Depart from Portugal.

After our arrival into Lisbon, the group will take a bus transfer to our centrally located hotel. Remaining hours of the day will be for leisure, rest or explore the city at your own pace. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

This morning we will meet with our local guide and enjoy a tour of Lisbon city. Our first stop is St Anthony’s Basilica where we celebrate our group Mass. Despite what might be assumed from his name, St Anthony was born and grew up in Lisbon and today remains the patron saint of lost articles.
Visit Jeronimo’s Monastery listed as a World Heritage location, dating back to the 16th century with its stunning combination of flamboyant Gothic, Moorish and early Renaissance influences; see nearby Belem Tower and the Monument to the Discoveries. Admire Europe’s longest suspension bridge and view the inspiring Statue of Christ the King pointing the way north to Fatima.
In route to Fatima, we will visit the Holy Miracle Church of St Stephen at Santarem containing the oldest recorded Eucharistic miracle.
Later in the evening, we arrive at Fatima where in 1917 the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to three children as ‘a lady in white’. Check-in the hotel in Fatima for dinner and overnight.

This morning we will walk and pray the Stations along the beautiful Way of the Cross (the Sacred Way) culminating in the Chapel of Calvary from where you can see all of Fatima. Continue to Valinhos, the site of Our Lady’s appearance after the children’s return from prison before we proceed onto the little village of Aljustrel to visit the homes where the children lived. Last but not least we enter the original Parish church and see the Baptismal font where the children were baptized.
We’ll return to Fatima where the Anniversary Vigil ceremonies will begin with an International Rosary followed by a candlelight procession and concelebrated Mass on the steps of the Rosary Basilica. From midnight to dawn, and optional for whoever is interested in staying, the vigil is held all night for the enrichment of pilgrims.

We awake to the sound of pilgrims from all over the world on route to the morning’s Anniversary celebrations. It will begin with a Rosary followed by the procession of Our Lady’s statue to the altar on the steps of the Basilica. It will continue by celebrating the extraordinary International Anniversary Mass and followed by the Blessing of the Sick and Consecration. The ceremonies will end around midday with the touching ‘Adios’ spectacle (waving of the white handkerchiefs in tribute to Our Lady) as her statue is carried back to the Capelinha.
We will then enjoy a tour of the Square (the largest square in Christendom) including the site of the Apparitions, Basilica of the Rosary with the Tombs of the visionaries, the Museum, Blessed Sacrament Chapel and other main sites.
Afternoon will be time for leisure and rest in Fatima, before returning to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

This day will begin checking out from the hotel in Fatima towards our destination Santiago de Compostela a distance of 432 km. Our first stretch of this journey will be from Fatima to the city of Oporto, Portugal’s second most important city after Lisbon and city which has an historical core proclaimed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. We will have an hour to visit freely the city before having lunch at a restaurant. After lunch we’ll proceed with our drive in direction to our destination Santiago de Compostela. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the city’s cathedral, as destination of the Way of St. James, a leading Catholic pilgrimage route originated in the 9th century. In 1985 the city’s Old Town was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Upon arrival we will check-in our hotel and have some spare time before having dinner and overnight.

This morning we will be driven to “El Monte del Gozo”, a small mountain where the pilgrims have the joy of seeing for the first time, the Cathedral and city of Santiago. After arriving, we will walk the 5 km that remain of St. James way, before arriving to St. James Cathedral, one of the finest examples of architecture in all of Europe to celebrate mass. As pilgrims we have the opportunity to climb the stairs behind the high altar to visit the crypt where the relics of St James are preserved, view the ‘botafumeiro’ and admire the legacy of medieval art inside the Cathedral, before visiting the cloister museum.
We will have lunch and in the afternoon we’ll travel out towards one of the most western points of continental Europe. We firstly come to the lovely seaside town of Fisterra. It is situated on the rocky Costa da Morte (Coast of Death), named because of the large number of shipwrecks along these shores. During our time here we will visit the Chapel of Nosa Señora do Bon Suceso, dating from the 18th century.
Nearby we explore Cape Finisterra, meaning “Land’s End”. It is the final destination for pilgrims on the Way of St James. Here is the parish Church of Santa María de Fisterra which contains the Chapel of Santo Cristo.
In the late afternoon we return to Santiago de Compostela for dinner and overnight.

The day starts with a transfer bus to Santiago airport, where we’ll be taking a flight to Bilbao. Once we arrive, our private bus will transfer us to the city center where we’ll have the opportunity to visit Bilbao’s Cathedral and the Guggenheim museum, before having lunch at a restaurant. After lunch, we’ll continue our journey to the city of San Sebastian, a coastal city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, 20 km from the French border. Once we arrive, we’ll check-in our hotel and have free time before dinner and overnight.

After breakfast we depart San Sebastian and travel to the nearby town of Azpeitia, where St Ignatius retreat for 11 months between 1522 and 1523. Each day he spent seven hours praying in a cave and then helped the ill in the village with the time he had left. Here, Ignatius began to develop the method for seeking God’s will and where he wrote his renowned Spiritual Exercises. We come as pilgrims to this amazing place with St Ignatius and pray in the actual cave where his life and spirituality were developed. We’ll have lunch in a restaurant and freely spent the afternoon in this town before returning to our hotel in San Sebastian for dinner and overnight.

This morning will be for leisure and visit the city on your own pace before returning to the hotel for lunch. After lunch, we’ll depart from San Sebastian and travel through the scenic foothills of the Pyrenees, crossing into Southern France before continuing on to Lourdes. It was in this small town that Our Lady first appeared to St Bernadette in 1858. Upon our arrival to Lourdes, we will be able to shortly visit the Sanctuary and its Basilica before check-in our hotel for dinner and overnight.

We celebrate an International Mass this morning with worldwide pilgrims in the immense Underground Basilica of Pius X and if our schedule allows us, followed by a visit to the little village of Bartres, and the farm where St Bernadette was nursed and later returned in adolescence to help her Foster mother. We will visit the Sheepfold and the Parish Church where she spent so many hours praying.
After this visit we will return to Lourdes to enjoy a peaceful afternoon to rest or walk at your own pace, take the time to pray the Stations of the Cross with the life sized copper images that overlook the holy Grotto. Spend some quiet time perhaps reflecting at the Grotto with its chapel built over the place of the apparitions. Later in the afternoon an Optional Blessed Sacrament Procession and evening candlelight procession will take place before returning to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

This morning we will celebrate a group Mass at the Grotto, before meeting our local guide for a walking tour of Lourdes including the Sanctuary area: Upper & Lower Basilicas, the Grotto, and the Baths where hundreds of miraculous cures have taken place. We continue our visit of the main sites associated with St Bernadette including the Boly Mill where she was born in 1844, the original parish church and the Cachot (prison) where the family was forced to live due to misfortune during the time of the apparitions.
After the visit has finished we’ll have free time for visit and prayers for the sick at the miraculous Baths where the water has continued to flow since 1858. Pilgrims may choose to submerge themselves in the healing waters, or collect the water of Lourdes at the public taps, where during 9th apparition to Bernadette, Our Lady said “Go drink and wash yourself at the spring”. Optional in the afternoon will be the Blessed Sacrament Procession and Blessing of the Sick. After the blessing we’ll return to the hotel for dinner before candlelight procession and overnight at the hotel.

This day will begin with an early breakfast before departing from Lourdes back into Spain towards Montserrat’s Abbey.
Along the route we’ll be doing some service stops as well as a stop for lunch. Later this afternoon we will arrive to the stunning Montserrat Abbey, a renowned 11th century sanctuary of Our Lady of Montserrat which lies four thousand meters high, at the top of a mountain and is one of Spain’s most popular pilgrimage destinations. The shrine is home to a 12th century miraculous statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, lovingly known as the “Black Madonna”, discovered in the Santa Cova or Holy Cave. Here at Montserrat, St Ignatius kept vigil with a thick sackcloth and some pilgrims. Later in the evening we’ll have dinner and overnight.

Our spectacular day of pilgrimage begins with a visit and Mass in the Basilica, which construction began in the 16th century and a viewing of the beautiful Holy Image of Our Lady of Montserrat, known affectionately as the “Black Madonna.” We will then board the Santa Cova funicular railway and after a short ride, enjoy a walk down the sacred path passing modern sculptures of the Mysteries of the Rosary (all sculpted by Llimona and Gaudi among others). Almost hanging from the rock’s edge at the end of the route is the Chapel where the image of Our Lady of Montserrat was found by young shepherds in the 13th century after seeing a bright light which led them to the grotto. We will have time here at the Holy Cave for prayer and meditate before taking the funicular railway back up to the Sanctuary.
Before lunch, we will take our place among the privileged people to hear the heaven music from Montserrat Boys Choir (The Escolania), one of the oldest and most renowned in Europe.
After lunch we will have a private guided tour of the museums and the Basilica.
The remaining time in the afternoon will be to rest and prayerful reflections.
Before dinner, we will have an opportunity to join the Benedictine monks in the Basilica for the beautiful sounds of evening Vespers. Dinner and overnight.

We enjoy the morning in Barcelona to experience the cultural canvas, many of Picasso’s artworks and view the unique architecture of Antonio Gaudi dispersed throughout the city. We begin with a visit and Mass in Barcelona Cathedral, a clear example of Gothic architecture dating from the 14th century. The elevated site occupied by the cathedral has always been the spiritual center of Barcelona.
After lunch we will be astonished, visiting Gaudi’s famous Basilica, Sagrada Familia, before enjoying a leisure visit to Güell Park where we can enter to Gaudi’s house, which is a museum as well as offering spectacular views over the city. After the visit we’ll be having free time before dinner an overnight at the hotel.

Our second morning in Barcelona will consist of spare time to visit at your own pace, rest or look for souvenirs, before departing from the hotel to Barcelona’s airport and take the flight to Madrid. Upon arrival, a private bus will transfer us to our hotel where we’ll check-in. Once we are installed, we will have spare time to have lunch and freely wander through the streets of Madrid. Later in the evening we will return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast this morning we depart on our city tour of Madrid which will show its history, culture, architecture and art. After visiting the main landmarks such as the Royal Palace or Santa María la Real Catholic Cathedral which was consecrated only recently in 1993 by Pope St John Paul II among others. After lunch, we will visit the Prado Museum which is known for being the largest art gallery in the world. It houses more than 8,600 paintings, in which less than 2,000 are exhibited at any time due to lack of space. After the visit we will return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

We begin our day departing towards Avila where we’ll visit the Convent of Saint Teresa built over the saint’s birthplace and located just in front of the South Gate of the old town medieval wall. The majority of the convent remains in cloister but you can see the very place where she was born, now a chapel part of the Baroque church. We continue visiting Avila’s Cathedral which was built in the 12th century, before entering the Monastery of the Incarnation for Mass. At the monastery, we will see St Teresa’s cell as well as other relics of her life. After the visit we continue this morning, departing east from Avila, to Segovia. We will visit the stunning Segovia Cathedral, the last Gothic cathedral to be built in Spain and also admire the marvelous aqueduct dated back to the Roman Empire. After lunch we will visit and celebrate Mass at a convent adjacent to the Vera Cruz church, where the remains of Saint John of the Cross are buried. Later in the afternoon, we’ll be returning to our hotel in Madrid for some free time before having dinner and overnight.

This last day in Madrid will be free of activities for the group to walk, rest or go shopping before returning home.

The day will begin, checking-out our hotel and transferred to Madrid’s airport to take our flight back home.