11 Days
Specific Tour
35 people
English
DAY 1 Depart the USA
Depart USA on an overnight flight to Italy, meals will be served on board.
DAY 2: ARRIVAL –
After the baggage claim, we will meet our tour manager and drive to the Hotel for free time at leisure. Dinner and overnight. (D)
DAY 3: PAPAL AUDIENCE / MAJOR BASILICAS
This morning we will join the pilgrims that come from all over the world and sit in San Peter’s square (or in the Paolo VI Hall) to attend the Papal Audience and blessing. – After a break for lunch, we continue our guided tour by visiting two of the other major basilicas of Rome. We begin our tour with the Basilica of St John in Lateran which houses a fragment of the table on which Jesus consumed his last supper, from there we cross the street to the Holy Stairs so named because they are the steps that lead to the praetorium of the Roman Procurator Ponzio Pilato, finally, we reach the Basilica of St Mary Major. The crypt is built to resemble the cave of nativity in Bethlehem and there is a reliquary containing part of the Holy Crib in which our Lord Jesus Christ once lay. – We celebrate Mass and return to the hotel for dinner and overnight (BD
DAY 4: VATICAN MUSEUM / TREVI FOUNTAIN
We will begin the day with a visit to one of the most important museums in the world. Legally its own country, Vatican City is the head and administrative center of the Catholic Church. One of the most extensive museum collections in the world, the museum is also home to the Sistine Chapel, where the legendary Michelangelo created one of his most famous masterpieces on the ceiling. After the museums, we will visit St. Peter’s Basilica, the largest Catholic Basilica ever built. Its soaring dome was engineered by Michelangelo and the artist’s famous Pieta sculpture and countless other artistic wonders make St. Peter’s church one of the most awe-inspiring buildings in the world. – After break for lunch, we will reach the city center. Celebrate Mass at a selected church. Enjoy a walking tour starting from Navona Square, we walk to the Pantheon and to the Trevi Fountain. The balance of the day is at our leisure. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight (BD)
DAY 5: IMPERIAL ROME & BASILICA OF ST PAUL OUTSIDE THE WALLS
After breakfast, drive to the city center. Our first stop is at the Basilica of St Paul outside the Walls. Celebrate Mass Break for lunch. Continue on a panoramic tour of Imperial Rome. Walk down to the Colosseum (visit from outside) and walk passing by the Roman Forum, the Traian Forum, and the column, till Capitol Hill and Venice Square. Regain our bus and drive to the hotel for dinner and overnight (B, D)
DAY 6: ROMA – MONTECASSINO – SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO
After breakfast, we will drive south for approximately 2 hours, to reach Montecassino, where we stop to visit the Abbey. We can celebrate Mass at the chapel where Saint Benedict and his sister St Scholastica are buried. Our guided tour includes also the abbey’s museum – After lunch, we continue our journey to reach San Giovanni Rotondo. Check-in at the hotel, dinner, and overnight (B, D)
DAY 7 SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO – ST MICHAEL’S CAVE
This morning is dedicated to Saint Padre Pio. We honor his work as we visit his tomb, his cell, his confessional, and the Capuchin Monastery of Our Lady of Grace. where we celebrate Mass We will also visit the new Church of Santa Maria Delle Grazie, and the Home for the Relief of the Suffering. In the afternoon, we visit the Grotto of St. Michael the Archangel. Overnight in San Giovanni. (B. D.)
DAY 8: LANCIANO – LORETO – ASSISI
After a good breakfast, we check out and drive to Lanciano, to celebrate to visit the Church of St Francis. This Church is the site of the Eucharistic Miracle that occurred in the eighth century. Celebrate Mass. After break for lunch, we continue our journey to Assisi, stopping in Loreto to see the Holy House of Nazareth. This tradition, based on devotion and popular belief, ascribed the transportation of the House of Nazareth to an angelic mission; current historical studies have developed the hypothesis of transportation carried out by Man, through sea and land, that came true with special assistance from above. That’s the way “to read between the lines” and give the most probable explanation to the Holy House event- We Celebrate Mass and Visit the Shine, then our drive continues to Assisi. Check-in at the hotel, dinner, and overnight (BD)
DAY 9: ASSISI
After early breakfast, transfer to the Basilica of St. Francis to Celebrate Mass at the Tomb of St. Francis, at which we will. After Mass, visit the Basilica of St. Francis. Our local guide will take us to explore the Basilica complex, which is composed of two churches built one atop the other. Beneath both churches is the crypt that houses the tomb of St. Francis. The lower Basilica dates from 1228 to 1230 and is richly decorated with beautiful stained glass windows, and paintings done by some of the most important artists of the 13th and 14th centuries. In the upper Basilica, built from 1230 – 1253, we will marvel at the monumental frescoes painted by Giotto, which depict scenes from the life of the saint. Continue to visit the Basilica of St. Clare, the first and most important heroine of the Franciscan movement, view her remains, and see the miraculous Crucifix. Independent lunch – In the afternoon we will visit San Damiano Sanctuary “One day in the autumn of 1205 the Lord was waiting here for Francis On a morning in April of 1211 the Lord welcomed Clare with her first sisters. They were encounters and thus began their Christian adventure—Brother, Sister. Perhaps here today the Lord will meet with you. May your faith be firm and may the Lord grant you peace. Next, we will visit the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli. Crowned by the magnificent dome designed by Alessi, this great Basilica was built in 1569. It enclosed the shrine of the “Porziuncola” or the Little Portion Chapel around which the first Franciscan community was centered, the place where Clare received the habit from Francis, and the Capella Del Transito, which marks the spot where the Saint died. Return to the hotel for dinner and an overnight. (B.D.)
DAY 10 ASSISI – ORVIETO – CASTEL GANDOLFO
We depart Assisi in the early morning and drive approx 2 hours to reach Orvieto, where we will visit where we visit the gothic Cathedral built to house the holy relics of the Eucharistic Miracle of Orvieto. It was this miracle that occasioned the proclamation of the Feast of Corpus Christi and inspired St. Thomas Aquinas to write the famous hymn “Tantum Ergo.” After lunch, we continue to Castel Gandolfo, where we will celebrate our farewell dinner at a hotel overlooking the lake (BD)
DAY 11 DEPARTURE
In the morning, transfer to Rome’s airport. Departure
