Bedbugs in The Fenix in Villafranca del Bierzo

[WhitSF]

Stayed in mid July 2014 in the room up the small wood staircase (nearest to the clotheslines). Two of my walking buddies got eaten alive by bed bugs (especially in that corner bunk on the left) and one woke up with a swollen bedbug on his pillow. I saw it myself.

Fellow pilgrims that came through day before/day after, that we caught up with later, were also totally bitten up.

Told Hospilatero. Seemed to care. But I wouldn't stay there again.

Friends who stayed the next night in La Faba were quizzed by the Hospilatero about bed bugs, bc so many had been coming from Villafrance del Bierzo with them!

 

[Bajaracer]

Stayed in mid July 2014 in the room up the small wood staircase (nearest to the clotheslines). Two of my walking buddies got eaten alive by bed bugs (especially in that corner bunk on the left) and one woke up with a swollen bedbug on his pillow. I saw it myself.

Fellow pilgrims that came through day before/day after, that we caught up with later, were also totally bitten up.

Told Hospilatero. Seemed to care. But I wouldn't stay there again.

Friends who stayed the next night in La Faba were quizzed by the Hospilatero about bed bugs, bc so many had been coming from Villafrance del Bierzo with them!

For some reason, Albergue Fenix seems to be a magnet for bedbugs, last year, late July 2013, when I rolled into Villafranca, Fenix had 60 of the 80 beds reserved by a tour group, and the Municipal was close to getting full, I walked on to Albergue de la Piedra on the other side of town and got the last bed. I ran into another pilgrim there who told me I was really lucky, both Fenix and the Municipal had an infestation of bed bugs and both places were treated and cleaned that morning.

I feel bad for the owner, but for some reason pilgrims bring bedbugs to his place and the Municipal.
This could happen to any albergue, all it takes is one carrier to bring them in.

 

[Nol]

Stayed here in July 2014. Got eaten alive by bedbugs and had a miserable time trying to get them out of my gear. It was a truly horrible experience. I was not angry about the Ave Fenix until I realized that most people I met afterwards who knew where they had got Camino bedbugs (across different years) got them here.

 

[Anniesantiago]

I feel really bad for him. He is the one I mentioned who, one year, took all the beds outside and used a blowtorch on the frames, then put in new mattresses.
A day or two later, a pilgrim brought more bugs in.
It must be very frustrating for the owners, especially as this has been a beloved albergue in the past.

I think ALL the albergues need to work together to get this bedbug issue resolved.
And I think education of pilgrims when they receive their Credentials is one key.

 

[tpmchugh]

Exactly the same September 2013. So bad, La Faba refused to allow pilgrims to bring their packs inside

 

[Former member 98400]

Ave Fenix in Villafranca del Bierzo. My experience is "old", form July 2014. Maybe things are better now? The albergue host had sold my pre-paid bed to somebody else, and I was offered a matress on the floor in the crowded attic, and I was to tired to go and look for something else. People slept everywhere possible on the floor. The people sleeping on the floor next to the attic walls/ceiling, took all the bites from the bugs crawling ot from the cracks in the bulding, and the bed bugs feasted on them. The girl on the matress next to me ended up covered in bites that became infected, she got a fever and needed medical treatment. I met several people that got many bites in this particular albergue. Later I heard that the problem had been going on in Ave Fenix for some time but the albergue did not take action, they just continued taking on all too many guests.
You can get a few bites in a posh hotel too, but when you stuff an old attic absolutely full of people every night for weeks and months, the problem will build up. If I new about the situation in Fenix in advance, I would rather have slept outside.

 

[peregrina2000]

My experience is "old", form July 2014.

This thread is also old, from 2015. I will close it so that we don’t keep recycling what may be out of date information. I recently saw a video of the owner, in Santiago I think, thanking people for their generosity, so maybe the albergue is getting an upgrade.

I think the albergue’s two most commented characteristics have consistently been bedbugs and the albergue’s unwavering commitment to the “camino spirit.”