Pilgrims Archives - CaminoNow

Quieter Camino-summer, but August-influx reported

11Sep

By Melanie BritzNo Comments

Accommodation, News

Quieter Camino-summer, but August-influx reported

The latest pilgrim figures released by the Burea d'accueil des pѐlerins de St Jacques de St Jean Pied de Port show a quieter summer on the Camino compared to 2022, but a busier August-influx. This is after this year was the busiest April month since 2012. May 2023 numbers were 10% higher than May 2022, and April 2023 was 30% higher than 2022. Latest Camino de Santiago statistics 2023 The bureau, which assists pilgrims leaving from the official start point of the Camino Frances, St Jean Pied de Port in France, reports a strong influx of pilgrims in the last week of August. 6290 pilgrims left St Jean in June, and 5540 in July. This is compared to 6634 and 5690 last year. The number for August is up 1,86% from last year's figures, with 7329 pilgrims departing. Septembe...

Record pilgrim numbers on the Camino Frances in the first 5 months of 2023

9Jun

By Melanie BritzNo Comments

News, Route information

Record pilgrim numbers on the Camino Frances in the first 5 months of 2023

Pilgrim numbers on the Camino Frances reached record numbers in the first 5 months of 2023.Just under 23 000 pilgrims left from St Jean Pied a Porte (SJPP) in the first five months of 2023.This is according to statistics of pilgrims registering with the Bureau d'accueil des pèlerins de St Jacques de St Jean Pied de Port. The bureau is where pilgrims register to get their pilgrim credentials and route information.This year's 22 971 pilgrims was the highest number of pilgrims for the first 5 months of any year, in the more than ten years since 2012 (when the current statistics start).The second highest number for January to May of a year was in 2019. 2019 was a record year when 21 484 pilgrims left the popular starting point.Looking at this April, 9604 pilgrims left in SJPP. This is also the...

No more suitcases, says 11 Albergues on the Camino Frances

2Jun

By Melanie BritzNo Comments

Accommodation, News

No more suitcases, says 11 Albergues on the Camino Frances

Eleven albergues within the Camino Frances has announced that they will implement a new measure from around the third week of June.The eleven traditional Jacobean shelters are prohibiting suitcases in the hostels managed by their associations, agreeing to be militant against what they term "attacks suffered by the route". Unprecedented May numbers of pilgrims According to their press release there is an extraordinary level of pilgrimage at the moment, unprecedented in a May month of the last ten years. They are advising municipalities among the Camino to be prepared to open municipal facilities such as sports centres or other similar spaces, which some towns have reportedly already done. Federation meeting The decision to ban suitcases from these albergues was take...

Unusually cold May-weather catch some pilgrims unaware

1Jun

By Melanie BritzNo Comments

Camino Weather

Unusually cold May-weather catch some pilgrims unaware

An unusually cold spell in May this year saw pilgrims huddled within freezing albergues wearing all their clothes and even scrambling to buy sleeping bags along the route. Using the averages from weatherspark.com, in May the temperatures in Pamplona typically range from 8°C to 17°C. For reference, the hottest day of the year is normally in August and at that time the temperatures typically range from 15°C to 28°C, while at the end of January, the coldest time of the year it ranges from 0°C to 10°C. May in Spain is normally known for pleasant temperatures, but temperatures were below normal for May in the north of Spain with fairly strong winds also adding to the pilgrims' weather woes. Some pilgrims crossing the Pyrenees even reported some light snow as they walked from Orisso...