The Pilgrim's Credential

The Credencial del Camino is the document that accompanies each and every pilgrim, and is very important to get to the Compostela at the end of the Camino. 

Also called Pilgrim's Passport, does not officially accredit that you have completed the Camino de Santiago (as does the Compostela), but still has great value for the current pilgrim, as it reminds you of each of the stages, by what towns you have passed, where you stayed one day or where you dined the other.

What it is used for

Originally, the Credential served as a safe-conduct for devotees during the Middle Ages, accrediting them as pilgrims on the Camino. Currently, apart from accrediting you as a pilgrim, it serves to certify that the pilgrim has completed in an orderly and legitimate way each of the stages of the Camino in order to obtain the Compostela.

What it is and how it works 

The Credential is a practical folded leaflet, with a cover, a space for you to fill in your personal details, information about the Way of St. James and several pages with empty boxes where you will accumulate the stamps.

As if it were a passport, you have to stamp it daily, except in the last 100 km, where you must do it twice a day to get the Compostela. If you do the Camino by bike, you will have to stamp it twice a day during the last 200 km.

Along the Camino you can stamp the credential in churches and parishes, but also in many accommodations, whether you are staying in them or not, and even in restaurants or authorised establishments.

How and where to get it

You can get your Credential in hostels, parishes, in the Associations of Friends of the Camino de Santiago or in brotherhoods of the Apostle St. James.  

If you find yourself in the situation of arriving at the beginning of your Camino without a Credencial, you can ask at the albergues or churches/parishes, where they usually have them. And if you run out of them, a homemade Credential will be accepted, where you will accumulate the stamps until you can get an official one.

The price of a Pilgrim's Credential is around €2, although sometimes you can find one for as little as €5.