For info write to Laura Monastier accoglienzapellegrina.corsi@gmail.com
The above schedule can also be found in the ‘Hospitaleros Voluntarios’ section of the Spanish Federation: https://www.caminosantiago.org/cpperegrino/hospitaleros/cursos.asp
On the sunny weekend of 11-13 October, this year’s 5th course for new Hospitaleros Voluntarios was held at the Benedictine Abbey of Praglia, near Padua.
The magic of the Francigena and Jacobean way led the 17 participants, aged between 30 and 60, to want to give back what they had received during their pilgrimage. Their first service will take place in Italy in 2025 to welcome pilgrims arriving for the Holy Year, but many of them will repeat it in Spain.
A great harmony was immediately established between the participants and trainers. As always, training sessions are a gift of friendship, complicity, serenity, humility and, above all, a commitment to serve others.
Special thanks to the two AP veteran hospitaleros who prepared a simple and inclusive menu.
For almost two years, the associations Compostelle France, the Asociación Belga de los Amigos de Santiago, the Federación española FEAACS and the Nederlands Genootschap van Sint Jacob have been working on a wide-ranging project with ambitious and now imperative objectives to bring together all those involved in the maintenance and development of the routes and the preservation of the Jacobean tradition.
At the end of the project phase, during which the new association was chaired by the President of the Nederlands Genootschap van Sint Jacob, Peter Hesseling, a meeting of the 20 member associations representing 13 European countries was held in Santiago on 2 July for the operational start-up phase. The Assembly appointed the Executive Committee, which is composed as follows:
… read the full article on the page https://www.accoglienzapellegrina.org/en/miscellaneous/1913-2/
The Credential is an essential travel document for pilgrims, certifying their identity, the route taken and their status as a pilgrim. We remind you of the importance of using it responsibly and correctly,
The Credential issued by Accoglienza Pellegrina is recognised for the Pilgrim’s Way to Santiago de Compostela and the Via Francigena. To request a credential, contact us by e-mail at info@accoglienzapellegrina.org and we will send you all the necessary information. Credentials are free of charge, but we do ask for a donation that will be used to help run the hostels where our volunteer members provide a considerate and reliable support to pilgrims, guaranteeing them a safe and authentic experience during their journey.
See the dedicated page on the website: https://www.accoglienzapellegrina.org/varie/la-credenziale-del-pellegrino/
A group of Hospitaleros Voluntarios del Camino de Santiago paid tribute to three deceased companions on Sunday 28th January: “Resti” Gutiérrez, “Justi” Infante and José Ignacio Díaz. Around 30 people from different parts of Spain went to Mostelares, on the outskirts of Castrojeriz, to plant three trees and place plaques at their feet.
This is a custom that dates back to 2015, in memory of the disappeared comrades: an olive, almond or holm oak tree is planted in their memory in an area called El Bosque de las Almas (The Wood of the Souls).
The event was of particular importance to the group, which paid tribute to José Ignacio Díaz, the founder of Hospitaleros Voluntarios, parish priest of Santiago el Real de Logroño, pilgrim and hospitalero, and “prominent figure”. The idea of traditional, voluntary and fraternal hospitality, which characterises this group of volunteers, came from him and was presented at the First International Forum of the Pilgrim’s Way to Santiago, held in Jaca (Huesca) in 1987, in order to serve the pilgrims, whose numbers began to grow in the 1980s. Hospitaleros Voluntarios was ‘officially’ born in 1990 with the first hostel in Hornillos del Camino, where its volunteers served.
Resti Gutiérrez was in charge of the municipal hostel in Castrojeriz for many years, while Justi Infante, a “humble and loving worker”, came to the Pilgrim’s Way thanks to his doctor’s prescription.
After the trees were planted, ceramic plaques from the workshop of a ceramist in Triana, Seville, were placed to commemorate the work of the three volunteers.
In 2024, the courses for would-be hospitaleros will follow the following schedule:
For info write to Laura Monastier accoglienzapellegrina.corsi@gmail.com
The above schedule can also be found in the ‘Hospitaleros Voluntarios’ section of the Spanish Federation: https://www.caminosantiago.org/cpperegrino/hospitaleros/cursos.asp
On the last weekend of October, the annual meeting of Accoglienza Pellegrina hospitaleros voluntarios took place in Pietrasanta and Valpromaro. During the event, about sixty volunteers from Italy, Holland and Spain, as representatives of Hosvol Spain, were hosted at San Francesco hostel and Casa Diocesiana della Rocca in Pietrasanta. During the day, other hospitaleros joined in to take part in the planned activities.
On Friday evening, after dinner, hospitalero Filippo organised a leisure activity aimed at getting participants to know each other and bringing them together. On Saturday morning, a tour of Pietrasanta was led by Gabriele Veschi, a passionate connoisseur of history and art, to discover the monumental beauty and history of the city. After lunch, taking advantage of the sunny day, the participants went for a pleasant walk to Marina di Pietrasanta to enjoy the beach and each othe’s company.
In the late afternoon, the annual meeting was held, during which the Accoglienza Pellegrina Board of Directors summarised the activities of the Association for the year 2023, commenting on the various points together with the numerous members present. Late evening, hospitalera Marinella, led a group activity with a focus on hospitality.
On Sunday morning, the participants moved to Valpromaro to attend Holy Mass in the Church of St. Martin. After Mass, the twinning of the pilgrims’ hostel “St John the Baptist” in Grañon and the pilgrims’ hostel “Giuseppe Mancino” in Valpromaro was celebrated live on Zoom. The Spanish parish priest, Father Alejandro, and Marina Saiz exchanged moving words with Iacopo Menchetti, Enza Bini and the parish priest of Valpromaro, Father Alessandro, and hoped to meet in person soon. The celebration continued with the testimonies of the people of Valpromaro, the Spaniish hospitaleros voluntaries represented by Anai Barreda and Manuel Oliva, Herman Velvis, hospitalero from Holland, and the AP hospitaleros.
The celebrations continued in the pilgrims’ hostel, where the participants cheerfully welcomed the banner that marks ten years of collaboration and a large wooden muñequito with dozens of replicas of it inside, on which the participants had written their names.
A rich lunch, prepared by the local people and attended by the Bishop of Lucca, Paolo Giulietti, was shared in the old village school.
Joy, generosity, fraternity, sharing, emotion and enthusiasm accompanied the participants throughout the meeting.
On 21 April 2023, we published on this website a list of accommodation along the Via Francigena considering both the start from the Great St. Bernard Pass and the start from the Montgenèvre Pass. It is a long and detailed work that now needs everyone’s collaboration in order to remain up-to-date and respond to changing realities. We invite all our members and pilgrims to report any variations in the proposed list as well as new and different accommodations. Information should be addressed to accoglienzapellegrina.strutture@gmail.com.
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