For more than 450 years people have taken part in the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius Loyola in order to devote time to Christ, come closer to God, and discern their call in life.
Ignatius' Exercises in their traditional form, allows participants to let their lives interact with the life of Christ. This process almost inevitably sees a deepening of Faith and personal commitment and relationship with God.

The daily routine of the 30-day retreat sees participants typically spending four or five periods of prayer and sharing these daily with the retreat guide.
The Ignatian Spirituality Centre in Glasgow links with the Centro de Espiritualidad in Loyola, Spain, to offer the full Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius in a silent, individually guided form in English. All guides are native English speakers.  Our time includes two days lead-in with visit to the local places of interest and a final day of lead-out from the retreat and 30 full days of retreat.

There can be no better place to enter into the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius than the birthplace of Ignatius, Loyola itself.

The Spirituality Centre

The Spirituality Centre has modern, single bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms. See the video Centro de Espiritualidad de Loyola below - Loyola Centre of Spirituality, for an idea of the facilities the Spirituality Centre offers. The food is healthy Spanish cuisine, provided on a full-board basis.  There are many chapels and places of prayer available including a beautiful hillside chapel, the famous chapel of Ignatius' conversion and the 14th Century hermitage of Olatz.

There is a private garden behind the Centre in the magnificent setting of

The retreat includes preparation days with a visit to the local sites associated with Saint Ignatius.

During the retreat there are three rest days when we hope to visit Javier, the home of St Francis Xavier; Aránzazu, where Ignatius first stayed after his conversion on the way to Montserrat and an optional day in the beautiful seaside resort of San Sebastian.

The retreat can conclude with an optional pilgrimage to the other principle towns of Ignatian Spain, visiting Pamplona, Manresa, Montserrat and Barcelona.

What you will need

A pair of comfortable walking shoes.

Minimum of about €150 euro - the Spanish currency.

A small umbrella or a lightweight raincoat.

A European Health Insurance Card, a British Global Health Card and/or Travel and Health Insurance.
For UK Residents see Government advice.

Passport and Airline tickets/boarding cards.
Summer clothing
Self-service washing and ironing facilities are available in the Spirituality Centre.

The Weather

The weather in Loyola in June and July may well be cloudy and can rain sometimes. Temperatures range from 16-32°C with 20-25°C being most common. It rarely suffers the hot, dry heat of the rest of Spain.

What is Included

• Retreat direction
• Guided walking tours Ignatian sites in Loyola, Azpeitia and Azkoitia.
• Accommodation in single rooms with en-suite bathroom
• Full board with mid morning and afternoon snacks
• Entry fee to Loyola Tower House,
• Probably visits to Xavier and Aránzazu.
• Airport transfer to and from Bilbao.

Requirements

We suggest that before coming on a 30-day Spiritual Exercises retreat participants should have experience of shorter silent retreats and be familiar with Lectio Divina and Ignatian Contemplation. There is an application form to fill out and two references are required.

The Cost

This retreat is priced in euro: for 2021 is €2,450* (Which at August 2020 rate of exchange is £2,325 or US$ 2,800)
We are able to accept payments in euro € or US dollars - please ask us for details when making a payment.
* As we have to pay the Retreat costs in euro, if currency rates fluctuate by +or-5% then the price in Pounds or Dollars would be adjusted accordingly.
Current costs are based on £1=€1.05 August 2020 (Royal Bank of Scotland Tourist Rate). 

Overseas Payments: We recommend Transferwise - as it is quicker and cheaper than bank transfers. Click here for details

ISC Cancellation Policy - opens as PDF in new page

We require full payment of all fees 6 weeks before the retreat

Grants: A grant towards this retreat is often available for those who find our full offering difficult to afford. Request details.

Travel from UK/Ireland 2021

To arrive on the 26th of June.
We shall pick up from Bilbao airport.

Arrival Times to be announced: Our direct transfer bus takes about 1 hour to Loyola. 
Public Transport from Bilbao to Loyola is easiest via San Sebastian ('Donostia' in Basque), but this will take the best part of three hours.  In previous years many early arrivers in Bilbao have enjoyed a day in the City of Bilbao and then returned to the airport for the direct bus.

The return transfer bus will leave Loyola at 9am on 30th of July, arrive in Bilbao airport at approx. 10am so we suggest booking a flight after 12.00.
If you are going on the pilgrimage, then return flights should be booked from Barcelona El Prat airport on the 3rd of August to depart after 12.30pm.

Travel from outside UK/Ireland