UK school groups
17 to 29 year olds: The meetings are aimed above all at this age-group and take place thoughout the year on a weekly or weekend basis.
25 to 35 year olds: Meetings are held specifically for this age-group in certain weeks (around Easter and in July and August).
15 and 16 year olds: may take part in the meetings, if accompanied by sufficient group leaders, for a week or a weekend (from Thursday evening if possible, through to Sunday).
Under 15’s: can only take part in the family meetings together with their parents.
Group leaders with participants who need a visa, please contact the meetings team well in advance.
Young people under 18 should bring a form giving parental authorisation for them to take part in the meetings. This form names an adult to be legally responsible for them during their stay and to take any decisions regarding any necessary medical treatment. You may make such a form for your own group, alternatively use the one provided by Taizé. Please check whether authorisation is needed for leaving your home country as well.
Choosing dates
The meetings run a full week, from Sunday afternoon to the following Sunday, after the morning Eucharist. The only exceptions are for Holy Week and Easter (April 1 - April 9 (Monday)), Easter Week (April 9 (Monday) - April 15), and Pentecost (May 28 (Monday) – June 3). , when the day for arrival/departure is Monday). If you can’t come for a full week, try coming for a weekend. Arrive in this case on Thursday or Friday and stay through to Sunday.
We advise you not to plan a stay of under 3 full days. To enter fully into the rhythm of community life and the international meetings, a full week is best.
Please contact us before fixing your plans to bring a group for a week-long or weekend meeting – especially in the case of a school group. If there are changes in the number of people coming, in the dates of your stay, or if you have to cancel, please let us know quickly by adjusting your online registration.
Accompanying adults and contact people
If you bring 15/16 year olds, we recommend that there be an accompanying adult (preferably aged 20-29) for every 5 young people for accommodation (boys and girls separately). Please feel free to contact us should this recommendation cause any difficulty for you.
There also needs to be one (but not more than one) contact person (again, preferably 20-29) for every 7 young people, to help lead the daytime activities. These accompanying adults and contact people may be the same or different leaders. They may give the same contribution as young people for their stay.
Accompanying adults aged 30 or over, who are not needed as contact people for daytime activities, join the meetings for adults.
If you’re bringing young people over 17 years old, try before you get to Taizé to find one young person for every 7 in the group who can act as a “contact person”. The contact people should make themselves known on arrival when the weekly programme is explained to the group.
Other adults over 30 who have not brought their own tents stay in dormitories with several beds, or in rooms with 2 or 3 beds, according to their age and to availability of rooms. (Most accommodation in rooms is in villages a few kilometres away, and quite separate from the youth accommodation). See the page Further information: adults aged 30 and over.
We cannot provide accommodation for coach drivers, nor may coaches be left parked at Taizé. We can send you details of hotels in the area.
Further points to consider
If you can only come for a weekend, please try and arrive on the Thursday evening. Groups that arrive just on Saturday morning really miss out on a large part of the community life.
Bible reflections take place each day, led by a brother of the community: remind each person to bring a Bible. The small sharing groups that follow are led by the young people themselves.
A condition of staying in Taizé is that you do not arrange any “outing” (even of a few hours) away from the community. Such outings inevitably disrupt the meetings, thus disappointing others who have come with high hopes and who are prepared to make a full commitment to the week.
During your stay, arrange a time to meet up with your group. Choose a time in the day which will not interfere with their participation in the general programme.
In spring, autumn or winter, please bring warm clothes! It can also be cold and wet in summer, so bear that in mind when preparing to come. We ask everyone to wear suitable clothing in church. During summer, even if bare shoulders or very short shorts may be acceptable in some cultures, they may shock in others
For safety reasons, please do not bring camping gas cookers or lights, and do not use candles. If anyone does have these, hand them in at La Morada and collect them again before departure. Explain this clearly to everyone before coming.
The only place in Taizé where alcoholic drinks may be bought or consumed is Oyak. If your group members do bring any alcohol with them, please ask them to hand it in at La Morada and collect them again before departure. Explain this clearly to everyone before coming.