*Please note this pilgrimage involves a certain amount of walking and physical activity, such as stairs, standing for extended periods and walking on uneven surfaces; especially when visiting historical and religious sites. We kindly ask that you assess your comfort level with these activities before booking and travel with a companion.
DAY 1: Wednesday 18th March
Enjoy a comfortable journey from Dublin Airport with the Aer Lingus early flight departing at 06:25hrs. You will be arriving in Rome at approximately 10:40hrs.Upon arrival, our Joe Walsh Tours pilgrimage coordinator will welcome you and arrange a private coach transfer to the St. Mary Major area for lunch and refreshments (your own expenses).
Today’s itinerary includes a visit to this renowned Papal Basilica, followed by Mass and an orientation walking tour of the area. Afterward, we will proceed to Casa di Francesca Romana, nestled in the lively Trastevere neighbourhood, where we will stay for the next three nights on a Half Board basis. After checking in time to unwind and relax. Dinner will be served at 19:00hrs.
DAY 2: Thursday 19th March
Today the group will begin with breakfast at the hotel at 7:00am, starting the feast day with prayer and thanksgiving. At 8:00 AM, we will depart for the Church of San Giuseppe al Trionfale near the Vatican.
We will celebrate a Feast-Day Mass with the local community, view the statue and relics of St. Joseph, and participate in, or privately pray, the “St Joseph’s Cloak” devotion, reflecting on his humility and trust in God. We will transfer then to the Museo delle Anime del Purgatorio, a brief 15-minute walk or drive across the Tiber.
Around 11:00am we will explore this small but powerful museum within the Chiesa del Sacro Cuore del Suffragio, viewing documented evidence of souls in purgatory and concluding with a short prayer service for the departed.
Lunch will follow at 12:45 PM at a nearby trattoria in the Prati area. In the afternoon we will return to San Giuseppe al Trionfale for quiet adoration, confessions, and additional prayer of the St. Joseph Cloak, with an optional group renewal of dedication to St. Joseph. The remainder of the afternoon, starting at 16:30, will be free time, with the opportunity for a stroll toward St. Peter’s Square, evening rosary, or souvenir shopping.
TO BE ORGANISED INDEPENDENTLY AND WITH OWN TRANSPORTS
The day may conclude with an optional evening Mass or Vespers at San Giuseppe al Trionfale or a nearby Vatican parish at 6:00 PM.
DAY 3: Friday 20th March ***Please note this day requires a moderate amount of walking
Today after breakfast our day will bring us to the last two major Papal basilicas: the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls, where the group will have mass (tbc) and the Basilic of St John in the Lateran.
The Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, is one of Rome’s four major papal basilicas. Time to visit and for prayers before moving to St John in the Lateran. The Archbasilica is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome and the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope as the Bishop of Rome.
Time for lunch in one of the many café’s or restaurants before continuing on with a walking tour of Rome’s main sites:
- The Holy Stairs (Scala Sancta)
- Basilica of Holy Cross in Jerusalem
- Basilica of San Clemente & Colosseum
Free rest of the day for personal visits. Enjoy dinner and an evening stroll before getting back to the hotel.
DAY 4: Saturday 21st March
After breakfast and check out today is time to move on to the second leg of our journey and travel to the birthplace of St. Francis, the hill town of Assisi, in the central part of Italy.
We will be arriving around lunch time, there will be free time for lunch and refreshments before exploring Upper Assisi with a special visit to the awe-inspiring 13th century Basilica of St. Francis and his tomb, the town’s most important sanctuary.
On this day you will have the once in a lifetime chance to access the Veneration of the Relics of Saint Francis. The relics of the Saint will be displayed in Assisi, in the Lower Church of the Basilica of Saint Francis. At 15:30 you will have a self-guided tour, following the relics of the Saint with
a personal and silent moment of veneration. After such an inspiring day time to check in at the family run Hotel Da Angelo where we will be staying for the next 2 nights of a Half Board basis.
DAY 5: Sunday 22nd March
Today we will have an early breakfast and a full day out exploring Loreto and Tolentino. In Loreto amongst other sites we will visit the Basilica della Santa Casa (Holy House).
Inside the grand basilica is the Holy House of Nazareth, enclosed in a marble screen sculpted by Donato Bramante and adorned with reliefs of the Virgin’s life.
The Black Madonna of Loreto, a dark wooden statue of Mary and the Child Jesus, stands above the altar inside the Holy House, a major focus of Marian devotion.
Pilgrims often walk on their knees around the small interior as a sign of reverence and humility.
Time to drive to Tolentino, about 1 hour from Loreto, is renowned as the home and shrine of St. Nicholas of Tolentino (1245–1305), an Augustinian friar and miracle worker. He is known as the Saint of the Holy Souls in Purgatory, and his sanctuary is a place of deep intercession and healing.
Time to visit the Basilica of St Nicholas of Tolentino, the cloister and the monastery and the room of the Miracles.
After a full day time to drive back to Assisi for our last dinner and overnight.
DAY 6: Monday 23rd March
Today is unfortunately the last day of this pilgrimage. After an early breakfast and check out we will start our day with the visit of the Basilica of St. Clare where we will see the original San Damiano cross, and amongst other relics on display, her long hair which was cut off by St. Francis during her religious profession, her habit and her cord belt.
Next, we will be visiting the Sanctuary of the Renunciation, the Church where Blessed Carlo Acutis’s remains are displayed, and the place where it is renowned that St. Francis relinquished his wealthy lifestyle, cast off his rich clothes, choosing instead a torn patched-up tunic and life of poverty. Mass before moving to Lower Assisi to St Maria degli Angeli, where the Porziuncola, the cradle of the Franciscan Order is, and where the original community of brothers made their home is enshrined also, his cell, the famous rose garden and place where St. Francis departed this life. Time for a quick sandwich before traveling back to Rome for our flight back to Dublin departing at 20:15.
