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Is it common for donativo-albergues to distribute flyers up and down the camino to recruit pilgrims or to stop pilgrims, who pass by, at the entrance to convince them to stay overnight in their own hostel? What are your experiences? And what do you think of it?
I know one albergue, but don't want to publish the name. Other pilgrims told me, that they have made similar experience with other donativos. I know that I found the aggressive PR kind of strange, because a Donativo-Albergue is supposed to be a non profit business (sin animo de lucro).
Thank you for the clarification. That's what I suggested. Apparently there is at least one Albergue on the camino, who pretends to be Donativo, but actually abuses the label to make business and to compete against other Albergues, with aggressive advertising and offering donativo-dumping-prices. Whether a private Albergue distributes flyers or not, doesn't matter to me. After all, these are registered companies, who don't pretend to be a non-profit business. So they are free to advertise. For me it is all about hypocrisy or not. To celebrate pilgrims spirit but in reality its all about business.
I totally agree with what you have written. I have walked a variety of caminos and have seen signs and flyers on trees and posts especially on the CF. Every enterprise needs to do what they deem necessary in order to stay open. My only pushback would be (which I have never personally experienced) if a facility that calls itself a donativo then requires a specified Euro "donation" upon arrival. I have never had a problem when a donativo has written a suggested amount, which I have seen once or twice. I think a much, much larger issue is when people who can afford to give to a donativo leave absolutely nothing or just a couple of coins that they throw in the donativo box. There are people who stay in donativos and leave nothing or very little because they have very little financially to give. All who can be more generous should be to help these pilgrims have a clean and safe place to sleep at night. I have experienced on more than one occasion pilgrims who have dropped a few coins in the box at a restaurant later with bottles of wine and tables filled with food. Finally, I have always thought it is the spirit of the people who work in an albergue/donativo, the great joy of making a lifetime friend who is in the bed across from you that you may never meet again that makes a great albergue. I walk on a budget and I stay in lots of donativos. I have also stayed in some of the albergues that people love because of the services and amenities that are offered at really a very good price. But I am sure for most of us it is that person in the next bunk or in the kitchen when you decide to share a dinner or the table next to you when you move over to share a coffee or beer that make us smile and wish we were back home on our camino.To answer the OP, I only saw this once, on my first camino in 2010, and it was for a hostel, not an albergue. More, I wouldn't think of it as aggressive just to be handed a flyer.
The discussion about whether there are real or good compared to other types of donotivo albergues worries me a little. It appears there are three issues here, and conflating them might be unhelpful.
First is whether donotivo albergues are required to operate on a not-for profit business model. I have never heard this before. While some clearly do, is this a real limitation or just a perception based without a solid foundation? It seems to me that operating on a donotivo basis and operating on a not for profit business model are two quite separate things, and ought not be conflated.
Second, operating on a not for profit basis does not mean that an organisation shouldn't increase its patronage by advertising. After all, increased patronage is likely to see higher levels of donations, and a greater likelihood that some of the longer term costs of operating an albergue in this case will be covered. While it might not be usual, the cost of running off flyers might well be justified.
The third, and closely aligned to the second, is that operating on a donotivo basis doesn't seem to preclude promoting an albergue. This is, after all, like any other marketplace, and the notion that a donotivo should not promote itself as a reasonable place to stay compared to other local albergues seems to me a rather quaint notion, and quite unjustifiable. This could be through any of the numerous web sites that provide information about accommodation options, guidebooks, listings in local business directories and at tourist information offices. Producing a flyer that is handed out to pilgrims is merely an extension of that.
So I think that labelling an albergue as a 'black sheep' is unnecessarily judgmental, particularly if it is based merely on an albergue promoting itself with some flyers.
No. Haven't met any of those. Not in 11 years.Is it common for donativo-albergues to distribute flyers up and down the camino to recruit pilgrims or to stop pilgrims, who pass by, at the entrance to convince them to stay overnight in their own hostel?
@mikebla, thank you for providing the links to the two newspaper articles. Perhaps I am not reading all the nuances in them in the English translation, but neither gives me cause to alter my earlier analysis about this. Further, neither appears to support your analysis. Nothing in them suggests that advertising is in some way prohibited, nor that these places shouldn't make an operating surplus that is put aside for repairs, renovations or improvements.I whitnessed it once, a donativo albergue driving up the camino and giving out flyers. Even leaving the car to build up a more convicing personal contact. And I got told that the same person was as well sitting beside his entrance, waiting for pilgrims and trying to convince them to stay at his place. And I was really surprised, I didn't expect such competetive behaviour from a Donativo-Albergue. And it made me think, what could be the motivation? But I noticed as well that there are pilgrims who don't question such behaviour. For them it's authentic pilgrims spirit, a wonderful guy, who offers shelter, only for a donation, no business, pure altruism. Is it? I doubt it.
A Donativo Albergue is categorically defined as a non profit business "albergue sin fines de lucro". I leave you here 2 links to local spanish newspapers.
https://www.europapress.es/asturias...rinos-animo-lucro-otra-no-20200205163818.html
Los albergues del Camino a Santiago privados serán considerados turísticos | El Norte de Castilla
Castilla y León cuenta con 286 alojamientos privados de este tipo y otros 66 hospitalarioswww.elnortedecastilla.es
The "donativo" is donated to maintain the albergue, not to make business. Donativo Albergues are only allowed to host pilgrims. Because of the charity character they enjoy certain advantages: lower taxes, less till zero requirements. But it's as well a legal greyzone, that leads to abuse and competitive distortion. That is why Spain (and Portugal?) tries to regulate the sector better, but very slowly. A question here was, why should a Donativo-Albergue not advertise? My answer is, why should a Donativo-Albergue advertise, when it is a non profit business! And when a Donativo Albergue advertises, what's the reason? Economical benefit? The Donativo Albergue as a business model? Turning up side down the original idea of Donativo. Particulary competing with other Albergues nearby, "Donativo" can make the difference as a unique feature. But Donativo Albergues also attract pilgrims who have no money or take the opportunity to skip out of the bill. To compensate the loss and to gain benefit, the commercially orientaded Donativo Albergue tries to fill the house with as many pilgrims as possible and looks particularly for pilgrims with money, pilgrims who usually book common Albergues. There is no better prey as a pilgrim, who already calculated, for example, 20 Euros for the night in the next Hostel and posts this money now in the Donativo Box. Where do you catch those pilgrims? On the road, distributing flyers camino up and down, lurking at the entrance or using the internet, advertising in social media. How do you make such guests happy? Offering perfect service and installations exceeding the donativo standard. It might be rewarded with a bigger donation and glorious reviews. With other words, a comercially oriented Donativo-Albergue is well equipped and highly competitive. Competitive and non profit is a contradiction. Why don't they simply run a common Albergue? Possibly because Donativos are cheaper to run, less taxes, less regulated, more benefit (when you ignore the original purpose). You might say what does it matter to me? Determining is wether I enjoyd the stay or not. For me hypocrisy and recklessness matters. Particulary because it is not just any camino it is the camino with it's very special ethical background and features such as the Donativo Albergues, whose purpose is not business.
P.S. I am happy to hear that the behaviour of this particular Donativo Albergue is not common on the camino and that mostly of the Donativo Albergues seem to be what they are meant to be: non profit businesses.
I know that my post will cause opposition. But perhaps it is as well a cause for thought.
Donativo and non-profit do not mean that the operators are supposed to operate at a loss. Rather, any income goes to maintaining the albergue. If they need a new roof, they would be wise to seek ways to raise some money. Perhaps welcoming a full house of pilgrims each day would be a good way to do this.why should a Donativo-Albergue advertise, when it is a non profit business!
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