Albergues on San Salvador

[unadara]

I'm leaving Leon on the 25th April. I've 20days in total to walk The Salvador and Primitivo. I've seen how beautiful the Mountains are in many videos. I've listened to pilgrims talking about certain Albergues. My current idea is
Cabinillas 17km (all rough estimates)
Buiza 23km (eating during the day, carrying food/water)
Poladura 10km ? (up and down)
LLanos 18.7km
Benduenos 12km then Mieres 24.8 and Oviedo 19km.
I hope to take proposed alternative routes where possible. I have Enders guide (Gracias) and making many notes about when to shop (and eat) etc.
I'd love some feedback. Thanks.
Una

 

[David Tallan]

I'm leaving Leon on the 25th April. I've 20days in total to walk The Salvador and Primitivo. I've seen how beautiful the Mountains are in many videos. I've listened to pilgrims talking about certain Albergues. My current idea is
Cabinillas 17km (all rough estimates)
Buiza 23km (eating during the day, carrying food/water)
Poladura 10km ? (up and down)
LLanos 18.7km
Benduenos 12km then Mieres 24.8 and Oviedo 19km.
I hope to take proposed alternative routes where possible. I have Enders guide (Gracias) and making many notes about when to shop (and eat) etc.
I'd love some feedback. Thanks.
Una

When I walked last summer, there were no open albergues in Mieres. I walked a few km beyond to El Rollu. There was a nice albergue there.

 

[peregrina2000]

When I walked last summer, there were no open albergues in Mieres.

Was this place not open in Mieres? I have stayed in Mieres only once on the Salvador, but was surprised — I thought it was a fairly nondescript town but it had a great ambiente. Lots of activity, good places to eat, parks, etc. I stayed in a pensión and it was just fine.

 

[David Tallan]

Was this place not open in Mieres? I have stayed in Mieres only once on the Salvador, but was surprised — I thought it was a fairly nondescript town but it had a great ambiente. Lots of activity, good places to eat, parks, etc. I stayed in a pensión and it was just fine.

That place was, but I didn't consider it an albergue, based on the description I read at the time. It sounded like a university residence that was being operated as an inexpensive hotel when the students weren't there. Relatively inexpensive accommodations for pilgrims until the new albergue is built, but not exactly the albergue ambiente. I didn't say that there were no places to sleep, just that there were no albergues.

On the other hand, just a bit further down the road was a nice donativo in El Rollu that very definitely was an albergue. There were fig trees by the porch and we got freshly plucked figs from the hospitalera when we arrived.

 

[peregrina2000]

It sounded like a university residence that was being operated as an inexpensive hotel when the students weren't there.

I think that is exactly what it is, but the town of Mieres has promoted it to pilgrims as an albergue option.

So what happened to the albergue in the old school right behind the statue of the guy pouring sidra? That was a kind of sketchy place, if I remember right, but it was a “real” albergue.

 

[trecile]

Was this place not open in Mieres? I have stayed in Mieres only once on the Salvador, but was surprised — I thought it was a fairly nondescript town but it had a great ambiente. Lots of activity, good places to eat, parks, etc. I stayed in a pensión and it was just fine.

I really enjoyed Mieres. It did have a great atmosphere. I stayed at Hostal Pachín. The albergue was still in operation, but it was on the far side of town as you were leaving, and since I hadn't seen any pilgrims on the trail I though that I could possibly be alone there. I decided that I'd rather be alone at a hostal in the center of town than alone in albergue on the edge.

 

[David Tallan]

I think the old (sketchy) albergue is being replaced by a nice new one and the university residence rooms are a stopgap. I'm not knocking Mieres, but I was with a little group of pilgrims who had just had a wonderful experience staying together in Bendueños, so it seemed worth it to extend it by staying at another nice donativo the next night rather than all going off to private rooms in essentially a small cheap hotel. That did mean, however, we just walked through Mieres. We didn't know what we were missing.

 

[unadara]

Thanks for the discussion.
Casa Alba sounds lovely. We will decide while on the way and maybe stay in Mieres-Hostal or University.
The start date is getting nearer. I have just received my Altra Lone Peaks! My kind of walking shoe...

 

[KariannNor]

I am considering this route. Is it correct that the only accommodation between Leon and La Robla is the donativo in Cabanillas and that they only have 4 beds?

 

[trecile]

I am considering this route. Is it correct that the only accommodation between Leon and La Robla is the donativo in Cabanillas and that they only have 4 beds?

That looks to be correct. Although they don't take reservations I would still notify them that I'm coming.
I wouldn't worry too much that there's only 4 beds. When I walked the Salvador in June 2019 there were never more than four pilgrims in the albergues I stayed in, and I think that most people walk all the way to La Robla from León and sleep there.

 

[KariannNor]

That looks to be correct. Although they don't take reservations I would still notify them that I'm coming.
I wouldn't worry too much that there's only 4 beds. When I walked the Salvador in June 2019 there were never more than four pilgrims in the albergues I stayed in, and I think that most people walk all the way to La Robla from León and sleep there.

Ok, thanks for your answer. I just think more than 27km as the first day is a bit much if there is no bed available there. See there is a bus out of Leon to Carbajal, but it feels a bit like cheating, and that already before start.. ;-)

 

[peregrina2000]

Take a look at this thread.

It sounds like you can be in touch ahead of time, so you won’t need to leave León wondering whether there is a bed for you. The albergue does not get a lot of use.

 

[peregrina2000]

I am considering this route. Is it correct that the only accommodation between Leon and La Robla is the donativo in Cabanillas and that they only have 4 beds?

Look at the information in Gronze — I believe the phone numbers are those of a married couple, hospitaleros. I don’t remember the source of the information that they don’t use WhatsApp, but both phones listed in Gronze are on WhatsApp! Maybe they are trying to do something crazy like keep their personal life and their Camino life separate.

 

[billC]

Stayed there in June 2022. There are only 4 beds; there were 3 pilgrims there that evening. There are no services in the town so bring your own food. Kitchen is adequate enough. It took a while for someone to open the albergue even though I had called ahead (the day before) and was told an expected open time.