CaminoJoy123
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- 2017
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Is the gel form of hand sanitizer widely available in Spain ?
You know, like those small bottles of Purell or something?
I'm not seeing this, and no one is familiar with it.
Closest thing is a liquid alcohol. And it's in a huge bottle.
Algergues don't have soap or paper towels in the toilets. You must bring your own for each visit. So I have to tear into my shower kit for each pee. Yikes.
For emergencies during actual walking on Camino I have towelettes, which I don't want to waste on common toileting at albergues later.
Yes, albergues are not hotels, so you should be prepared with your own soap and towels. Bars and restaurants where you might use the toilets would normally have soap and paper towels, but it wouldn't be unusual for them to be out. (They are mostly low-profit-margin businesses and have many cheap pilgrims passing through.) I would take a small bar of soap, and dry my hands on my clothes if necessary! Bring a small container of hand sanitizer, if you want, and you'll have no trouble replacing it.So I have to tear into my shower kit for each pee.
It may be that you are looking for a name you knowHand sanitizer is widely available but maybe not the product that you are familiar with, just look around supermarkets, even small ones, at the cleansing products etc.
Please do not overthink this too much. Spain has all the necessary things like hand sanitizer.Amongst many other things. Supermarkets and Farmacias sell it. And there is a soap dispenser at almost every bathroom in restaurants and cafes.
I am sorry to inform you but I have not located this product in Spain yet. Looking for a small flat bottle of gel hand sanitizer for disinfecting hands after toileting and before eating and before dealing with water bottles.
@CaminoJoy123 Are you on the camino now? I know some albergues sometimes run out of toilet paper (and yes, often because fellow pilgs steal it instead of buying a pack and leaving the rest at the albergue), but I don't think it's true to say that no albergues ever have soap or paper! As for the hand sanitiser - where have you looked without seeing it and who isn't familiar with it? Shops and farmacias in Spain and Europe normally stock that kind of thing, especially near the caminos, as they know there is a market for it. I'm sure we can help you find it.
Yes, albergues are not hotels, so you should be prepared with your own soap and towels. Bars and restaurants where you might use the toilets would normally have soap and paper towels, but it wouldn't be unusual for them to be out. (They are mostly low-profit-margin businesses and have many cheap pilgrims passing through.) I would take a small bar of soap, and dry my hands on my clothes if necessary! Bring a small container of hand sanitizer, if you want, and you'll have no trouble replacing it.
Please do not overthink this too much. Spain has all the necessary things like hand sanitizer.Amongst many other things. Supermarkets and Farmacias sell it. And there is a soap dispenser at almost every bathroom in restaurants and cafes.
or ask for gel antiseptico / desinfectando de manos.
I saw one this year at a farmacia in Astorga. And two years ago I bought a small bottle at Mercadona.
@Sheesh , it's 75 ml, it doesn't meet her criteria. And have tou tested the lid?In 2013 I was glad I took a small container because I hadn't seen any on my previous walk in 2009.
If you can go into a sporting goods store you might find some. I just looked on the Decathalon.es website and saw this product (though larger than what you really are looking for):
View attachment 35842
GEL DE MANOS HIDROALCOHÓLICO 75 ML APTONIA
In 2013 I was glad I took a small container because I hadn't seen any on my previous walk in 2009.
If you can go into a sporting goods store you might find some. I just looked on the Decathalon.es website and saw this product (though larger than what you really are looking for):
View attachment 35842
Please don't think me too direct, but, hand sanitiser??? water and soap is all you needIs the gel form of hand sanitizer widely available in Spain ?
You know, like those small bottles of Purell or something?
I'm not seeing this, and no one is familiar with it.
Closest thing is a liquid alcohol. And it's in a huge bottle.
Algergues don't have soap or paper towels in the toilets. You must bring your own for each visit. So I have to tear into my shower kit for each pee. Yikes.
For emergencies during actual walking on Camino I have towelettes, which I don't want to waste on common toileting at albergues later.
So glad someone said it. Talk about a silly product to use outisde of a hospital. It doesn't even remove dirt.Please don't think me too direct, but, hand sanitiser??? water and soap is all you need
I vote for the shower kit for rugged Spain. This priduct has to be the most
So glad someone said it. Talk about a silly product to use outisde of a hospital. It doesn't even remove dirt.
@Sheesh , it's 75 ml, it doesn't meet her criteria. And have tou tested the lid?
I vote for the shower kit for rugged Spain. This priduct has to be the most
So glad someone said it. Talk about a silly product to use outisde of a hospital. It doesn't even remove dirt.
But where ever you will buy food there will be water, although perhaps not soap, but really, use a fork or a napkin to hold your bocadillo.I disagree.
If you are out in the woods and no soap/water is available, the next best thing is hand sanitizer.
I usually carry a small travel size, which you can find in large cities in Spain in the travel size section, just like in the USA.
Tiny farmacias in villages are less likely to carry it.
Humour? Doctors have always used alcohol for desinfection. Me too.@alexwalker :triple like. Have to say it again : I like your humour.
Why not just buy 1/2 plastic bottle of vodka? Good for hands and interior. Anytime. Very light, and gets lighter all the time...
We could vary it by region - use patxaran in the Basque country, brandy on the meseta,and orujo in Galicia. There must be something better to do with orujo than drinking the stuffNow we'll have vodkagrinos all over the place...
Some members seem to have got out of bed the wrong side this morning. .
Orujugrinos! Which of the herbal or coffee orujo would you recommend?We could vary it by region - use patxaran in the Basque country, brandy on the meseta,and orujo in Galicia. There must be something better to do with orujo than drinking the stuff
Me too. Only, I find pure alcohol even better for the job, IMHO, as well as other uses. No need to buy expensive "products" for the job.I find alcohol gel incredibly useful and take a tiny bottle of it on Camino.
Humour? Doctors have always used alcohol for desinfection. Me too.
I used to be a long haul flight attendant and we ALWAYS used Vodka to clean the toilets during those really long sectors from Australia to wherever. It is perfect and has no residual odour.Humour? Doctors have always used alcohol for desinfection. Me too.
What you should do ,why not take a bottle that fits your standard from home ?Problem. Tell me, where are the large sporting goods stores between Irun and Bilbao.
You see, there are almost no Americans here and no Brits. Perhaps one or two wandering Canadians. So no one is asking for this. The stores have not heard of it.
This product is quite rare here. Big cities are not common here.
Most of the pilgrims are Spanish here.
I sometimes think that I walked a different Frances and Portuguese route than everyone else. We almost never found what we started to call the "Trifecta"; toilet paper, soap and hand towels at any location be it albergue, restaurant or other. You might find two of three or one of three, but rarely did we find all three. We carried it all with us on our 2nd Frances and Portuguese in a small zippered bag. We kept this in an outside pocket of the backpack so it would be easy to grab on the way to the bathroom. See attached image
Simply not true and very judgmental. Sometimes its not about dirt, rather to clean your hands after using the bathroom that does not have soap or to eat a food item while walking.
I carry 2 very small pump spray bottles which probably only have a capacity of 50 mls each I bought these in Burgos from a variety store, I buy alcohol (we call in rubbing alcohol, 70-90%) from virtually any local food store on the Camino a for 2-3 euros and fill up the bottles and leave the rest at the albergue. These spray bottles don't leak and are perfect for hand, blister, needle sanitizing......also handy as deodorant as alcohol is usually a key ingredient in deodorant. Also a quick spray freshens up clothes that you haven't got around to wash.
View attachment 35849
When I lived in Jamaica, I noticed people used clear rum for cleaning mirrors and windows, too. All purpose.
Some members seem to have got out of bed the wrong side this morning. This is not the place to be-little other members, or to dismiss their concerns. The forum is about helping each other.
I find alcohol gel incredibly useful and take a tiny bottle of it on Camino. These around me are always grateful when I produce it. Apart from anything else it is good for cleaning needles before pricking blisters. It also does clean away dirt. And olive oil spots from clothes!
My daughter is the infection control specialist at a local hospital. She disapproves of antiseptics being used indiscriminately around the home, and encourages us to use soap and water (and scrub), but she always travels with one of these for those occasions when soap and water are not easily available.
@CaminoJoy123 the very small bottles are hard to find, even here. I would take up @Anniesantiago 's suggestion and try the cheap stores (we call them $2 stores) that sell everything, as well as the chemists, supermarkets and camping equipment stores. I do not think you will find the Purelle brand but hopefully you will find another.
The other option is to buy a large bottle, some small plastic screw top bottles from the $2 stores, and decant it to share with other pilgrims.
I used to be a long haul flight attendant and we ALWAYS used Vodka to clean the toilets during those really long sectors from Australia to wherever. It is perfect and has no residual odour.
Being on the Norte should make shopping much easier than on the Frances as it is prime realestate, especially during summer time. It is large, well established, important economic and cultural town after tow after town, with summering areas in between. Quite civilised in fact.I am on Norte Camino. Nothing like Frances. Similar to Portuguese.
Just bring iodine or rubbing alcohol pads. Easy peasy.I think I will need something to sanitize skin and needle for blisters. Is vodka strong enough?
Otherwise is the rubbing alcohol normally be located near the drinking spirit? How is the rubbing alcohol labelled in Spanish (I guess I could tell from the proof)?
Sorry, where are you now? I walked the Frances in May & June - a similar product in small (100-150 ml; 2 or 3 ounces) packs were always available in major supermakado (Dia) and of course in El Corte Ingles (in Pamplona / Burgos / Leon). CheersI am sorry to inform you but I have not located this product in Spain yet. Looking for a small flat bottle of gel hand sanitizer for disinfecting hands after toileting and before eating and before dealing with water bottles.
Mike, she is in the rugged Norte where the locals have never heard of Tiger Balm and containers of alcohol gel is only available in bottles of 75 ml, and not under 50.Sorry, where are you now? I walked the Frances in May & June - a similar product in small (100-150 ml; 2 or 3 ounces) packs were always available in major supermakado (Dia) and of course in El Corte Ingles (in Pamplona / Burgos / Leon). Cheers
OK - bummer. Well I know that they do sell soap. Soap and water has been an acceptable method of keeping hands clean for over 100 years. Buen camino!Mike, she is in the rugged Norte where the locals have never heard of Tiger Balm and containers of alcohol gel is only available in bottles of 75 ml, and not under 50.
But she only wants to use her soap for her showers. It's all there is the posts above.OK - bummer. Well I know that they do sell soap. Soap and water has been an acceptable method of keeping hands clean for over 100 years. Buen camino!
Sorry, where are you now? I walked the Frances in May & June - a similar product in small (100-150 ml; 2 or 3 ounces) packs were always available in major supermakado (Dia) and of course in El Corte Ingles (in Pamplona / Burgos / Leon). Cheers
Double likeWhy not just buy 1/2 plastic bottle of vodka? Good for hands and interior. Anytime. Very light, and gets lighter all the time...
Gosh! Now that's what I call rugged!Mike, she is in the rugged Norte where the locals have never heard of Tiger Balm and containers of alcohol gel is only available in bottles of 75 ml, and not under 50.
Sorry, where are you now? I walked the Frances in May & June - a similar product in small (100-150 ml; 2 or 3 ounces) packs were always available in major supermakado (Dia) and of course in El Corte Ingles (in Pamplona / Burgos / Leon). Cheers
Sabine, it's too big! 100ml.Trusted Dia supermercado.
https://www.dia.es/compra-online/pr...cuidado-manos/jabon-de-manos-liquido/p/114527
Yes, the entire question has to do with hand washing after using the toilet in albergue or cafe.
Is the gel form of hand sanitizer widely available in Spain ?
You know, like those small bottles of Purell or something?
I'm not seeing this, and no one is familiar with it.
Closest thing is a liquid alcohol. And it's in a huge bottle.
Algergues don't have soap or paper towels in the toilets. You must bring your own for each visit. So I have to tear into my shower kit for each pee. Yikes.
For emergencies during actual walking on Camino I have towelettes, which I don't want to waste on common toileting at albergues later.
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