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Search 69,459 Camino Questions

O'Cebreiro to Santiago... Help list best Albergues, Communal pilgrim dinners and other questions

yesenia

Member
Hello Fellow Pilgrims!

Background:
First let me thank all of you for such wonderful information that makes planning our camino a breeze and such fun!

My sister and I (36, 39) are walking from O’Cebreiro to Santiago May 17th to 23. We arrive in Madrid the 15th (Friday) @ 10pm. We will be walking among other reasons for religious reasons as we are both Catholics and Hoping to meet other pilgrims along the way. have poured over many threads here! Can’t stop reading them :)

Logistics:
Stay overnight in Madrid by Train Station and take 7am train Saturday morning to Leon. Arrive with time to view Leon a bit, then Alsa bus @ 4pm or so to Piedrafita. Taxi from Piedrafita to O’Cebreiro and spend the night there (arrive in Piedrafita around 7:30pm)

Start walking Sunday may 17th.

Questions:

1)Is this a good plan?

I have a few places mentioned here that we can call to make reservations for our first night… someone in another post mentioned there probably will not let then stay at the albergue if we arrive in Taxi or haven’t walked that day… nonetheless, I think arriving at 7:30pm, there might not be beds available, so I think we are better served making reservations somewhere not too expensive (we are on a budget)

2)Any recommended places in O’Cebreiro?

3)Will we find a place for dinner at that time?

4)**Any places in between O’Cebreiro and Santiago that are recommended to stay or miss :)

5)**Lastly, We are very much looking forward to Communal Dinners with other pilgrims, so any places you can recommend that offers communal dinners would be great.



(I realize it’s a lot, I didn’t want to trouble you all with so many different threads, so I thought in condensing it into 1 big post) hope its ok :)

Thanks in Advance, I welcome any and all recomendations! (and from my prior questions about making our own fleece bags, I'll post pictures as soon as my mom finishes them! Promise) :)
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
1. Does your plan address all factors to meet your objectives? If so its a good plan.

2. The Xunta operated albergue has over 100 beds. Its a modern albergue with a kitchen.

3. Probably. Spainish people usually eat dinner quite late. More likely that you might not find anything open that early.

4. I stayed at Xunta albergues from O'Cebreiro onwards. They were all reasonably well maintained.

5. One problem with Xunta albergues is while they have good kitchens they don't have any utensils. Further, many of the Xunta albergues have over a hundred beds making them not so well suited for forming communal meals ...

I traveled late in the year. There was snow and there were 5 of us in the 100 bed albergue at O Cebreiro ... that won't be your experience in May.
 
Thank you whariwharangi!

on how to get to O'Cebreiro, from what I see online, it seems doable, I was hoping to get info. on weather my data regarding train & alsa bus from Leon to O'Cebreiro are correct? since there doesn't seem to be many people doing this route (Madrid-Leon-Piedrafita) :)

On the albergue in O'Cebreiro, are you saying we should be ok finding a bed at 8pm at night the 3rd week of May? I don't want to get there in the dark and find that we should have known better... i hope someone can let me know if they've done this ... or if the beds always fill out quick. I know nothing is 100% guaranteed, but hoping to get more info. to make a better decision.

Again thanks a million,

hope I get more recommendations, especially on Communal diners and albergues not to miss! :)

Happy Friday everyone!
 
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Instead of staying in OCebreiro I'd stay in Laguna de la Castilla---an amazing albuergue and meal, then you hit OCebreiro first thing in late, early morning when the hordes aren't there. Perfect timing.

After OCebreiro the pickings get slim because things get very touristy. But there is a albuergue about 4 km short of Sarria that looks like an old 1950s drive up hotel (but very much an albuergue). Very communal, very nice, very laid back.....a nice respite before greeting the throngs of people in Sarria. Be forewarned, the menu is vegetarian, but supposedly good, and meanwhile we hiked back 1.5 km (without packs) to eat at a very good paella restaurant with a view
 
I never liked the albergue in O'Cebreiro, a personal thing, about 5k beyond in the village of Hospital de la Condesa is a smallish much nicer albergue, a church nearby reminding one of Greece and if you are tired the cafe/bar/restaurant offers a good menu. Brierley recommends a slightly longer alternative "scenic route" from O'Cebreiro to arrive there -not so scenic and not much of a route follow the usual way. O'Cebreiro is the place to try pulpo (octopus) if you are game enough, the big inn there is very popular for hunters, horsemen, tourists, and pilgrims. Just before Palas de Rei you will find Os Chacotes, the so-called pilgrims pavilion, it is pilgrims hell, walk on. The towns of Galicia may disappoint but any albergue in the villages will make a lovely stopover. And finally, Monte Gozo is the traditional final stop, however its built like a traditional army barracks, not to my taste. I prefer the albergue in Arco do Pino, Porta de Santiago, a sweet place if further out. One last warning, you will find that the farmers in Galicia also use the Camino to move their sheep and worse their cows from barn to pasture and back again. The mud you see on the Camino is often not mud! Forewarned is forearmed. Buen Camino!
 
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Thank you whariwharangi!

on how to get to O'Cebreiro, from what I see online, it seems doable, I was hoping to get info. on weather my data regarding train & alsa bus from Leon to O'Cebreiro are correct? since there doesn't seem to be many people doing this route (Madrid-Leon-Piedrafita) :)

On the albergue in O'Cebreiro, are you saying we should be ok finding a bed at 8pm at night the 3rd week of May? I don't want to get there in the dark and find that we should have known better... i hope someone can let me know if they've done this ... or if the beds always fill out quick. I know nothing is 100% guaranteed, but hoping to get more info. to make a better decision.

Again thanks a million,

hope I get more recommendations, especially on Communal diners and albergues not to miss! :)

Happy Friday everyone!

You'd probably be better off taking the train from Madrid to Ponferrada. At time of writing there are 4 per day including a trenhotel. There is usually a transfer at either Palencia or Leon.

ALSA operates buses from Ponferrada that stop at Piedrafita do Cebreiro. At time of writing there are 4 per day.

Empresa Monforte operates one bus per day from Pedrafita do Cebriero to Sarria via O Cebreiro.

Note ALSA spells it Piedrafita do Cebreiro while Monbus spells it Pedrafita do Cebreiro.

Renfe
http://www.renfe.com/index.html

ALSA
http://www.alsa.es/en/

Estacion de Autobuses Ponferrada
http://www.ponferrada-virtual.com/autobuses-ponferrada/2-14-4-14.htm

Empresa Monforte/Monbus
http://www.monbus.es/es
 
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I never liked the albergue in O'Cebreiro, a personal thing, about 5k beyond in the village of Hospital de la Condesa is a smallish much nicer albergue, a church nearby reminding one of Greece and if you are tired the cafe/bar/restaurant offers a good menu. Brierley recommends a slightly longer alternative "scenic route" from O'Cebreiro to arrive there -not so scenic and not much of a route follow the usual way. O'Cebreiro is the place to try pulpo (octopus) if you are game enough, the big inn there is very popular for hunters, horemen, tourists, and pilgrims. Just before Palas de Rei you will find Os Chacotes, the so-called pilgrims pavilion, it is pilgrims hell, walk on. The towns of Galicia may disappoint but any albergue in the villages will make a lovely stopover. And finally, Monte Gozo is the traditional final stop, however its built like a traditional army barracks, not to my taste. I prefer the albergue in Arco do Pino, Porta de Santiago, a sweet place if further out. One last warning, you will find that the farmers in Galicia also use the Camino to move their sheep and worse their cows from barn to pasture and back again. The mud you see on the Camino is often not mud! Forewarned is forearmed. Buen Camino!
I didn't care for the albergue there either. If I do another Camino I'll skip O'Cebreiro and stay either just before it or just after it, and stop there for a cold beer or a cup of coffee.
 
I did as @waveprof suggests and stayed the night in the private albergue at La Laguna de Castilla which was excellent accommodation. We then crossed the border from Castilla y León into Galicia a few km's into the next day's walk. We stopped for coffee in O Cebreiro. We walked a little past Triacastela (26 km) to the new-ish (brand new at the time) ecological albergue 'El Beso’ (the kiss). There is a lovely inclusive atmosphere at this albergue operated by a couple who met and fell in love on the camino. They cook a vegetarian communal donativo meal which was hearty and great fun, sitting around a farmhouse table in front of a roaring wood burner (depending on the time of year). You miss the monastery at Samos if you take this option, but we were very happy with our choice. You can see my blog post for the day here
 
From a logistical standpoint, starting in Villafranca al Bierzo might be a better choice. It is about 27km farther from Santiago than O'Cebreiro, so it will make your walk a little longer, but transport to the town is a little easier (more buses go there each day and the bus station is in the town). And because it is a larger town, you can reserve a hotel room for your first night. For me, having a place reserved for my first night was important. We were traveling from San Francisco to Madrid, and like you spending the night there due to late arrival and continuing to the Camino the next day. I figured (rightly so) that by the time we got to Leon, which was our starting point, we'd be a bit tired from the travel and were glad to know exactly where we were going upon arrival and that we did indeed have a bed :) Once we started walking, we were fine with not having a place reserved.

I don't remember much about O'Cebreiro, but I do remember it being rather small. Villafranca had a main square with several places to eat, so it won't be a problem finding dinner, even if you arrive close to the bed time for pilgrims.
 
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I'd stay at the German run albergue in La Faba before O'Cebreiro, well equipped kitchen and great facilities. I didn't sense a good vibe when I stopped for breakfast in O'Cebreiro. If you stay in a Xunta albergue, you won't be enjoying a communal dinners since they have non functioning kitchens, you'll have to go out to a bar/cafe for a pilgrim meal or stay in a private albergue with a kitchen and go shopping for food and cook dinner with your fellow pilgrims.
 
Waveprof, is the albergue in Laguna called "Escuela"? not too far from O'Cebreiro ... but would need to call to make reservations, right? how would I get there from Piedrafita? Taxi I assume, hope it would be available Saturday nights.
Also, do you have the name of the Albergue before Sarria? I'm not a vegetarian, but I must have been in a previous life :) because I love it! Very interested in staying there (have to consult with sister, although I'm the oldest, so my vote counts more, right?) :)

Scruffy1, we don't want to miss seeing O'Cebreiro, as much as people say its touristy, I guess im hard headed :) I have to see for myself. Thanks for the warnings about the Not Mud! LOL and bypassing Chacotes. I also wrote down in my notes the albergues recomended. (i think we'll skip the albergue in Monte Gozo too!)

Whariwharangi, my sister is kinda liking the idea of being able to spend a few hrs in Leon before the bus to Piedrafita... I might have to stick to that plan. Is Alsabus time schedule reliable? because it seems there's only 1 afternoon bus from Leon to Piedrafita. (from there we can take a taxi to Albergue)

Mark, so many people say the same thing about O'Cebreiro, I wonder why? it looks so beautiful and gorgeous! why do people avoid it so?

Magwood, funny, I have come across your blog before... when I opened the link, I go "oh, I've read this one before" LOL thanks again. I would LOVE to stay at El Beso, is it easy to find? ... if we want to detour to Samos, how many KM would we have to backtrack the following morning?

November-moon, I wish I could start that far back, but I don't want to push it, we rather take the camino slow and enjoy it, and starting in Villafranca will add many more KM :( ... I do however want to make reservations for our first night, as you said, it's great advice! especially since we arrive in Piedrafita at 7:30pm.

Bajaracer, I didn't know all Xunta albergues lacked kitchens ... so all the communal dinners would be at private albergues??? Also La Faba seems too far from O'Cebreiro, right? it doesn't show up in google maps, so I have a hard time finding some of these places and figuring out the KM's... we don't want to add another day, so it would have to be close to O'Cebreiro.

wow, so much amazing information from all of you, thank you for taking the time! I know we are all so busy in our daily life... its wonderful to have such an amazing group of peregrinos!

Keep the recommendations coming!!

Happy Friday!! :)
 
Whariwharangi, my sister is kinda liking the idea of being able to spend a few hrs in Leon before the bus to Piedrafita... I might have to stick to that plan. Is Alsabus time schedule reliable? because it seems there's only 1 afternoon bus from Leon to Piedrafita. (from there we can take a taxi to Albergue)

The ALSA schedule is reliable, however, there are quirks about how it manages transfers. For instance there are but two buses from Leon that stops at Piedrafita do Cebreiro however there are 12 buses from Leon to Ponferrada and 4 buses from Ponferrada to Piedrafita do Cebreiro at time of writing. I guess that means you would wait longer than what the schedule thinks is a reasonable wait time for a transfer.

You should be aware that its usually the bus schedules are not updated more than one month in advance of any changes so check closer to dates of travel

Note there is a location named 'Piedrafita' that is not Piedrafita do Cebreiro.

I would recommend to your sister that the travel from Madrid to Piedrafita do Cebreiro and onward to O Cebreiro is a full day of travel.
 
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Yeseni,
First of all, I'm happy for you & your sister; I miss being on the camino :). This may or may not be a logical stopping point for you, but the Albergue in Fonfría, Reboleira, is lovely. There is a 'round house' just behind and across the road from there where you will have an amazing communal dinner - one of my very favorite on my walk. They seat everyone, and the night I stayed there it might've been around fifty pilgrims, at a long table, and serve family style. Just wonderful!

Buen Camino!
Kerstin
 
Bajaracer, I didn't know all Xunta albergues lacked kitchens ... so all the communal dinners would be at private albergues??? Also La Faba seems too far from O'Cebreiro, right? it doesn't show up in google maps, so I have a hard time finding some of these places and figuring out the KM's... we don't want to add another day, so it would have to be close to O'Cebreiro.

Xunta albergues do have kitchens, they just don't have refrigerators, pots, pans, plates, or utensils, I doubt the stoves are even connected. (it has to do with local politics with local restaurants.)
La Faba is only 5km before O'Cebreiro, the only thing missing from the kitchen is a microwave oven, we were encouraged to use what extra food pilgrims behind in the kitchen (look inside albergue kitchens before you shop for dinner so you might not have to buy stuff such as salt, oil, etc.)
Here is a planner that might be useful, just enter your starting place.
http://www.urcamino.com
 
O Cebreiro is just into Galicia and if my memory is correct the 17th May is a big fiesta day in Galicia. This might mean that some places are shut to join the fiesta while others of course might open to cater for those celebrating. Also it is a Sunday so again places can be closed and some shops close Saturday afternoon too so it would be a good idea to buy some food while in Leon to carry for Sunday in case things are closed along the way.
 
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Personally I wouldn't miss spending the night in O Cebreiro,I just love the Celtic atmosphere and rough stone houses and streets.
I do make a reservation the day before in one of the cosy Hostals. The sound of the pipes,the Pilgrim service and the Caldo Gallego.
Wish I was there now...
 
Mark, so many people say the same thing about O'Cebreiro, I wonder why? it looks so beautiful and gorgeous! why do people avoid it so?
O'Cebreiro is beautiful and gorgeous, and I guess I was maybe a bit too critical of the town by saying I wouldn't stay there again (especially since I stayed there on both my Caminos :D). Both times I stayed there it was quite crowded. The first time I was there the albergue was full so I got a room at Casa Carolo, which was a nice little hostel/pension house. The second time I stayed at the albergue, which I didn't care for. Too crowded and the next day I heard from several people that they had money stolen from their packs there. So I guess I was a bit prejudiced. It's definitely a touristy little town, but it has places to eat, drink and buy groceries and I would say if you are there when it's not overcrowded with peregrinos, it's worth staying at, especially for a first time peregrino.
 
I would not miss O'Cebreiro. Yes, it's touristy, but very unusual and definitely worth seeing. Warning, the descent into Taricastela is hellish. In Sarria, try to stay at the Inernational albergue. Wonderful mamacita, who cooks for you.

Background:
First let me thank all of you for such wonderful information that makes planning our camino a breeze and such fun!

My sister and I (36, 39) are walking from O’Cebreiro to Santiago May 17th to 23. We arrive in Madrid the 15th (Friday) @ 10pm. We will be walking among other reasons for religious reasons as we are both Catholics and Hoping to meet other pilgrims along the way. have poured over many threads here! Can’t stop reading them :)

Logistics:
Stay overnight in Madrid by Train Station and take 7am train Saturday morning to Leon. Arrive with time to view Leon a bit, then Alsa bus @ 4pm or so to Piedrafita. Taxi from Piedrafita to O’Cebreiro and spend the night there (arrive in Piedrafita around 7:30pm)

Start walking Sunday may 17th.

Questions:

1)Is this a good plan?

I have a few places mentioned here that we can call to make reservations for our first night… someone in another post mentioned there probably will not let then stay at the albergue if we arrive in Taxi or haven’t walked that day… nonetheless, I think arriving at 7:30pm, there might not be beds available, so I think we are better served making reservations somewhere not too expensive (we are on a budget)

2)Any recommended places in O’Cebreiro?

3)Will we find a place for dinner at that time?

4)**Any places in between O’Cebreiro and Santiago that are recommended to stay or miss :)

5)**Lastly, We are very much looking forward to Communal Dinners with other pilgrims, so any places you can recommend that offers communal dinners would be great.



(I realize it’s a lot, I didn’t want to trouble you all with so many different threads, so I thought in condensing it into 1 big post) hope its ok :)

Thanks in Advance, I welcome any and all recomendations! (and from my prior questions about making our own fleece bags, I'll post pictures as soon as my mom finishes them! Promise) :)[/QUOTE]
 
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5)**Lastly, We are very much looking forward to Communal Dinners with other pilgrims, so any places you can recommend that offers communal dinners would be great.

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/advice-please-looking-for-´the-spiritual-side´between-sarria-nd-santiago.29452/
After O'Cebreiro, your chances of finding communal meals are few and far between, the smaller private albergues (which cost more than the Xunta albergues)
with kitchens is where you might find a communal dinner.
 
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Thank you all so much! I won't miss O'Cebreiro, for sure! hope when we arrive at night ... around 7:30pm there's still some light out that we can see... or at least in the morning when we leave to walk our 1st day :)

Thanks bajaracer for the link, I'd love to stay at Fuente del Peregrino! sounds wonderful!

again, keep the recomendations coming if you remember of any great albergues and/or food/communal dinners along the way.

One thing I hope to try in O'Cebreiro is the cheese! yummy!
 
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2)Any recommended places in O’Cebreiro? We LOVED Casa Navarro! Didn't enjoy Albergue Berce do Camino in Triacastela
 
Telelama, ended up making reservations at Casa Navarro too! It was actually the only ones that I was able to contact with "availability" for May 16th. ... the Hotel O'Cebreiro and Casa Celta both said they were full, which I find rather odd since it was this was in December... for May.
The lady from Casa Frade (which she said they don't take reservations, its 1st come, 1st serve) said they might not want to book so far ahead, and emailed me instead saying they didn't have availability.

So, it's all for the best, as many seems to Love Casa Navarro, and the man on the phone was very nice! Can't wait! :)
 
hope when we arrive at night ... around 7:30pm there's still some light out that we can see...

Sure, on that date the sunset is (well) after 9:30 p.m. so you aren't really arriving at night.

or at least in the morning when we leave to walk our 1st day

The sunrise will be roughly at 7:00 a.m., just as a reference for plans.

One thing I hope to try in O'Cebreiro is the cheese! yummy!

Don't miss either the Arzúa-Ulloa cheese in, for example, Arzúa or Palas do Rei (aka Palas de Rey). Another not to miss cheese in Galicia (in addition to the Arzúa-Ulloa and the O Cebreiro cheeses) is the Tetilla cheese.

O Cebreiro is just into Galicia and if my memory is correct the 17th May is a big fiesta day in Galicia.

No big fiesta in Galicia on May 17th, AFAIK. However, it doesn't mean it can't be a big local fiesta in O Cebreiro although I think the main fiesta in O Cebreiro is on September.

Be careful. "Piedrafita" is a a town in the centre of Spain (province of Avila). The place in Galicia is "Pedrafita do Cebreiro" without the "i".

Pedrafita do Cebreiro (name in Galician) is the official name of the town but you can find also references to the town by its former official name: Piedrafita del Cebrero (name in Spanish that isn't official anymore). Sometimes, you might find even a mix of both names.
The town in the province of Ávila isn't called Piedrafita but Piedrahíta.
There are several hamlets/villages in Asturias called Piedrafita as well as one in León (in the municipality of Cármenes). There's also Piedrafita de Babia (in León province) and Piedrafita de Jaca (in Huesca province)...

P.S.: There are direct buses from Madrid to Pedrafita do Cebreiro. If you are interested on them, take a look at the web of Alsa for schedules.
 
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St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Communal meal at Fonfria.

Bus to Piedrafita do Cebreiro (from Lugo, but many start further back):

upload_2015-1-7_18-32-15.png
 
"The town in the province of Ávila isn't called Piedrafita but Piedrahita"

Yes, I have visited Piedrahita (Avila) several times, but I made a mistake:(
Anyway, the spelling is very similar and could create some confusion.
 
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