Accomodation Reservations & Luggage Transfers on C Frances

[zeenex]

I am planning on walking the Camino Francés in Late September/early October. I am trying to determine what the availabiltiy of accomodations would be at that time. Will it be necessary to make reservations far in advance or will the crowds be down enough that a day or two in advance would be sufficient? Also, what is the best way to find a luggage transfer service? Can that be arranged along the way or do I need make longer term reservations? I would antcipate 10-15 miles a day. Does anyone know what the approximate cost of such a service might be and the best way to find a service provider?

 

[MeganG22]

I walked this year from Oct 3-Nov 3. You do not need to make reservations, and I don't even know if that's possible anyway at the albergues. I think the only time we tried to make a hotel reservation was in Burgos, and we could not find any availability at budget hotels- but it was a weekend and there were tons of people around (we saw 4 separate weddings just on the walk into the city!)

The bag service I saw people use most along the way would be Jacotrans. Most albergues have forms for this service that you fill out, put in an envelope with your money (I think it was 6-8 euros?) and leave your bag when you leave in the morning. Of course, this is just from what I saw, hopefully it's accurate as I never used it myself.

It will all become routine for you fast enough once you start. My best advice would be to let go of any major worries and bask in the thought that you will be FINE. Buen camino.

 

[colinPeter]

Hi zeenex,
Welcome to the forum.
Below is the Jacotrans website. They seem to do the whole route.
Other smaller carriers individuals do sections, some I saw were 3 Euro a bag, you often see them advertise in accommodation along the way. http://www.jacotrans.com/p/english.html

As mentioned vagando2011, no need to book way in advance, if you want to book ahead, the day before is usually fine. The exception is usually Orrison (If staying there) and SJPP at the start.
Buen Camino
Col

 

[Buckeroo]

I walked the French Way leaving SJPdP on 2nd October last year and had no problem at all with accommodation. No forward bookings were necessary. After a very wet period, I found one albergue where the roof was leaking badly so they had to reduce the number of available beds but found plenty of room in a nearby hostel. It was a blessing as the people in the hostel were wonderful, drying all my wet clothes and giving me a private room where I was able to spread out all my wet gear.

 

[nreyn12]

Late September / early October is a great time on the Camino, I think my favorite. How fantastic!

Of the approximately 300 albergues on the Camino Frances, roughly half can be booked in advance (according to this site: http://caminodesantiago.consumer.es/albergues/#camino-frances). But at that time of year, you won't need to worry about booking, at all. If you get in with a large group that is moving at the same pace as you, you may find the albergues filling up. If this happens, just stop sooner for one day, and you will find you have no problem finding a bed.

If you plan to stay at hostales (small hotels), pensions, or hotels instead of albergues, you usually will not need to book at this time of year. The only time to be concerned at non-albergue places is if there is a holiday that falls on or near a weekend. Then the hotels likely will be full and your best choice will be an albergue.

As for luggage transfer, you arrange this each day, as you go. The hospitalero or hotel reception will instruct you on how to prepare your bag and where to leave it for pick up. The catch is that you have to know where you are going that day, so the bag will be delivered to the right place. Not all albergues accept pilgrims using luggage transfer services, so be sure to ask your host. The cost is usually around 7-8 euros.

 

[psheehan]

I walked from SJPP to Burgos in October 2012. I used CaminoFacil to transfer my bag, very reliable and only 7 euro per day. They collect and deliver to all albergues.

I also used Jacotrans for a few days, also 7 euro per day. The albergues have the envelopes and contact telephone numbers for both transfer companies.

Paul.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

They collect and deliver to all albergues.

Actually, I think they have lists of places that will accept bags. The list includes hostales, hoteles, and some private albergues. However, not all albergues will accept deliveries, so just choose from the list, which will include at least one place in almost all towns.