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1011AA6 - Catholic Italy Pilgrimage 12 days from Charleston, WV


Trip Flyer
Airline Name Baggage Information
American Airlines https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/baggage/checked-baggage-policy.jsp

Special Package with this Trip :
International departure taxes of $136 plus current fuel surcharges of $520 are included (subject to change).

Tour Code Departure Date Cost per person
AA1011DO 10/11/2026 $6499.00
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Trip Details

Today, we depart from Charleston, WV to connect with our overnight flight to Italy. We enjoy in-flight movies, dinner, and breakfast aloft.
Upon arrival in Rome, we are met and board our motor coach for the ride to the Florence area. We stop for lunch on our own, then we continue to the delightful nearby spa town of Montecatini Terme whose streets invite us to stroll after dinner at your hotel. The balance of the day is at leisure.
Today, we drive to Florence where our first stop is “Piazzale Michelangelo” for the best panoramic view of this spectacular city one could ask for. We proceed with a tour in Oltrarno, starting from Ognissanti Church with Mass. We continue along Via Tornabuoni to Piazza Santa Trinità. We cross the bridge from which we will be able to admire all the beauty of Ponte Vecchio from a distance and continue the walk in Oltrarno. We continue our walk passing Palazzo Pitti (external) and we will finally reach Ponte Vecchio where we will be free for shopping and/or to enjoy a delicious Italian ice cream. In the afternoon we will be free for personal adventure or shopping. We return to our hotel dinner and overnight.
Today we journey through the Italian countryside arriving in La Verna, where St. Francis received the stigmata. Lunch (Pranzo) is included. Our time in La Verna includes the “Sasso Spicco,” a unique rock formation at La Verna, where St. Francis meditated on the Passion of Christ. We partake in the 3 p.m. procession, a historic and deeply spiritual tradition that has taken place every single day since 1431. Franciscan friars and pilgrims walk in solemn procession from the Basilica to the Chapel of the Stigmata, the spot where St. Francis of Assisi received the wounds of Christ in 1224. Our day ends with dinner and overnight in Assisi at our hotel.
Our day begins with Mass at the Hermitage of the Carceri, a place St. Francis retreated from the world to pray and fast. We take time here for quite prayer and meditation. Afterwards, we return to the upper village of Assisi for a tour with stops at the Basilica of St. Francesco, where St. Francis is buried. We break for lunch on our own. Our tour continues at the Church of St. Clare to view the famous San Damiano crucifix, followed by the resting place of newly beatified St. Carlo Acutis who was 15-years old when he died in 2006 from leukemia. Acutis' tomb is where St. Francis stripped naked and renounced his father’s wealth. The remainder of the day is free for prayer, quiet, shopping and absorbing the spirit of this place that produced three saints. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.
This morning, our first stop is in the lower town for a visit to the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels, and the Portiuncula, Francis' Church of the Little Portion. We see the place where St. Francis met “Sister Death” and take time for quiet prayer, confession (if available) and shopping. We travel south to Orvieto for a visit and Mass at the breathtaking Cathedral, which is known as the jewel of Italian architecture. Inside the Cathedral is the Chapel of the Corporal, which houses the chalice cloth involved in the Eucharistic Miracle, which occurred in nearby Bolsena. In the 13th century a pilgrim priest named Peter of Prague was celebrating Mass at the crypt of St. Christina. He was having a faith crisis concerning the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and while speaking the words of the consecration, blood started to drip from the consecrated Host. Subsequently Pope Urban instituted The Feast of Corpus Christi. Lunch on our own. Afterwards, we make our way to the seaside town of Naples along the Mediterranean for dinner and overnight.
This morning, we leave Naples by boat to visit the beautiful Island of Ischia. We enjoy a short orientation tour. Afterwards, we are free to enjoy the day at our leisure. One optional spot for interested pilgrims would be the popular Giardini Poseidon Terme, which offers a beautiful spa with volcanic thermal pools, exquisite gardens and delicious local food for lunch. Following Mass at one of the churches here we return to Naples for dinner and overnight.
Today, we enjoy a morning trip to nearby Sorrento. After Mass and lunch in Sorrento, we head north to Rome where we visit the Basilica of St. Mary Major where Pope Francis is buried. St. Mary’s also holds relics of Christ’s Holy Manger from Bethlehem and a piece of the true cross from Golgotha. The golden ceiling of St. Mary’s is decorated by the first gold brought back from the New World by Christopher Colombus. The Spanish Catholic Kings—Ferdinand and Isabel—gave the gold as a gift to the Pope. We take time to pray at St. Mary’s, the largest church dedicated to Mary in the west, before we travel to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
Today, we visit St. Peter’s Basilica where we celebrate Mass in the crypt. After Mass, we pray at the tombs of St. John Paul II and St. Peter the Apostle. Back upstairs in the main sanctuary, we view the treasures of St. Peter’s including the Pieta, Bernini’s “Window of the Holy Spirit” made from alabaster as well as his famous altar columns. One column contains the spear of St. Longinus, which was on display earlier this year. St. Longinus, the Roman centurion who pierced the side of our Savior, was converted by the blood and water that flowed from Christ’s Sacred Heart. After lunch on our own, we visit the Vatican Museums which culminate in Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel. We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
Our itinerary offers a treat today with a visit to Tivoli, with its UNESCO World Heritage sites. Tivoli offers Renaissance gardens of the Villa d'Este (famous for its fountains) and the vast ancient ruins of Hadrian's Villa (Villa Adriana). We enjoy a delicious, included luncheon with wine tasting. We also explore the historic town center before returning to Rome. Dinner and overnight in our hotel.
This morning, we make our way to St. Peter's for an audience with Pope Leo XIV, if he is in residence. Afterwards, we visit the Holy Stairs and the Basilica of St. John Lateran. Following lunch on our own, we continue with Mass and a visit to the Basilica of St. Clement where our underground tour shows us how three churches were built on top of each other in the 1st, 4th and 12 centuries. We move then to the Basilica of St. Lawrence, the martyred deacon who famously said as he was being grilled to death: “Flip me over, I’m done on this side.” They have the grill in the church! St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr who was stoned to death (Acts 7), is also buried here. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.
We transfer to the airport in Rome for our flight home with unforgettable memories to cherish for the rest of our lives.