Arrive in Rome, the spiritual center of the Catholic faith during the Holy Year. This evening, join your fellow travelers for a welcome dinner at your hotel, featuring regional delicacies and Italian wine.

This morning, begin your pilgrimage of the Seven Jubilee Churches with a visit to Rome’s cathedral: the Basilica of St. John Lateran – the former residence of the popes. After celebrating Mass, continue to the Scala Sancta, the Holy Stairs which tradition believes are the steps that Christ climbed when he appeared before Pontius Pilate. This afternoon, visit the Basilica of the Holy Cross, which enshrines relics from Jerusalem and the Holy Land. Return to the hotel for an evening at leisure. Or opt to enhance your Roman sojourn with a half-board dinner supplement at your hotel.*

Today, venture beyond ancient Rome’s city limits, though still within the modern city center. Visit the Basilica of Saint Lawrence Outside the Walls, built over the shrine of Saint Lawrence, one of the earliest martyrs of the Catholic Church. Continue to St. Sebastian Outside the Walls where you celebrate Mass. Then, follow the steps down to the catacombs underneath the basilica, for a touching visit to the tombs of early Christians, martyrs, and saints. This afternoon, visit St. Paul Outside the Walls and pause in reverence at the tomb of the Apostle.

This morning, join the English-language neighborhood Mass at the Shrine of the Divine Mercy.** Afterward, walk on to St. Peter’s Square to await the Papal Blessing.*** Every Sunday when in residence, His Holiness pronounces a brief reflection on the Gospel of the day before reciting the Angelus prayer from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square. This afternoon, visit the Shrine of our Lady of Divine Love, added to the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome by Saint John Paul II during the Jubilee of AD 2000.

Early this morning, travel north to Assisi, where St. Francis spent most of his life. Visit St. Mary of the Angels Basilica and the Chapel of the Porziuncola, built on the founding site of the Franciscan Order. After an included lunch, join a local expert on a tour of the 13th-century basilica of St. Francis, where you can see many of St. Francis’ possessions and a series of frescoes. Celebrate Mass at the basilica before returning to Rome in the evening for a late dinner at your hotel.

This morning explore the Vatican Museums,**** including the Sistine Chapel where the Pope is elected and where Michelangelo’s famous Last Judgment mural is located. End your visit of the Vatican City in St. Peter’s Basilica, the world’s largest church. Feel the grace around you as you meander along towering marble columns and stand in awe before La Pietà, Michelangelo’s renowned sculpture. This afternoon, enter the Marian Basilica of St. Mary Major, where art and spirituality meet. Celebrate Mass before returning to the hotel for an evening at leisure.

Early this morning attend the weekly Papal audience*** at the Vatican City to receive the blessing given by His Holiness the Pope. The afternoon is yours to do as you wish. You may choose to cross the Holy Door of St. Peter’s to seek jubilar absolution if you have not done so yet. This evening, join your fellow travelers for a farewell dinner at a local restaurant celebrating the end of a memorable pilgrimage to Italy.

Your spiritual journey to Rome and Assisi comes to a close. Return home with renewed faith as a Pilgrim of Hope.