Camino have a go if you think you’re tough enough

If you want to set yourself a personal challenge, join us on a once in a lifetime fundraising walk across the north of Spain.

Taking in the sites of the chapel of Santa Irena, Galician Cemetery in Ligonde and Lavacolla, where pilgrims traditionally washed in the river before reaching Santiago de Compostela, Winchester Hospice’s Trek the Camino challenge will take in the most traditional and best known of all the pilgrims’ ways, before arriving in historic Santiago.

The challenge, where you’ll walk up to 29 km a day, will begin on Saturday 20 September 2025 when you jet off to your starting location. Your five-day trek will then leave Sarria where you’ll traverse the hilly landscapes of Galicia, passing numerous points of cultural and historical interest along the way, before culminating in Santiago. For your final day, you’ll enjoy a day at your leisure to see the sites before joining up with the team for a celebratory evening meal. You can then put your feet up on the flight home, returning Saturday 27 September 2025.

One person already signed up to take part is Justine Tucker, Ward Manager’s Co-ordinator at Winchester Hospice. Talking about her reasons for signing up to the trek she said: “I once watched a film called The Way and it was incredibly inspiring. It’s about the Camino and as soon as it was over I felt it was something I wanted to add to my bucket list. I also want to do it for my daughter to show her what can be achieved when we set our minds to something and to honour the many patients we have cared for at the hospice. I see every day what a difference the money our community raises makes to those we have the privilege of looking after so I know exactly what the money will help to fund and I’m proud to be able to do my bit.”

To join the trek, each supporter is asked to pay an initial registration fee of £365 and raise £3,400 for the hospice, which will go towards funding specialist care for local people at the end of their lives.

Jo Westerman, Fundraising Officer for Winchester Hospice said: “The hospice has been open for almost three years now and we’ve just had the privilege of caring for our 1,000th patient at the hospice, as well as many more in the hospital and in their own homes. We’ve only been able to do this thanks to the generous support of our community which has been raising money to ensure we can offer local people the best possible end of life care. By joining our Camino Trek, you’ll be helping to raise money for the hospice, so we can continue to be there for those who need us at this crucial time in their life.”

Explaining more about the trek and who can join in, Jo said: “The wonderful thing about this trek is that you can join as a group of friends or colleagues, come along as a couple or get involved on your own. From previous treks, people taking part form a wonderful bond in the lead up to going so, if you join on your own, you won’t be alone for long.

“It does take some level of fitness to complete this challenge however, we’re not leaving for over a year so there’s still plenty of time to train and get used to walking a long distance.”

Included in the challenge are all flights, transfers, accommodation and meals, along with an experienced guide from adventure travel experts The Different Travel Company who are well rehearsed in this type of challenge, having been supporting intrepid charity trekkers for almost 20 years. Alison Pinney from The Different Travel Company said; “We’re proud to support many charities in their fundraising endeavours and we are looking forward to supporting Winchester Hospice and their fundraisers with this trek along the Camino de Santiago trail. We take care of all the logistics such as taking fundraiser registrations, booking the flights, and ensuring the all-important accommodation and food components are seamless in the destination country.”

If you’re interested in taking part, or simply want to know more, the charity is hosting an information session on Monday 30 September at Christ Church to talk you through everything you need to know about the adventure and answer any questions you may have. To attend, simply drop the team an email to let them know you’d like to come along at winchester.hospice@hhft.nhs.uk.