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New albergue in Bandeira ready by the end of September

ivar

Administrator
Staff member
Xacobeo will open a new albergue on the Via de la Plata (Bandeira) and it will open by the end of September 2011.

Bandeira:
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=bandeira, ... 86523&z=10

Translated by Google Translate:

Spanish to English translation



Original press release:
http://prensa.xacobeo.es/es/noticias/el ... en-la-call
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Hi All,

In July 2011 Ivar advised that an new albergue was being constructed in Bandeira and would be open by September of that year.

I was in Bandeira in November 2011 and stayed at the Hostal Victorino. I went for a walk out to the sports centre, out and back along the Calle Lourás and Calle Agro do Balo but could not see the albergue. As I recall the sign at the crossroad in the main street still said 2.7km to the albergue.

The albergue is not mentioned on the Eroski Consumer website and the Mundicamino site says "No" to everything on the list for the Bandeira albergue.

Can anyone tell me if the albergue has in fact been built or was it a casualty of the finacial crisis.

Thanks

Kevin
 
Hi, Wombat,

I went through Bandeira in June 2011 and also stayed in the Hostal Victorino. Very nice people and nice place, btw. The next day in the albergue in Outeiro I met some pilgrims who had not been able to find a room in Bandeira and had walked out to the campgrounds which doubles as an albergue. I think that's the 2.7 km sign you saw. In fact, the press release Ivar linked to on his original message explains that the current albergue is in the Campgrounds of Medelo, with 8 spots. It will be closed when the new one is open.

The press release also says that the new albergue will be built on the streets of Agro de Balo and Louras, but I can't find either of those streets on google maps. The closest I get is one called Algo do Valo, which might be the same one.

I wouldn't be surprised to learn that it's a victim of the crisis. When I walked the Primitivo this summer, we learned that in Castroverde (between Cadavo and Lugo) there is a totally new albergue ready to go except for the fact that they lost their furniture budget so it's totally empty.

Maybe someone else has more recent news. Buen camino, Laurie
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
p.s. A quick google search brought up a news article from 2011, http://www.berenguela.com/nuevo-albergu ... 2011-05-02
reciting much of the same information, but noting that the location is a plot of land on the Rua da Empanada, which is directly across the highway from the Rua Algo do Valo.

This press release from Aug. 5, 2012, says that the government is still committed to building it. Bid requests will go out at the end of the summer, apparently.

http://www.caminosantiago.org/cpperegri ... nsaID=6958

Bottom line -- for the immediate future, pilgrims can either stay at the campground in Medelo (rides are apparently possible if you're too tired to walk) or at the private places in town. There's not much to do in town, but there is a cultural association with internet.

Laurie
 
Thanks Laurie,

I have been writing up my notes from November 2011 and was wondering if anything had happened about the albergue.

The Hostal Conde Rey was closed as we came into town so we were glad to get a room in the Victorino which was a friendly place, although the rooms were a little cold until the heaters came on after 7.30pm. A good view from our room of the Pico Sacro in the purple light of dusk. It also had the added advantage that we were able to get an early dinner. Also the bar was open early for breakfast and we were walking by 07:30 in the morning.

Actually we did the 33km to Santiago in one day. Having walked from Granada we were ready to finish. The weather for our last day was very good, a maximum of 17 degrees C and sunny, after early morning fog.

Regards

Kevin
 
Hi, Kevin,

Putting two and two together, I now realize you are one of the two (with Bjorts) who has sparked my interest in the Mozarabe from Granada. Hoping to get there in the next year or two, and your notes are terrific.

Back to Bandeira -- The construction in the Conde Rey was started when I went through in June 2011, so maybe it's a major renovation. I read online that the same family owns both the Victorino where we stayed and the Conde Rey, but who knows.

When I stayed in the Outeiro albergue (3 kms up hill from the town of Puente Ulla, so a pretty short day from Bandeira) there was a new hospitalera, who took her duties very seriously and was committed to bringing up the cleanliness standards in the albergue. I had heard that it was kind of grimy, but as of last year that was not the case. It is in a nice location and you can either bring food up from the Dia supermarket in Puente Ulla, or walk to a restaurant about a km or 2 away, or that same restaurant will deliver to the albergue. Since I arrived early in the day, I had time to check out the neighborhood and came across a beautiful estate that is now a hotel: http://www.pazodegalegos.com/ Family run, by the grandparents, the parents (two burnt-out advertising execs from Madrid), and with a couple small kids. There is both a winery and hotel/restaurant. A true labor of love. I got a VIP tour (business was very slow) and thought it would be a fabulous place to stay, though for me probably not on the night before walking into Santiago. Seemed a little too sybaritic. But at 75E double room, 50E single, the price/quality ratio is pretty amazing. The owner also suggested they'd give a "pilgrim price" if they had the space.

Ahhh, thanks for spurring this walk down memory lane of the end of the Vdlp.
Buen camino, Laurie

p.s. Kevin, do you have any camino plans on your plate at the moment?
 
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