France versus Spain??

[SusanSmyth]

I finished my first Camino, the Francés, in June and already have plans to do the Inglés in early March. It is indeed true that it gets under your skin!

My question regards the cost comparisons between France and Spain. I am intrigued by the idea of walking a Camino in France but several people have told me that it is very expensive. On the Francés I stayed almost exclusively in the albergues, and was quite happy to do so. But I heard that the auberges in France charge around 30 euros per night.

If anyone has done both, a Spain Camino and a French one, I would be very happy to learn from your experiences.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

It is not "very expensive." I spend about 30E per day in Spain and about 35E in France. On the Via Podiensis there are regular gites d'etape that cost about the same as albergues. Ditto on the Via Tolosana. The Via Vezelay has a lot of donativo accommodations where pilgrims stay with local residents. Hosts do not hang around waiting for pilgrims, so one must call ahead to be sure a place is open and that food will be purchased if demipension. If you stay in hotels and b & b's, the cost can be higher. The 30E per night generally includes breakfast and dinner.

 

[SusanSmyth]

Thank you very much! I am relieved and pleased to learn that the two are comparable. Now I have a new plan for after my Inglés.

 

[jsalt]

Hi, I find the costs in France are twice that of Spain. For example, I walked from Le Puy in 2014 (i.e. three years ago), stayed at the cheapest places I could find, and none were under 11 euros, bed only. Compare that to Spain, where many albergues cost 5 or 6 euros. It’s the same with buying a coffee or a meal. You will not (or very rarely) get a coffee in France under 2.50 euros. In Portugal and Spain a coffee is still 1.20 to 1.80 euros.
Jill

 

[Deleted member 3000]

where many albergues cost 5 or 6 euros

Except for the municipals, I think all those have disappeared. Check the listing on gronze.com, and I think you will find everything toward the end is 12E or more. In France the only food available is often from the host, so you have to buy the demipension for a hot meal. That rate is typically 30-33E.

 

[trecile]

You will not (or very rarely) get a coffee in France under 2.50 euros. In Portugal and Spain a coffee is still 1.20 to 1.80 euros.

For 2.50 Euros you can get a cafe con leche and a napolitina (chocolate crossaint) in Spain!

Except for the municipals, I think all those have disappeared. Check the listing on gronze.com, and I think you will find everything toward the end is 12E or more. In France the only food available is often from the host, so you have to buy the demipension for a hot meal. That rate is typically 30-33E.

The private albergues at the beginning and end of the Frances tend to be more expensive than those in the middle sections, which I found averaged about 10 euros.

 

[Ernesto.IT]

Thank you very much! I am relieved and pleased to learn that the two are comparable. Now I have a new plan for after my Inglés.

Hi SusanSmyth, yes it is true that is more expensive in France, in my experience (I walked twice through France, once from Geneva and this year from Italy/ Monginevro/Arles/Sonport) I have found with difficulty even places to sleep, in Spain you find pilgrim menu with bread water and wine for 10/12 Euro, in France only half litre of wine with your meal minimum 8 Euro and the food is not for walking pilgrims but for tourist. I did arrive in a village under heavy rain where there was no place to sleep, only by stopping a gendarme car for information I did find out the only place was an Hotel and I paid 85 Euro and this is only one example. In the end I told myself that I wan't walk anymore in France but I will make my future camino starting from Spain or Portugal.

In Italy descending towards Rome via Francigena was ok but the return up north was very difficult as it wasn't marked and where there was one I wasn't sure if it would take me back to Rome, sleeping places were a bit better than in France but not as good as in Spain, while the type of food in the menu was appropriate for pilgrim.
In total I walked for 3308 Km in 98 days.
Ultreya

 

[Tuesday Wildchild]

I would like to point out that Spain gets many many more 'pilgrims' than france as it is the bottle neck of Europe for the walkers so they get more and can charge less per head.

Also not forgetting most only do the spanish bit.

Plus food and drink is better here in France than Spain .

 

[AJ]

Costs in France depend on whether there are pilgrim hostels or gites along your route. If there are, then it is not too expensive. If there are not and you have to stay in tourist hostels/hotels then it is much more expensive than Spain. Meals are more expensive and better.

You need to make enquiries about specific routes.

 

[Tuesday Wildchild]

We are in the process of buying next-door and hopefully will be able to offer accommodation at reasonable rates in a year.

Tours route just north of Saintes.

 

[Ernesto.IT]

Costs in France depend on whether there are pilgrim hostels or gites along your route. If there are, then it is not too expensive. If there are not and you have to stay in tourist hostels/hotels then it is much more expensive than Spain. Meals are more expensive and better.

You need to make enquiries about specific routes.

I only follow the camino rout and I WALKED France !! And I was very disappointed of what I experience, and I talked of the problem to various business owners.

 

[SusanSmyth]

It sounds like a Camino in France will be more complicated and costly than I expected. I still hope to do one, but obviously I will need to research (and save) more before heading out.

I will look at the options and narrow them down, and then see about gîtes, etc.

The Francés is indeed popular...... I can see why: the logistics are easy and the costs are low.

Thank you to everyone for your insights.

Ultreïa!!

 

[AJ]

I only follow the camino rout and I WALKED France !! And I was very disappointed of what I experience, and I talked of the problem to various business owners.

Yes but which Camino Route? Some are well supplied with gites and/or pilgrim refuges whilst others are not. I understand that Le Puy (which I haven't walked) is well supplied, but the Voie Littorale and the Piedmonts routes (which I have walked) are not and neither is the Via Francigena in France.

Worst of all for expensive accommodation is the Mary/Michael pilgrimage in England.

 

[Ernesto.IT]

It sounds like a Camino in France will be more complicated and costly than I expected. I still hope to do one, but obviously I will need to research (and save) more before heading out.

I will look at the options and narrow them down, and then see about gîtes, etc.

The Francés is indeed popular...... I can see why: the logistics are easy and the costs are low.

Thank you to everyone for your insights.

Ultreïa!!

The fact is that life in general is more expense (cost of living) in France and Italy, while in Spain you find the municipal albergue that they belong to the local junta and not private, in France are private and as the owner get older they tend to close them ( that was the excuse of the office of tourism), conclusion " no pilgrims accommodation", another factor is the economic crisis of the recent years that close down lots of business. I'm only talking abut my own pilgrim experiences but I'm sure also that for tourist is everything OK.

 

[Margaret Butterworth]

Based on the Le Puy Camino, I would say that the food in the Gites (as part of the 30 Euro demo-pension deal) is much better than in a typical Spanish albergue. It is good value for money. Normally a 4-couse meal is served, as is the French custom. The only issue for me was that the overwhelming preponderance of French pilgrims meant that French was the only language spoken at dinner, so it is easy to feel left out of the conversation.

 

[Ernesto.IT]

Yes but which Camino Route? Some are well supplied with gites and/or pilgrim refuges whilst others are not. I understand that Le Puy (which I haven't walked) is well supplied, but the Voie Littorale and the Piedmonts routes (which I have walked) are not and neither is the Via Francigena in France.

Worst of all for expensive accommodation is the Mary/Michael pilgrimage in England.

Geneva Le Puy not so good as you think as a matter of fact very poor, pratically naked for pilgrim, lots of places shut. Le Puy onward better. As I said, this is only my experience !!. I was shocked, I too thought that France was better but.......

 

[Ernesto.IT]

Based on the Le Puy Camino, I would say that the food in the Gites (as part of the 30 Euro demo-pension deal) is much better than in a typical Spanish albergue. It is good value for money. Normally a 4-couse meal is served, as is the French custom. The only issue for me was that the overwhelming preponderance of French pilgrims meant that French was the only language spoken at dinner, so it is easy to feel left out of the conversation.

It has never been my case as I speak French/English/Italian/a little Spanish/and a couple of words in German.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

The Francés is indeed popular...... I can see why: the logistics are easy and the costs are low.

The Chemin de St. Jacques is also popular, but primarily among the French and low countries. My 35E per day is a blend of demipension and self-catering in the gites d'etape that have kitchens. Also, with "everything" closed on Sunday and Monday, there were numerous backpack meals. The saucissons sec, cheese, potted meat, eggs, and yogurt are cheap and nutritious. You do have to become comfortable with eating meals where no one speaks English. Most of my French walks have been with my brother, so we had to be aware of the off-putting nature of a duo speaking a foreign language. Sometimes we would find that those who did speak some English were intimidated by the colloquial vocabulary of our discussions. Simple sentences work best, louder is not clearer, and multiple repetitions of the same words never work well. It is better to use hand gestures and a smile than persist with words that clearly are not being understood. My high school French worked a bit for obtaining common things, but was not enough for a conversation. I have had countless meals where host and guest did not understand a single word from the other party. Yet the food was great, and included as many as five wine pairings as we spent hours eating. France honestly is my favorite, but the convenience of the infrastructure in Spain keeps me going there most often. In Ostabat before crossing the Pyrenees, the Basque dinner included songs in Basque that the French did not understand either! It was something you could not buy in Paris.

 

[domigee]

I only follow the camino rout and I WALKED France !! And I was very disappointed of what I experience, and I talked of the problem to various business owners.

I too was very disappointed walking in France BUT on the Via Francigena, I haven't walked any of the other routes. It was very difficult to get a meal, let alone a decent one and I am sad to say, sometimes it was unedible. And I am French so it actually hurts me to criticise.
Excellent way to lose weight thought!
If I walked through France again (and I hope to do it one day) I would definitely carry lots of food and bring my tent again.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I slept in a converted windmill, monasteries (the old bakery in one), convents, a Roman bath with tile mosaics and granite pillars, a yurt, a couple of caravans, camping huts, horse stables, barns, private homes, manor house, castle, purpose-built gites, churches, town halls, a swim center, wineries, and hotels. You will find things in France that you won't in Spain. Even if it pushes your comfort zone a bit, I suggest giving it a try.

 

[domigee]

I slept in a converted windmill, monasteries (the old bakery in one), convents, a Roman bath with tile mosaics and granite pillars, a yurt, a couple of caravans, camping huts, a horse stable, private homes, manor house, castle, purpose-built gites, churches, town halls, a swim center, wineries, and hotels. You will find things in France that you won't in Spain. Even if it pushes your comfort zone a bit, I suggest giving it a try.

That cheers me up Falcon, so glad you enjoyed it. Which routes(s) was that?
My (negative) comments only apply to Northern France on the VF.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

The private albergues at the beginning and end of the Frances tend to be more expensive than those in the middle sections, which I found averaged about 10 euros.

I did a quick analysis of the albergues listed on gronze.com, and found about 40 private albergues under 10E between SJPdP and Santiago. Parochial and municipal albergues under 10E abound, but some are small.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Which routes(s) was that?

Via Podiensis.

 

[oursonpolaire]

I have done two Caminos in France, from Toulouse (about 10 years ago) and the Chemin from Mont Saint Michel. Neither of these routes are heavily travelled by pilgrims (understatement!!!) and the infrastructure is light. About half the time on the Toulouse route there was no specifically pilgrim accommodation and from Mont Saint Michel even less. I found gites, especially farmhouse gites, excellent value, usually 25€ to 40€, for room, dinner & breakfast. I speak French fairly well, coming from a French-speaking part of Ontario (when I got annoyed in France, I would double down on the franco-ontarian pronunciation to make them wince) and think that it would be a very big help on these routes-- not having it would be a real headache. However, I have often seen much patience with pilgrims' attempts (sometimes pretty awful) to speak French. Mairies would often have English-speaking staff on account of the large number of UK and Irish residents in rural areas, and I found them a great resource for finding accommodation (and lovely sellos!). As well, I found French police to be very helpful, if a bit bemused by our presence. Indeed, it was a Muslim gendarme in Clissons who found me accommodation, and told me that it was a privilege to assist pilgrims, and he wished there were more (I didn't mention the Santiago Matamoros statue at the Cathedral!).
Everyone was very hospitable and helpful, and would go out of their way when I was lost, or needed a place to stay. I tell my US friends, some of whom are a little nervous about travelling overseas, that they would find themselves welcome guests in France--- indeed, this is the only place where people were disappointed that I was Canadian, and not from the US-- and they were most enthusiastic about an Australian pilgrim who walked with me for a week.
The French routes are distinctive as many walkers are recreational hikers, not pilgrims, so it is a very different vibe from those accustomed to the pilgrim-focussed routes in Spain. If a prospective pilgrim has patience, a sense of adventure, and some financial flexibility, they will have a great time.

 

[Purky]

If skipping the odd meal is unacceptable, and sleeping in a bus stop impossible, don't walk in France. Having said that, I find that my memories of walking in France are clearer than walking in Spain. I had my worst days on the Via Campaniensis and the Chemin de Vézelay, but also my best.
I learned what I had to learn about pushing boundaries, sucking it up, being humbled, being pleasantly surprised and feeling on top of the world in France. I'm with Falcon on this one. Give it a try.

 

[Ernesto.IT]

I did a quick analysis of the albergues listed on gronze.com, and found about 40 private albergues under 10E between SJPdP and Santiago. Parochial and municipal albergues under 10E abound, but some are small.

And that is why for me my real pilgrimage camino only start when I enter Spain.

 

[kelleymac]

I'm trying to decide where to walk from Sept 25th through Oct. 9th. I have walked from SJPP to Burgos, and from Leon to Santiago de Compostela. I am flying into Paris from Toronto, and am thinking of either walking the Meseta (Burgos to Leon), or from Le Puy to Figuac (or there abouts). I'll be walking alone, my French is very rusty, my Spanish is mostly just some words and a few phrases, my German is passable. I don't have a lot of money-- so I've been trying to find out more about the Le Puy route. Should I take a tent to try to make ends meet? What about a sleeping bag? If I have a sleeping bag, do I have to pay for sheets? Will I be able to talk with anyone? Is there a guide book with some history and information about the area? I am R.C and this is a pilgrimage for me, not a walking vacation. Advice is welcome!

 

[domigee]

I'm trying to decide where to walk from Sept 25th through Oct. 9th. I have walked from SJPP to Burgos, and from Leon to Santiago de Compostela. I am flying into Paris from Toronto, and am thinking of either walking the Meseta (Burgos to Leon), or from Le Puy to Figuac (or there abouts). I'll be walking alone, my French is very rusty, my Spanish is mostly just some words and a few phrases, my German is passable. I don't have a lot of money-- so I've been trying to find out more about the Le Puy route. Should I take a tent to try to make ends meet? What about a sleeping bag? If I have a sleeping bag, do I have to pay for sheets? Will I be able to talk with anyone? Is there a guide book with some history and information about the area? I am R.C and this is a pilgrimage for me, not a walking vacation. Advice is welcome!

My husband walked LePuy to Figeac and he loved it. He stayed in albergues and tells me they're all very good. Get hold of a Miam Mian Dodo guidebook, it ll help.
Bon chemin.

 

[Kitsambler]

I'll be walking alone, my French is very rusty, my Spanish is mostly just some words and a few phrases, my German is passable. Will I be able to talk with anyone?

Yes! About 15% of Le Puy walkers are non-French. You will find Swiss, Germans, Dutch, Canadians, not to mention the occasional American, Australian, or New Zealander. The Miam Miam Dodo guide identifies which lodgings have English-speaking hosts; other English-speaking pilgrims will gravitate toward these.

I don't have a lot of money-- so I've been trying to find out more about the Le Puy route.

Daily lodgings with demi-pension will average 35 Euro.

Should I take a tent to try to make ends meet?

Camping places run about 10 Eur where available with tent; 20-25 Eur if you use their on-site accommodation.But there aren't many campgrounds; check MMD for details.

What about a sleeping bag? If I have a sleeping bag, do I have to pay for sheets?

The norm is to have a sleeping bag or a bag liner; sheet rental is only occasionally available, at 4-5 Eur.

Is there a guide book with some history and information about the area?

The English-language guide by Alison Raju has some history.

I am R.C and this is a pilgrimage for me, not a walking vacation.

Churches along the route are generally RCand generally not locked during the day. There are several convents and monasteries that offer pilgrim lodging. See MMD for details.

Bon Chemin!

 

[Tuesday Wildchild]

It sounds like a Camino in France will be more complicated and costly than I expected. I still hope to do one, but obviously I will need to research (and save) more before heading out.

I will look at the options and narrow them down, and then see about gîtes, etc.

The Francés is indeed popular...... I can see why: the logistics are easy and the costs are low.

Thank you to everyone for your insights.

Ultreïa!!

We are just purchasing next door and hope to provide accommodation but not until sometime next year. Just 6km after Saint Jean-d'Angely and a five minute walk from the Tours route.

 

[Tim Greig]

Hello, I walked the Via Podiensis this spring and the Frances last year. Both are magnificent and I had a very similar experience. There will always be people who have a bad time, just enjoy yourself. France is more expensive than Spain. In Spain I paid less than 10 euro bed only in Albergues. In France expect to pay 15 euro for bed or 30 euro for dinner, bed and breakfast in a gites d'etape. The price will be more in a chambre d'hote where you get your own room. See the Miam Miam Dodo guide which shows prices for most accommodation along the way. Bon chemin!

 

[MTtoCamino]

Hi SusanSmyth, yes it is true that is more expensive in France, in my experience (I walked twice through France, once from Geneva and this year from Italy/ Monginevro/Arles/Sonport) I have found with difficulty even places to sleep, in Spain you find pilgrim menu with bread water and wine for 10/12 Euro, in France only half litre of wine with your meal minimum 8 Euro and the food is not for walking pilgrims but for tourist. I did arrive in a village under heavy rain where there was no place to sleep, only by stopping a gendarme car for information I did find out the only place was an Hotel and I paid 85 Euro and this is only one example. In the end I told myself that I wan't walk anymore in France but I will make my future camino starting from Spain or Portugal.

In Italy descending towards Rome via Francigena was ok but the return up north was very difficult as it wasn't marked and where there was one I wasn't sure if it would take me back to Rome, sleeping places were a bit better than in France but not as good as in Spain, while the type of food in the menu was appropriate for pilgrim.
In total I walked for 3308 Km in 98 days.
Ultreya

Thank you for the information & you sharing! That is some serious walking.