Depart on your international overnight flight to Lisbon, Portugal.

Our representative will greet you at the airport and escort you to your bus for the journey to Santarem. Here, the Church of St. Stephen was the site of a Holy Miracle in the 12th century. The crystal pyx can be seen at the renamed Church of the Holy Miracle. Continue to Fatima, where you will check into your hotel and then celebrate Mass in one of the chapels at the Sanctuary of Fatima complex. There is an opportunity to participate in the candlelight processional while in Fatima. (D)

Today, you will celebrate Mass and then visit the basilica where the three children (Lucia lived to adulthood) are interred. You will then journey to the countryside, where Mary appeared to Francisco and Jacinta Marto, and their cousin Lucia dos Santos from May 13, 1917, every month for six months until she appeared at Valinhos. You will see their homes nearby, and where Francisco died in 1919. Jacinta died in a Lisbon hospital in 1920. Return to Fatima for time to pray and contemplate the meaning of the Holy Site. (B, D)

Today, you will depart for Spain and Salamanca. This afternoon, enjoy a walking tour of this university city. Chartered in 1218 by Alfonso IX of Leon, University of Salamanca has been home to Cervantes, Cortes, and St. John of the Cross. The façade of the entrance to the university is an ornate wonder. The old and new cathedrals (12th and 16th century) join at the edge of the university. The Plaza Mayor here is one of the most picturesque in all of Europe.

This morning, you will travel to Valladolid and visit the unfinished cathedral. Walk the path past the Church of Saint Mary the Ancient, whose foundations and tower date back to the 12th century. Continue to Burgos, where we will pass through the Arco de Santa Maria, an ornate gateway through the old city walls built to honor Charles V. Visit the Gothic cathedral, begun in 1221. This is a pilgrimage church on the Camino de Santiago. Check into your hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

This morning, you will journey through the Pyrenees to Lourdes. Here, Mary appeared to Bernadette Soubirous 18 times in 1858. It has become a place of pilgrimage for millions of the faithful each year, and the spring water from the grotto is believed to have healing properties. While in Lourdes, you will have the opportunity to participate in the afternoon processional and the evening candlelight processional. Check into your hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Today, you will celebrate Mass in one of the chapels here at the sanctuary. Then, enjoy a walking tour of the sanctuary grounds and then to the homes of Bernadette and her family. This afternoon, you will have free time to partake in the healing waters baths or to explore more of the town on your own, from the various apparition sites to the castle fort that affords panoramic views of the sanctuary and the Pyrenees. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Enjoy additional time in Lourdes this morning to pray and reflect. This afternoon, you will fly from Lisbon to Rome. Check into your hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Enjoy a guided tour of the Vatican’s Museums and the Sistine Chapel. Built by connecting portions of the old papal residence with newer structures, the museum houses a world-renowned collection of art and antiquities. Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel between 1508 and 1512 and later painted The Last Judgment between 1535 and 1541 for Popes Clement VII and Paul III. The primary function of the chapel is the Papal Conclave, providing the place where the College of Cardinals of the church gathers to elect a new pope. Then, walk through St. Peter’s Basilica and celebrate Mass here. The present structure completed in 1590 was built over the Byzantine and Middle Ages structures that marked the tomb of Saint Peter. There are more than 100 tombs within the basilica, including most recently Saint John Paul II. Finish the day at the Pantheon, built by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC to 14 AD). Emperor Hadrian rebuilt it around 126 AD. The building was given to Pope Boniface IV who converted it into a church, Saint Mary and the Martyrs (Santa Maria Rotunda). Mass continues to be celebrated here. (B, D)

After breakfast, enjoy the opportunity to join in prayer with Pope Francis and receive his greeting, blessing and prayers. Begin your afternoon with a visit to the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran. Six popes are entombed here. Next door is the Holy Staircase (Scala Santa), brought from Pilate’s Palace in Jerusalem by Saint Helena in the 4th century. Climbing the stairs on your knees is a devotion that many pilgrims perform, and a plenary indulgence is granted for completing this feat. Next is the Basilica of Saint Lawrence Outside the Walls (San Lorenzo). Saint Lawrence was one of the first seven deacons of Rome, martyred in 258. The church is built next to catacombs that lead down to his grave. The relics of Saints Justin Martyr and Stephen are also enshrined here. Continue your pilgrim journey to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major (Maria Maggiore). This is the largest Marian church in Rome. Its construction began after the Council of Ephesus in 431 proclaimed that Mary was the Mother of God. Saint Jerome, translator of the Bible into the Latin Vulgate, is buried here. Celebrate Mass in one of the churches. (B, D)

This morning begins your final day of pilgrimage at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. The present structure stands over the place where Constantine built the first church, which was over Saint Paul’s grave. The church features a portrait of every Pope who has served the church, with the face of Pope Francis I illuminated as the present pontiff. Step beneath the surface into the Catacombs of Callixtus, built along the Appian Way. Here, 16 popes from the 2nd through 4th centuries were interred, though they have been removed to various churches over the centuries. San Sebastian Outside the Walls is another of the seven pilgrimage churches, built over the Catacombs of Saint Sebastian. The remains of Peter and Paul were temporarily protected here during the Valerian Persecution of 258. Our seventh and final pilgrimage stop is the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem. Saint Helena brought Passion relics here, and the floor was covered with soil from Jerusalem. Relics here include the index finger of Thomas that touched the wounds of Christ after His resurrection and a piece of the Good Thief’s Cross. Those who want to complete the seven-church pilgrimage as declared by Saint John Paul II in 2000 can continue to one more stop at the Shrine of Our Lady of Divine Love. Here a pilgrim pursued by dogs appealed to Our Lady and she intervened for his safety. Pilgrims began to frequent the site and a chapel was built here in 1745. Celebrate mass in one of the churches. (B, D)

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