SPIRITUAL HIGHLIGHTS OF ITALY

With its many places of worship, Italy is a destination for travelers who want to rejoice in their faith. On this inspirational Italy tour, you'll overnight in Rome, the heart of Christianity; San Giovanni Rotondo, where St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina lived and worked his miracles; and Assisi, where St. Francis was born, worked, and died. Along the way, you'll visit many of Italy’s treasured basilicas, churches, and more. In Rome, you'll encounter three of Rome's four major Papal basilicas: St. Peter's Basilica, the largest Christian church in the world; St. Paul Outside the Walls, Rome's second-largest basilica and the burial place of St. Paul the Apostle; and St. John's Lateran Basilica, the oldest basilica in the Western World and the Papal residence until the 14th century. Also in Rome, you'll attend the Papal audience (subject to availability) and receive the Papal Blessing. On this Italy tour, you'll attend Mass in Rome at St. Mary Major Basilica, the most important Roman church dedicated to the Virgin Mary; in San Giovanni Rotondo at Santa Maria delle Grazie (Old Church), consecrated in 1629; in Lanciano at St. Francis’ Church, home to the relics of the earliest-known Eucharistic Miracle; and in Assisi at St. Francis Basilica, one of Italy's oldest gothic churches. Other tour highlights include visits to the Loreto Sanctuary and Holy House, where, according to tradition, angels transported the home of the blessed Virgin Mary; the Shrine of Monte Sant'Angelo, one of Christendom's most celebrated shrines and where St. Michael the Archangel appeared in 490, 492, and 1656; the Abbey at Monte Cassino, founded by St. Benedict in 529 AD; and much more.