Hostal El Carro

The host was incredibly kind and helpful, and it was quiet at night, which made this our favorite place to stay on the Camino so far. My companion and I have been walking for several days. The clean room had a very comfortable bed, and the hilltop spot looks out over the beach and bay. We'd happily stay again.

The women working there were really nice, and I'm sorry the stay turned out this way. But for 50€ I got a freezing room with no heating, air conditioning, or even a hairdryer. I'd been soaked through by the rain that day. There were at least seven long hairs in the bathroom and bed, so it didn't seem like the sheets had been changed. I only found out at 19:00, after going downstairs, that the restaurant had no dinner options, even though the room information listed dinner at 19:00. My delivery apps didn't work because I'm not Spanish, and nobody could help since they didn't speak English. I ended up going to bed cold and hungry. Be careful when booking here.

The local food was good value, and the bar had plenty on offer, though the kitchen closes at 9.30pm. The hostel itself feels past its best, with rather old rooms. The free Wi-Fi was extremely weak, and while the views are good, the highway in front gets noisy, especially from a room facing it. I paid 65€ for a weekend room and 15€ for the menu del dia.

The food prices were ridiculous. A 0.5 beer costs 5€, and the 15€ dinner wasn't worth even 5€. Sleep was also out of the question, with a motor-like sound, probably a water pump, coming from inside the hostel about every half hour. My room felt muggy, with old heavy carpets on the floor and walls, and the window setup made it almost impossible to get fresh air in. The place was the worst hostel I had on my whole Camino del Norte. Everything felt worn: old-fashioned rooms, spider webs all over the bathroom ceiling, and a basin so loosely fixed to the wall I nearly pulled it off by accident. I was exhausted after walking from Castro Urdiales, so I stopped here. It may be tempting for pilgrims finishing the day, especially after walking from Castro Urdiales and aiming for Laredo instead of Liendo, but don't make the same mistake. This was the worst hostel on the whole Camino del Norte from Irun to Santiago.