About us

Friends of
The Way of St. James
in Slovakia

Our organisation

We are a civic association aiming to restore and promote the Way of St. James in Slovakia. Day by day, we try to improve this historic route for modern-day pilgrims who want to develop their spiritual dimension, get to know themselves better and discover everything Slovakia has to offer.

Our activities

Restoring and marking the ancient Way of St. James in Slovakia

Besides drafting the best possible routes and marking them, we collect relevant information and coordinate the activities of all the different organisations and partners involved in this process.

Our goal is to mark the Way of St. James from Košice in the east and Žilina in the north, all the way down to Bratislava, and so connect the whole territory of Slovakia to the currently renewing pan-European network of the Way of St. James. The Hungarian part of the Camino, the Szent Jakab út, merges with Slovakia’s Svätojakubská cesta in Bratislava. From here, they continue together to join Austria’s Jakobsweg in the village of Wolfstahl.

Guidebooks and infrastructure for pilgrims

We are in continuous communication with the most important tourism and regional development organisations in the country. We also prepare and publish guidebooks containing everything pilgrims need to know to prepare for and walk the Svätojakubská cesta in Slovakia. In the booklets you will find a detailed description of the different stages, their height profile, accommodation options on the way, and attractions in the area.

We have also developed Slovakia’s official credencial or pilgrim’s passport, which has been properly registered at the Pilgrim’s Office in Santiago de Compostela. The Slovak Credencial is recognised by the international Camino community and entitles you to get La Compostela, the certificate of accomplishment given to pilgrims on completing the Way. Your Slovak credencial will take you not only through Slovakia but also throughout the whole Europe.

Promoting the Way of St. James

At the core of our activities is promoting the Way of St. James in Slovakia in order to increase awareness of the Slovak part of the Camino de Santiago, both among locals and foreigners. For this purpose we work together with the media and actively participate in a wide range of cultural events. Moreover, we keep the public informed on all issues having to do with the Way of St. James, the activities we are planning for the future and the results our association has achieved. Our goal is to present to the general public the natural, cultural and spiritual values you will find along the Way of St. James in Slovakia in order to attract local and foreign pilgrims.

Domestic and international cooperation

None of the above would be possible without the support and cooperation of key Slovak institutions, such as the Episcopal Conference of Slovakia, the Club of Slovak Hikers, the Slovak Cycloclub, all Self-governing Administrations, as well as several local tourism organisations, cities and municipalities.

We are also founding members of the Asociácia pútnických organizácií (Association of Pilgrim Organisations of Slovakia), the entity the Episcopal Conference of Slovakia entrusted with the task to develop pilgrimage in the country.

Notice

We would like you to know that our Civic Association is not the only initiative carrying out Camino-related activities in Slovakia.

As a matter of fact, our Civic Association is often confused with other organisations founded by Mr. Gerhard Weag, such as Fórum jakubskej cesty, Xacobeo, Jakubská cesta Xacobeo, Svätojakubská cesta, Live AID, Live AID International, etc.

For this reason, we distance ourselves from any organisations having to do with Mr Gerhard Weag and their activities. We have no information about these initiatives and, therefore, cannot provide any information concerning their activities and the paths they mark.