, we noticed that there was a large influx of Spanish pilgrims around the long weekends in May. A local mentioned that it is a popular time to get 3-5 days walk in on the Camino by taking an extra day off around the weekend.

It made finding accommodation a little bit harder during these days.

 

[Tia Valeria]

1 May - May Day
8 May - Victory (in Europe) Day
13 May (2010) - Feast of the Ascension) This always falls on a Thursday and so frequently results in a long weekend.
23 May (2010) - Feast of Pentecost (Whitsunday). In many places Whitmonday is also a holiday. This is a major holiday, and can also result in a long weekend.

Thank you, very helpful. Terry did find it hard finding a room over the May 1st weekend on the coast while on the Norte, but had no problems last year on the Primitivo for the other days. He was actually in Santiago, where I joined him, for Pentecost and we had pre-booked over the internet. We'll have to remain aware of the dates and if needed check ahead, depending on exactly where we are.

 

[KiwiNomad06]

May 1st we are aware of. What fiesta is on May 8th please? Is it general or local? We will be on the Primitivo near Salas probably.
Thanks,Tia Valeria

Tia, the holidays that Kitsambler quotes are for France, as the original question on the thread was about the Le Puy route. May can be chocka full of public holidays in France, especially if Ascension and Pentecost also fall then. May 8th is a Victory Day for WW11 in France but not in Spain. And if a public holiday is on a Thursday for instance, then four days are likely to be an unofficial 'long weekend'.
This site has quite an informative run-down on French public holidays:http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/DF_holidays.shtml
Margaret

 

[Tia Valeria]

...........
Tia, the holidays that Kitsambler quotes are for France, as the original question on the thread was about the Le Puy route. May can be chocka full of public holidays in France, especially if Ascension and Pentecost also fall then. May 8th is a Victory Day for WW11 in France but not in Spain. And if a public holiday is on a Thursday for instance, then four days are likely to be an unofficial 'long weekend'.
This site has quite an informative run-down on French public holidays:http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/DF_holidays.shtml
Margaret

Thanks Margaret, we did wonder if that was the case but wanted to check it out.