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Is the Camino del Norte feasible in February? Are shelters open?

JulioCesarSalad

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
February
Hello everyone, my cousin is planning to do his first Camino de Santiago this year and he would want to do the Camino del Norte this February, as in the first week of February.

Are shelters open at this time? Given the winter he would really need to stay at a shelter every night.

What is the weather like along the Camino del Norte in February?

Are the shelters the typical low-cost options found in other routes?

Thank you!
 
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I know from personal experience that the Camino Frances is very doable in the Winter. I have walked it several times in January/February. There are ample albergues open on the Frances.

However....I have only walked the Norte in the Spring and in the Summer months so do not know what the status of the albergues would be in January. In the Spring and Summer there are plenty of albergues available...maybe not as many or every 20 km like the Frances...but no problems as far as I experienced.

The weather will be raining and wind. I feel pretty confident that my prediction will hold up.
 
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Walked the first part of the Norte in October 2021. Many of the albergues where closing at the end of that month and didn’t plan to reopen until springtime (AFTER February). Accommodations are sparse even during “the season,” so I’d imagine it would be a difficult (though not impossible) task to find accommodations in the late winter. He should plan for long distances and expensive stays.

If it’s his first Camino, I’d suggest the CF.
 
I think that some of the closures and sparse accommondations are tied to the Covid stuff. Most of the restrictions are gone and the numbers of pilgrims are increasing to the point where it makes sense for albergues and pensions to reopen and stay open.
 
Yes, especially in Basque Country, albergues were closed by the pandemic. However, several of the open ones still had seasonal closures. Definitely consult GRONZE and make contact with the ones that indicate they are open to ensure it.
 
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But on the Norte (even pre-Covid) it was/is normal for albergues to close at the end of October and re-open around Easter.

IMHO in February I would head south. I did the Vía de la Plata several years ago in February without a problem.
 
Albergues may be closed however hotels and pensions (where open) will be much cheaper than in the tourist season, so possibly not too expensive after all. Obviously it depends on your budget.
 
When we walked at the beginning of September 2018 they were already beginning to shut albergues because I have been told the Northern coast is largely a summer tourist destination. I would venture to say a winter Camino would require some planning.
 
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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Don’t be too sure about cheaper hotels on this route in the wintertime. If the surf swells, the coast will be packed by Big Wave riders and the watching crowds, all competing for a reduced number of accommodations.
 
We did most of the Norte just before the pandemic February-March 2020, and practically no albergue was open until Galicia where the junta albergues were all open, still we were only pilgrims there. We had no problems to find a place to sleep, but many times there were only one option. Double room was then usually about 40 euros for two persons. Weather was ok, temperature was 10-20 degrees celsius and we had only about five rainy days.
 
Heikki I've been searching online for an answer to this question for hours and as far as I can tell you're the only useful thing on the whole internet, thank you (we love you)
 
Altus Poncho (ATMOSPHERIC H30)
Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

€60,-
There are were a few albergue's open the first half of the Camino when I walked in Feb 20`17, I was able to supplement with youth hostels and small hotels. In Galicia all the albergue's are open but often empty, he could be the only pilgrim in the albergue for the night. Walking as a woman alone in winter this didn't work for me, but the men I met didn't mind. I met a few Spanish groups walking sections of the norte in the winter, but they came with friends/family and didn't walk on their own.
 
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