liz@206tours.com

800-206-TOUR (8687)

Your Trip Includes:
† Round-trip air from: Chicago, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, or Minneapolis
† Airline Fuel Surcharges and Airport Taxes
† 9 nights at centrally located hotels as follows: (or similar)
     ~ 1 nights: Dec 3-4, Hotel Mundial - Lisbon
     ~ 2 nights: Dec 4-6, Hotel Santa Maria - Fatima
     ~ 3 nights: Dec 6-9, Hotel Giotto - Assisi
     ~ 3 nights: Dec 9-12, Casa S. Alberto - Rome
† Tour Escort
† Transfers as per itinerary by air-conditioned bus
† Breakfast & Dinner daily (Wine/Mineral Water with Dinners)
† Assistance of a professional local Catholic guide(s)
† Sightseeing with professional guides per itinerary
† Mass daily & Spiritual activities
† Luggage handling (1 piece per person)
† Flight bag & portfolio of all travel documents

Not Included:
Lunches and Beverages unless mentioned, Travel Insurance optional (www.206tours.com/insurance), Extended Cancellation Protection Plan @ $299 (www.206tours.com/cancellationprotection), tips to your guide and driver, personal items, 3.5% credit card processing fee.

Sample Day-by-Day Itinerary:

Day 1, Monday - December 2nd

Departure to Lisbon Depart for the overnight flights to Lisbon. Dinner and breakfast will be served on board.

Day 2, Tuesday - December 3rd

Arrive Lisbon Upon arrival in Lisbon you will find your luggage and exit the baggage claim into the arrivals hall where you will be greeted by a tour guide and/or driver. You will be escorted to the vehicle which will then take you on a sightseeing tour of this beautiful Portuguese city. We will visit the Cathedral, St. Jerome's Monastery, Saint Anthony's Church (the pa-tron saint of lost objects), Belem Quarter, the Belem Tower, 25 April Bridge, and Discoveries Monument. Our drive will also take us through the Basilica of the Star, Rossio Square, Commerce Square and Marquee of Pomba Square. We arrive at our hotel in time for dinner.

Day 3, Wednesday - December 4th - Lisbon – Santarem– Fatima
After breakfast depart for Santarem, one of the oldest cities in the world. We will walk through its narrow streets to the Church of St. Stephen, containing the oldest recorded Eucharistic miracle. This miracle has been on continuous display since 1269 A.D. We will celebrate Mass at this holy site. You will then enjoy a mostly panoramic tour of this beautiful Portu-guese city. We will visit the Cathedral, St. Jerome's Monastery, Saint Anthony's Church (the patron saint of lost objects), Belem Quarter, the Belem Tower, 25 April Bridge, and Discoveries Monument. Our drive will also take us through the Basilica of the Star, Rossio Square, Commerce Square and Marquee of Pomba Square. We arrive at our hotel in Fatima for dinner and overnight.

Day 4, Thursday - December 5th - Fatima
After breakfast, we begin our day celebrating Mass at the Little Chapel of the Apparitions. After Mass we begin our tour of Fatima where we will experience the beauty of this spiritual town. We will see the Basilica, the site of Francesco and Jacinta's graves, the Hamlet of Aljustrel, where the children lived, and Valinhos, the site of Our Lady's appearance after the children's return from prison. Experience Christ's love as you walk and follow the Stations of the Cross along the Via Sacra (The Sacred Way) culminating in the Chapel of Calvary, which overlooks all of Fatima. Join your prayers with those of pilgrims from around the world as you pray for the sick, drink water from the miraculous well. Attend the blessing of the sick and participate in nightly candlelight processions requested by Our Lady. Time for private devotions before dinner and a restful night's sleep.

Day 5, Friday - December 6th - Fatima to Assisi
Today you will transfer to the airport for your flights to Italy. Upon arri-val in Rome, you will be met by your driver and travel across the Italian countryside to Assisi. Take some time to relax prior to dinner and over-night.

Day 6, Saturday - December 7th - Assisi
Today is a very special day, as we will spend a full day touring the home of the Saint that inspired our Holy Father. Pope Francis chose his name in admiration of the Saint of Nature and Servant to the Poor. Known for being a humble man himself, Pope Francis spent most of his life denying the luxuries of life, and preferring to live in simplicity and humility. Fol-lowing breakfast, we will begin a tour of Assisi. Visit the tomb of St Fran-cis. Explore the quaint hilltop birthplace of St Francis that still retains something of the atmosphere of the early 1200s, the period when St Francis began his ministry. Contained within the huge 13th-century Ba-silica are many of the saint's possessions and a series of frescoes depict-ing his life. You may kneel before the crucifix from which Jesus spoke to St Francis, asking him to rebuild His church. It was in St Mary of the Angels Basilica where St Francis spent most of his life. Here we visit the Chapel, Portiuncola, the rose bush, and the cave where the saint retired for prayer. Stroll the medieval streets of the compact little town. You will have some free time to shop or eat lunch at an outdoor cafe with a view of an ancient Roman temple, we go to the Church of St. Clare to see the saint's incorrupt body. The foundress of the Order of Poor Clares fol-lowed the teachings of St Francis by living a life of poverty and humility. We will visit these two saints' tombs before dinner and retiring for the evening.

Day 7, Sunday - December 8th - Assisi – Siena – Assisi
After breakfast we will travel to Siena, the birthplace of Saints Catherine (Doctor of the Church, and one of the two patron Saints of Italy, with St. Francis of Assisi) and Bernardine (known as the “Apostle of Italy” for his efforts to revive the Catholic faith in the 15th century). Siena is also one of Italy’s loveliest medieval cities. Here we will stroll the Piazza Del Cam-po, one of Italy’s finest squares and visit the Cathedral and the Basilica of St. Francis, containing the miraculous consecrated hosts that re-mained intact since 1730. Later, we will continue on to view the incor-rupt head of St. Catherine at the Basilica of St. Dominic (Her body is preserved in Rome in the Basilica St. Maria Sopra Minerva). We’ll return to Assisi for dinner and overnight.

Day 8, Monday - December 9th - Assisi – Rome
We’ll take the beautiful ride through the Tuscan countryside and arrive in Rome early in the afternoon. Time for exploration prior to dinner and overnight.

Day 9, Tuesday - December 10th - Full Day Touring Christian Rome

Following breakfast, we will depart for a sightseeing tour entitled "Christian Rome" which includes: the Basilica of St. Mary Major, the most important and the oldest church dedicated to Our Lady. St. Mary Major contains a relic from the manger of the infant Jesus. Next, the Basilica of St. John the Lateran, the Pope’s cathedral church where relics of both Peter and Paul remain under the main altar. It was here that Pope Fran-cis was formally installed one year ago as Bishop of Rome. Next we cross the street to see the Holy Staircase which is believed to be a staircase from Pilate’s palace in Jerusalem and brought to Rome by St. Helen in the 4th century. Time permitting we may climb the steps on our knees in memory of Christ’s Passion. Stop for lunch, and then we will continue on to visit St Paul. Outside the Walls, here we celebrate Mass. Continue our tour via the Appian Way -- the oldest road from Roman times--plus the famous Domino Quo Vadis Chapel; see the ancient Baths of Caracalla, Arch of Drusus; Tomb of Celilia Metella, and the catacombs of St Callix-tus where the early Christians hid themselves to escape persecution. We will conclude the day by visiting the famous, Trevi Fountain. Built in the 15th Century to mark the ending destination of the Aqua Virgo (a manmade channel erected in 19 B.C. to bring fresh water to Roman bathhouses.) The water comes from the Salone Springs, eight miles out-side of the city. Legend has it, by tossing a coin into the fountain, it will guarantee a return trip to Rome. Dinner and overnight.

Day 10, Wednesday - December 11th - Papal Audience and the Vatican Museums
Wake up in Eternal City, one of the greatest centers of Western Civiliza-tion and the first truly cosmopolitan city on earth! It is also spiritual capi-tal for all the Catholics around the world. Today is truly a day we will have in our minds for many years to come (pending papal schedule). Following the audience visit of the Vatican Museums, a group of most impressive edifices with hundreds of galleries filled with art treasures. See awe-inspiring relics and works of art donated throughout centuries as tributes of faith. We'll cover The Tapestry Gallery, The Raphael Rooms and the most overwhelming Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo's Masterpiece, restored mural of the Last Judgment. Later, enter the largest church in Christendom, St Peter's Basilica, built on the site where St Peter was martyred. Unsurpassed in beauty, a monument to the long history of the Catholic Church, to which pilgrims come from around the world, St Pe-ter's is the grandest of the world's churches. Marvel Pieta and Bernini's amazing bronze canopy. Pope Francis visited the tomb of St. Peter, fol-lowing his elevation, for a visit of devotion that lasted 45 minutes. He is the first Pontiff to visit the necropolis since extensive archaeological ex-cavations were conducted at the ancient site decades ago. We will also visit the tomb of Pope John Paul II located at the Vatican. Dinner and overnight.

Day 11, Thursday - December 12th - Departure from Rome
Transfer to the airport for your return flights with memories for a lifetime.

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St. Peter's Square, Rome, Italy
Assisi Basilica, Italy

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