Shrines of Northern Italy & Rome

Check into your hotel and, if you have time, start exploring this busy city on your own before meeting your tour companions and Tour Director during the included welcome dinner at your hotel. (D)

Dedicate the morning to Milan's most important Catholic churches: St Ambrose Basilica and the Gothic Duomo. St Ambrose is the patron saint of beekeepers, beggars, learners, and Milan. Celebrate [M] Mass and discover the treasures of the Basilica and the Duomo with a Local Guide. (B)

Turin is known in the Catholic community worldwide as the home of the Holy Shroud, only available to the public on very special occasions. The city was also home to St. John Bosco, the priest who founded the Salesian religious institute to help poor children with their education during the industrial revolution. Your visit includes the Holy Shroud Museum, the Basilica of St Mary Ausiliatrice, and St John Bosco's rooms. You'll have time to appreciate the elegance of this city and former capital of Italy before attending [M] Mass. Today's Distance: 90 mi / 145 km (B)

Pavia boasts a beautiful Carthusian Monastery, built in the 1400s by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Duke of Milan. The monastery is one of Italy's “hidden treasures” with lavish decorations. It is still inhabited and looked after by monks who live a life of work, seclusion, and prayer. Today's Distance: 245 mi / 395 km (B/D)

Attend morning [M] Mass and visit the spectacular St. Anthony Basilica in Padua with a Local Guide, then enjoy a short city sightseeing tour and time on your own. In the afternoon, on the way to Ravenna, we'll stop to see the Abbey of Pomposa, where the Benedictine monk Guido d'Arezzo invented modern musical notation in the 11th century. Today's Distance: 85 mi / 137 km (B)

UNESCO declared the early Christian monuments of Ravenna as having “outstanding universal value.” Ravenna was the seat of the Roman Empire in the 5th century and of Byzantine Italy until the 8th century. It has a unique collection of early Christian mosaics and places of worship. The Neonian Baptistry, the Basilica of St. Apollinare Nuovo, St. Vitale Church and the Archbishop's Chapel of St. Andrew were all constructed in the 5th and 6th centuries. They show great artistic skill, including a wonderful blend of Greek-Roman tradition, Christian iconography, and Asian and Western styles.

The morning is dedicated to discovering these masterpieces and focusing on the Byzantine-style mosaics with a Local Guide. In the afternoon, travel to Rome. Today's Distance: 221 mi / 355 km (B/D)

Today you have the unique chance to attend the Papal Audience in the Vatican (subject to availability). Afterwards, enjoy an included city tour with a Local Guide to see the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, where St. Paul was buried after his martyrdom, St. John Lateran Basilica, the Cathedral of Rome, and seat of its Bishop (the Pope) and the Holy Stairs. Said to have led Jesus to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate, the stairs were transferred to Rome by Empress St Helena.

Finally, visit St. Mary Major Basilica, where a reliquary contains wood from the Holy Crib. Attend [M] Mass here before returning to your hotel.* (B)

A special treat today: visit the Papal Summer Residence in Castel Gandolfo. Wander through its manicured gardens, an opportunity to reflect and meditate in quiet and relaxing surroundings. Walk through the rooms where many Popes have spent the summer months enjoying the cooler countryside on the hills outside Rome. * Today's Distance: 50 mi / 80 km (B)

Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning. (B)