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Search 69,459 Camino Questions

Walking from Lourdes and looking for suggestions

Kevin Considine

Active Member
Time of past OR future Camino
2021
Hi: I am planning my Camino starting this July and am looking to start in Lourdes and walk to Oloron and then down to Somport and Aragones to Puente Le Reina. Can anyone offer suggestions on why that is a good route or not. Also recommendations on Albergues or anything else of interest. Thanks A Million.
 
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The route through the Aragon Calkey is spectacularly beautiful and fairly pilgrim-free. July, though, may be uncomfortably hot. The support system is nowhere near as frequent as on the CF, so plan accordingly with the amount of water you carry. As for albuergues, definitely make the stops in Arres and Ruesta.
 
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Relais du Bastet in Oloron is lovely and run by friendly and helpful Hospitaleros. All the communal albergues are good in Spain especially the one in Jaca. I enjoyed staying in Albergue Aysa at Somport. It was lovely to sit out on the terrace enjoying a wine looking down the valley and at the Pyrenees. The Presbytere in Sarrance was good.
Enjoy.
 
My first reaction is UP to Somport from Oleron.
Went that way some years ago, and of the albergues on the way down from Somport, I remember Ruesta as a good one. Had been walking for a long day with a few km left when a van stopped by my side and offered me to take my backpack to the albergue. Usually I would not have accepted that, but tired as I was, I left all my belongings to a totally stranger on the road and nearly felt like a runner the few km up to the albergue. When I arrived the backpack was by my bed , and the driver turned up to be the keeper of the albergue. Had a really nice stay in this left town, one of my highlights on that camino.
 
Walked from Lourdes to SJPDP in 2017 on the Via Piedmonte. Don't know much about the Camino Aragones. Couple of things: a recommendation for an albergue in Lourdes which is donotivo . And also there is a camino office in Lourdes as well. Info via attached photos
.
Bon Chemin.

Buen Camino.

Mark

5300453006
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Did your proposed route just last May, with a group of friends....

Very glad I did it. Wonderful experience! But I'm probably too old/broken down to repeat it. ... Much more demanding than the CF. Would strongly advise against doing it solo!

Lourdes is a very strange and special place -- certainly worth a day's sightseeing even if you're not religiously motivated.... Read and prep for it. ... You'll either love it or hate it.... Lourdes to Oloron is gorgeous green country, and not difficult. Genuinely "Shire"-like! Lots of cows! And the locals were more hospitable than I expected. ... Oloron to Jaca, over the Somport pass, is breathtakingly beautiful, very different and much more daunting than the SJdePP-Roncesvalles mountain crossing experience. ...

Jaca is as charming as any small city on the Frances -- and the Cathedral museum of medieval art there will knock your socks off (if you're into medieval art like me!) It's world class! ... Why it isn't better known, I just don't know! ... After Jaca -- the dry and desolate Aragon country -- find a way to visit San Juan de la Pena, and Leyre, and the Xavier Castle. They absolutely made the walk, for me. ... And give the cathedral in Sanguesa a good long look....

Truth be told, I found that my interest waned after Sanguesa.... If I were ever to re-do the CA, I think that I'd just quit there and bus on over to Pamplona -- my favorite place on earth.

I question the wisdom of doing the CA in July. Too hot/tough for me, I suspect! ... And if you enjoy lots of peregrino company, the CA will disappoint. Like walking alone?

Finally: Stayed in cheap hotels. Am not an albergue person. Glad to offer hotel recommendations based on my experience, if asked.

Vaya con Dios.
 
Hi: I am planning my Camino starting this July and am looking to start in Lourdes and walk to Oloron and then down to Somport and Aragones to Puente Le Reina. Can anyone offer suggestions on why that is a good route or not. Also recommendations on Albergues or anything else of interest. Thanks A Million.
I'm taking this same route, leaving this week Thursday. Just found out my guide book will not arrive in time, so happy to see your post and read the responses!
 
The route through the Aragon Calkey is spectacularly beautiful and fairly pilgrim-free. July, though, may be uncomfortably hot. The support system is nowhere near as frequent as on the CF, so plan accordingly with the amount of water you carry. As for albuergues, definitely make the stops in Arres and Ruesta.
Do you have specific recommendations for albergues in Arres and Ruesta?
 
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There is only one albergue in both places. The Arres hamlet is delightful, and there is a bar & hostal in addition to a gem of an albergue.

Ruesta is a ghost town now, the only place still functioning is the albergue, where you can also just stop for a lunch or drink if you aren't ready to halt for the day.
 
Both Ruesta and Arres are worth a stay! BTW, Gronze has great info on the Aragon route as does the Buen Camino iPhone app!

Please post your observations once you walk as I am reverse-walking the route from Sanguesa to Lourdes in April/May!
 
Did your proposed route just last May, with a group of friends....

Very glad I did it. Wonderful experience! But I'm probably too old/broken down to repeat it. ... Much more demanding than the CF. Would strongly advise against doing it solo!

Lourdes is a very strange and special place -- certainly worth a day's sightseeing even if you're not religiously motivated.... Read and prep for it. ... You'll either love it or hate it.... Lourdes to Oloron is gorgeous green country, and not difficult. Genuinely "Shire"-like! Lots of cows! And the locals were more hospitable than I expected. ... Oloron to Jaca, over the Somport pass, is breathtakingly beautiful, very different and much more daunting than the SJdePP-Roncesvalles mountain crossing experience. ...

Jaca is as charming as any small city on the Frances -- and the Cathedral museum of medieval art there will knock your socks off (if you're into medieval art like me!) It's world class! ... Why it isn't better known, I just don't know! ... After Jaca -- the dry and desolate Aragon country -- find a way to visit San Juan de la Pena, and Leyre, and the Xavier Castle. They absolutely made the walk, for me. ... And give the cathedral in Sanguesa a good long look....

Truth be told, I found that my interest waned after Sanguesa.... If I were ever to re-do the CA, I think that I'd just quit there and bus on over to Pamplona -- my favorite place on earth.

I question the wisdom of doing the CA in July. Too hot/tough for me, I suspect! ... And if you enjoy lots of peregrino company, the CA will disappoint. Like walking alone?

Finally: Stayed in cheap hotels. Am not an albergue person. Glad to offer hotel recommendations based on my experience, if asked.

Vaya con Dios.
Thank you for your long note! Can you tell me what guide book/s you used? And why do you recommend against walking this route solo?
Best,
Maeve
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
There is a thread somewhere with a long discussion about walking it alone. It's a personal decision each must make based on their comfort level.

I am female and walked it alone and was never concerned about my safety. I was a week behind another woman who also walked alone. It's less walked, there were never more than about 8 of us in the albergues at night when I walked it in Oct a few years ago. So I suppose if you fall down and break something, it might be awhile before someone finds you. A phone might help with that.

I had no guidebook but I used gronze.com and took screenshots of the maps and lists of albergues.
 
Did your proposed route just last May, with a group of friends....

Very glad I did it. Wonderful experience! But I'm probably too old/broken down to repeat it. ... Much more demanding than the CF. Would strongly advise against doing it solo!

Lourdes is a very strange and special place -- certainly worth a day's sightseeing even if you're not religiously motivated.... Read and prep for it. ... You'll either love it or hate it.... Lourdes to Oloron is gorgeous green country, and not difficult. Genuinely "Shire"-like! Lots of cows! And the locals were more hospitable than I expected. ... Oloron to Jaca, over the Somport pass, is breathtakingly beautiful, very different and much more daunting than the SJdePP-Roncesvalles mountain crossing experience. ...

Jaca is as charming as any small city on the Frances -- and the Cathedral museum of medieval art there will knock your socks off (if you're into medieval art like me!) It's world class! ... Why it isn't better known, I just don't know! ... After Jaca -- the dry and desolate Aragon country -- find a way to visit San Juan de la Pena, and Leyre, and the Xavier Castle. They absolutely made the walk, for me. ... And give the cathedral in Sanguesa a good long look....

Truth be told, I found that my interest waned after Sanguesa.... If I were ever to re-do the CA, I think that I'd just quit there and bus on over to Pamplona -- my favorite place on earth.

I question the wisdom of doing the CA in July. Too hot/tough for me, I suspect! ... And if you enjoy lots of peregrino company, the CA will disappoint. Like walking alone?

Finally: Stayed in cheap hotels. Am not an albergue person. Glad to offer hotel recommendations based on my experience, if asked.

Vaya con Dios.
I would appreciate your hotel recommendations - thanks a mil!
 
Did your proposed route just last May, with a group of friends....

Very glad I did it. Wonderful experience! But I'm probably too old/broken down to repeat it. ... Much more demanding than the CF. Would strongly advise against doing it solo!

Lourdes is a very strange and special place -- certainly worth a day's sightseeing even if you're not religiously motivated.... Read and prep for it. ... You'll either love it or hate it.... Lourdes to Oloron is gorgeous green country, and not difficult. Genuinely "Shire"-like! Lots of cows! And the locals were more hospitable than I expected. ... Oloron to Jaca, over the Somport pass, is breathtakingly beautiful, very different and much more daunting than the SJdePP-Roncesvalles mountain crossing experience. ...

Jaca is as charming as any small city on the Frances -- and the Cathedral museum of medieval art there will knock your socks off (if you're into medieval art like me!) It's world class! ... Why it isn't better known, I just don't know! ... After Jaca -- the dry and desolate Aragon country -- find a way to visit San Juan de la Pena, and Leyre, and the Xavier Castle. They absolutely made the walk, for me. ... And give the cathedral in Sanguesa a good long look....

Truth be told, I found that my interest waned after Sanguesa.... If I were ever to re-do the CA, I think that I'd just quit there and bus on over to Pamplona -- my favorite place on earth.

I question the wisdom of doing the CA in July. Too hot/tough for me, I suspect! ... And if you enjoy lots of peregrino company, the CA will disappoint. Like walking alone?

Finally: Stayed in cheap hotels. Am not an albergue person. Glad to offer hotel recommendations based on my experience, if asked.

Vaya con Dios.
Thanks. Ive walked various Caminos the last 4 years May through November. I just leave early if it is hot. Also like all Caminos so enjoy quiet trails or more social ones like Frances.
 
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Just walked it in reverse: all the albergues/gites are excellent. Clean, welcoming, and affordable. In general, in France you should call the gite ahead of time (a day or two) to rsvp and ensure they are open. Most stops have only ONE pilgrim accommodation, so your choices are limited

Lourdes: pilgrim house (excellent donativo with communal meals plus you can stay two nights). Camino Office has excellent resources (maps, gite list)

Asson: either gite in town works, but overall space is limited. The paroquial has a private upstairs apartment which is wonderful, but the downstairs spot is merely functional

Arrudy: paroquial house with Padre Pierre (donativo, Private rooms)

Oloron: full kitchen, 4 to a room in non-bunked beds

Sarrance: working monastery, communal meals

Borce: municipal administered by the village bar; full use of a house

Somport: Alysa

Confranc Estacion: pilgrim gite, clean with kitchen

Jaca: municipal is huge but functional

Santa Cilia: fabulous dinner, dorms are separated by gender

Arres: small donativo with communal meals (favorite stay in two Caminos!)

Ruesta: only place open in a ghost town

Sanguesa: municipal is very clean; check-in on your own and then host shows up later to collect money

Yesa: very clean with an in-house cafe/bar

Monreal: functional (when open!); call ahead. Casa Rural a block away put us up for the pilgrim rate due to closure!

Tiebas: call ahead; was indefinitely closed earlier this year
 
Just walked it in reverse: all the albergues/gites are excellent. Clean, welcoming, and affordable. In general, in France you should call the gite ahead of time (a day or two) to rsvp and ensure they are open. Most stops have only ONE pilgrim accommodation, so your choices are limited

Lourdes: pilgrim house (excellent donativo with communal meals plus you can stay two nights). Camino Office has excellent resources (maps, gite list)

Asson: either gite in town works, but overall space is limited. The paroquial has a private upstairs apartment which is wonderful, but the downstairs spot is merely functional

Arrudy: paroquial house with Padre Pierre (donativo, Private rooms)

Oloron: full kitchen, 4 to a room in non-bunked beds

Sarrance: working monastery, communal meals

Borce: municipal administered by the village bar; full use of a house

Somport: Alysa

Confranc Estacion: pilgrim gite, clean with kitchen

Jaca: municipal is huge but functional

Santa Cilia: fabulous dinner, dorms are separated by gender

Arres: small donativo with communal meals (favorite stay in two Caminos!)

Ruesta: only place open in a ghost town

Sanguesa: municipal is very clean; check-in on your own and then host shows up later to collect money

Yesa: very clean with an in-house cafe/bar

Monreal: functional (when open!); call ahead. Casa Rural a block away put us up for the pilgrim rate due to closure!

Tiebas: call ahead; was indefinitely closed earlier this year
Thanks. This is very helpful.
 

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