San Giovanni Rotondo is a small village in the north of the Apulian coast and is a popular place of pilgrimage for devotees of Padre Pio. It was here in 20 September 1918 that Padre Pio received the Visible Stigmata, while praying after Mass in the choir loft of the small Church of Our Lady of Grace. You will enjoy mass in this wonderful old church, which sits beside a larger new church where many multi-lingual masses and celebrations take place. This new church is home to Padre Pio’s tomb as well as an exhibition of Padre Pio’s life in San Giovanni Rotondo and many blessed relics and garments.

Saint Francis was born in Assisi in 1182 and it is here that you will visit the most notable landmarks associated with his life. In 1206, while praying before the crucifix of the damaged church of St. Damian, Saint Francis heard the divine command to rebuild the Church and so repaired the churches of St. Damian, St. Peter and the Porziuncola. The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels contains the Porziuncola - the core of the first Franciscan monastery and also where St. Clare received the Franciscan cowl from St. Francis in 1211. It also contains the Chapel of Transito, where St. Francis died on 3rd October 1226. The Basilica of St. Claire was constructed between 1257-1265 and contains the famous Crucifix so beloved by St. Francis and the body of St. Clare, which is preserved in the crypt.

Lanciano is a small town in the centre of Italy and it was here that the first Eucharistic Miracle of The Catholic Church took place, in the Church of St. Legontian, in the 8th Century A.D. During Holy Mass after the two-fold consecration the host was changed into live flesh and the wine into live blood. The Host-Flesh, as can be very distinctly observed today, has the same dimensions as the large host used today in the church; it is light brown and appears rose-colored when lighted from the back. The Blood is coagulated and has an earthy colour resembling the yellow of ochre. This Miracle is still preserved and can be observed in this church today.

This Marian Shrine, dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, is located 5 minutes from the ruins of Pompeii. It was built in 1891 by Bartolomeo Longo di Latiano as a result of his deep devotion to Our Lady and his sincere love of the Holy Rosary. It is often referred to as “The Sanctuary of Charities” due to Bartolomeo’s commitment to charitable works with orphans. The Shrine was enlarged to 5 times its original size in 1939 and is currently a site of pilgrimage dedicated to devotion to the Holy Rosary. Many miracles have been bestowed here and it is a truly special place to visit during your Italian Pilgrimage Tour.

Saint Rita was born in 1381 in the tiny village of Roccaporena, near Cascia. At the age of 36 she joined the Augustinian Order and she gave herself wholeheartedly to prayer and works of charity. One day, when she was about 60 years of age, she was meditating before the image of the Crucifix when she received the stigmata. She suffered this pain for the next 15 years with dignity and passed away on May 22, 1457. Saint Rita’s body, which has remained intact, is housed in the shrine at Cascia.

Loreto is home to the site of the Holy House of the Holy Family, which was carried by angels from Nazareth to Loreto as it was about to be destroyed by Holy Land invaders. Known as “The Translation”, the angelic flight of the Holy House from Nazareth across the Mediterranean via Yugoslavia to Loreto mirrors the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt. There is a wonderful sense of Divine Presence in this place of pilgrimage and indeed it was the first place of pilgrimage for Pope John Paul II after he became Pope. He declared Loreto “the holiest place on earth.”