Alburgues/towns along the VDLP

[campbeco]

Hey folks,

I'm organizing for two groups of fellow college students to walk the last 100k of the Portuguese Way and the Via de la Plata respectively. I'm slightly concerned about the latter, so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

There'll be about 30 in the group, and we're starting out at Ourense next March. Planning on reaching Santiago after four days of walking. My question therefore relates to the refugios - while i was walking the French Way last year this wasn't a problem, but do you think there will be enough space in each town for such a large group? And could someone with some knowledge of the route tell me whether the following itinerary would be best, as suggested by the route planner, or are there any larger towns along the way where we'd have a better chance of getting accommodation:
Ourense - Oseira - A Laxe - Ponte Ulla - Santiago.

I've also a slight concern about staying at the monastery at Oseira, based on other people's experiences of it - is it best avoided? Are its rules more strict than those in most other alburgues?

Thanks a million in advance to anyone who can help!
Conor.

 

[JohnnieWalker]

Hola - I'm sure others will comment as well. When I walked the VdlP there was a group of 30 odd young people around who managed to find accommodation. The difficulty may be doing this in the Holy Year when numbers will increase significantly.

From what I have heard the Monks at Oseira would be very welcoming although the sleeping/showering arrangements are a bit primitive. Call their Guestmaster and enquire.

Also I see at A Laxe there is a 28 bed albergue - you could call them too

http://caminodesantiago.consumer.es/alb ... -de-a-laxe

There is an albergue just beyond Ponte Ulla but I'm afraid I didnt sleep there - do any others have details?

 

[miguel_gp]

Hi,


The Albergue just on from Ponte Ulla is Capilla de Santiaguino (also referred to as Vedra or Outeiro). It is 4.5 km, mostly uphill from Ponte Ulla and about 34 km from A Laxe. It is modern with 32 beds and disabled facilities. When I was there in 2007 there were no local facilities for food, the options being to buy provisions or stop at a restaurant in Ponte Ulla, order a taxi from the Albergue down to the main road N525 to eat or I also seem to remember there being adverts at the Albergue for restaurants that would deliver. It is less than 20 km onwards the next day to Santiago, the route giving great views of your final destination during the last couple of kms.


As an alternative to Oseira, there is always the Albergue at Cea with 42 places. Cea to A Laxe is approx 32km.

Regards
Mig

 

[Rebekah Scott]

An alert to those traveling the Via de la Plata in the next week or so...

The albergue in Zamora is CLOSED until November. There´s a scramble on right now for hospitaleros to keep the place open through winter; month of Nov. and Dec. are covered, but the future is wide open. Any takers, please contact me and I´ll hook you up.

Rebekah

 

[isabelle304]

An alert to those traveling the Via de la Plata in the next week or so...

The albergue in Zamora is CLOSED until November. There´s a scramble on right now for hospitaleros to keep the place open through winter; month of Nov. and Dec. are covered, but the future is wide open. Any takers, please contact me and I´ll hook you up.

Rebekah

I hope they find some volunteers as it is a lovely albergue. It just reopened today and I am there right now, and very impressed. If I understand this right, the running of it has been taken over by different people and the place has been refurbished. The furniture seems brand new (in fact the place smells very new), modern and of good quality. Mattresses still have their labels attached! It would be a shame if it had to close down again :cry:

 

[andy.d]

I'm glad Zamora is open. After I had been there 3 weeks ago the local papers were full of a dispute between the ayuntamiento and the amigos which was going to spell the closure of the albergue.

Andy

 

[andy.d]

I stayed in the Albergue at O Outreiro a week ago. It is a good, modern albergue. There is a restaurant about a km away but they also deliver. As it was raining hard we took the delivery option and got a good menu del dia for (I think) 12euros. The hospitelera is very nice and also has the keys for the Santiaguno Chapel.

There is an albergue at Cea.

If you want to stay at Oseira, it is essential to phone in advance. I stayed in the monastery, so I'm afraid I don't know about the albergue there.

There is an albergue at Castro Dozon.

Bandeira has a lot of hotels and hostals.

Andy