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So if choose the diner, it is offered at a time which doesn't interfere with mass, right?There are very few alternatives for dinner in Roncesvalles. I think it is worth booking dinner which is adequate and reasonably priced but nothing special. On my last two visits I've eaten in Casa Sabina. Tables for 4 which I shared with others. I chose the earlier time slot so I could be at the pilgrim mass. I didn't order breakfast or lunch as I preferred to walk to Burguete for breakfast.
In January there were two time slots. If the summer pattern is the same then the later one is at the same time as the pilgrim mass. Someone with recent summer experience might be able to say if the same is true then.So if choose the diner, it is offered at a time which doesn't interfere with mass, right?
Great, thank you for the information. Waiting for breakfast is something I wish to avoid, especially if there are places close-ish to eat. I might only take the diner then.Dinner - yes, breakfast or picnic - no.
As others have said, the dining options in Roncesvalles are limited, and while the food may not be great I enjoyed the communal nature of the dinner. I opted for the breakfast my first time there, and then had to wait to get it, and it wasn't really worth the price. On subsequent trips I preferred walking to Burguete or Espinal for breakfast.
Yes! If not for the food for bonding!I'm about to book Roncesvalles and I have a choice of breakfasts, picnic and diner.
Are they worth it?
Are they served at fixed times? I ask because I intend to go to the pilgrims mass at night too. Is the diner a sort of communal meal at a big table?
Also, is the breakfast served at a certain time and I would have to wait to get walking?
Thank you!
Breakfast in Burguete (cafe just as you enter town) is very good. After the 3 km walk from Roncesvalles your ready for coffee.I'm about to book Roncesvalles and I have a choice of breakfasts, picnic and diner.
Are they worth it?
Are they served at fixed times? I ask because I intend to go to the pilgrims mass at night too. Is the diner a sort of communal meal at a big table?
Also, is the breakfast served at a certain time and I would have to wait to get walking?
Thank you!
I’d take breakfast for sure because there is little food to Zuburi. I remember being so hungry and needing food. There are other restaurants for dinner in Roncesvalles.I'm about to book Roncesvalles and I have a choice of breakfasts, picnic and diner.
Are they worth it?
Are they served at fixed times? I ask because I intend to go to the pilgrims mass at night too. Is the diner a sort of communal meal at a big table?
Also, is the breakfast served at a certain time and I would have to wait to get walking?
Thank you!
Ahhhh! This market gave me one of my best early camino / first camino experiences. As crazy as it sounds it was his music choice. ( and I found the owner ( assumed) to be delightful in conversation…If breakfast is insufficient or looking to find some food for snacks and lunch, there is a supermercado before the next town, right on the path. Cannot miss it.
Maybe there are other places open for breakfast can’t remember, but for me, I wish I’d had more and had snacks with me as there was little on the trail that day.I’d take breakfast for sure because there is little food to Zuburi. I remember being so hungry and needing food. There are other restaurants for dinner in Roncesvalles.
Good to know. I missed anything open.Dinner in Casa Sabina.
Breakfast after 2.6km march in Burguete.
Recommended!
If I reserved a bed and diner, does that automatically give me a ticket for diner?When you arrive late, it can be possible the dinner tickets are sold out. The albergue has 245 beds, the two restaurants each can cater for 80 pilgrims every evening (both two sessions of 40 people); and that's it. Every now and then the restaurant of the hotel can cater for another 20 pilgrims, but not always. That makes a total of 180 dinners, on 245 beds ... so buy your dinner ticket early, or book it in advance!
Yes, it does. And I read you choose the 7pm dinner, that's the best choice. Enjoy your stay at Roncesvalles! When will you be there? I was there the last two weeks and will return in July.If I reserved a bed and diner, does that automatically give me a ticket for diner?
Great, thank you! I will be there july 3rd. Do you work there?Yes, it does. And I read you choose the 7pm dinner, that's the best choice. Enjoy your stay at Roncesvalles! When will you be there? I was there the last two weeks and will return in July.
If you choose the early dinner time slot you can make the Pilgrim Mass and blessing. After the service, the priest will give a tour of the church (talk about the building) in Spanish with someone to read the same off a card in English, and also take you down to see the crypt. When I was there he also sang down in the crypt.So if choose the diner, it is offered at a time which doesn't interfere with mass, right?
If you choose the early dinner time slot you can make the Pilgrim Mass and blessing. After the service, the priest will give a tour of the church (talk about the building) in Spanish with someone to read the same off a card in English, and also take you down to see the crypt. When I was there he also sang down in the crypt.
Wow, that's very neat! Thank you for the detailed answer, too. I'm very excited to be staying at Roncesvalles.Yes, I was there during the last two weeks and will return July 14th till July 28th, so I won't see you. But my colleagues will be there on the 3rd
Wow, that's more than exciting. I didn't expect a visit after. Very fun to know, thank you!If you choose the early dinner time slot you can make the Pilgrim Mass and blessing. After the service, the priest will give a tour of the church (talk about the building) in Spanish with someone to read the same off a card in English, and also take you down to see the crypt. When I was there he also sang down in the crypt.
If you bring a tent you can sleep behind the albergue, we have plenty of place for tents and for € 3,00 you can use our toilets, shower, kitchen etc. The nights still are very, very cold at the moment so bring a good sleepmattress and sleepingbag if you sleep in a tent!Oh dear - looks like I'm out of luck then! It seems like pretty much everywhere nearby is full up as well. In such circumstances, is it consiered acceptable to sleep outside the building?
Not in Roncesvalles. Just some snacks in vending machines. The nearest shops are in Burguete.Is there a supermarket there or somewhere to buy some food ?
The last dinner is at 8:30. Mass is at 8:00. Many Pilgrims went to mass then to dinner. I believe there was a 7:30 dinner that was already booked when I arrived at 3pm. It was so crowded on Wednesday night ! Very rigid management. Met people who were like me quite surprised. Buen camino!So if choose the diner, it is offered at a time which doesn't interfere with mass, right?
When you are dealing with 245 pilgrims a day, not to mention a rotating group of volunteers who are working, you need to have a set routine and rules, - it makes the operation run smoother.Very rigid management. Met people who were like me quite surprised.
So, as I understand, May is the busiest on the camino, or not? I start first week of July, should I expect albergues to be as full as in May?The albergue has been full every day during the last weeks. So we had to send pilgrims to the more expensive hotels, or with a taxi to other places.
I read in another thread that you will start your camino this coming weekend. Be aware that this coming weekend will be the busiest period of the year, as Monday will be a holiday in France and Spain, and the first two weeks of May are always very, very busy. So try to reservate a bed and dinner in Roncesvalles (and make reservations in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, and Zubiri, and Pamplona) or walk fast and start early. If you arrive at 1 or 2 pm in Roncesvalles we will probably have a bed. Probably not a bed in the new renovated albergue, but in the sótano (basement) or Dependencia (overflow/winter-albergue). But a bed is a bed ...
Last week pilgrims had to sleep in the gymnasium in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port as all the accomodations were full.
Normally July is by far not as busy as May (and the first two weeks in September), but this year .... I really don't know. April has been busier than ever before; this year is really different from other years. I assume this must be the after Covid effect. Much more American, Canadian, Australian and especially Korean people walking the Camino after all the lockdowns.So, as I understand, May is the busiest on the camino, or not? I start first week of July, should I expect albergues to be as full as in May?
Hello,I'm about to book Roncesvalles and I have a choice of breakfasts, picnic and diner.
Are they worth it?
Are they served at fixed times? I ask because I intend to go to the pilgrims mass at night too. Is the diner a sort of communal meal at a big table?
Also, is the breakfast served at a certain time and I would have to wait to get walking?
Thank you!
Hi. Pilgrim mass is at 20.00 from Monday to Friday and at 18.00 on weekends and holidays. You have two timeslots to dinner: 19.00 and 20.30.So if choose the diner, it is offered at a time which doesn't interfere with mass, right?
yes- they'll bring you a double portion of the meatless feature- i think i had spaghetti.Does anyone know if the dinner in Roncevalles is suitable for vegetarians?
I am vegetarian- Last summer '22, they had a meal with choice of pasta or soup and then choices of a meat entree. Instead of the meat entree' they gave me the soup then the pasta when the "meat" came out. It was one of my better vegetarian meals on the Camino!yes- they'll bring you a double portion of the meatless feature- i think i had spaghetti.
I'm not a vegetarian, but I often order two first plates, for example salad and pasta instead of a first and second plate - one can only eat so many French fries!I am vegetarian- Last summer '22, they had a meal with choice of pasta or soup and then choices of a meat entree. Instead of the meat entree' they gave me the soup then the pasta when the "meat" came out. It was one of my better vegetarian meals on the Camino!
I've walked the camino in the summer and in Spring. Summer is MUCH quieter until around Ponferrada, and when walking outside the popular guide book stages, some of the places have been almost empty. Koldo, former hospitalero in Maneru once stated he couldn't believe the difference in numbers, with May pilgrims sleeping on the floor and in the small courtyard of his former albergue, while Summer pilgrims had the choice of any bed they liked.So, as I understand, May is the busiest on the camino, or not? I start first week of July, should I expect albergues to be as full as in May?
Obviously not a 'true' pilgrim thenone can only eat so many French fries!
That is particular good advice for pilgrims who will start walking in 2028 when the 1st of May falls on a Monday again.At the moment it is a madhouse in Roncesvalles. People slept outside, 80 people slept on the floor in the old albergue Itzandeguia, without toilets nor shower....
No beds available until Pamplona. Don't start your Camino Francés now! Make other plans, walk another Camino, but don't start now at Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port. This year is totally crazy.
Very exciting to know. I was worried about finding a bed, but now, after reading your comment, a little bit of stress and apprehension have faded.I've walked the camino in the summer and in Spring. Summer is MUCH quieter until around Ponferrada, and when walking outside the popular guide book stages, some of the places have been almost empty. Koldo, former hospitalero in Maneru once stated he couldn't believe the difference in numbers, with May pilgrims sleeping on the floor and in the small courtyard of his former albergue, while Summer pilgrims had the choice of any bed they liked.
In spite of the perceived extra challenges with the weather (though I think it's exaggerated), a Summer Camino is far more relaxed affair, with beautiful walking especially between 5 and 11am. Summer walking also gives you the excuse to enjoy very long, lingering lunches , finishing all that wine over 3 lazy hours.
Thank you for the information. I definitely would not want to leave the service early....it bothers me when people do that! I am probably just getting pre-camino jitters and we will be in Roncesvalles in plenty of time for both dinner and church! I will book the 7pm dinner as soon as I can! Thanks again for the help!The 8.30 pm dinner will be a bit of a problem. The church service takes approx. half an hour or a few minutes more, but then you probably will miss the most important and emotionele part of it: the blessing of the pilgrims who are called to come forward and get their blessing from the priest. And I know the priests do not like it when people leave the church during the mass ...
If you have made your reservation already, and if you arrive before 7 pm you can ask at the check-in desk whether there are still tickets for the 7 pm dinner and you can swap them then if still available.
We will be leaving St Jean Pied de Port on July 11 and stay the night in Roncesvalles. We will just miss you! Thank you for volunteering as a hospitalera!You will be there in July? I am a hospitalera there from July 14th till 28th. Maybe we meet?
If you have dinner in Hotel Roncesvalles it is fabulous. They also do an impressive buffet breakfast too. Very high quality.I'm about to book Roncesvalles and I have a choice of breakfasts, picnic and diner.
Are they worth it?
Are they served at fixed times? I ask because I intend to go to the pilgrims mass at night too. Is the diner a sort of communal meal at a big table?
Also, is the breakfast served at a certain time and I would have to wait to get walking?
Thank you!
Depending when you walk there may be nowhere open in Burguete which was the case late last September. Espinal had a wonderful place for breakfast though.Dinner - yes, breakfast or picnic - no.
As others have said, the dining options in Roncesvalles are limited, and while the food may not be great I enjoyed the communal nature of the dinner. I opted for the breakfast my first time there, and then had to wait to get it, and it wasn't really worth the price. On subsequent trips I preferred walking to Burguete or Espinal for breakfast.
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