Partner
St. Jakobusbruderschaft Trier e.V.
Trier's St James brotherhood, first recorded in 1239: it cares for pilgrims at the only apostle's tomb north of the Alps, runs the pilgrim office by the cathedral and is Germany's only issuer of Rome and Jerusalem pilgrim passports.
The Caminos on the map
Caminos of this partner
Mosel-CaminoThe Mosel Camino takes you on an 8-stage, 157.1-kilometer journey from Koblenz-Stolzenfels to the Benedictine Abbey of St. Matthias in Trier—the only apostle’s tomb north of the Alps. It is a high-altitude trail, not a riverside path: It bypasses the bends of the Moselle via the Hunsrück and Eifel hills, gaining 3,899 meters in elevation along the way—and follows a relic that traveled the same route 700 years before you.Explore this Camino
Trier – Le PuyThe Way of St. James from Trier to Le Puy-en-Velay takes you on an 886-kilometer journey from the only apostle’s tomb north of the Alps—St. Matthias Abbey Church in Trier—up the Moselle River through Metz, Toul, and Langres, through the vineyards of Burgundy and over the hills of the Forez region to Le Puy-en-Velay, where the Via Podiensis begins. In France, it is called the “Chemin des Allemands,” or “Path of the Germans”—not because of an ancient document, but because French associations have counted how many people walk it today.Explore this Camino
Via ColoniensisThe Via Coloniensis runs 241.8 kilometers from Cologne Cathedral across the Cologne Lowland, through Euskirchen and Bad Münstereifel into the Eifel, and on via Blankenheim, Kronenburg, Prüm and Neuerburg into the Sauer Valley and Trier. It links the Three Kings in Cologne with the Holy Robe in Trier Cathedral and the tomb of the Apostle Matthias, to which confraternities from the Rhineland have walked since the 11th century. It has been waymarked since the project „Wege der Jakobspilger im Rheinland“ (Routes of the St. James Pilgrims in the Rhineland) of 1999, with the yellow shell on a blue background; along the way you climb a total of 3,678 meters, and near Echternach the route briefly passes through Luxembourg.Explore this Camino- Trier – VézelayThe route from Trier to Vézelay runs 507.8 kilometres and 22 stages from the apostle's tomb of St. Matthias via Metz, Toul, Clairvaux and the vineyards of Chablis up to the hill of Vézelay, where the Via Lemovicensis begins.Explore this Camino
- Eifel-CaminoThe Eifel-Camino runs seven stages and 155.8 kilometres from Namedy near Andernach on the Rhine straight across the Volcanic Eifel via Mayen, Kaisersesch, Bad Bertrich, Wittlich and Klausen to the Moselle and to Trier – to St. Matthias Abbey, by medieval tradition the only apostle's tomb north of the Alps.Explore this Camino
Who stands behind the route
The St. Jakobusbruderschaft Trier e.V. (SJB) is first mentioned in a charter in 1239 and regards itself as the oldest St James brotherhood in Germany. Its home is a city where pilgrim roads have always converged: the cathedral venerates the Holy Robe, and St Matthias' Abbey holds the only apostle's tomb north of the Alps.
The brotherhood supports people setting out for Santiago de Compostela, Rome or Jerusalem. It is a founding member of the German federation of St James associations, set up in 2025, and has partnerships with Camino friends in Astorga, Luxembourg and Lorraine. Through the Trier Pilgrim Forum it also promotes research into pilgrimage.
The association's routes
You'll find six of the brotherhood's routes on Camino Ninja – five lead to Trier, two continue from there into France:
- Via Coloniensis – 242 km from Cologne Cathedral through the Eifel to Trier, from the Shrine of the Three Kings to the Holy Robe
- Mosel-Camino – 157 km from Koblenz-Stolzenfels over the Hunsrück and Eifel heights to St Matthias
- Eifel-Camino – 156 km from Namedy near Andernach right across the Volcanic Eifel to Trier
- Hunsrücker Jakobsweg – 126 km from Bingen along the old Roman road over the Hunsrück to St Matthias
- Trier – Vézelay – 508 km via Metz, Toul and Clairvaux to Vézelay, the start of the Via Lemovicensis
- Trier – Le Puy – 886 km up the Moselle, through Burgundy and over the Forez to Le Puy-en-Velay
What the association does for pilgrims
The heart of it all is the pilgrim office in the Dom-Information right by Trier Cathedral. There you can pick up your pilgrim passport and stamp in person, get tips on accommodation in and around Trier and help planning your next stages. Besides the credencial for Santiago, the SJB is so far the only body in Germany to issue pilgrim passports for Rome and Jerusalem, plus a regional passport for the routes to Trier. To order by post, use the application form on the website – ideally at least three weeks before you set off.
Arriving in Trier, you can receive the Trier pilgrim certificate: on foot from 100 km, by bike or on horseback from 200 km before Trier, also in stages spread over several years; for wheelchair pilgrims there is no minimum distance. The processing fee is €5 (as of October 2026). Stamps are also available in the cathedral sacristy and at the book table of the Liebfrauenkirche.
In every odd-numbered month except July, the brotherhood invites you to the Jakobusabend on the last Friday: evening Mass at 6 pm in St Gangolf on the Hauptmarkt with an individual blessing for everyone setting out within the next eight weeks, followed by a pilgrims' get-together where newcomers can put their questions to experienced pilgrims.
Contact and getting involved
Website: sjb-trier.de with application forms, events and accommodation lists · Based in: Trier. Membership costs €12 a year (family members, pupils and students half); members pay no processing fee for the pilgrim passport and receive a multilingual letter of recommendation with it. You can help out in the pilgrim office, answering enquiries or with public relations.