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Wow, I hope we can catch up to you. Would be great to meet you - given that we aren't booking ahead we'll probably meet you whilst desperately trying to find somewhere to stay & eat!I hope we can just "wing it". We did not book ahead on the French route or the Primitivo. We never know how far we will walk each day. We are starting just ahead of you on Aug. 28 or 29th. We fly into Paris on the 26th and we want to visit a camino friend from Switzerland before we start from Le Puy.
We're starting from Le Puy on Sept 1st (well, that's the plan!). Having not done the pre-booking accommodation routine before, how many days ahead do we need to book? Is it possible, or advisable, to 'just wing it' and not pre-book?
Everyone else (the French, mostly) will be booking ahead. It is customary on the Chemin du Puy. It will save you the time it takes to wander around looking, or in the case of a single gite village, walking several kilometers further. When the Office de Tourisme is open, they can help if you have not prebooked. You can wing it on the Camino Frances, but it may be a bit more difficult on the Chemin du Puy. If you have included hotels in your budget, booking.com is a very helpful website.how many days ahead do we need to book? Is it possible, or advisable, to 'just wing it' and not pre-book?
Thanks Ed and Joan - we have about 35 days. Do hope we meet.Jan...
How much time do you have? We have about 34-36 days just depending on visit to old camino friends on the front and backside of the walk. We plan to walk to SJPP or as far as Pamplona. We like to see what each town or village holds for us...a church visit, a museum and walk as long as we feel good. We also like to have time to wash our clothes and nap before dinner each day. We stop often for coffee on our walk. Perhaps our paths will cross.
Thanks Falcon - yes it does seem that pre-booking a few days ahead is the accepted practice. Maybe a few hotels, but mostly a gite budget!Everyone else (the French, mostly) will be booking ahead. It is customary on the Chemin du Puy. It will save you the time it takes to wander around looking, or in the case of a single gite village, walking several kilometers further. When the Office de Tourisme is open, they can help if you have not prebooked. You can wing it on the Camino Frances, but it may be a bit more difficult on the Chemin du Puy. If you have included hotels in your budget, booking.com is a very helpful website.
Bon chemin.
We're starting from Le Puy on Sept 1st (well, that's the plan!). Having not done the pre-booking accommodation routine before, how many days ahead do we need to book? Is it possible, or advisable, to 'just wing it' and not pre-book?
Not sure if there are many public/religious hols in September/ October... but just keep an eye out around those times and you should be ok.
We walked from Le Puy to SJPDP last Sep/Oct, and it was very busy in September. We had booked the first week from home, which made the beginning of the walk more relaxing. We saw some pilgrims on Day 3 who were not happy, as they had to walk an extra 5 km in the hot sun that afternoon in order to get accommodation. We promptly went back to our room and booked for the next 3 nights! We were told that it would thin out after Conques, as many of the French people end their walk there, however we continued to reserve ahead at least 2 days. More times than not we were doing "demi-pension", as the smaller towns did not have a restaurant. The MMDD was great for listing services in the towns, so it was easy to see if finding food would be a problem. The host really needs to know ahead of time how many guests will be eating, so it all works very well if people book ahead. Although we were struggling with our high school French, we had no problem making reservations by phone. Once in awhile we had our host phone on our behalf, mainly due to no cell service being available, and they are used to doing that. The tourist information offices also are very helpful, but are only located in the larger towns.
Hope this has eased your mind a bit - we were worried about reserving before we left, but soon got used to it. And it does mean that you can enjoy the walking, knowing that you have a bed waiting for you!
Bon Chemin!
Linda
Thanks Arn, I already hiked the Camino in April May last year... I guess the temps will be similar I.e. wildly variable lolFrom end of March to Sept you are looking at temps well within the comfortable range 45+F
Plan for Yhe worst .., enjoy the rest!
It is not impossible to walk without reserving ahead. However, there are a lot of one-gite places. If you are willing to take a taxi, or walk some distance further, that is not a problem. The hosts at chambres d'hote may take a spontaneous day off if no one has reserved, so no one will answer the door when you knock. One of my first reservations was at a municipal gite. On arrival, all the beds were claimed. When the manager showed up, she kicked out everyone without a reservation, and we got beds! There were a lot of sleeping bags on the lawn that night.this will be hard as we never really know how far we will walk.
Guess I have some work to do...this will be hard as we never really know how far we will walk. I looked back at our blog from last year and we walked 15K a few days, several 30K day and many that fell between 20K-28K. There were days when we thought we would do around 20k and ended up at 30k. Last year we gave ourselves 25 day to walk from SJPP to Leon and it only took us 20 days. From there we bused to Oviedo and walked the Primitivo and that took us a day less than planned to SdC, which was nice as we then walked to Muxia.
I shall book a place in Le Puy. And then I will have to look at our options for the next few days. I do have the MMDD book.
After we arrive , we will look into booking a day or two ahead as we go.
The biggest irritant to French hosts is reservations that are not canceled. If you won't be able to reach a reserved spot, call to cancel. Even a couple of hours notice is enough to keep the host content (and provide a bed to another weary pilgrim).
Hi Eilish,Hi Linda,
half tempted to return to the Le Puy Route in September this year. What sort of temperatures were there when ye did it?
Eilish
Hey irishgurri,
Your post is too long to quote, but thanks for the input. We are not young, but not old and are pretty fit. I run 3 times a week for a weekly total of 20 miles and cross train twice a week and my husband cycles about 100 miles a week. We thought that the Primitivo was much more up and down than the French route, but it was so beautiful and the pilgrims and locals so friendly.
I have looked at the elevations and there are some hills to start then it looks to level out...would you agree? We have about 34 days. Once we get to SJPP we can walk if time permits toward Pamplona or get a bus as we fly out of Barcelona. Do you have a blog from your walk on the Le Puy? Or how long were your first few stages?
Are you from Ireland? We walked, bused and hitch-hiked there in 2013. Saw some beautiful places.
Thanks Linda. We had similar weather in April/May last year! It was great. Just a bit of rain on the Aubrac and a few mixed weather days approaching the Pyrenees! We were so blessed!Hi Eilish,
We had beautiful weather with highs in the low-mid 20's. It was 25 on Oct 17 when we walked into SJPDP! Not sure if that is typical, but we sure enjoyed it!
Cheers,
Linda
Hey irishgurri,
Your post is too long to quote, but thanks for the input. We are not young, but not old and are pretty fit. I run 3 times a week for a weekly total of 20 miles and cross train twice a week and my husband cycles about 100 miles a week. We thought that the Primitivo was much more up and down than the French route, but it was so beautiful and the pilgrims and locals so friendly.
I have looked at the elevations and there are some hills to start then it looks to level out...would you agree? We have about 34 days. Once we get to SJPP we can walk if time permits toward Pamplona or get a bus as we fly out of Barcelona. Do you have a blog from your walk on the Le Puy? Or how long were your first few stages?
Are you from Ireland? We walked, bused and hitch-hiked there in 2013. Saw some beautiful places.
Hi,
This was my itinerary for the first couple of weeks...
Le Puy-en-Velay to Montbonnet (16.7km)
Montbonnet to Montrisol d'Allier (13.7km)
Montrisol d'Allier to Saugues (11.7km)
Saugues to Le Villeret d'Apchier (22.6km)
Le Villeret d'Apchier to Saint Alban Sur Limagnole (20.9km)
St Alban... to Lasbros (21km)
Lasbros to Finieyrols (9.4km)
Finieyrols to Nasbinals (9.8km)
Nasbinals to St Chely d'Aubrac (15.8km)
St Chely... to St Come d'Olt (16km)
St Come d'Olt to Estaing (18.9km)
Estaing to Golinhac (13.2km)
Golinhac to Conques (20.2km)
Rest Day in Conques
We did two short days on day 8 and 9 than take a day off. I remember feeling particularly tired the last few days into Conques. Luckily I had lovely company and we also met a lovely group that helped distract me from my fatigue particularly after a long hill en route to Golinhac !!!
Would not change this itinerary very much.
First 3 days are the correct way as the climb out of Montrisol can be very hard.
Hey irishgurri,
Your post is too long to quote, but thanks for the input. We are not young, but not old and are pretty fit. I run 3 times a week for a weekly total of 20 miles and cross train twice a week and my husband cycles about 100 miles a week. We thought that the Primitivo was much more up and down than the French route, but it was so beautiful and the pilgrims and locals so friendly.
I have looked at the elevations and there are some hills to start then it looks to level out...would you agree? We have about 34 days. Once we get to SJPP we can walk if time permits toward Pamplona or get a bus as we fly out of Barcelona. Do you have a blog from your walk on the Le Puy? Or how long were your first few stages?
Are you from Ireland? We walked, bused and hitch-hiked there in 2013. Saw some beautiful places.
Most of the severe elevation changes wrap up with the climb out of Conques, so roughly the first third of the route. The second third, through Auviallar, is "hill town country". Then there is a long relatively flat area where the towns are quite spread out at 25 km intervals. At Navarrenx you start picking up the foothills of the Pyrennees....there are some hills to start then it looks to level out...
Most of the severe elevation changes wrap up with the climb out of Conques, so roughly the first third of the route. The second third, through Auviallar, is "hill town country". Then there is a long relatively flat area where the towns are quite spread out at 25 km intervals. At Navarrenx you start picking up the foothills of the Pyrennees.
If you've walked the Primitivo and Ireland, then you already know that long distance walks, with a pack, are harder on the feet than running or cycling.
My wife and I left Le Puy in late August last year and had been advised to book as far ahead as Conques as many groups of French people walk in the popular times and can take up all the beds. It was painful trying to do this on line as many places wanted a deposit, sometimes as little as E5.00 but they did not accept credit cards or have PayPal accounts, and without a French bank account it meant in the order of $A20+ just in bank fees. So I continued to look around. It is best to start with shorter distances until the body and feet get used to it which will be on fairly steep terrain at times, so depending on your level of fitness booking 15-18km stages may be the way to go; it is not really about distances but what the terrain is. Agree with IrrishgirlWe're starting from Le Puy on Sept 1st (well, that's the plan!). Having not done the pre-booking accommodation routine before, how many days ahead do we need to book? Is it possible, or advisable, to 'just wing it' and not pre-book?
try a web site under the name of the Gite; sometimes a way around the lack of internet address.We leave Le Puy on August 28, and I am trying to book ahead through the weekend (August 31). We are trying to figure out how to book "Gite a la femme" in Saugues as we don't speak French or have an international phone plan and there is nothing other than a phone number for contact. If anyone has any ideas on how to book this place feel free to offer suggestions.
*Once we start walking we will book a day or two ahead.
**We are practicing/learning to speak French.
try a web site under the name of the Gite; sometimes a way around the lack of internet address.
...We are trying to figure out how to book "Gite a la femme" in Saugues as we don't speak French or have an international phone plan and there is nothing other than a phone number for contact. ....
In what source did you find "Gite a la femme" ? I believe that femme, ie woman is a typo and the correct name should be "Gite a la ferme" ie Gite at the farm. See this page for more info including a POSTAL address. Write your request in English and translate it into French using an on-line translate program. Also you might send a Fax as a request.
We leave Le Puy on August 28, and I am trying to book ahead through the weekend (August 31). We are trying to figure out how to book "Gite a la femme" in Saugues as we don't speak French or have an international phone plan and there is nothing other than a phone number for contact. If anyone has any ideas on how to book this place feel free to offer suggestions.
*Once we start walking we will book a day or two ahead.
**We are practicing/learning to speak French.
Hi Ed and Joan ,
1/
Get a copy of MMDD now , not in a weeks time mate now,
2/
On page /plan 05 , under the big eye , number 19 , is a place called Office de Tourisme.
ot.saugues@haut-allier.com ....... phone number 04 71 77 71 38
www.haut-allier.com [ for all accommodation and MAYBE Itier and Martines e/m if they have one]
Write to the OT , in english , it will not worry them and they will let La ferme know.
You could e/m Le Margeride [ no 4 ] who speak good english and they will ring Itier and Martines [ no 5 ] for you.
You are wasting your time , and may i say with a smile going grey , if you don't get a copy of MMDD asap.
*** And if i was staying in an english speaking abode in Le Puy then why not request them to ring Itier in Saugues and book the night for you.
**** We booked with Itier when in Montbonnet +++++ or should i say our hosts did.
I would suggest that you may be overthinking and over -planning the
pre-booking.. Book the first 2 nights and then book the night before from the MMDD. You may not always get the exact one you want each night...but you can walk much more relaxed and not on a tight schedule.
Just my experience.
I do not speak French and found that so long as your first day is booked you only need do the following:We leave Le Puy on August 28, and I am trying to book ahead through the weekend (August 31). We are trying to figure out how to book "Gite a la femme" in Saugues as we don't speak French or have an international phone plan and there is nothing other than a phone number for contact. If anyone has any ideas on how to book this place feel free to offer suggestions.
*Once we start walking we will book a day or two ahead.
**We are practicing/learning to speak French.
I called ahead the same day or, max, the eve before, no more. Bon Chemin, SY
I do not speak French and found that so long as your first day is booked you only need do the following:
Get someone who speaks/writes in French to write down in your notebook a couple of questions - Can you please book me accommodation for tomorrow at .... with demi pension. How much is it. And make sure that the name you book it in is understandable to the host and the potential host. I found that booking the day before was fine in April.
Thanks everyone. I suspect I missed a posting on this but our French isn't that great and wondered if the gite or hostel owner would be willing to make the next reservation for us. Thanks Falcon for the Hotel.com idea...will likely try that. Also, we did the Frances two years ago and want to do both the Norte and the LePuy this time. Any suggestions as to the order of things...the two times are late July and first week of September. Wondering about crowds, heat and accommodations. As of now we plan for the Norte first and the Le Puy in September. Thanks for any suggestions you might give.
Thanks everyone. I suspect I missed a posting on this but our French isn't that great and wondered if the gite or hostel owner would be willing to make the next reservation for us. Thanks Falcon for the Hotel.com idea...will likely try that. Also, we did the Frances two years ago and want to do both the Norte and the LePuy this time. Any suggestions as to the order of things...the two times are late July and first week of September. Wondering about crowds, heat and accommodations. As of now we plan for the Norte first and the Le Puy in September. Thanks for any suggestions you might give.
Hi - yes the gite owner is normally more than happy to make the next reservation(s) for you if you ask. I phoned ahead myself but I know of others who asked the gite owner to make the reservation for them.
July has a thinner walking population due to the heat. So you will now have a different problem: instead of trying to find an empty bed, you will be trying to find an open gite. Many owners will take a few days off if no one has booked. So do be sure to book a day in advance; the current day's host or the Office de Tourisme can handle the French for you. (The Le Puy route lies mostly south of the Lange-d'Oc line, so the accents will be very different.)doing the Le Puy first (in late July)...
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