Pilgrimage to Spain and Portugal with Fr. Joao Silveria, and Luis Roman

We depart Orlando or Newark on an overnight flight to Barcelona. Dinner and breakfast will be served on the flight. Quotes for add-on flights and optional Premium Economy and Business Class upgrades are available upon request and will be provided starting 120 days before departure. Group air restrictions (for ten passengers traveling together) do not permit specific seating requests on flights. We recommend purchasing your own airline tickets and land-only packages with us if seat confirmation is important to your trip. Should you require any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact your trip Account Manager, who will be happy to assist you.

Welcome to Spain! Our English-speaking tour managers will meet the group at the airport and assist with boarding the bus. We transfer to the city center for a panoramic tour of Barcelona and free time for lunch. We then check into the hotel before departing for the Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar, made famous by the novel and the Netflix series “Cathedral by the Sea.” We visit the Basilica and celebrate Mass before returning to the hotel for a welcome drink and introduction to our group leaders and fellow pilgrims. Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Barcelona.

After breakfast, which is included each morning, we visit the Cathedral dedicated to the Holy Cross and St. Eulalia, the patron saint of Barcelona, as well as the nearby cloisters. We continue with a visit to Montserrat to see the Throne of Our Lady at the Basilica and the Museum. We celebrate Mass in the Basilica, before returning to Barcelona for dinner at leisure. Overnight in Barcelona.

The day begins with a visit to Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece, La Sagrada Família, the Basilica of the Holy Family, which we explore on a guided visit. Following Mass, we depart for Zaragoza, where we have dinner and an overnight.

We visit Our Lady of Pillar this morning to celebrate Mass and have time for prayer and reflection. The Basilica enshrines the pillar on which the Virgin Mary appeared to St. James during his apostolic mission in Spain, also known as the Camino de Santiago. As a sign of fulfillment of our pilgrimage to Our Lady of the Pillar, we can kiss the venerable column (Pillar) where Our Lady once stood. We walk through the town, resplendent with iconic buildings, and see Goya’s cenotaph and the Archbishop’s Palace. Following lunch on our own, we visit the Cathedral of El Salvador, built in the local Mudejar architecture style, to see the incredible collection of Flemish Tapestries (museum entrance included). In the afternoon, we have free time to explore the Old Quarter of Zaragoza on our own or visit the Goya Museum to see the artworks by the great Spanish master Francisco Goya, who was born in Zaragoza. Tonight, we enjoy a traditional dinner from this region, accompanied by local wines from the renowned Rioja wine region. Overnight in Zaragoza. (B. Special dinner)

We visit the small village of Cimballa, where a Eucharistic miracle occurred in 1370 at the Church of the Purification of Our Lady. The pastor of the church, Father Tomas, had been tormented for many months by doubts concerning the Real Presence of Jesus in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. During the celebration of Holy Mass one Sunday, after pronouncing the words of consecration, Father Tomas saw the Host turn into Flesh, with living Blood flowing in abundance from it, so that it spilled onto the corporal. The repentant priest began to weep out of remorse and the faithful, seeing him so upset, ran up to the altar at once and saw the miracle. The relic of the corporal stained with the Precious Blood is exposed every year on September 12 on the occasion of the anniversary of the miracle. We may celebrate Mass in Cimballa (TBC) before departing for Madrid. Upon arrival, we check into our hotel for dinner and an overnight.

We depart our hotel in Madrid, driving south to the small village of Guadalupe, where we see the image of the dark-skinned Madonna in the Monastery of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Despite the remarkable similarities of their origin stories, Spain and Mexico’s respective Guadalupes are rarely mentioned together. St. John Paul II brought the Spanish Guadalupe into the spotlight in 1982 when he became the first pope to visit the monastery, where her image is kept. There, he made a surprising confession. “The great esteem I have for the Virgin of Guadalupe of Mexico is unquestionable,” the pope said. “But I realize that her origins are here. I should have come here before going to the Tepeyac Basilica to better understand Mexican devotion.” We visit the church and celebrate Mass in this sacred spot. We return to Madrid for dinner at leisure. Overnight in Madrid.

This morning, following a 2-hour city tour that showcases the highlights of Madrid, including the magnificent Cathedral of Almudena, we depart for Avila, a magnificent walled city dedicated to St. Teresa of Avila. En route, we stop at Segovia, the city of St. John of the Cross, one of the great Catholic mystics. Here we visit the chapel of St. John in the cathedral, the Carmelite Convent of San José, and the Carmelite Friary, where we contemplate his sepulcher. We celebrate Mass and view the famous Roman aqueduct. We arrive in Avila in time for dinner and overnight.

Here in Avila, the atmosphere has changed very little since the days of St. Teresa, to whom the city is dedicated. St. Teresa, the great mystic, was the first woman to be named a Doctor of the Church. We visit the crypt of La Santa Convent, built on the site of the house where she was born, La Encarnacion Convent, where St. Teresa became a nun, and home to the most comprehensive museum dedicated to her life, the Cathedral, and the Cuatro Postes (four columns) commemorates the time when St. Teresa, at the age of seven, convinced her brother to run away with her to die as martyrs in the land of the Moors. Their uncle caught them at the Cuatro Postes site and returned them home. We celebrate Mass and have time at leisure to explore the city on our own. Dinner and overnight in Avila.

After breakfast and check-out, we continue the route of St. Teresa to Alba de Tormes. Here we visit the Saint’s well-preserved body in the Carmelite Convent and celebrate Mass. We then depart for O Cebreiro, the first Galician village on the Pilgrim’s Way to Santiago. We visit Santa María la Real, a pre-Romanesque church, the oldest on the entire French Road of the Camino de Santiago. It is renowned for its Holy Grail and the eucharistic miracle that occurred there. We continue on our way to Santiago de Compostela while admiring the charming Galician countryside. Dinner and overnight in Santiago.

All roads lead to Santiago, one of the world’s greatest pilgrimage centers. This morning, we see the Cathedral built in honor of St. James, the first pilgrim, where we celebrate Mass. We visit the tomb of the Apostle and his disciples, St. Theodore and St. Athanasius. St. James was given the task of spreading Christianity in distant Hispaniclands. Also, we see the Church of San Francisco, built in honor of St. Francis of Assisi after his pilgrimage to the area. In the afternoon, we depart for Fatima, arriving in the early evening. Overnight and dinner are in Fatima.

Today we visit the Basilica and the tombs of Francisco, Jacinta, and Lucia, and the Little Chapel of the Apparitions. We drive to the hamlet of Aljustrel, where the children lived, and Valinhos, the site of our Lady’s appearance. In the afternoon, we pray at the stations of the Via Sacra. This evening, we join the spectacular Candlelight Procession and the vigil of the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Mass will be celebrated. Dinner and overnight in Fatima.

After breakfast, we transfer to Lisbon airport for our flight back home.