Make your way to your local airport, where you will board your overnight flight(s). Your meals will be served on board.

Welcome to Rome, also known as “The Eternal City”. Upon landing at Rome airport, claim your baggage and proceed to the arrival hall where your tour guide and/or driver will greet you and accompany you on your transfer to Assisi. This afternoon, your group will meet for Mass, and after, transfer together to Assisi – the hometown of St. Francis and St. Clare attend a welcome dinner.

The morning is dedicated to a once-in-a-lifetime spiritual encounter. You will proceed to the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi to participate in the veneration of the mortal remains of St. Francis, a relic displayed publicly for the first time in 800 years as part of the centenary. This profound and prayerful experience offers a tangible connection to the “Gospel fully lived,” challenging all pilgrims to contemplate his radical love and commitment. Following this deeply personal encounter, the group will take time for quiet reflection in the hallowed space of the Basilica. The rest of the afternoon is set aside for personal prayer, walking the medieval streets, and allowing the morning’s grace to settle within your heart before returning to the hotel for a reflective dinner and overnight.

Today is a day dedicated to contemplation, starting with the spiritual legacy of St. Clare. After morning Mass, you will visit the Basilica of St. Clare to pray at her tomb and venerate the original San Damiano Cross, the iconic Crucifix that launched Francis’s mission. After a break for a light lunch, the pilgrimage will climb the slopes of Mount Subasio to the secluded Eremo delle Carceri (The Carceri Hermitage). Here, in the quiet, moss-covered woods, you will walk the path Francis and his brothers took for silent prayer and retreat, visiting the ancient grottoes that served as their simple cells. This experience will draw you into the contemplative heart of the Franciscan movement, providing a needed spiritual balance to the public veneration of the previous day, before you descend back into Assisi for dinner and a restful night.

Begin your day in Assisi with a tour of the Basilica of St. Francis, where you will see his tomb. View a series of frescoes depicting the life of St. Francis, along with a few of the Saint’s possessions. Next, you will visit the Santuario Della Spogliazione, where you will be able to pray at the tomb of St. Carlo Acutis. Carlo is the first millennial to have been canonized a Saint. He had a great love for the Holy Eucharist and died from leukemia at the young age of 15. Continue your tour by walking through this picturesque town, where St. Francis and St. Clare both followed God’s call to rebuild His church. Enjoy some free time for additional prayer, shopping, and lunch. After lunch, board the bus, which will take you outside the walls of Assisi to the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels. Within this Basilica, there are two smaller structures, both of which you will visit. The first structure is the “Porziuncola”, which St. Francis restored as a young man, and it was the headquarters of the Friars Minor. The second is the “Capella del Transito”, which is the place where St. Francis died. Return to the hotel for dinner and a restful overnight.

This morning, you will ride through the beautiful Umbrian mountains to Orvieto. This incredible town sits on a volcanic high rock formation. Here we will visit one of the most beautiful and renowned Cathedrals in Italy. Due to its strategic location, Orvieto’s Christian history officially started in 1004, but it was built over preexisting Etruscan-era cave tunnels dating back 2,500 years, which some historians believe Christians used to celebrate Mass when Christianity was forbidden. Return to Assisi for dinner and a final overnight.

After an early breakfast and heartfelt farewells, you will head to Rome Fiumicino airport for your return flight(s) home. (Your flight departure time will be no earlier than 10AM).

*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.