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While planning a trek through the Spanish province of Almería, I came across an accommodation option called albergue de peregrinos, which apparently means a pilgrims' hostel. Cheap and basic, but good enough for me (and there's nothing else in that village). Although I will be hiking/trekking, I am not a pilgrim and not heading to Santiago de Compostela. In at least one case, I read about a restriction:

Solo aceptan a peregrinos con la credencial sellada y en dirección a Santiago de Compostela

English translation:

They only accept pilgrims with a stamped credential and in the direction of Santiago de Compostela.

I'm not a pilgrim and I don't have a stamped credential.

Other pilgrims' hostels, including the one I'm considering, do not explicitly indicate this restriction, but they are not listed in usual tourism places either, so perhaps the restriction still exists even if not explicitly stated.

Is this a typical restriction for those pilgrims' hostels, or are other hikers (or cyclists?) usually welcome as well? Considering the very low prices (€15 or even "pay what you can"), I can imagine such accommodations might be subsidised for the specific purpose of pilgrimages and are not intended as a general budget accommodation.

Many accommodations are only reachable by phone and my Spanish is rusty, so it might be useful to understand what to expect before trying to make a reservation, which might be a waste of time.

mlc
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gerrit
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2 Answers2

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When the description of the albergues say that they're exclusive to pilgrims with the credential stamped, I recommend you to trust it and not go there if you aren't a pilgrim and have the credential.

Those places are already humble and small by nature, and often times there's no one to attend you when you arrive, and you have to call or go search someone so that they attend you. These places are really barebones as in they're just the minimal bed under a roof for pilgrims to spend the night and continue their route. The people running the albergues are already doing a big service for pilgrims while getting almost nothing in return. So, better not use them if you don't meet their requirements.

That said, you can always ask them directly via phone call or email or Whatsapp if they have, and maybe they accept you. Maybe they never fill all their beds, or they're sympathetic with hikers in general whether they're doing El Camino de Santiago or not. If you don't have a better option you can always try.

The option you can try is looking for normal hostels, without being explicitly for pilgrims. Many of those hostels will actually have many actual pilgrims with credentials, that couldn't find any pilgrims hostel for the night or wanted something better.

Like for example 2 years ago I stayed one night in the Bide Ona hostel in Portugalete, Bilbao (the Northern Way of the Camino de Santiago), just because I was going to a concert that night in that town. I don't remember the price but it was cheap, no more than 20€. And they accepted anyone. Like me just going to a concert. And it is actually a pilgrims hostel, just not an exclusive one.

xtropicalsoothing
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Having the credentials is required to access these accommodations.

When one starts the Camino, they get a booklet attesting their status and where they get stamps along the way. That is what is commonly referred to as "credential".

Also known as the ‘Credencial’, it’s essential for the Camino de Santiago, proving you’ve either walked the last 100km of the Camino de Santiago or cycled the last 200km of the Camino de Santiago to obtain your Compostela certificate. Collect stamps along your journey at accommodations, churches, and town halls as you experience the historic route.

About the accommodations:

A good network of Albergues (hostels) along the Camino de Santiago, particularly along the most popular routes such as the French Way or Camino Frances.

The classic Camino Albergues are public, run by ‘Hospitaleros’ (Camino volunteers), and can’t be booked in advance. Beds in dorms are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.

You must have your pilgrim passport stamped as part of the ‘check-in’ process, and walkers always take priority over other pilgrims (i.e. on horseback or bike pilgrims).

In some towns, particularly along the Camino Frances and the Camino Portugues, you will also find privately-run hostels with a similar setup: beds in dorms at low prices.

As you can read, they not exactly business venues, and are run by volunteers, which explains the low rates for accessing them.

L.Dutch
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