Make your way to your local airport to board your flight(s) to Montreal. Arrive in the second largest French-speaking city in the world. Upon your arrival you will be greeted by your tour guide and driver, and then transferred to your hotel. Enjoy some free time before a delicious dinner and a restful overnight stay.

Following breakfast at the hotel, we will board the motorcoach to celebrate Mass at the St. Joseph’s Oratory of Mount-Royal, the world’s largest shrine to St Joseph. The oratory was initially a modest chapel founded by St. Brother André Bessette in 1904. The simple faith of Brother André blossomed into the spectacular site we see today. The pilgrimage center now receives over two million visitors annually who come to meditate and pray for St. Joseph’s protection and intercession. The basilica’s dome reaches 97 meters and is second in height only to St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The construction began in 1904 and was finished in 1966 with a number of architects over the decades, resulting in representations from an intriguing variety of architectural styles. During our tour we will venerate the relics of St. Brother André and view the two great pipe organs, along with the carillon of 56 bronze bells that are played often throughout the week. We will celebrate Mass and pray the Way of the Cross on the mountainside before we continue our journey. Next we will visit the Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde (Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral), the seat of the Archdiocese of Montreal. This Basilica was visited in 1951 by Monsignor Giovanni Battista Montini, the future Pope Paul VI and in August of 1969 by Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, the future Pope John Paul II. He returned in 1984 as the first pope to visit Canada. Finally, we will end the day with a restful overnight in Montreal.

Today we will continue exploring magnificent Montreal. We will depart toward the Amerindian reserve of the community of the Mohawks of Kahnawake and visit to the sanctuary dedicated to Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. Saint Kateri was canonized in 2012, becoming the first Native American saint. Next we will enjoy a guided tour of the Jesuit Mission established in 1720 and the tomb of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. We will have lunch at the Manoir d’Youville before visiting the Historic Site Marguerite Bourgeoys and Notre-Dame de Bon Secours Chapel. The day will come to a close with dinner in the Old Montreal and an overnight stay.

Today begins with an early departure to Sainte Anne de Beaupre. En route, stop at the Copper Art of Albert Gilles and discover 85 years of savoir faire. The artist decorated many churches in North America. We will have time to be moved by his religious inspirations before lunch at Marie Beaupré. Next, we will visit the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, an important pilgrimage place credited by the Catholic Church with many miracles of curing the sick and disabled. It receives about a half-million pilgrims each year. Immerse yourself in the compelling history and spiritual significance of the shrine through artistic masterpieces such as mosaics, stained-glass windows, and both stone and wood sculptures throughout its many chapels. By the end of the afternoon, we will continue to Québec city and check into your hotel. The day will come to a close with dinner and an overnight in Quebec.

After breakfast at the hotel we will visit the Holy Door of Notre-Dame de Québec, then celebrate mass at Notre Dame de Québec cathedral – the oldest parish in North America. In the afternoon there will be a guided tour with the Corporation du Patrimoine et du tourisme religieux de Québec to explore Québec City, discover this UNESCO World Heritage site, and meet the three Blessed Founders of the Canadian Church: Mgr François de Laval, first bishop of Québec inside the Cathedral he built; Marie de l’Incarnation, founder of the Ursuline Nuns of Québec in their exterior chapel; and Catherine de Saint-Augustin, spiritual founder of the Augustinian Nuns of l’Hôtel-Dieu de Québec (first hospital) inside their monastery. We will finish at the church Notre-Dame-des- Victoires before dinner and an overnight stay in Québec city.

Early departure to Trois-Rivières: it is under the watchful eye of Mary, Mother of Jesus that we pass our morning at Our Lady of the Cape Shrine, the largest Marian shrine in Canada. Standing on the shore of the St. Lawrence River, Our Lady of the Cape Shrine welcomes pilgrims from around the world to pray in the oldest standing Canadian chapel built in 1714 and in the large modern basilica which was inaugurated in 1964. The Basilica is adorned with magnificent stained-glass windows and a Casavant organ with 5,425 pipes – one of the largest in Canada. The shrine reveals an oasis of greenery with its tranquil gardens that overlook the river. You will be inspired to spend time in personal reflection with our Lord in this peaceful shrine and its surrounding landscape. The visit to the Little Sanctuary will open our eyes to two major events which occurred here: the miraculous ice bridge and the Miracle of the Eyes. We will ponder the symphony of colors and the beauty of the stained-glass work of the Basilica depicting the life of Mary. We will enjoy lunch onsite, then in the afternoon we will visit the museum of Father Frederic Janson and the museum of the Ursulines. The day will end with a drive to Montreal, dinner, and an overnight stay in Montreal.

This morning you will enjoy your last breakfast with your new friends at the hotel before checking out. We will take you to the airport for your departure and you will arrive home with wonderful memories and a refreshed faith. Thank you for choosing us for your Canadian pilgrimage!

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