Please bring a sleeping bag of some kind

[J Willhaus]

I can't tell tou how many pilgrims with big packs have asked me for a blanket the past few weeks. Please bring a sleep sack of some kind in your big pack, if you plan to sleep in albergues. While some albergues may provide them, not all do and you should not take this for granted.

Blankets are not washed daily and they can harbor bedbugs so in many albergues they are not provided. Nothing worse than the sad face of especially some older person wanting a blanket when there are none to he had...

 

[andycohn]

Lest you give the wrong impression, I stayed only in albergues on the Aragones last month (with the exception of a casa rurale near the monastery of San Juan de la Pena) and the only albergue not providing blankets was at Arres, where you were the hospitaliera. So not sure you're talking about a large sample.

 

[Phil W]

Lest you give the wrong impression, I stayed only in albergues on the Aragones last month (with the exception of a casa rurale near the monastery of San Juan de la Pena) and the only albergue not providing blankets was at Arres, where you were the hospitaliera. So not sure you're talking about a large sample.

Hi @andycohn,

As for blankets it depends on the albergue, whether it is private or public. I have served in 2 albergues on the Aragones. One had blankets available and one did not. Not sure I would use a blanket that is available in an albergue. I suspect that they are not regularly cleaned (washing blankets was not something that hospitaleros are expected to do). Yesterday's user may have brought bed bug hitch hikers or something else. In any case, the OP was simply making suggestion for pilgrims.

 

[GPeachy]

I agree with the need to bring a bag I did not when I walked the Camino. I walked in May. Mornings and evenings were quite cold. I brought a liner, a fleece shawl that I used as a blanket inside the liner, and a fleece pullover that I wore as my pijama every night. Aside from our hotel breaks in Burgos, Astorga, and, Leon, only 2 albergues had blankets. Next time I will definitely bring a light sleeping bag. I also am to included to not want to use the blankets due to reasons already expressed by others.

 

[andycohn]

Hi @andycohn,

As for blankets it depends on the albergue, whether it is private or public. I have served in 2 albergues on the Aragones. One had blankets available and one did not. Not sure I would use a blanket that is available in an albergue. I suspect that they are not regularly cleaned (washing blankets was not something that hospitaleros are expected to do). Yesterday's user may have brought bed bug hitch hikers or something else. In any case, the OP was simply making suggestion for pilgrims.

Hello Phil, I'm not sure whether that distinction between private and public albergues holds. All the other albergues on the Aragones that we stayed in -- at Canfranc, Jaca, Undues de Lerda, and Tiebas -- were municipals and provided blankets. So, too, did the albergue at Artieda, but I don't know whether it was privately-run or managed by the town. On the French side of the pass, the communal gite at Urdos, and the monastery at Sarrance both provided blankets.

So perhaps it depends on the camino -- GPeachy, above, says there were few places on the Frances that provided blankets -- or maybe it's just random.

And I definitely don't want to wade in to the sleeping bag / liner debate. I have no expert knowledge about bedbugs and where they live, but I strongly suspect that if an albergue or any other establishment provides blankets, whether you use them or not, and the blankets harbor bedbugs, they will surely get into the beds themselves. So what do you do? Wrap yourself in a spacesuit?

 

[Phil W]

Hi Andy, it may be related yo the route, I don't know. I do know that it running about 3 to 2 not providing blankets on 2 routes. Their is another albergue on a 3rd route that I just can't remember. I have volunteering late December and remember not having a blanket to loan overnight. It was hard.

As for bed bugs, I check the mattress when I first get there. I really don't worry much about them as you can find them in 5 star hotels as well.

Phil

 

[J Willhaus]

In any case, if you need a blanket because you don't have a bag, please ask before you check in and maybe consider other options. Here there is a Casa Rural that rents rooms with full bedding and towels.
I carry a liner bag in summer and can wrap up in my poncho or a scarf that I bring. I can also wear socks and clothes to bed. I have had the third person of the night ask me for a blanket. Please understand that we do not own the albergue or even really have any input to the rules or the available fittings.

On the safe side, bring something you will be comfortable sleeping in.

Artieda and Ruesta are private albergues and allow non pilgrim guests.

 

[good_old_shoes]

Even if there are blankets, I really don't get why people don't bring a liner at least.

Without a liner, you sleep on the bare mattress, often rubber. It's uncomfortable and not very hygienic.

The liner also is a barrier between you and the blanket, which means it has to be washed less often = less work for the hospitaleros.

A silk liner weighs maybe 150grams, that's the weight of an apple. That's certainly not where you should save weight. It's an essential piece of gear.

Even a lightweight sleeping bag only has 500g or so.

I'd never walk without one.

 

[Robo]

It's a challenge isn't it?
On the Camino I just completed, I wanted to make sure I used plenty of Albergues.
I have avoided them in the past, opting for private accommodation, but felt it was time to 'embrace' them.

I think I stayed in 14 Albergues all up.

I went to and fro on the whole bag liner v sleeping bag thing for weeks.
In the end I went for a lightweight sleeping bag.

Maybe I was lucky, and it was a sample of only 14, but they all had blankets.
Some had sheets and pillow cases! (One was a Muni)

In the end I was glad to have taken the sleeping bag, rather than just a liner.
The extra 300 gms (300 gms more than a liner) was worth it for the warmth and peace of mind.
With it, I didn't need blankets.

If planning to stay in Albergues, I would always take either a sleeping bag or liner.......

 

[JabbaPapa]

Lest you give the wrong impression, I stayed only in albergues on the Aragones last month (with the exception of a casa rurale near the monastery of San Juan de la Pena) and the only albergue not providing blankets was at Arres, where you were the hospitaliera. So not sure you're talking about a large sample.

Well that might provide the wrong impression !!

Your singular personal experience on one Camino doesn't make a generality.

I walked a very long and slow Camino last time, sleeping in a far greater number of albergues than normal, and it is actually not uncommon at all for blankets not to be provided -- though some albergues that do not have them normally do provide them in the winter Camino season only.

Usually, the private albergues will have them and sometimes (and in some particular albergue organisation places often) they won't.

 

[andycohn]

Well that might provide the wrong impression !!

Your singular personal experience on one Camino doesn't make a generality.

I walked a very long and slow Camino last time, sleeping in a far greater number of albergues than normal, and it is actually not uncommon at all for blankets not to be provided -- though some albergues that do not have them normally do provide them in the winter Camino season only.

Usually, the private albergues will have them and sometimes (and in some particular albergue organisation places often) they won't.

Yes, JabbaPapa, that's exactly my point: one should not generalize based on limited experience. Janet's original post, based on her experience in the last few weeks as the hospitaliera at one albergue on the Aragones (Arres), could have given the casual reader the impression that albergues everywhere no longer offered blankets, and I responded merely to say that that was not generally true in my recent (last month) experience on the rest of the Aragones. I did not claim that my experience on the Aragones generalized to other caminos, and I welcomed GPeachy's subsequent post about his / her recent experience on the Frances, and I specifically suggested that current practice might depend on the camino.

Rather than taking issue with my post, you yourself might add to the overall discussion by specifying the "very long" camino you walked, when exactly you walked it, and precisely what you mean by it is "not uncommon for blankets not to be provided."

The devil's in the details. Generalizations, as you state, aren't very illuminating.

 

[dougfitz]

one should not generalize based on limited experience. Janet's original post, based on her experience in the last few weeks as the hospitaliera at one albergue on the Aragones (Arres), could have given the casual reader the impression that albergues everywhere no longer offered blankets, and I responded merely to say that that was not generally true in my recent (last month) experience on the rest of the Aragones.

There are some issues here.

I disagree with the suggestion that the OP left any impression to the effect that albergues everywhere no longer offered blankets. The original post was quite specific about that. Even a casual reader would have been able to see that the post was qualified to ensure that people would not assume this applied to every albergue.

It really doesn't matter, @andycohn, what your personal experience is here, or whether this advice is based on a limited number of albergues. It only takes one albergue not to provide blankets for @J Willhaus' advice to be pertinent to every pilgrim, and let me assure you that from my recent experience on the CP and Sanabres, there are many more than just one albergue not providing blankets.

Nay-saying the advice offered in the OP seems rather churlish to me. People can take it or leave it as the case may be. If you think it is overly prescriptive, we could get into a debate about the use of language, but I cannot see the point of doing that.

 

[JabbaPapa]

Yes, JabbaPapa, that's exactly my point: one should not generalize based on limited experience. Janet's original post, based on her experience in the last few weeks as the hospitaliera at one albergue on the Aragones (Arres)

She does have a LOT more experience and knowledge of the Camino than just that ...

Rather than taking issue with my post, you yourself might add to the overall discussion by specifying the "very long" camino you walked, when exactly you walked it

See https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/camino-home-to-home-2019-2021-2022-2023.58346/ ...

373 days and ~5,000K on the Provençal, Arles Way, Via Romieu/French Catalan, Camí Catalàn via Lleida / Ebro Way, Francès, Madrid Way, a lot of hors piste, one night in a Municipal on the Sureste, a few days on the Levante, one day 2 nights on the VDLP, some days switching between the Camino de San Francisco de Asís and the Camino Torres, then Rota do Vale do Côa, a bit on the Caminho Nascente, the Ruta do Zêzere, a NE > SW > W Fátima route I can't remember the name of offhand but is currently being waymarked and "officially" established, the Português Central, the Caminho do Fátima de Nascente, the Português Coastal, the Francès again, a short part of the Le Puy Way, and a short part of the Piémont Way, between early January 2019 and early January 2023 ; and in Winter, Spring, Summer (twice), Autumn, then Winter again.

So no -- I am not "generalising". I have recent overall experience of hundreds of albergues (or lack thereof) on over twenty different Camino routes and in all seasons.

, and precisely what you mean by it is "not uncommon for blankets not to be provided."

Not uncommon i.e. not "Unusual in amount, extent, or degree". (OED definition 3) I mean it in the normal sense of that expression, in that occurrence of no blankets is not a rare outcome in the Albergues of these Ways of Saint James, without being a frequent one.

 

[J Willhaus]

I don't want start a fued, but it only takes one night of being too cold to be uncomfortable. I don't like pilgrims to feel uncomfortable, but can't help them in some albergues I have worked with a no blanket policy/practice. Fortunately last night the 4 of 7 pilgrims without sleep sacks did have a bottom sheet and pillowcase freshly laundered. This morning they reported they closed the windows and slept quite warmly and well in the quiet night of Arres...

 

[joecollins]

I can't tell tou how many pilgrims with big packs have asked me for a blanket the past few weeks. Please bring a sleep sack of some kind in your big pack, if you plan to sleep in albergues. While some albergues may provide them, not all do and you should not take this for granted.

Blankets are not washed daily and they can harbor bedbugs so in many albergues they are not provided. Nothing worse than the sad face of especially some older person wanting a blanket when there are none to he had...

Thank you for your insight. I am in the early stages of planning my first walk and I will add your advice into the mix and see how it all shakes out.

 

[Elizabeth C.]

Hello Phil, I'm not sure whether that distinction between private and public albergues holds. All the other albergues on the Aragones that we stayed in -- at Canfranc, Jaca, Undues de Lerda, and Tiebas -- were municipals and provided blankets. So, too, did the albergue at Artieda, but I don't know whether it was privately-run or managed by the town. On the French side of the pass, the communal gite at Urdos, and the monastery at Sarrance both provided blankets.

So perhaps it depends on the camino -- GPeachy, above, says there were few places on the Frances that provided blankets -- or maybe it's just random.

And I definitely don't want to wade in to the sleeping bag / liner debate. I have no expert knowledge about bedbugs and where they live, but I strongly suspect that if an albergue or any other establishment provides blankets, whether you use them or not, and the blankets harbor bedbugs, they will surely get into the beds themselves. So what do you do? Wrap yourself in a spacesuit?

So what do you do? Wrap yourself in a spacesuit?

Yeah, exactly. Seems like a lost cause to me.

 

[williamlittig]

I can't tell tou how many pilgrims with big packs have asked me for a blanket the past few weeks. Please bring a sleep sack of some kind in your big pack, if you plan to sleep in albergues. While some albergues may provide them, not all do and you should not take this for granted.

Blankets are not washed daily and they can harbor bedbugs so in many albergues they are not provided. Nothing worse than the sad face of especially some older person wanting a blanket when there are none to he had...

If you are sleeping in an albergue without your own bedding, please remember to to donate the cost of laundering those blankets 5-6eu. It is better that you are prepared

 

[Bumpa]

So what do you do? Wrap yourself in a spacesuit?

Yeah, exactly. Seems like a lost cause to me.

Surely the salient point to be gleaned from all of this; is that if you are going to stay in albergues.. you would be wise to carry a liner or light sleeping bag.

 

[MichelleElynHogan]

I can't tell tou how many pilgrims with big packs have asked me for a blanket the past few weeks. Please bring a sleep sack of some kind in your big pack, if you plan to sleep in albergues. While some albergues may provide them, not all do and you should not take this for granted.

Blankets are not washed daily and they can harbor bedbugs so in many albergues they are not provided. Nothing worse than the sad face of especially some older person wanting a blanket when there are none to he had...

I will repeat that carrying a Snugpak Jungle Blanket is a viable and light solution on Caminos in Spain, "IN THE SUMMER."

It is a double layer blanket that I use regularly instead of a sleeping bag.

A quick search for it proved that the Jungle Blanket is out there, with many price points in many countries, so shop for the best pricing in your area.

 

[Robertb345]

Well this brings up an important safety idea:
If you ever found your self lost and strayed away from a camino and need someone to help. Just start discussing albergues and if they have blankets with yourself, and someone will show up to argue with you. Then you can ask them how to get back to the camino.. just saying.

 

[t2andreo]

My two cents worth is to ALWAYS have a Plan B. ALWAYS be prepared.

My Plan B system includes a very small (packed) microfiber sleep sack. From Alps Engineering, it has a full zip, is machine washable, and quite warm for inside sleeping. You can see it at:

Rectangle Liner

Oversized sleeping bag liner

alpsmountaineering.com

When not used, this liner rides at the very bottom of my rucksack, compressed in a zip lock bag. Most Caminos, it never comes out.

But, on those one or two trips I needed it, it was a life saver. The other thing I do in exigent circumstances is to shower, then put on the clean clothes I will wear the next day.

I wear these clothes, plus my fleece jacket, in the microfiber liner and it is toasty warm.

Finally, for an real emergency where I might have to sleep out of doors, I carry a virtually weightless emergency bivvy bag. This is Plan C. It is made of the same reflective mylar material as "space" emergency blankets. Except this bivvy sack is shaped like a tall, thin cone. For emergency overnight on the Camino, or to warm an injured person I might encounter, this is money and weight well spent, at least IMHO. It easily fits in the same zip lock bag as the microfiber sleeping bag liner.

I guess having been a boy scout many decades ago, the motto "Be Prepared" stuck with me.

Hope this helps.

Tom

 

[David Harper]

I would think that this topic for experienced pilgrims is something that they would not need answered. This is something that a new pilgrim would find quite important. Based on my 4 camino's, two in spring and two in the fall, I would recommend, at minimum; a liner or a light sleeping bag. If you choose to change strategies mid-camino you can purchase along the way.

 

[Hiking starts at 75]

Nothing as soothing and lovely to sleep in your own light weight sleeping bags. It does not take much space and wherever you sleep, you feel at home. Buen Camino. ( worth buying one )

 

[JabbaPapa]

Or -- bring a light sleeping bag. Then, if really you don't need it ? Leave it in the donation box for someone who might ...

 

[Rita Flower]

Two Caminos with a silk liner were fine but there were some colder nights where I had to wear all my clothes.
On Portuguese I discovered one Albergue where they put their blankets away for summer. The hospitalaro said there were no blankets but when I looked for her to ask for a Band-Aid I saw a room full of blankets. I had to really beg, offer to pay extra, before she relented- but did not take my money.
Am older now and like a bit of Camino comfort so take a lightweight sleeping bag and silk liner.
Covers all bases and worth the extra half kilo.

 

[Richard Smith]

Well this brings up an important safety idea:
If you ever found your self lost and strayed away from a camino and need someone to help. Just start discussing albergues and if they have blankets with yourself, and someone will show up to argue with you. Then you can ask them how to get back to the camino.. just saying.

Pulling out a crossword or Sudoku puzzle works same way.
Someone will pop over your shoulder with a word or number, just ask them where you are.

 

[Maclean]

Done the Arles Route, doing the Norte next year, 2024. Try this as an alternative to a sleeping bag the Trifecta by 2gosystems or the ARC by the same company. Trifecta can serve as a bivvy bag (it's waterproof), a survival bag ( it reflects something like 70-80% of body heat back) but is very wide and made from tyvec and can be surprisingly cool when needed. Weighs 1lb (16oz, 453g). It can also be unzipped and used as a groundsheet, a tarp/shelter or as a shelter to give shade from the heat, reflective side uppermost to reflect the heat away from you when you’re beneath it. In other words its the most versatile piece of kit in my pack. The ARC is lighter and has mosquito netting on the front, haven't used one so can't say how good they are but based on other products from this company probably ideal for the Camino. Link below. Hope this helps.

2GoSystems

2GoSystems – Intelligent Camping & Survival Systems

gb-2gosystems.glopalstore.com

 

[David Tallan]

I am not disputing the OP by any means, and I bring something to sleep in with a lightweight quilt incorporated on one side. But I have noticed that on the Camino de Madrid, at least, blankets seem to be pretty consistently provided by albergues. Not that I ever would need them at thus time of year, when even a liner might be too much.

 

[SBurgess]

I walked the entire Camino Francés in September-October 2021. At that time all the albergues provided disposable mattress and pillow covers. This eliminated the concern about bedbugs.
Are disposable covers no longer provided? If not, then the bedbug question is important. I would bring a lightweight sleeping bag and make sure I shaked it out each morning.
The question of a sleeping bag or liner for warmth is also a question of how warm you sleep.

 

[dougfitz]

I walked the entire Camino Francis in September-October 2021. At that time all the albergues provided disposable mattress and pillow covers. This eliminated the concern about bedbugs.
Are disposable covers no longer provided? If not, then the bedbug question is important. I would bring a lightweight sleeping bag and make sure I shaked it out each morning.
The question of a sleeping bag or liner for warmth is also a question of how warm you sleep.

This is the first time that the topic of disposable bed-sheets and pillow covers has been raised, and there has been no suggestion that those places that provided them in the past have stopped doing so.

I don't think your assessment that they will eliminate concerns about bed bugs is justified. Where they are provided, this is a hygiene measure, and won't do anything to stop bed bugs trying to find a home in a mattress or elsewhere in a dormitory. There is now widespread use of mattress encasements, covers that will prevent bed bugs finding a home in the mattress. This still leaves the prospect that bed bugs will find a home in cracks in the bed frame, skirting boards, etc, as well as your pack and other equipment.

 

[Lindsay from Scotland]

I can't tell tou how many pilgrims with big packs have asked me for a blanket the past few weeks. Please bring a sleep sack of some kind in your big pack, if you plan to sleep in albergues. While some albergues may provide them, not all do and you should not take this for granted.

Blankets are not washed daily and they can harbor bedbugs so in many albergues they are not provided. Nothing worse than the sad face of especially some older person wanting a blanket when there are none to he had...

Old people are not that stupid!
It’s the young ones that I pity!
Lindsay

 

[J Willhaus]

Old people are not that stupid!
It’s the young ones that I pity!
Lindsay

Sadly, it was mostly older French Pilgrims who were not prepared to sleep without the availability of blankets.

 

[geraldkelly]

Yes, agree. I just got back from a couple of weeks on the Camino Frances, I was suprised how many people I saw who hadn't brought any type of sleeping bag. They were sleeping in their rain gear, covering themselves with disposable sheets, it was ridiculous. Where do people get the idea that you don't need a sleeping bag? (Unless of course you're going to stay in hotels the whole time)

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I am as expert as anyone when it comes to albergues and what's provided there.
It boils down NOT to what an albergue should provide, but what is expected of the pilgrim. Each traveler is responsible for providing for his own needs. Every pilgrim needs to carry some sort of sleeping gear. The albergue agrees to offer shelter and a shower, and that's about it. The albergue is not responsible for keeping pilgrims cozy at night. That's the pilgrim's own responsibility.
That is why we tell every pilgrim to carry his own sleeping bag or liner or whatever. If the albergue offers blankets, consider it a bonus, not an entitlement.
If you cannot bear the extra weight, please feel free to stay at a hostal, pension, or hotel and use their bedding.

 

[dougfitz]

Where do people get the idea that you don't need a sleeping bag?

On this forum, amongst other places. There are enough members suggesting there is no need to carry one for it to be no surprize that some take this advice, and avoid the weight and volume of carrying a sleeping bag.

 

[dick bird]

At that time all the albergues provided disposable mattress and pillow covers. This eliminated the concern about bedbugs.

Er, no. Disposable mattress and pillow covers provide zero protection against bedbugs. They are, I am pretty sure, utterly useless for any purpose at all..

As has been pointed out on this forum and many websites with expert information on the subject, bedbugs do not necessarily live in the bed. They inhabit the building, e.g. cracks between floorboards or tiles and behind window frames. They crawl out at night and bite anything with blood. No physical barrier stops them.

As for albergues and blankets, there are definitely some that don´t provide them and even the ones that do can be pretty cold (plus the blankets are rarely if ever washed). So if you expect to stay in an albergue, bring a light sleeping bag or heavy liner.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I can't speak for every albergue, but those of ours (Grado, Canfranc, and Najera) that use paper sheets do it because it saves on laundering the sheets during high-volume season. I personally don't like them, I find them wasteful and uncomfortable to use, but it's not always up to me.

 

[J Willhaus]

I can't speak for every albergue, but those of ours (Grado, Canfranc, and Najera) that use paper sheets do it because it saves on laundering the sheets during high-volume season. I personally don't like them, I find them wasteful and uncomfortable to use, but it's not always up to me.

Ok, last year we were laundering sheets at Canfranc. Has that changed? Still laundered sheets this year at Arres.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Ok, last year we were laundering sheets at Canfranc. Has that changed? Still laundered sheets this year at Arres.

Volume is low at Canfranc, so we stay with real sheets so far.