Albertinho
Veteran Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Pilgrims Office Volunteer
Is the Variante Espiritual recognized by the Pilgrims Office yes or not ?
last year it was not. This year there was doubt about it anyway on this forum and I checked it out by someone who worked at the Pilgrims Office as volunteer but he could not give me the right answer .
The only thing we knew so far is that the official routes , issued by the Pilgrims Office from Portugal are
240 kms by the Central route from Porto via Tui , the coastal from Porto to Vila do Conde and from there to the Central route 260 kms and the coastal route from Porto via Baiona and Vigo , 280 kms. All counted via Caldas de Reis.
Today I got the confirmation that if you walk one of these routes ánd the Variante Espiritual and you ask for a certificate of Distance, the kms mentioned on this document, in this case from a friend who walked from Porto to Vila do Conde and from there on the Central route via Tui are 260 kms . ( should be 315 km though if it is a recognised part of the caminho Português) The extra kms for the VE -about 55 kms - are not counted. This friend arrived today in Santiago and let me know as I asked him on beforehand.
The Variante Espiritual is a beautiful route and the boatride is a nice break .
so there is no reason not to walk this part others than officially it is not recognized by the Pilgrims Office. Who cares about this 55 extra kms ?
But keep in mind to take care that you always walk from at least from O Porriño or Vigo to walk the correct distance of 100 kms as measured by Caldas de Reis and gather 2 stamps a day from O Porriño or Vigo..
If you think to start in Redondela and walk the Variante , the boatride and the last about 30 kms from Pontecessures to Santiago ( is 100 kms) , they will not give you a Compostela
And always gather two stamps , also on the Variante Spiritual !
It does not effect many because most pilgrims start in Porto and then you always pass O Porrińo or Vigo.
last year it was not. This year there was doubt about it anyway on this forum and I checked it out by someone who worked at the Pilgrims Office as volunteer but he could not give me the right answer .
The only thing we knew so far is that the official routes , issued by the Pilgrims Office from Portugal are
240 kms by the Central route from Porto via Tui , the coastal from Porto to Vila do Conde and from there to the Central route 260 kms and the coastal route from Porto via Baiona and Vigo , 280 kms. All counted via Caldas de Reis.
Today I got the confirmation that if you walk one of these routes ánd the Variante Espiritual and you ask for a certificate of Distance, the kms mentioned on this document, in this case from a friend who walked from Porto to Vila do Conde and from there on the Central route via Tui are 260 kms . ( should be 315 km though if it is a recognised part of the caminho Português) The extra kms for the VE -about 55 kms - are not counted. This friend arrived today in Santiago and let me know as I asked him on beforehand.
The Variante Espiritual is a beautiful route and the boatride is a nice break .
so there is no reason not to walk this part others than officially it is not recognized by the Pilgrims Office. Who cares about this 55 extra kms ?
But keep in mind to take care that you always walk from at least from O Porriño or Vigo to walk the correct distance of 100 kms as measured by Caldas de Reis and gather 2 stamps a day from O Porriño or Vigo..
If you think to start in Redondela and walk the Variante , the boatride and the last about 30 kms from Pontecessures to Santiago ( is 100 kms) , they will not give you a Compostela
And always gather two stamps , also on the Variante Spiritual !
It does not effect many because most pilgrims start in Porto and then you always pass O Porrińo or Vigo.