Accommodation for large family

[Paul_L]

Its now only a week till we leave Australia and under a month till we start the camino. So excited, but also nervous. Just writing now I feel my heart soar and my stomach sink. As many pilgrims I've seen writing here, some last minute anxiety is normal. So here goes my last minute questions.

1. Is accommodation for a family of 7 plus 2 close friends going to be tricky (leaving in February). I know lots of people just go with it, and I want to embrace that, but finding a bed for me is different to finding 9 beds. (I anticipate once we hit April it will be difficult, we will hopefully still be on the camino at Easter, and that will be at the busy end by then too!)

2. I've trawled through the site aucoeurduchemin, and the options for accommidation seem somewhat limited in SJPP. We want to stay two nights 12-14 Feb. We arrive at 7:32pm, have no made reservation. Is that asking for trouble? What do people suggest?

Thanks to all for your support so far. It has been invaluable for our family.
Paul

 

[grayland]

Beds for 9 people will be sketchy night by night.
Private Albergues take reservations and that may be your best bet...but requires that you have a set distance/stopping point each night.
Many albergues only have 30 or less beds...so 9 people would have to be early to insure beds.

SJPdP should always be reserved even if you are only one pilgrim.
Try to make reservations right now.

 

[grayland]

Maybe some others can jump in with some suggestions in St. Jean

 

[whariwharangi]

Rent a motorhome. One of you drives ...
http://www.mcrent.eu/

 

[Bajaracer]

I'd make reservations for the first night, then check into the Municipal Albergue the next morning when they open.

 

[SYates]

2. I've trawled through the site aucoeurduchemin, and the options for accommidation seem somewhat limited in SJPP. We want to stay two nights 12-14 Feb. We arrive at 7:32pm, have no made reservation. Is that asking for trouble? What do people suggest?

Yes, arriving late with a largish group (including children) without having a reservation is asking for unnecessary trouble in my opinion. Whilst the pilgrims office will do their best to help you, there is always the risk that they might have to split your group up in order to find a bed for everyone. Have a look here: http://santiago.forwalk.org/en/trai...garoncesvalles/place/saint-jean-pied-de-port/ for another list of albergues in SJPDP and their contact details and opening info.

I stayed here: http://gitecompostella.jimdo.com/english/ and as far as I know they are open, upon reservation, all year. Clean but simple, but the installations: big kitchen and living room would be great for a group like yours.
Buen Camino! SY

 

[Paul_L]

Yes, arriving late with a largish group (including children) without having a reservation is asking for unnecessary trouble in my opinion. Whilst the pilgrims office will do their best to help you, there is always the risk that they might have to split your group up in order to find a bed for everyone. Have a look here: http://santiago.forwalk.org/en/trai...garoncesvalles/place/saint-jean-pied-de-port/ for another list of albergues in SJPDP and their contact details and opening info.

I stayed here: http://gitecompostella.jimdo.com/english/ and as far as I know they are open, upon reservation, all year. Clean but simple, but the installations: big kitchen and living room would be great for a group like yours.
Buen Camino! SY

Thanks for the reply and links. I've sent an email and now await a reply. I feel a bit better having made a couple of enquiries now.

 

[Paul_L]

I

Beds for 9 people will be sketchy night by night.
Private Albergues take reservations and that may be your best bet...but requires that you have a set distance/stopping point each night.
Many albergues only have 30 or less beds...so 9 people would have to be early to insure beds.

SJPdP should always be reserved even if you are only one pilgrim.
Try to make reservations right now.

I've sent an enquiry now, thanks for the prompt.
Whilst we aren't too keen on relying on private Albergues, we may end up having to take that path more often than we were hoping. I hope that having set stopping points doesn't lock us in to an itinerary though. I can't think of many better ways to kill the spirit of what we hope to experience than locking everything into a fixed timeframe. I'm comfortable with making a decision the night before of what our aim is for the subsequent day, but not for sending out two weeks' reservations.

 

[SYates]

"I'm comfortable with making a decision the night before of what our aim is for the subsequent day, ..."
At the time of the year you are on the way that should be perfectly enough. I think it is, for you, more a case of making sure that the albergue is actually open and to 'warn' the hospitalero that a 'bigger than normal at that time of the year' group comes. Buen Camino! SY

 

[peregrina2000]

I

I've sent an enquiry now, thanks for the prompt.
Whilst we aren't too keen on relying on private Albergues, we may end up having to take that path more often than we were hoping. I hope that having set stopping points doesn't lock us in to an itinerary though. I can't think of many better ways to kill the spirit of what we hope to experience than locking everything into a fixed timeframe. I'm comfortable with making a decision the night before of what our aim is for the subsequent day, but not for sending out two weeks' reservations.

Hi, Paul,

Since you're walking in February, you may find that many places (not municipals) are closed. I think that's likely to be more of a problem than finding space for 9 people in an albergue, since the February pilgrim numbers are so low.

Have you seen Rebekah's post with a list of albergues that are open in winter?
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/winter-pilgrims-open-albergues-site.30309/

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[wawpdx]

I am speaking as a person who hates the "get the reservation locked in stone ahead of time" part of traveling, no matter where I are going. Really, how can you know what you would want to pick just by reading those words on a page? In an ideal world, all of my travel could be the Camino way of make the journey, see where you land and then figure it out. For me this is Not a stretch. And, I am perfectly happy if someone else wants to figure out the lodging.

But, as I understand it, the Caution is always to leave the opening for letting the reality of the Camino be your guide, rather than the fear of the unknown as you sit in the security of your computer on your sofa at home. You have a large group. Maybe your higher priority is to experience the camino together. I agree with your idea to reserve the first day or two now, then see what your actual experience is. Let that actual experience and your current levels of _______ guide where you make a reservation for the following night or two. Then let that current wisdom guide the following night or two. Bit by bit, step by step. But even I would make reservations if I had so much to consider. In the bigger picture, if you consider your priorities, it may support you being fully present wherever you are.

 

[Kiwi-family]

As a group of 11, (and one that included children as young as six and an octogenarian Grandpa), our strategy was to not walk too far each day and make sure we arrived nice and early so we could be in the queue for a bed (more often than not at a municipal or parochial albergue). This actually forced us to be relaxed because we were not covering massive distances and had time to do paintings and journals and wander round and find playgrounds and visit churches and sit round chatting together etc.
As others have suggested, you could book ahead - even if it night by night.