27 July - 3 August 2024
Travel across Spain in the footsteps of Saint Ignatius
visiting: Loyola, Pamplona, Manresa, Montserrat and Barcelona.
Join us on our pilgrimage where
we shall be telling the story of Ignatius and visiting the
places where his conversion happened in Loyola and
Pamplona.
Our pilgrims begin with three
nights in the Arrupe Centre, which is situated on the square
by the Sanctuary at the heart of Loyola. Accommodation is in
rooms with en-suite facilities and we shall be having
full-board with wine at lunch and dinner.
Loyola is the village of Ignatius’ birth: where we will visit
the tower-house of his birth, the chapel of his conversion.
(Holy House).
We shall also walk to the nearby local town of Azpeitia to
visit the church where Ignatius was baptised and the hospital
where he stayed and preached.
We walk along the River Urola pedestrian way to the town of
Azkoitia where Iñigo's mother was born to see her family
house.
We also see the venerable Hermitage of Olatz.
We travel across Spain by coach,
visiting Pamplona where Ignatius was struck by the fateful
cannon-ball.
We then travel on to Montserrat.
We spend four nights in the Hotel Abbot Cisneros in
Montserrat. The hotel is a beautifully converted historic
building, next door to the monastery. All bedrooms have
en-suite facilities. We will have full-board our first
day in Montserrat and half-board on our days out to Manresa
and Barcelona. We have a full day in Montserrat, a day
in Manresa and a final day in the city of Barcelona seeing the
sites associated with the life of Ignatius with some time for
private sightseeing.
The story of the life of
Ignatius will be told as we follow in his footsteps. Holy Mass
will be celebrated every day; usually in the holy sites. In
Montserrat the Mass will be in Catalan, otherwise we celebrate
Mass in English.
"Being in the places where Ignatius had experienced various
important moments in his life was a source of blessing beyond
words! Each pilgrim needs to experience the graces of these
places in his or her own way...but they are there. The leaders
were amazing and tried to be attentive to all needs. So
grateful. "
Sr Jeanne, 2022 Pilgrimage
“I highly recommend this joyful and well-organised Ignatian
pilgrimage. We were an eclectic and colourful group of pilgrims
with a wide range of theologies and spiritualities which led to
some lively dinner-table discussions! Places like Loyola,
Montserrat and Manresa that used to be just names to me are now
full of rich associations of climbing misty mountains, eating
aromatic Spanish peaches, and praying alongside Ignatian
relics.” John, 2022 Pilgrimage
A Walking Pilgrimage - 2024
This is a walking pilgrimage;
participants will need to be able to walk without strain at a
reasonable walking speed on paved streets. As the buildings
are old they frequently do not have modern accessibility
feature.
We are sad to say that this pilgrimage is unsuitable for
wheelchairs or people who find walking a challenge.
We walk up to a couple of miles or so at a time.
We also travel by bus so the ability to negotiate a few fairly
steep steps is also necessary.
July and August in Loyola is
warm, but rarely more than 30°C, more often in the mid 20's;
Manresa and Barcelona will be hot 25-35°C, so be prepared to
dress to keep cool;
but remember we are visiting many religious shrines, short
sleeves are required.
What to Bring
A sun hat and sunscreen lotion and a portable fan will
be useful
A pair of comfortable walking shoes
Euro is the Spanish currency
You may want a lightweight rainproof or small umbrella for
Loyola.
A European Health Insurance Card or a British Global Health
Card and/or Travel and Health Insurance.
For UK Residents see Government
advice.
Passport and Airline tickets/boarding cards
Guide to the 6-month
passport rule — what is it?
(Link to external site, ISC not responsible for
information given)
There is an opportunity to do a little shopping in Azpeitia and
Barcelona.
What is Included
- Transfers from airport at agreed time
- Hotel accommodation in en-suite bedrooms (private toilet
and shower), full-board except for lunch in the day at
Barcelona
- Entrance fees to the Holy House, Loyola, Seu Church
Manresa etc.
- Transport by air-conditioned bus across Spain, and to
Manresa and Barcelona
- Restaurant lunch en route to Montserrat, and at Manresa
- Guided walks of Ignatian Spain
Costs (still to be confirmed)
2024 -
The pilgrimage is priced in Euro at €890 (£775 or US $950)
plus single room supplement of €60
(Pilgrimage as an add-on to Spiritual Exercises €700)*
Once bookings start to fill up,
if there are only twin rooms available at the second hotel
then there would be a further supplement of €60 in total
(based on 2023 costs) required for single people in a twin
room; so early booking is advised.
We are now able to accept payments in GB Pounds, euro
or US dollars- please ask us for details before making a
payment.
Travel for 2024
Our Pilgrimage starts in
Loyola on the 27th of July.
We suggest flying to Bilbao.
(There is a twice weekly ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao
run by Brittany Ferries.)
We offer one direct transfer bus from Bilbao Airport to Loyola
at about 6pm (exact time will depend upon flight arrivals)
Direct flights are
available from (based on 2023): Manchester and
Gatwick via Easyjet.
from Gatwick via Vueling and from Dublin via Aer Lingus.
On our return we leave
Montserrat at 9am and hope to arrive in Barcelona Airport at
10.30am.
So return flights should be
booked from Barcelona, El Prat airport on
the 3rd of August to depart after 12.30pm.
*The pilgrimage costs are
paid in Euro. Current costs are based on rates at Aug
2023
If currency rates fluctuate by +/- 5% then the above cost
would be adjusted accordingly.
We require full payment of
all fees 6 weeks before the Pilgrimage
If you are sending payments to
us from overseas we recommend Wise:
 ISC
Cancellation Policy
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30-day retreat in Loyola, Spain