GR20 refuges fully booked? Here is what actually works
Every night shows full for your dates. In season that is normal, and it is almost never final. Here is why, and what to do, in order.
Why everything is booked out
The GR20 has a handful of staffed refuges, each with a few dozen places, serving one of the most in-demand treks in Europe. Reservations open in winter on the official site (pnr-resa.corsica) and the best-known stages sell out within days for July and August.
The good news: cancellations are structural
The official sale conditions work in your favour: full refund on cancellation, no reason needed, up to 2 months before the trek starts. As that deadline approaches, hikers whose plans changed release their places, in waves, right up to the last minute.
That is not a hopeful guess: RefugeAlert detected 183 openings across GR20 refuges in the last 30 days.
What to do, in order
- Check real availability, not your memory of it. The live availability board shows the current state of all 13 refuges. Places reappear and vanish within hours.
- Put your dates under watch. That is exactly what RefugeAlert does: we monitor the official page for your refuges and dates, and you get an email the moment a place opens, with a direct link to book it yourself on the official site. Set up a watch.
- Play the flexibility card. Shifting your start by a few days, or walking south to north, completely changes the pressure on each stage. A single blocked stage can also be bridged with a tent: most refuges offer pitches, and they are often less contested than beds.
- Aim for the shoulder season. September brings superb conditions and far less pressure on places.
What we do not do
RefugeAlert never books anything on your behalf and cannot guarantee a place will open. We watch, you book. Booking always happens on the official site, at the official price.