The year of peak camino?

[jirit]

You probably heard of peak oil, or peak water.

Many argue that worldwide we are entering a period of diminishing resources, where demand exceeds supply of certain resources, such as oil, water, food, etc.

Can the same be said of the camino ?
Have we reached a point whereby the demand (a never ending supply of pilgrims) exceeds the ability of the camino (namely the camino Frances route) to provide ?
Has the camino become too crowded, and too busy and unable to cope with the volumes of people walking it?

Comments ?

 

[wayfarer]

I have wondered about this too, will the Frances become a victim of its success? Nature has a way of rebalancing itself and I think this will happen here at some stage, people will stop walking the Frances because of crowding and walk other routes, numbers will drop off and get back to normal levels again, businesses will suffer but eventualy the cycle will start again.

 

[mspath]

It is sad to think but perhaps like Machu Picchu, the Galapagos or Mount Everest the Camino Frances has become too chic. Unfortunately for many it has become the thing to do because others are doing it!! It has become "hot" and "in"; until the next new thing/trip comes along it will be hyper busy. ..Nevertheless with time this too shall pass.

MM

 

[tyrrek]

Difficult question to answer really...and if it does peak it's not necessarily because it is unable to service the number of pilgrims, of course.
We must already be seeing an increase in the number of pilgrims returning for repeat Caminos. (I've never seen any sound data on that, but on my recent foray onto the VDLP I don't think I met anyone who was on their first Camino.) If we're seeing an increase in returning pilgrims we could already be seeing a decline in the number of first-timers without necessarily knowing it from the overall figures. That could in a way be the 'beginning of the end' for the growth of the Frances even if absolute numbers continue to rise for a few years thereafter. Repeat pilgrims are more likely to have started on the Frances and eventually move onto other routes than vice versa.
There would be tell tale (mainly) economic signs when things were really getting towards the stage of being unable to cope. Albergues would stop closing for any more than a month, private albergues especially beyond Sarria would be charging 25+ euros a night, and there would generally be more seasonal pricing. People would start choosing their route based on price as much as all the other factors we currently see on this forum.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

This year may be the first year to approach Holy Year crowds. In a Holy Year the juntas gear up for crowds. For example, Melide put up a temporary tent albergue that housed over one hundred pilgrims. Before the last 100km albergues sprang up all over the place in anticipation of the crowds. Many struggled to survive in the following couple of years, and competition kept nightly rates low (rarely over 12E). This year they will thrive, I suspect, but pilgrims will feel the pinch because none of the temporary facilities have been erected.

Half the pilgrims are Spanish. When they are deterred by the crowding, the popularity of pilgrimage can fall off rapidly. That may be an early sign of decline; the Spanish stop walking! It is their country, their tradition, their patron saint, and their holy pilgrimage. When they leave, it is just another tourist trap.

Watch the French, too. They love walking, but they can do it easily on the extensive GR system in France. When Spain becomes an aggravation to them, they will stick to the busy, but not crowded, French routes. Santiago de Compostela does not have as strong a draw to the French as it does to the Spanish. France has plenty of its own holy places among 38 world heritage sites (40 in Spain, for comparison).

 

[brawblether]

I have wondered about this too, will the Frances become a victim of its success?

their tradition... their holy pilgrimage.

The pilgrimage to St James the Apostle has ranked alongside Rome and Jerusalem since the 13th century. The popularity amongst the whole Christian world, and most particularly western Christians, was enormous. The popularity it experiences now is just incomparable. Times have changed and these days the motivation to journey on this particular pilgrimage has, for good or bad, taken on a different meaning. Perhaps some reflection on past times will help locals and pilgrims move forward to best accommodate the latest influx of pilgrims and their modern day needs and requirements.

 

[annakappa]

I have wondered about this too, will the Frances become a victim of its success?

Me too, I've been wondering about this over the last month. Could be the death of the goose that laid the golden egg.
I've been following several Blogs and other observations and I feel that the Camino is really beginning to loose its charm and purpose, which after all, is a Pilgrimage to visit the tomb of St. James in Santiago.
A pity! Anne

 

[Deleted member 22638]

Many argue that worldwide we are entering a period of diminishing resources, where demand exceeds supply of certain resources, such as oil, water, food, etc.

We are once again "in the west" in a collective Malthusian mindset - history tells us it will pass

if the Camino returns to medieval or greater levels of popularity it will have succeeded in attracting many more than will have stopped because it has lost its charm, in my opinion it would be a greater good:

Remember those who walked in solitude in the 60s & 70s would have been appalled by the vast numbers walking in the 90s and no doubt they moved on to other walks that better suited their needs.

 

[scruffy1]

Can't fight a "natural" force, the attraction of the CF is overwhelming. My solution has been to move back - Le Puy is a grand alternative, Vezelay is much the calmer route often considered spiritual, Tours is an amazing tour through some of France's finest Gothic cathedrals-Chartes, Orleans, Blois, Tours, Poitiers, and if you insist, then Spain but do try to develop a seven league stride Sevilla or Grnada, Valencia or Alicante will attract you. Besides, at some point your wall will not be able to hold yet another Compostela!