Pilgrim passport, number of stamps

TravellerM · Jul 11, 2019

Hi - a clarification point I am sure someone can answer; we are planning our first Camino this September and starting in Leon. I have read and understood the 2 stamps per day rule, but we were planning to have 2 days walk then 1 days rest (we have time and its our first long walk). So on our rest day - is it ok to just get two stamps from the same town?
thanks.

trecile · Jul 11, 2019

TravellerM said:
Hi - a clarification point I am sure someone can answer; we are planning our first Camino this September and starting in Leon. I have read and understood the 2 stamps per day rule, but we were planning to have 2 days walk then 1 days rest (we have time and its our first long walk). So on our rest day - is it ok to just get two stamps from the same town?
thanks.

You only need two stamps per day after Sarria, and I believe that you only need stamps on the day's that you walk.

nickpellatt · Jul 11, 2019

This is a long thread, I'll add my experience, and my last Camino has only just ended.

I spent 50 days on the Caminoo, walking the Norte, then onto Muxia, Finesterre and walked back. I had one stamp a day, and got both certificates no problem, with the distance showing as 1057km.

This was my 3rd long Camino, and I have only ever had one stamp a day.

Geodoc · Jul 11, 2019

So, the question remains, of the required two sellos per day for the final 100 km (I'm only doing one per day from SJPdP, with the odd cathedral or iglesias thrown in), where the heck can I get my Ramon sello?

David Tallan · Jul 12, 2019

@TravellerM My advice, if the Compostela is important to you, is to get the two stamps the same day from different places in the same town if you take a rest day after Sarria. If the person in the Pilgrim Office handing out the certificates asks about it, you can explain that you took a rest day there. This way you are following the letter of the instructions.

As nickpellatt points out, not all volunteers at the desk are sticklers for the precise wording of the rules. It is possible to have one who won't be checking the number of stamps per day, especially if you have been walking a long way (he mentioned being on the road for 50 days). Many have had similar experiences. But if the Compostela is important to you, I wouldn't rely on it. People have also had different experiences, where the volunteers wanted to ensure that rules were meticulously followed.

Kathor1 · Aug 1, 2019

I very much doubt that there is anything much historical behind these modern sailing routes that have been recognised by the Cabildo of the Cathedral as valid for obtaining a Compostela or other certificates. It's just an agreement they made and it responds to the contemporary environment.

In this vain ... 160 sailing pilgrims received their Compostela on the last Saturday of July 2019. They participated in an organised annual event and they had sailed from as far as La Rochelle in France. 27 sailing boats, 23 days of navigation, nearly 800 nautical miles covered plus 10 km on foot at the very end, says Europress.

The organisers have made arrangements for a start from Southhampton in 2020. Of course, anyone can do this on their own any time of the year. You need to get a stamp in each port.

John Pearce · Jun 22, 2021

What I find most frustrating is that you have to get one sello per day from Almeria and then two from 100 km from Sarria to Santiago, but if you follow the rule for a 60 day Camino (1500km) you will need a huge stack of passports as they are so short, and as far as I know you cannot find a passport long enough. Plus you cannot make your own, why not leave out the maps as most people have separate maps and use the back for more sello space. The passport from SJPP (France) is 72 spaces and is half the distance of the Mozarabe. Maybe I can buy a passport from SJPP and have it posted to me.

Tincatinker · Jun 22, 2021

John Pearce said:
Plus you cannot make your own,

@John Pearce, welcome to the Forum. Remember the vast majority of pilgrims walk from Sarria, or Tui. They have no need for an extended format.

There is nothing to stop you making your own Credencial, provided it contains all the information required. Likewise there is nothing to prevent you extending the document by adding extra pages or pasting a sello grid over those irritating maps. One note of caution though, if you plan to obtain a Compostella use an "official" passport for the last 100k. The PO are already insisting that you walk a "recognized" route and I suspect there is a requirement to use a document issued or authorised by the Cathedral

Texas Walker · Jun 22, 2021

John Pearce said:
What I find most frustrating is that you have to get one sello per day from Almeria and then two from 100 km from Sarria to Santiago, but if you follow the rule for a 60 day Camino (1500km) you will need a huge stack of passports as they are so short, and as far as I know you cannot find a passport long enough. Plus you cannot make your own, why not leave out the maps as most people have separate maps and use the back for more sello space. The passport from SJPP (France) is 72 spaces and is half the distance of the Mozarabe. Maybe I can buy a passport from SJPP and have it posted to me.

You can buy an extra along the way and just continue collecting the sellos. A number of places along the Way are happy to sell a credencial. Big city churches, alburgues, etc. as there are a number of popular starting points.

A staple or a plastic zip bag to keep them together might help.

trecile · Jun 22, 2021

And now you can use the digital credential

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/new-digital-credential-is-introduced-from-the-cathedral.70156/#post-924587

John Pearce · Jun 23, 2021

Hello, Lets be honest .Actually, who needs a compostella, once you arrive in Santiago you don’t really need the passport. I have now done 8 Camino’s and the compostellas are all the same, just different dates. It is more important to walk the walk than to play with pieces of paper. I know the distances I have covered and I can write it down on the passport. What is important is that the passport proves to the Albergue’s Restaurants and the authorities on the way that you are a pilgrim And none of them are interested in how many stamps you have. The passport is very nice to have with all the stamps as a memory of the journey and It is the best proof of what you have accomplished. I am sorry if you think that I am to sinical or wrong, but 1 stamp or 2 stamps is irrelevant. Spending money in 1 or 2 Bars, Restaurants and Albergue’s a day is important to the businesses along the route.