|
| |
 Prices Include ALL Airport Taxes and Fuel Charges!
Rome &
the Shrines of
Italy
Proposed Itinerary
Day 1 - USA - Rome
Depart from USA to Rome. Dinner and breakfast are served on board.
Day 2 - Arrival in Rome
Meet the tour escort and transfer to your first class hotel. Free afternoon. This
afternoon you may relax or explore the city independently. Your tour escort will
suggest some sights or walks for you to enjoy. Return to hotel for dinner and
overnight. Dinner and overnight.
Day 3 - Rome (Papal Audience at the Vatican - if available)
Today is truly a day that will be in your minds for many years to come. This
morning we go to Vatican City to attend the weekly Papal Audience and
Blessing
given by His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI. Following the audience visit of the Vatican
Museums, a group of most impressive edifices with hundreds of galleries filled
with art treasures. See awe-inspiring relics and works of art donated throughout
centuries as tributes of faith. Through out the tour you will cover The Tapestry Gallery, The Raphael
Rooms and the most overwhelming Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo's Masterpiece,
restored mural of the Last Judgment. Later, enter the largest church in
Christendom St Peter's Basilica, built on the site where St Peter was martyred.
Unsurpassed in beauty, a monument to the long history of the Catholic Church, to
which pilgrims come from around the world, St Peter's is the grandest of the
world's churches. Marvel Pieta and Bernini's amazing bronze canopy. Before
dinner, we'll have some time at leisure, to explore your own paths, to shop, or
just to sit in one of the outside cafes and watch the world go by.
Day 4 - Rome
This morning depart for a sightseeing tour of a lifetime! Although, our focus
is on "Christian Rome" we will also see so many important cultural and
monumental sights around Rome. The tour includes three major Basilicas: St Mary
Major, one of the oldest shrines dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, a shrine that
contains a relic from the manger of the infant Jesus. The Basilica of the St
John in Lateran, is the former residence of the popes prior to their return to
Rome in 1377. St Paul Outside the Walls, which houses the remains of St Paul
under its main altar. You will also see the ancient Baths of Caracalla, Arch of
Drusus, Chapel "O'Domine Quo Vadis?" the remains of imperial tombs,
Tomb of Celilia Metella, and the catacombs of St Callixtus where the early Christians
hid themselves to escape persecution. Dinner and overnight for your last evening
in Rome
Day 5 - Rome - San Giovanni Rotondo
Leave the Eternal City and head southeast to San Giovanni. Time permitting you will stop in Monte Cassino to see the Monastery founded by St Benedict in 529.
This lovely Abbey sits atop a hill overlooking the village of Cassino. We arrive
in San Giovanni, the home of Padre Pio, just in time for dinner.
Day 6 - Monte Sant'Angelo
Today you will Visit the tomb of Padre Pio, tour the sanctuary and see the crucifix from which
he received the stigmata in 1918. You will see the confessional where Padre Pio
spent innumerable hours with a multitude of pilgrims, directing them on their
journey toward God. Enjoy a breathtaking view of the Cargano Peninsula and a
visit to the Grotto of Michael the Archangel. Six different popes, St Francis
and at least four other saints have knelt in prayer at this grotto, seeking the
protection of St Michael. A panoramic view of the ocean and the surrounding
countryside awaits you at this most celebrated shrine of early Christianity, a
shrine consecrated by St Michael himself in 490. Return to San Giovanni for
devotions, reflection.
Day 7 - San Giovanni Rotundo - Lanciano - Loreto - Assisi
The travels today first take you to Lanciano to see the eighth-century
Eucharistic Miracle in the little Church of Lagontial. After expressing doubts
about Christ's true presence in the consecrated host, a monk found himself
holding a host that had changed into flesh and wine that had changed into blood.
Next follow the lush Adriatic coast to the great Marian shrine of Loreto
to
visit the Holy House of Nazareth and the beautiful Madonna of Loreto. More than
50 popes have made a pilgrimage to the house transported by angels to this hill
in central Italy in 1294. Tradition has it that this is the house in which
Mary
prayed the Magnificat, in which Jesus grew to manhood, and in which the
Holy
Family lived. Mass at the Shrine in Loreto, then transfer for dinner and
overnight in Assisi.
Day 8 - Assisi
After breakfast celebrate mass and visit tomb of St Francis. Explore the quaint
hilltop birthplace of St Francis that still retains something of the atmosphere
of the early 1200s, the period when St Francis began his ministry. Contained
within the huge 13th-century Basilica are many of his possessions and a series
of frescoes depicting his life. You may kneel before the crucifix from which
Jesus spoke to St Francis, asking him to rebuild His church. It was in
St Mary
of the Angels Basilica where St Francis spent most of his life. Here we visit
the Chapel, Portiuncola, the rose bush, and the cave where the saint retired for
prayer. Stroll the medieval streets of the compact little town. After stopping
at an outdoor cafe with a view of an ancient Roman temple, we go to the Church
of St Clare to see the saint's incorrupt body. The foundress of the
Order of
Poor Clares followed the teachings of St Francis by living a life of poverty and
humility.
Return to Assisi for dinner and overnight.
Day 9 - Assisi - Sienna
This morning you are
off to the beautiful town of Siena, the birthplace of Saints Catherine
and Bernardine and one of Italy’s loveliest medieval cities. Here we will stroll
the Piazza Del Campo, one of Italy’s finest squares and visit the Cathedral and
the Basilica of St. Francis, containing the miraculous consecrated hosts that
remained intact since 1730. View the incorrupt head of St. Catherine at the
Basilica of St. Dominic. Return to Assisi for dinner and overnight.
Day 10 - Assisi - Rome - USA
Bid farewell to our new friends and to a pilgrimage which
will be in your memories and heart for a long time to come. Early departure from
Assisi for Florence (or Rome) Airport for our return flight to the USA. We
fondly say, Arrivederci Italia!
Tour Features
- Round trip airfare from New York and Airport Taxes
- Accommodations in Superior Tourist and/or First Class Hotel, twin-bedded rooms with private
facilities
- Breakfast and dinner daily
- Transfers between airport and lodging with porterage at
hotels
- Multi-lingual Tour Escort
- Sightseeing as specified in itinerary
- Welcome Packet / Document Portfolio
- Daily Mass and all spiritual activities coordinated
Pricing
|
Program # |
2012 Pilgrimages Dates |
Price |
| RI12 0220 |
February 20 - 29, 2012 |
$3,749 |
| RI12 0319 |
March
19 - 28, 2012 |
$3,949 |
| RI12 0402 |
April
2 - 11, 2012 |
$4,249 |
| RI12 0430 |
April
30 - May 8, 2012 |
$4,249 |
| RI12 0528 |
May
28 - June 6, 2012 |
$4,799 |
| RI12 0611 |
June
11 - 20, 2012 |
$4,799 |
| RI12 0709 |
July
9 - 18, 2012 |
$4,499 |
| RI12 0806 |
August 6 - 15, 2012 |
$4,499 |
| RI12 0917 |
September 17 - 26, 2012 |
$4,249 |
| RI12 1015 |
October 15 - 24, 2012 |
$4,249 |
| RI12 1112 |
November 12 - 21, 2012 |
$3,749 |
Single Supplement: $749.00
Special Add-on Fares available from your hometown.
click here for more information. |
Click here to register on-line
For Information Contact:
 CATHOLICJOURNEYS.COM
800-715-6670 / 504-834-4951
|
