INFORMATION PORTAL OF THE MARSHAL'S OFFICE OF THE KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE Region IN TORUŃ

On Saturday (24 May), in front of the Marshal’s Office building in Toruń, a ceremony was held to unveil the milestone of the Way of St James (Camino de Santiago). The meeting, during which the Chełmno Way of St James was also inaugurated and appointments to the Route Development Council were handed out, was attended by Marshal Piotr Całbecki, Spanish Ambassador to Poland Ramiro Fernández Bachiller and Ildefonso de la Campa Montenegro, President of the European Federation of the Way of St James.

 

– The Way of St James is a history lesson for us all. It is worth realising that it was, after all, once one of the most important building blocks of Europe’s identity. Not only in the context of tourism, culture and business, but also spiritually – emphasised Marshal Piotr Całbecki. – Let this milestone remind us that common values, friendship between nations and solidarity are what truly guide us, and that the true meaning of the Camino does not end in Santiago – it continues in every step we take together.

 

The ceremony began with expert speeches on the Camino de Santiago – its history, meaning and role. Rev. Prof. Piotr Roszak gave a lecture on ‘Camino de Santiago in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodship: history and present day’, and Prof. Justyna Chodkowska-Miszczuk touched upon ‘Camino for the development of tourism’.

 

During Saturday’s meeting, appointments were also handed out to the Council for the Development of the Way of St James in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodship, which has been operating since 2013. The body is made up of representatives of local authorities and associations along the route. The Council aims to create a new offer for residents and visitors to Kujawsko-Pomorskie and to popularise the idea of the Camino Polaco.

 

The focal point of the ceremony was the unveiling of a milestone, a signpost for pilgrims walking the Camino Polaco, reaching Toruń, which is important on the map of the Jacob’s Way. The Chelmno Way of St James was also inaugurated. The Brotherhood of St James the Apostle in Toruń undertook to mark out this section (leading from Świecie through Chełmno, Unisław, Zamek Bierzgłowski, to Toruń). The route coincides with marked hiking and cycling PTTK trails. It is a continuation of the Pelplin Way of St James and reaches the Sanctuary of St James in Toruń.

 

The culmination of the day was a mass for the intention of pilgrims in the Toruń St James Sanctuary.

 

The celebration was also attended by representatives of the Polish-Spanish Chamber of Commerce, the Office of the Tourism Counsellor of the Spanish Embassy in Warsaw, local authorities, Nicolaus Copernicus University and associations, and enthusiasts of the St James’ Route.

 

The Camino de Santiago is a network of roads crossing the whole of Europe leading to the tomb of the apostle located in Santiago de Compostela. The Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodship is crossed by 250 kilometres of the Camino Polaco route. The route leads from Brodnica, through Płonne, Szafarnia (both golubsko-dobrzyński poviat), Toruń, Inowrocław, Mogilno, to the border with the Greater Poland voivodeship. Among the routes marked out in our region are the Bydgoszcz Way of St James, the Dobrzyńsko-Kujawska Way of St James, the Nadwiślańska Way of St James and a new one – the Chełmno Way of St James, officially inaugurated during the ceremony.

 

On 3 October 1987, the Way of St James was declared the first European Cultural Route by the Council of Europe, and the guarantor of its certification was the European Federation of the Way of St James, founded in 2011. In 2021, Marshal Piotr Całbecki was the president of the Federation. See Marshal Piotr Całbecki President of the European Federation of the Way of St James.

 

The regional government of the voivodship financially supports activities aimed at the promotion and development of the Way of St James. We regularly subsidise the marking of tourist routes, the installation and updating of information boards, the publication of guides and maps, as well as the organisation of hiking and cycling rallies and canoeing trips.

 

Beata Krzemińska

Spokesperson of the Marshal’s Office

 

23 May 2025

Last updated: 26 May 2025