Numbers For 2007

[Touva]

Does anyone have the numbers for the year so far? I feel the numbers were way up this year - at least that's what I heard all during my walk in September/October...

 

[sillydoll]

Hi Touva,
The last stats we had were from Rosina. At 30th November 113,202 received a Compostela (the total Compostela recipients in 2004 numbered 179,944). The office estimates that this month between 1,000 and 1,500 pilgrims will have earned a Compostela. Most are German, Italian or French who seem to plan their pilgrimage in order to arrive in Santiago for Christmas. Another fact is that the number of foreign pilgrims surpassed those from Spain.

You will find some stats at the archicompostela website - http://www.archicompostela.org/web/index_.htm
Click on the colourful shell, which takes you to a page with flags of different countries. The only reasonably up-to-date stats are in the Spainish link so click on the Spanish flag and then click on "Estadísticas".

 

[sillydoll]

Stats are always difficult but the numbers issued by the pilgrim's office are only for those pilgrims who collected a certificate when they reached Santiago. There are perhaps three times as many pilgrims on the trails at any one time.
We met many pilgrims walking short sections of the camino frances. A couple from France had walked from their home to Pamplona in 2002; from Pamplona to Burgos in 2005 and were walking from Burgos to Astorga . We met a group of friends from Belgium who were walking from Burgos to Ponferrada this year having missed out the meseta in 2003 . I have friends who want to walk from Lourdes to Pamplona next year - they have no real desire to earn a Compostela.
In 2004 stats put out claimed that:
More than 650,000 Santiago pilgrims availed themselves of the publicly sponsored albergues between January and October. Of these pilgrims, 400,000 occupied the albergues on the French Way, 220,000 of whom were
accommodated in "polideportivos" (sports facilities) and in Army and Civil Guard-provided tents and facilities. 65,000 on the Portuguese Way, 35,000 on the Via de la Plata and 26,000 on the Fisterra-Muxia Way.
The above numbers did not reflect those pilgrims who did not use the publicly sponsored albergues, that is, those who stayed in privately run facilities.

 

[JohnnieWalker]

These are huge numbers but they don't surprise me. Often on a particular stretch of the route there would be five or six of us all leaving at different times from dawn through to mid morning - we would often catch up with one another or meet as someone was having lunch or a break by the pathway. But in the evenings - especially at weekends and especially where there was the extended holiday they call a puente which makes it into a long weekend, the albergues were bursting with Spaniards.

No one knew where they came from and we certainly didn't know where they were going!

 

[Peter Robins]

the numbers are huge; they are also bogus
viewtopic.php?t=13

 

[sillydoll]

Peter, I never did fully understand the difference. What do they mean by 650 000 overnight stays? The rule is one night per pilgrim per albergue - and that equals ... what?
Please explain it to me - I never was good at math!

 

[Peter Robins]

the 650,000 is the no of overnights, not pilgrims. Say you spend 5 days walking from Sarria, spending 4 nights in albergues. That is 4 of the 650,000 but only 1 pilgrim. Divide the 650,000 by 4 or 5 and you probably get roughly the no of pilgrims, but, as you say, this no isn't very useful as it doesn't include those who stop in hotels or whatever. Conversely, it will include some who don't actually get to Santiago.

 

[sillydoll]

Bling!! (Light-bulb went on!)

So, we could say that if the 179 944 pilgrims who received a compostela all started at Sarria and spent at least 5 nights in albergues that would have been 899 720 nights in albergues. Phsew!! Just as well they didn't all want to stay in the albergues!!