Make your way to your local airport for your overnight flight(s) to Europe. Dinner and breakfast will be served on board.

Welcome to Scotland! Upon arrival, collect your luggage and pass through customs to meet your guide or driver in the Arrivals Hall. You will then be escorted to the hotel where you will check in to your rooms. You may have to wait until after 2 PM to check-in. You will have time to relax and get settled before meeting your fellow pilgrims, your tour guide, and your priest. Together we will kick off our pilgrimage with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at a local church. Then we will have dinner and spend our first overnight stay in Edinburgh.

After breakfast, we will begin our day with Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Mary’s. Then we will explore the capital city of Scotland, including a visit to Edinburgh Castle. Over the centuries this historical castle has served as a battleground, a home, an army headquarters, and finally a tourist attraction. We will wander the castle’s grounds to discover the Great Hall, David’s Tower, the Scottish National War Museum, the Queen Anne Building, and the oldest standing building in Edinburgh: St. Margaret’s Chapel. This delightful little piece of Romanesque architecture has withstood numerous destruction attempts, proving God’s protection over the property. The structure dates back to the 12th century when King David I dedicated this chapel to his mother, Saint Margaret of Scotland. The tour will continue to the UNESCO site of Holyroodhouse at the end of the Royal Mile. The Palace of Holyroodhouse is the British monarch’s residence in Scotland. The huge estate contains rich art and architecture – a true highlight of Scottish culture. We will conclude our day with dinner and an overnight stay in Edinburgh.

Today we will venture through the Scottish countryside on the way to the town of St. Andrew’s. This town in Fife was named after the patron saint of Scotland: the Apostle Andrew. St. Andrew’s Cathedral was the largest in all of Scotland. Though ransacked by Calvinist zealots during the Scottish Reformation, the ruins remain. As the remains of St. Andrew were commonly believed to be buried here, the site became a major shrine for Christians. The “X” shape in which St. Andrew was crucified is a symbol present on the Scottish national flag to remind the country of his martyrdom. The town of St. Andrew’s is also known worldwide as the home of golf. The quiet, non-contact sport is believed to have been invented here in the 15th century. The Old Course, devised in 1754, is still in operation! We will celebrate Mass at the Church of St. James, a small Roman Catholic parish situated on a clifftop overlooking the North Sea. Next, we will continue our journey with a visit to the town of Perth, including Scone Palace, one of the finest examples of Georgian Gothic architecture in the UK. We will proceed to Glasgow for our dinner and an overnight stay.

This morning we will depart for the small historic mining village of Carfin, north-east of Motherwell. Here we will visit the Carfin Grotto, Scotland’s national Marian shrine. The site was built to resemble the Grotto at Massabielle (Our Lady of Lourdes). Built by unemployed miners of the village, this shrine has been used as a place of procession and prayer since the early part of the 20th century. Before returning to Glasgow for lunch, we will enjoy a walk around Carfin: a town of great significance in the life of Scottish Catholicism. Upon our return to Glasgow, you will have the opportunity to participate in a walking tour of the city before a delicious dinner and our last overnight stay in Scotland.

Following breakfast, we will bus to Glasgow Airport for our flight to Dublin, Ireland. Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your tour guide and/or driver who will take you on a panoramic tour of the city on both sides of the River Liffey, where we pass by Phoenix Park – the largest city park in Europe. On the other side of the river are Georgian squares, characterized by colorful doors, and Trinity College, the oldest university in Ireland. The historic place of learning was founded in 1592 by Elizabeth I. Time permitting, we will visit the ancient library at Trinity College containing over 20,000 manuscripts, among which is the famous illuminated Gospel manuscript: the Book of Kells. We will celebrate Mass and have dinner before our overnight stay in Dublin.

Today we will travel through the beautiful mountains of Wicklow, also known as the “Garden of Ireland,” until we reach Glendalough. This ancient monastic city, established in the 6th century by St. Kevin, is in the heart of “the valley of the two lakes.” It was a very important center of learning, as well as a pilgrimage destination. There are many legends regarding St. Kevin and he is often compared to St. Francis of Assisi. You will be taken on a guided tour, in which you will see an Irish round tower, the ruins of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the quaint St. Kevin’s Church which is surrounded by an old cemetery. The tour continues to Baltinglass where we will come upon the ruins of a Cistercian Abbey. We will then pass by Castledermot, where we set our eyes upon the remains of a Franciscan Abbey. We will finish our day in Tipperary for dinner and an overnight stay.

Today in Tipperary we will see the Rock of Cashel, standing high in the middle of the “Golden Vale.” These religious buildings dating from the 12th century form the most spectacular medieval site in Ireland. The Rock of Cashel used to be the seat of the High Kings of Munster. The Cathedral, the Round Tower, and the Cormac Chapel (which was the first Irish Romanesque church) testify to the significance of this site. Our journey continues towards Kerry for dinner and an overnight stay.

This morning we will behold the Dingle Peninsula, the most northern of the Kerry peninsulas. This gorgeous taste of Irish landscape looks like it is straight out of the pages of a storybook. In Early Christian Ireland monks were looking for isolated places to live, such as Gallarus Oratory on the peninsula. This oratory, which used to be a sacred place of prayer for monks, dates back to the 9th century and is excellently preserved. We will visit the town of Inch, where David Lean shot the movie “Ryan’s Daughter.” Inch is the last part of the country where the Gaelic language is commonly spoken! We will continue venturing along the Eagle Mount and the cliffs of Slea Head. Our next stop is the Kilmalkedar Church, built in the 12th century as a part of a complex of religious buildings in the Romanesque style. We will return to Kerry at the end of a lovely day for dinner and an overnight stay.

After a good Irish breakfast, we will be heading north through Listowel and boarding a ferry at Killimer to cross the Shannon Estuary. We will arrive at County Clare, where we will encounter the mystical Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs of Moher rise to 390 feet above the Atlantic Ocean and allure their many visitors with their beauty. We will move on to Galway, a city that has kept its medieval charm with its colorful streets and authentic pubs. The coastal road from the Cliffs of Moher travels along the blue Galway Bay, with a natural rocky landscape on the other side. We will enjoy dinner and an overnight stay in Galway.

Today we will enjoy a cruise on Corrib Lake, which is the largest lake in the Republic of Ireland! It is also the best way to appreciate Galway and its surroundings. We will also visit Clonmacnoise Abbey, which is Ireland’s most important monastic site, overlooking the River Shannon. This site was founded by St. Ciaran in the 6th century and consists of a grass field containing numerous early churches, high crosses, round towers, and graves. We will complete our day with dinner and an overnight stay in Galway.

This morning we will direct our pilgrimage to one of the world’s leading Marian shrines, situated in the plains of East Mayo. On August 21, 1879, fifteen men, women, and children witnessed an apparition of Mary. The silent apparition lasted two hours, including more than only Our Lady of Knock. The vision was of a lamb and a cross above an altar, with St. John the Apostle, Mary, and Joseph to the left. The apparition is rich in symbolism and is venerated internationally. The original parish church on the site still stands, but we will celebrate Mass in the bigger church that was built to house the shrine’s many pilgrims. This church was named a basilica by Saint John Paul II when he visited in 1979. Following Mass, you will have time for private meditation on the mystery of the apparition’s message. Next, you will have free time for lunch and shopping on your own. We will then depart for the hotel in Knock for dinner and an overnight stay.

Today as we leave Knock, we will enjoy plenty of breathtaking scenery while traveling to Dublin. We will arrive in Dublin to visit the National Museum, situated in the heart of the city. Its collection of golden prehistoric jewelry is without a doubt the most stunning in Europe. You will be particularly interested in the Celtic finery, as well as numerous early Christian artifacts and incredible relics. There will be some free time for lunch and relaxation later in the day. In the evening we will have a final delicious dinner before retiring for our last overnight stay in Ireland.

Following breakfast, we will board our bus that will take us to Dublin Airport for our return flights home. We will bid farewell to our new friends and to a pilgrimage that will be in our memories and hearts for years to come.

*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.