Make your way to your local airport, where you will board your overnight flight(s). Your meals will be served on board.

Welcome to Rome, also known as “The Eternal City”. Upon landing at Rome airport, claim your baggage and proceed to the arrival hall, where your tour guide and/or driver will greet you. After checking at the hotel, enjoy some free time to unpack, relax or explore Rome on your own. Your tour escort may suggest places to visit. Later this afternoon, your group will meet in the hotel lobby for a meet and greet with fellow pilgrims and your Priest. Together, depart for Mass. Following Mass, you will attend a welcome dinner. After dinner, you can walk to St. Peter’s Square for the Rosary (optional).

We begin with the Papal Audience in St. Peter’s Square! The Audience is celebrated each Wednesday by His Holiness Pope Francis (pending the papal schedule). Following the Audience, we will visit the Trevi Fountain, where you may enjoy some free time on your own for lunch. This afternoon, you will see the Basilica of St. John Lateran. This Basilica is the oldest of the four major basilicas in Rome and contains relics of Saints Peter and Paul. It is where Pope Francis was installed as the Bishop of Rome. Next, you will cross the street to visit the Holy Stairs. These Holy Stairs are the exact steps leading up to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem that Jesus would have climbed during his passion. The Stairs were brought to Rome by Saint Helena in the fourth century. Pilgrims traditionally ascend these stairs on their knees in memory of Christ’s agonizing passion. We will conclude our day with a Mass at the Basilica of St. Mary Major. Dedicated to Our Blessed Mother, St. Mary Major is the only Basilica that has kept its original structure and is an authentic jewel in the crown of Roman Churches. This Basilica contains a relic from the Manger of the Infant Jesus. Next, visit the Basilica of Santa Croce, which Pope Gregory I declared a titular church in 523. Despite its location on the outskirts of Rome, it became a destination of regular pilgrimage, thanks to the popularity of the relics it kept. These relics include the panel that hung on Christ’s Cross, two thorns from the Crown of Thorns, part of a nail, the index finger of St. Thomas, and three small wooden pieces of the True Cross. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

Today, we tour St. Peter’s Basilica, built on the site where St. Peter the Apostle was martyred. Inside, you can view Michelangelo’s Pieta sculpture and pray at the tombs of Pope Benedict XVI and St. John Paul II. Next, you will visit the Vatican Museum, where you can see the Tapestry Gallery, Raphael Rooms, and Sistine Chapel. Continue to the Church of Santo Spirito in Sassia (Holy Spirit in Saxony), located near St. Peter’s Square. It is famous for its beautiful and ornate decorations (it is adorned with numerous paintings, frescoes, and works of eminent artists from many periods) and has a long history of bringing mercy to the human spirit and body. After lunch, continue down the Appian Way, one of the earliest roads built in ancient Rome, to the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls and the Catacombs. Dinner and overnight in Rome.

We leave Rome and travel to Assisi, the hometown of St. Francis and St. Clare. As you visit the birthplace of St. Francis, you will become captivated as the atmosphere has not changed since St. Francis began his ministry in the early 13th century. You will start your tour at the Basilica of St. Francis. Here, you will visit his tomb and have the opportunity to view a series of frescoes depicting his life, as well as see a few of the Saint’s possessions. Followed by a visit to the Santuario Della Spogliazione, which houses the tomb of Blessed Carlo Acutis. Carlo is the first millennial to be declared Blessed who loved the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Next, you will board the bus, which will take you outside Assisi’s walls to the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels. This Basilica is where St. Francis spent most of his life. This Basilica is made up of two structures. The first structure is the “Porziuncola”, where St. Francis founded his order of the Friar Minor (Franciscans). The second is the “Capella del Transito”, which is the place of St. Francis’ death. During your time here, you will have the opportunity to visit the beautiful Rose Garden where St. Francis and other friars lived and the cave where the Saint retired to pray. Return to Rome for dinner and overnight.

After an early breakfast and heartfelt farewells, your group will leave by motor coach and transfer to Rome Fiumicino airport for your short flight to Dubrovnik or Split. Upon arrival, you will find your luggage and exit the baggage claim into the Arrival Hall, where you will be greeted by your tour guide and/or driver. You will be escorted to the vehicle, which will then take you on the 2.5–hour drive to the village of Medjugorje. Enjoy dinner before retiring for the evening.

The most beautiful features of Medjugorje are its simplicity and peace. Over the next three days in Medjugorje, you may experience your faith grow and share in the faith journey of pilgrims from around the world. A local guide will accompany your group throughout your stay in the village.

Some activities that will enrich your spiritual journey during your time in Medjugorje include:

Attend Daily Mass: Each morning at 10:00 AM, your group will assemble at St. James Church for Mass (English-speaking). At the end of each Mass, regardless of language, there is a blessing of the religious articles that you have with you. On feast days and Sundays, English Mass is at noon.

Climb Apparition Hill: This mountainous hill is where the visionaries first encountered Our Lady. At the base of this hill is a Blue Cross, where it is said Our Lady appeared to the children while they hid from the communist police in the early days of the alleged apparitions. While climbing, your group will be invited to recite the Rosary, pausing five times for each decade of the Rosary. At the top of the hill, you will witness the exact location of the first alleged apparition of Our Lady to the visionaries and enjoy private time for prayer.

Climb Mt. Krizevac (Cross Mountain): In 1933, the villagers built a 30-foot high cross atop a mountain to commemorate Jesus’ passion and death on the cross. Your group will be able to climb this mountain and venerate that cross. While climbing, your group will be invited to pray the Stations of the Cross (to meditate on Jesus’ suffering Road to Calvary), pausing fifteen times for each Station.

Apparitions: Each evening at 6:00 PM, your group can join the villagers and fellow pilgrims of Medjugorje at either St James Church or Apparition Hill to commemorate the time Our Lady appeared to the Visionaries. There, you can pray the Rosary. Afterward, Croatian Mass is held at St. James Church and is free for all to attend. It is broadcast by the radio simultaneously to translate the services from Croatian into many languages. Following the Croatian Mass, there is a Blessing of the Sick.

**For details about the Visionaries, please visit: www.206tours.com/visionaries

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Our Lady has always called us to be close to her Son. You will have the opportunity to adore the Blessed Sacrament at the altar outside of St. James Church. Adoration is held on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Veneration of the Cross is held on Fridays inside the church. Additionally, there is an Adoration Chapel on the grounds of St. James Church, where Adoration is held in the afternoon.

Visit to the Community of Cenacolo: You will have the opportunity to visit the Community of Cenacolo, founded by the Sisters of Charity, for young men and women who have taken a wrong path and are on the road to recovery. You will be able to listen to their inspirational testimonies about their journeys back to Jesus Christ.

Prayer at the Statue of the Risen Christ: The bronze statue of the Risen Christ is located on the grounds of St. James Church. Many pilgrims sit and pray on the benches surrounding this peaceful statue. This statue miraculously seeps droplets of water out of Christ’s right knee at all times of the day.

After an early breakfast and heartfelt farewells, we leave by motor coach for Dubrovnik, Split, or Sarajevo for return flights home.

*206 Tours Disclaimer:
Though every effort will be made to follow the itinerary, it should be considered as an indication, rather than a contract of places to be visited. Occasionally local religious holidays, national days, weather, traffic conditions and other events may necessitate changes in the sequence of visits or the missing of certain visits.