Do I need to bring a sleeping bag? Camino Portuguese

[rivermountain]

I have a silk sleeping bag liner that I will bring but not sure if I need to bring my sleeping bag. It’s relatively small and can compact down however will still take up space and weight in my bag.
I plan on walking from Lisbon starting Oct. 13 to whenever I finish. Probably sometime 1st or 2nd week of November.

I’m a Canadian and do feel prepared for colder weather but just unsure if blankets/ bedding is always provided at the cheapest accommodation.

Thank you!

 

[dougfitz]

When I walked from Lisbon in 2022 and from Valenca in 2023 there were albergues that didn't provide blankets, just the ubiquitous disposable sheet and pillow slip. Some who did provide blankets had bedding so thin that they were little better than having a thick sheet. Other places did provide reasonable blankets, but they were mainly hostels and hotels. I always carry a sleeping bag. Doing so allows me the flexibility to stay anywhere, not just the places that provide blankets.

 

[Telelama]

As Doug writes above, not all albergues will have blankets available. In the rare cases that it was too cold for our Sea to Summit sleeping bag liner alone and there were no blankets, we simply used our sweaters. It wasn't an issue. The one time we brought a sleeping bag, and it was a 45 degree bag, we sweated all night long in the very warm albergues. And yes, it was a bit too warm even into October.

 

[rivermountain]

Th

When I walked from Lisbon in 2022 and from Valenca in 2023 there were albergues that didn't provide blankets, just the ubiquitous disposable sheet and pillow slip. Some who did provide blankets has bedding so thin that they were little better than having a thick sheet. Other places did provide reasonable blankets, but they were mainly hostels and hotels. I always carry a sleeping bag. Doing so allows me the flexibility to stay anywhere, not just the places that provide blankets.

thanks Doug!! This is all I need to know, I’ll bring my sleeping bag!

 

[KDub]

If you are planning on staying at the 8€ “donativo” in Valença I can verify that you will need to bring something, as there is nothing provided.

 

[Tincatinker]

I always carry my sleeping bag. On the nights I don’t need it it sits, smug and undisturbed, and gets a night off. On the nights I do need it it wraps itself around me and, smugly, reminds me how grateful I am that it is there.

That said it all depends on what you consider to be the cheapest accommodations. Most hay barns, church porches and carports are free but I only sleep in them when the dice have rolled that way. Most Albergues may have some sort of supplementary bedding but I’m not daft enough to rely on luck. Most hotels will have adequate bedding or lots of really shite reviews on Tripeadvertiser.

Tinker waffle, but, as in but, despite that, take your sleeping bag.

 

[Bunclody1]

I have a silk sleeping bag liner that I will bring but not sure if I need to bring my sleeping bag. It’s relatively small and can compact down however will still take up space and weight in my bag.
I plan on walking from Lisbon starting Oct. 13 to whenever I finish. Probably sometime 1st or 2nd week of November.

I’m a Canadian and do feel prepared for colder weather but just unsure if blankets/ bedding is always provided at the cheapest accommodation.

Thank you!

I have a silk sleeping bag liner that I will bring but not sure if I need to bring my sleeping bag. It’s relatively small and can compact down however will still take up space and weight in my bag.
I plan on walking from Lisbon starting Oct. 13 to whenever I finish. Probably sometime 1st or 2nd week of November.

I’m a Canadian and do feel prepared for colder weather but just unsure if blankets/ bedding is always provided at the cheapest accommodation.

Thank you!

Definitely bring a sleeping bag, especially at that time of year in my opinion . I walked this route in Feb 2020, and I regret not bringing a sleeping bag. U cud be lucky and not need it but better be safe than sorry !
Im starting from Porto on Mon Sept 11, I’m bringing a sleeping bag liner, just in car . .
Buen Camino,
John.

 

[David Tallan]

Opinions vary considerably. It depends not just on when you are walking but upon how hot you sleep. I've seen a fair number of experienced pilgrims advise taking a sleeping bag. I haven't taken one myself on my recent caminos and didn't feel the lack. On my 2016 and 2018 caminos I just took a silk liner. Admittedly, those were in July/ August and early October. On my more recent Camino I took a "half sleeping bag" (a liner with a quilt attached on one side). More often than not, I was warm enough I slept on it rather than in it. Others might have wanted a sleeping bag in the same conditions.

 

[Lexicos]

Yes.

 

[dougfitz]

Yes.

If you are responding to the implied question from the OP, it was here:

I’m a Canadian and do feel prepared for colder weather but just unsure if blankets/ bedding is always provided at the cheapest accommodation.

in which case, the answer is clearly no, that blankets are not always provided.

If you are responding to another question, to which the answer might be yes, I don't know what that question is.

 

[David Tallan]

If you are responding to another question, to which the answer might be yes, I don't know what that question is.

Perhaps the question in the title of the thread - "Do I need to bring a sleeping bag?"

 

[Lexicos]

I was responding to the title Doug. I ask myself the same question every time. I have one in my backpack right now and for sure I won’t be using it on the Frances for these first 2-3 weeks. It’s hot! So I’m also carrying my home made cotton liner. I wish I could ditch them both when I start on Wednesday. The extra weight is a bummer, that’s for sure.

 

[dougfitz]

Perhaps the question in the title of the thread - "Do I need to bring a sleeping bag?"

Perhaps I am old fashioned about this. Headlines are not content!

 

[David Tallan]

Perhaps I am old fashioned about this. Headlines are not content!

This isn't a newspaper article. The subject line frames the overall topic of the post and is certainly part of the intended communication. When it poses a clear question, I don't think it is out of line to answer that question.

That said, when the overall post asks more than one question, a simple one word yes or no answer doesn't provide clarity on which question was answered.

 

[dougfitz]

This isn't a newspaper article. The subject line frames the overall topic of the post and is certainly part of the intended communication. When it poses a clear question, I don't think it is out of line to answer that question.

I am perfectly happy for you to believe that. I have never seen it that way, it has never been good practice in any of the writing I have done over my career, and that had nothing to do with newspaper journalism. So we might agree to differ here.

 

[rivermountain]

Thank you everyone for your insight! Seeing as the time of year I'll be going, I'll bring the sleeping bag just to be safe!

 

[Rita Flower]

Thank you everyone for your insight! Seeing as the time of year I'll be going, I'll bring the sleeping bag just to be safe!

Good call - particularly on the Portuguese in my experience.
Buen Camino.