Rome & Assisi

Depart London Gatwick on our direct flight to Rome. We will be welcomed in the Arrivals Terminal by our local Italian, English-speaking tour representative and coach driver. Our Italian tour escort will be with the group whilst touring and will be available to help and/or provide local advice. Transfer to the hotel. On the way to the hotel we stop at the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls, the second largest church in Rome, which houses the tomb of St Paul kept under the main altar. Mass here. We then proceed to the hotel, check in followed by some free time. Depending on how much free time we have, you may wish to explore Rome in your own time on foot; you can visit the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, the famous square Piazza Navona, the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Pantheon and/or Trevi Fountain in the old city. Evening dinner in a local restaurant.

After breakfast, we meet our tour escort in the hotel lobby and leave the hotel for St Peter’s Basilica to attend the Papal Blessing in the Square (subject to the Pope Leo XIV being in residence). Mass in a local church followed by free time for lunch in or nearby St Peter’s Square. After our break, we will have a guided tour of St Peter’s Basilica, the largest of all the Catholic churches. We can explore this wonderful basilica and the grounds and visit the Crypt and view the tombs of St Peter and recent Popes. Return to the hotel and evening dinner in a local restaurant.

Breakfast in the hotel. Today we will tour Chrisitan Rome. We visit the Archbasilica of St John Lateran, the cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome which is the oldest, and the first among the four great "patriarchal" basilicas of Rome. Across the road from here we make a quick visit to the Holy Stairs (Scala Santa). According to tradition these are the steps our Lord walked up on his way to trial before Pontius Pilate. The Stairs were brought to Rome by Saint Helena in the fourth century. If time permits, we can ascend these stairs on our knees, in memory of Christ’s agonizing Passion. Afterwards, we visit the Basilica of St Mary Major, which houses the true relics of the manger from Bethlehem in which Jesus was laid following his birth and is also the final resting place of Pope Francis. Private Mass here. Afterwards, we will have free time for lunch and then visit St Peters in Chains Basilica to view Michelangelo’s famous Statue of Moses. We can also walk past the Colosseum and the Roman Forum from here, viewing them from the outside. Return to the coach and travel to our hotel in Assisi where we will stay for 2 nights. Check in and evening dinner upon arrival.

After breakfast, we will have a guided tour, firstly to the church of St. Clare which houses her incorrupt body. One of the chapels here contains the crucifix that bowed its head and ordered St. Francis to “repair God’s Church”. Afterwards, we visit St. Mary Major Parish in Assisi, also known as the Shrine of the Renunciation, which refers to the time when St. Francis stripped himself of his clothing in front of his father as a way of renouncing his wealth. St Carlo Acutis’ tomb currently resides here; Carlo Acutis, who had a passion for computers and the Eucharist, died at the young age of 15 in 2006 from leukemia. His Canonisation ceremony took place recently on 7th September 2025 with Pope Leo XIV. We will then tour the Basilica of St. Francis, built in 1228 to house the Relics of the saint. The “upper” basilica houses beautiful frescoes of Giotto. We will have Mass in the church of St Francis. We then drive to the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, The “Porziuncola”, the very ancient chapel, venerated for an apparition of angels within it, and which was originally the property of the Benedictines of Subasio. It was located on a piece of land known as the Portiuncula; this name became attached to the chapel. After a long period of abandonment, it was restored by St. Francis. Here he was given a clear understanding of his vocation. He founded here the Order of Friars Minor (1209), "establishing here his home". Return to the hotel for evening dinner.

Breakfast in the hotel. Check-out of our hotel after breakfast and travel to Rome Airport. To break up our journey, about halfway, we stop and visit the Shrine of St Rita in Cascia. Pope Leo XIII canonised St Rita in 1900 and she was bestowed the title "Patroness of Impossible Causes." Upon arrival, we have Mass at the Church of St Rita and free time to look around this stunning location as well as time for lunch. Return to the coach and continue our journey back to the airport for our flight home.