Welcome to the FAQ section of WYD DON BOSCO 23! We understand that you may have some questions about our organisation, and we want to make sure you have all the information you need to get the most out of your experience.
Here you will find answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about WYD DON BOSCO 23 and WYD Lisbon 2023. If you do not find the information you need here, do not hesitate to contact us for further assistance.
WYD DON BOSCO 23 is the name of the organization of the Salesian Youth Movement responsible for the convocation and participation of young people from various Salesian environments around the world in WYD Lisbon 2023, living it according to the charism of Don Bosco.
The young people of the SYM will live the WYD in the city of Lisbon, like the other pilgrims. They will be housed in Salesian houses and families. They will live a special day of the Movement at the Salesians of Estoril on August 2.
Yes, when the SYM group registers for WYD DON BOSCO 23, they are also registering for WYD Lisbon 2023.
The registration for WYD DON BOSCO 23 runs until June 30.
The registration process takes place in 3 steps:
Stage 1 – Individual registration
You register using an online form provided by your SYM centre or Salesian house.
Stage 2 – Group registration at WYD DON BOSCO 23
The local pastoral coordinator sends the registrations to the designated provincial responsible, who will then register the group with WYD DON BOSCO 23.
Stage 3 – Registration on the WYD Lisbon 2023 Platform
The secretariat team of WYD DON BOSCO 23 will validate the data received and continue the registration process for WYD Lisbon 2023.
There are several packages available, depending on the choices you make. You can check them here. For participation in the whole week, prices vary between 130€ and 255€.
Package P1 includes everything you need for your WYD week: Pilgrim kit, insurance, transport, food, Salesian accomodation, entrance to the SYM Festival and the Salesian Kit.
In package P2 you will find: Pilgrim kit, insurance, transport, food, entrance to the SYM Festival and the Salesian kit.
Package P3 includes: Pilgrim kit, insurance, transport, entrance to SYM Festival and the Salesian Kit.
No. But we will have to pay attention to the capacity of reception in the Salesian houses and look for other spaces if necessary. The sooner you register the better!
Participation in WYD DON BOSCO 23 is done through your Salesian house. Surely there will be more young people you know from youth group, catechesis, school or sports who are also thinking about participating. Tell them to join you and sign up! If you’re still the only one, no problem, ask the pastoral coordinator of your Salesian house to sign you up.
The payment of the enrolment fee is made in your Salesian house. The pastoral coordinator should indicate the best method of payment.
WYD Lisbon 2023 is dedicated to pilgrims from around the world between the ages of 14 and 30, with pilgrims of other ages being allowed to register.
WYD DON BOSCO 23 aims to convoke and lead to the participation in WYD Lisbon 2023 of all young people from Salesian environments (schools, parishes, social services, youth centres, sports and artistic activities, among others …), so if you are in any way connected to a Salesian house or if you have already been, we will be happy for you to participate with us.
The WYD Lisbon 2023 Pilgrim’s Kit includes official WYD Lisbon 2023 products and will take into account the model of all WYDs.
The Salesian Pilgrim kit (SYM Kit) will include a t-shirt (specific to our movement), as well as other products related to SYM and Don Bosco.
No. From the moment the group leader submits and pays your registration, it will be definitive.
The SYM Festival takes place on the afternoon of 2 August at the Salesians in Estoril and is aimed at all the members of the Salesian Family who are present at WYD Lisbon 2023. It is characterized by joy and fraternity, with music, animation and games, in a typically Oratorian style. There will be various activities promoted by the organisation and others prepared by the countries taking part in the celebration. There will also be the possibility to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation and to pray in the chapel. Sports will also be present, through football and volleyball tournaments.
At the end of the day, there will be a vigil, a time of prayer and Eucharistic adoration. There will be a time of thanksgiving for the richness of Don Bosco’s charism which makes us witnesses to Jesus. Prayer, typically Salesian, lived at this time, leads to the essential, lived in community and expressed in music and the joy of feeling that we are brothers and sisters in Christ, sons and daughters of Don Bosco.
This moment concludes with the traditional Good Night pronounced by the Rector Major and the Mother General of the Salesian Sisters.
Yes, there is an option to buy the SYM Festival entrance ticket only.
The SYM Forum takes place on the morning of August 2, at the Salesians in Lisbon. This is a time of meeting with the Rector Major of the Salesians, with the Mother General of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and with other superiors of groups of the Salesian Family. During this meeting, young representatives from the various countries reflect on and discuss a particular topic and also have the opportunity to put questions to the Rector Major and Mother General. At the end, a message addressed to the young people of the SYM is prepared.
This space of youthful protagonism ends with the celebration of the Eucharist.
It is the kit offered to the youth who participate in the WYD Lisbon 2023 by the organization WYD DON BOSCO 23. This Salesian pilgrim kit will include a t-shirt, specific to our movement, as well as other products related to SYM and Don Bosco.
Pilgrims who are part of a group (Salesian House or Salesian Province) should agree with the person in charge of their group what the group programme will be, in the various moments of the WYD week. As SYM, the moments when we should all participate together are the SYM Festival and the Closing Mass.
Free public transport during the period of the World Youth Day is guaranteed for those who have purchased the package with this indication. To get to your accommodation you will have to organise your own transport.
Accommodation for participants in WYD DON BOSCO 23 will be in both collective spaces (classrooms, crypts, gymnasiums, pavilions) and host families.
Yes. The accommodation will be in very simple premises (possibly on the floor) so you should bring sleeping bag and mattress for accommodation on these days.
There will be a mixed system regarding the food points: areas of the WYD Lisbon 2023 itself and restaurants or other external partners’ food points can be used. To allow a smooth use in all eating points, a system is being developed that allows pilgrims to pick up and/or carry out their meal, regardless of the chosen partner. This will presumably happen via a digital system. In the case of breakfast, this will be provided at the places of accommodation.
Portuguese cuisine will be one of the central points on the menus. As far as specific diets are concerned, the organisation will try to cover as wide a variety of diets as possible. For pilgrims with food allergies, and since it is not possible to guarantee a diet adapted to everyone individually, we are trying to build options that do not contain the main allergens in their composition.
On the site you will find various promotional materials for the promotion of WYD DON BOSCO 23 locally, such as the logo, backgrounds and other images.
On the website you will find various materials for preparing for WYD, such as prayer vigils, preparation meetings or other activities. Make the best use of them to prepare yourself.
The site has information available in six languages: Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, French and Polish.
Yes, the participants of WYD DON BOSCO 23 are invited to contribute to the WYD DON BOSCO 23 Solidarity Fund with a voluntary donation. This fund will finance the participation in WYD DON BOSCO 23 of many disadvantaged young people, enlarging the social and international dimension of the event.
The Don Bosco Mission – Salesian Solidarity Fund is raising funds to help young people in need from MJS Portugal to participate in WYD Lisbon 2023. You can also support the volunteering of WYD DON BOSCO 23.
Alternatively, you can contact administracao.wyddb23@staff.salesianos.pt to find out how to help.
Yes, the organisation WYD DON BOSCO 23 will take care of several thousands of young people who stay overnight, have breakfast in Salesian houses and take part in the SYM Festival, so donations in kind are very welcome.
Accommodation for participants in WYD DON BOSCO 23 will be provided both in collective spaces (classrooms, crypts, gymnasiums, pavilions) and in host families. If you are a family connected to a Salesian presence in the diocese of Lisbon or Setubal you can apply to host pilgrims.
No. International SYM groups are invited to experience the Days in the Dioceses in any of the dioceses in Portugal, living the programme proposed by that diocese.
Many international SYM groups, while participating in the WYD and being in Portugal, would like to visit the Shrine of Fatima. So, WYD DON BOSCO 23 has prepared this opportunity for non-Portuguese SYM groups. It will take place on 7 August and requires registration.
Yes, if you are unable to leave your accommodation on the morning of 7 August, you can stay an extra night by purchasing the corresponding package when you register. The same applies if you arrive one day before the start of WYD.
Portugal has a temperate Mediterranean climate. This means that in the month of August the days are quite warm and the nights mild. You should always bring protection from the sun and carry water. A light sweater for the night is also a good idea.
Yes, at the SYM Festival there will be a time for confessions in the afternoon and priests will be needed to hear confessions in different languages.
Yes, you should bring it with you at all times.
All registration packages include a personal accident insurance, which will be in force during the period of the World Youth Day. We will disclose more information in due course.
