camino mozarabe over the holy week 2010

[toberthur]

hi all, i am planning to walk the camino mozarabe over the holy week. has anybody done so, and has experience regrading the availability of lodging during this time of the year? many thanks and kind regards, thomas

 

[JohnnieWalker]

Hi Thomas

Where are you intending to start from?

 

[giorgio]

Holy week is tipically a very busy week on the Caminos, as quite a few Spanish people tend to take vacation during the HW . So you will have quite an affluence on albergues by pilgrims walking or biking . In addition , especially in cities where they have huge parades such as Sevilla,Merida ,Caceres,Salamanca affluence of out of town visitors is high so would recommend you call ahead for reservation whenever possible.
Giorgio

 

[Gilles du Gers]

Hola !
By the way, when does the HW take place in 2010 ?
Gilles du Gers (France)

 

[lynnejohn]

I believe Holy Week 2010 is March 26 - April 4.

lynne

 

[TheLostPhotographer]

Mozarabe from Granada to Merida will not be busy even during Holy Week.

I walked without a map, or guide and was lucky to meet a local in Cordoba who had walked the year before. There are no pilgrims albergues, but there are church run night shelter albergues where you can stay if you have your credential (or, not if you're as desperate as I have been a couple of times!).

The accommodation can be anything. The best advice I was given was to ask at Policia Local, or a local bar if no police station.

You can of course simply stay in pensions, hostals, or hotels. But, a true, hardcore pilgrim like myself wanted to do it properly. However, I ended up sleeping outside more than once.

There is one tough stretch of almost 40KM on Mozarabe between stays. Plenty of safe, and very beautiful 'wild' camping, but no water supplies. It's a winding, up and down stretch, but well worth the walk. If you decide to camp take plenty of water just in case it gets hot - it can do at the end of March. Mind you, it can also drop well below freezing by night.

 

[bjorgts]

Updated information I have picked up somewhere tells that some of the church run night shelter albergues are not run any more. if you read german, Conrad Stein Verlag has a new guide for "Mozarabischer Jacobsweg von Granada nach Merida" (1. Auflage 2008). It seems to be good. I can tell you more when I am back from my walking there in May. Bjørg