Globus Tours offers an overview of the major Catholic sites and places of interest in Italy called Grand Catholic Italy. The tour covers many places and cities, starting with the Vatican and then moving to the Montecassino, home of the first monasteries begun by Saint Benedict, and San Giovanni Rotundo, the home of modern stigmatic Saint Padre Pio. The tour also includes stops in Assisi, Loretto, Florence, Siena, Padua and finally Venice. The Grand Catholic Italy tour includes 11 days of travel, or 10 from Rome to Venice.
Blue Heart Travel schedules a 11-day Shroud of Turin tour annually. The tour begins in Turin, Italy, with Mass at the church of Saint Francis de Sales and visits to the sites of Saint Dominic Salvo and Saint John Bosco. The next day, the tour visits Turin Cathedral, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, where the actual Shroud of Turin is on display. The tour then moves on to Padua (home of Saint Anthony of Padua), Venice, Florence, Siena and Orvieto, the site of a reputed Eucharistic miracle in 1263. The tour ends in Rome, with visits to Vatican City, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican Museums and historical sites such as the Roman Forum and the Coliseum. Rates include airfare, two meals per day, hotel accommodations, tourist guide fees, entrance fees and a farewell dinner.
JeriCo Christian Journeys regularly holds a Saints of Italy tour. The tour begins in Venice, visiting the Basilica de San Marco, then moves to Padua, where there is Mass at the Basilica of Saint Anthony and a visit to the saint’s tomb. The fifth day of the tour is spent in Florence, where you will the Church of the Holy Cross, the burial place of Michaelangelo, Machiavelli and Galileo. The tour then moves on to Assisi, home of the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli and the Basilica of Saint Francis. You will also visit Cascia, the home of Saint Rita, before moving on to Rome, celebrating Mass in either the church of Saint Mary Major or Saint John Lateran. The tour also visits the Vatican Museums, including the Sistine Chapel, Saint Peter’s Basilica and the Domitila Catacombs. Rates include round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations, breakfast and dinner, entrance fees and all tour guide fees.
