Getting there& Pension/Albergue

[loukitt]

My wife and I are planning to walk the Camino in June/July of 2017.
We plan on doing the France route. We are planning to fly into Barcelona and spend some time there. What is the best way to get to St. Jean-Pied-du-Port from Barcelona. What is the difference between a Pension and an Albergue. I think they are both shelters and there is lots of information on Albergues but not Pensiones.
thank you!

 

[whariwharangi]

SJPdP is connected to Bayonne by SNCF train 4 times daily all year. SJPdP is connected to Pamplona by CONDA (ALSA) bus seasonally with more buses in summer peak period than in shoulder season. There is no bus service in winter.

Best way: Take a flight from Barcelona to San Sebastian EAS. EAS is located approximately 5km from Gare d'Hendaye. There is local Ekialdebus bus service to Irun. Metro Donostialdea operates commuter rail from Irun Colon station to Hendaia, colocated with Gare d'Hendaye. SNCF operates trains from Gare d'Hendaye to Bayonne and Bayonne to SJPdP. A taxi might be the best way to get from Airport to Train.

Cheapest way. Take (Renfe Cercanias) Rodalies train from Barcelona Airport to Barcelona Sants. Take ViBaSA (Monbus) bus from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona. Take CONDA (ALSA) bus from Pamplona to SJPdP. Usually summer schedule has last bus leaving Pamplona at 1730.

Alternatively take Renfe train from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona.

Alternatively take ALSA bus from Barcelona Estacio Nord to Zaragosa and onward to Pamplona. ALSA runs more frequently than Monbus.

If the train or bus arrives too late to catch the 1730 bus consider traveling onward to Irun to catch the SNCF trains from Hendaye. Irun Renfe station is located 3 km from Hendaye and some trains terminate in Hendaye. Trains from Hendaye start running much earlier than the buses from Pamplona. You can get to SJPdP by 0830 leaving enough time to walk to Roncesvalles.

Alternatively take Renfe/SNCF train from Barcelona Sants to Toulouse and SNCF train from Toulouse to Bayonne.

 

[trecile]

You can book a room at Pension Corazon Puro . The owners will pick you up at the train station in Pamplona and take you to the pension, give you dinner and the next morning drive you to SJPDP. It's a great way to start the Camino, especially if you also book in at Orisson for your first night. It breaks the hike over the Pyrenees into two stages. It's only 8 km to Orisson, so you don't need to start out early from St Jean. Take your time exploring the town, have a coffee, then set out. I left about 11:00 and arrived at Orissson before 2:00.
Pensiones are like small hotels. You will have a private room, and sometimes a private bath.
Albergues are hostels for pilgrims. The rooms are usually dorm style with bunk beds. Some of the private albergues have private rooms, but the bath is usually still shared.
Hostales are another type of accommodation, more like a hotel. You will have a private room and bath, though I stayed at a couple where my own private bath was across the hall. Hostales are usually just a floor or two in a building, and usually family run.

 

[mspath]

Gronze.com has a handy on-line list in Spanish for most accommodations on the Camino Frances. Organized by geographic location east to west citations in brown ink are pilgrim albergues and black ink regular tourist accomodation.
Links to Booking.com
are also provided.

Happy planning and Buen camino!

 

[loukitt]

You can book a room at Pension Corazon Puro . The owners will pick you up at the train station in Pamplona and take you to the pension, give you dinner and the next morning drive you to SJPDP. It's a great way to start the Camino, especially if you also book in at Orisson for your first night. It breaks the hike over the Pyrenees into two stages. It's only 8 km to Orisson, so you don't need to start out early from St Jean. Take your time exploring the town, have a coffee, then set out. I left about 11:00 and arrived at Orissson before 2:00.
Pensiones are like small hotels. You will have a private room, and sometimes a private bath.
Albergues are hostels for pilgrims. The rooms are usually dorm style with bunk beds. Some of the private albergues have private rooms, but the bath is usually still shared.
Hostales are another type of accommodation, more like a hotel. You will have a private room and bath, though I stayed at a couple where my own private bath was across the hall. Hostales are usually just a floor or two in a building, and usually family run.

thank you so much! are there any side trips that are a must on the walk or places we should spend an extra day or must see? we are not on a timeline as we will be just retired.

 

[loukitt]

SJPdP is connected to Bayonne by SNCF train 4 times daily all year. SJPdP is connected to Pamplona by CONDA (ALSA) bus seasonally with more buses in summer peak period than in shoulder season. There is no bus service in winter.

Best way: Take a flight from Barcelona to San Sebastian EAS. EAS is located approximately 5km from Gare d'Hendaye. There is local Ekialdebus bus service to Irun. Metro Donostialdea operates commuter rail from Irun Colon station to Hendaia, colocated with Gare d'Hendaye. SNCF operates trains from Gare d'Hendaye to Bayonne and Bayonne to SJPdP. A taxi might be the best way to get from Airport to Train.

Cheapest way. Take (Renfe Cercanias) Rodalies train from Barcelona Airport to Barcelona Sants. Take ViBaSA (Monbus) bus from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona. Take CONDA (ALSA) bus from Pamplona to SJPdP. Usually summer schedule has last bus leaving Pamplona at 1730.

Alternatively take Renfe train from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona.

Alternatively take ALSA bus from Barcelona Estacio Nord to Zaragosa and onward to Pamplona. ALSA runs more frequently than Monbus.

If the train or bus arrives too late to catch the 1730 bus consider traveling onward to Irun to catch the SNCF trains from Hendaye. Irun Renfe station is located 3 km from Hendaye and some trains terminate in Hendaye. Trains from Hendaye start running much earlier than the buses from Pamplona. You can get to SJPdP by 0830 leaving enough time to walk to Roncesvalles.

Alternatively take Renfe/SNCF train from Barcelona Sants to Toulouse and SNCF train from Toulouse to Bayonne.

thank you so much for the various optiopns!

 

[trecile]

thank you so much! are there any side trips that are a must on the walk or places we should spend an extra day or must see? we are not on a timeline as we will be just retired.

I'm sure that there are lots of places for a side trip, but I didn't do any. I was mostly interested in walking each day, and letting the Camino surprise me.
That said, I do want to walk again next year, and stay in different places and maybe take it a bit slower. The last couple of weeks on the Camino I kept having to tell myself "it's not a race!" I walked for 35 days - all the way to Finesterre, but it was over far too soon!

 

[Anemone del Camino]

A pension is like a B&B. Basic private rooms, with private or shared bathroom. Hostal tends to get used for albergues or pensiones, so read the fine print.

Side trips: All my foot pain and energy are allocated to the Camino. In larger towns you can roam around in the afternoon and evening, which more often than not is plenty.

Rome2rio.com will tell how how to get from Barcelona to any point on the Frances, or in the world for that matter.

A word to the wise, book a pension/hotel in Barcelona as the albergues are filled with young people who are there to party.