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★ Hosted by Fr. Erik Arnold
Catholic Pilgrimage · 11 Days · France

Pilgrimage to Lourdes and Spain with Fr. Erik Arnold

Join Fr. Erik Arnold on a pilgrimage to Lourdes and Spain. This trip will visit Lourdes, Loyola, Pamplona, Montserrat, Barcelona and more! 

Dates
May 12 – 22, 2025
Departs Dulles
Duration
11 Days
Trip code 25MI05FREA
From
$3,575
The Pilgrimage

Walk in the Footsteps of Faith

Join Fr. Erik Arnold on a pilgrimage to Lourdes and Spain. This trip will visit Lourdes, Loyola, Pamplona, Montserrat, Barcelona and more!

Fr. Erik Arnold
Your Host

Fr. Erik Arnold

Pastor of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Severna Park

Fr. Erik Arnold is a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore and pastor of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Severna Park, Maryland. He leads the parish’s sacramental, spiritual, and pastoral life, serving a large Catholic community through preaching, formation, and parish ministry. His pilgrimage leadership extends that pastoral work by helping travelers encounter Scripture and the life of Christ within the geography, history, and prayer traditions of the Holy Land.

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Know Before You Go

What's included

✓ Included

  • ✓Round-trip Bus transportation from the church to Dulles International Airport
  • ✓Roundtrip airfare from Dulles International Airport to Toulouse x Barcelona to Dulles (IAD)
  • ✓Airline surcharges, fuel, and airport taxes are subject to change until the time of ticketing
  • ✓First-class hotels for 9 nights
  • ✓Service charges and hotel taxes
  • ✓Buffet breakfast daily
  • ✓7 Hotel dinners (standard 3-course menu; beverages may be purchased at an additional cost)
  • ✓Wine tasting with tapas
  • ✓Flamenco show with a drink and light tapas
  • ✓Farewell dinner in a local restaurant
  • ✓All transfers with a private A/C motor coach as per itinerary
  • ✓Professional English-speaking Christian tour guide throughout
  • ✓Entrance fees are included to sites specifically listed (outside view means no entrance is included)
  • ✓Luggage handling at hotels (one piece per person in/out)
  • ✓Select International Tours Travel Portfolio
  • ✓Confirmation of daily private Mass
  • ✓Whisper sets

× Not included

  • ×Travel protection -we recommend you consider purchasing CFAR Travel Protection
  • ×Tipping/Gratuities for the guide(s), driver, and wait staff (please refer to the suggestions we will provide for you with your final documents) Suggested budget $200- $220
  • ×Any items not explicitly mentioned in the listed inclusions
  • ×Beverages at meals unless otherwise noted
  • ×Meals not specifically listed at the end of each day (B. L. D.)
  • ×Church donations (budget $2.00 - $5.00 per Mass)
  • ×Airport transfers for land-only passengers unless at the airport at the same time as the group
  • ×Personal expenses
  • ×ETIAS European Travel Authorization
  • ×Any airline baggage charges
  • ×Baggage handling at train stations, airports, and hotels in excess of one suitcase per person
  • ×Any charges incurred due to excessive luggage including the cost of an additional baggage vehicle or porterage charges

Tipping/Gratuities for the guide(s), driver, and wait staff (please refer to the suggestions we will provide for you with your final documents) Suggested budget $200- $220.

Day by Day

Your pilgrimage, mapped out

Tap any day to explore. Meals: B breakfast · L lunch · D dinner.
Day 1May 12, 2025
DEPART U.S.A.
+

Depart on an overnight flight to Toulouse. Dinner and breakfast will be served on the flight. Optional premium economy and business class upgrades are available upon request 120 days prior to departure. (Please note: specific seat assignments are not possible with group air. You may choose to book your own air and purchase a land only package with us)

Day 2May 13, 2025
TOULOUSE – LOURDES
+

Welcome to France! Our English-speaking tour managers will meet the group at the airport and assist with the bus boarding. Upon arrival, we visit Toulouse, the third largest city in France, with its many cafes, museums, and cathedrals. Here, St. Dominic founded the “ Order of Preachers” in 1215. We visit the tomb of St. Thomas Aquinas at the Jacobins Church and have time in its peaceful cloister before we celebrate Mass. Following leisure time for lunch, we drive to Lourdes and settle into our hotel within walking distance of the Shrine of Our Lady. Dinner is at the hotel.

D
Day 3May 14–15, 2025
LOURDES
+

We are blessed to have two full days of pilgrimage in Lourdes, including daily Mass, watching the video presentation about the story of Lourdes, exploring the birthplace of St. Bernadette, and visiting the places associated with her life. We pray at the Stations of the Cross, drink the water from the miraculous spring, and get submerged in the healing waters of the baths. In the evening, join the Candlelight Procession at the Shrine. Overnight in Lourdes.

BD
Day 5May 16, 2025
PAMPLONA
+

This morning we travel to Pamplona, the birthplace and childhood home of St. Francis Xavier, the great Evangelist of the 16th century. After the battle of Pamplona, young St. Francis Xavier was sent to the University of Paris, where he would meet his roommate, Ignatius, with whom he would later co-found the Society of Jesus. Visit the site where St. Ignatius was wounded defending the city against the French in 1521. Visit Xavier (Navarre), where we will tour the castle where Francis Xavier was born. It contains a sculpted Crucifix, The Smiling Christ. Mass will be celebrated. Dinner and overnight in Pamplona.

BD
Day 6May 17, 2025
LOYOLA
+

We have a full-day excursion to Loyola, St. Ignatius’s childhood home. The tour culminates with Mass and a private visit to the room where Ignatius experienced his spiritual conversion. We visit the basilica adjacent to the castle, together forming much of the Sanctuary of Loyola. In the afternoon, we travel to the Hermitage of Olatz and Aranzazu, a popular shrine to Our Lady, where St. Ignatius prayed for strength to overcome his former temptations. Dinner and overnight in Pamplona.

BD
Day 7May 18, 2025
ZARAGOZA – MONTSERRAT
+

We drive to Zaragoza to celebrate Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Pilar, built to commemorate the place where the Virgin Mary, standing atop a pillar carried by Angels, appeared to St. James. The basilica’s small, wooden statue of Our Lady of Pilar has been a regular stopping point for pilgrims now and during Ignatius’s life. Continue to Montserrat, stopping along the way in the small town of Verdú, the birthplace of St. Peter Claver, SJ, who dedicated his life to the aid of enslaved people in the New World. Upon arrival in Montserrat, we will settle into the hotel for dinner and overnight.

BD
Day 8May 19, 2025
MANRESA – WINE TOUR– MONTSERRAT
+

This morning, we will travel to Manresa, a place of profound conversion for Ignatius, to visit the Cave of Saint Ignatius, where the saint retired to meditate and write his Spiritual Exercises. See the Chapel of the Rapture, where St. Ignatius remained motionless in ecstasy for eight days, and visit the Basilica of la Seu, the large Gothic Church that has come to symbolize Manresa. We have an audiovisual presentation and a tour of the museum at Manresa. St. Ignatius remained in Manresa for about a year and a half before continuing his journey to Barcelona. We celebrate Mass in Maresa. In the afternoon, we return to Montserrat, home to the magnificent Benedictine monastery we visit tomorrow morning. This afternoon, our stop is at a local winery for a lesson in Spanish winemaking and wine tasting, accompanied by tapas. Dinner and overnight in Montserrat.

BD
Day 9May 20, 2025
BARCELONA
+

Following Mass in Montserrat, we explore the Shrine of Our Lady. Since the 12th century, pilgrims have been drawn to the mountain to venerate the miraculous statue of the Black Madonna. According to Catholic tradition, the Black Virgin of Montserrat statue was carved by St. Luke around 50 AD and brought to Spain. It was later hidden from the Moors in a cave and rediscovered by shepherds in 880 AD. It is believed that the founding of the Society of Jesus by St. Ignatius of Loyola was inspired by the Black Madonna’s apparition to St. Ignatius during his pilgrimage to the Shrine of Montserrat. Visit the museum containing works by great artists such as Caravaggio, El Greco, Rusiñol, Cases, Picasso, and Dalí. In the afternoon, we drive to Barcelona. Before we settle into our hotel, we will visit the Cathedral of Barcelona, which has a stunning cloister. Be sure not to miss the 13 white geese residing in the cloister, known as the “geese of Saint Eulalia,” symbolizing the cathedral’s patron saint, Eulalia, who was martyred at the age of 13. We settle into our hotel and enjoy dinner at Cafe La Pedrera, where we dine in a setting designed by Gaudi. (TBC) Overnight in Barcelona. (B. Special dinner.)

BD
Day 10May 21, 2025
BARCELONA
+

The day starts with a visit to the almost-finished masterpiece by Antonio Gaudi, La Sagrada Familia, the Basilica of the Holy Family. We celebrate Mass. Our next stop is the Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar, made famous in the novel and the Netflix series, Cathedral by The Sea. In the afternoon, you have time to explore the La Ramblas section of the city. Be sure to visit La Boqueria Food Market. You can pick up lunch as locals do and ride a taxi or walk off the calories with a stroll through Park Guell, famous for its iconic landmarks by Gaudi. Tonight at 5:30 PM, we experience the emotional dancing of the Flamenco during the show at the 17th-century Dalmases Palace, where we enjoy a drink and tapas. Following the show, you may choose to have dinner on your own. Overnight in Barcelona. (B. Flamenco Show with light food )

B
Day 11May 22, 2025
RETURN TO USA
+

After breakfast, we are transferred to the airport for our return flight home.

B
Pricing

Choose how you travel

Land and Air
$4,675per person

Land and Air. Main trip package.

Most popular
Land Only
$3,575per person

Land Only. Main trip package.

Single Room Supplement
$995additional

Single Room Supplement. Additional supplement.

ETA Required
Confirm requirements with Select for this destination.
Deposit
A deposit of $500.00 per person by check should accompany the enrollment form and a copy of your passport picture page by January 31, 2025.
Final Payment
Final payment is due by March 12, 2025.
Passport Validity
Your passport must be valid through November 22, 2025.
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This pilgrimage has ended

Completed

This departure has ended. Registration is closed.