Itinerary

• DAY 1:

  USA

  Depart for your overnight flight to France. Dinner and breakfast will be served on board.

• DAY 2:

  PARIS, FRANCE

  Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your English speaking Homeric Tours representative and trans-fer by private air-condition motorcoach to your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure. Dinner and overnight.
  Dinner included

• DAY 3:

  PARIS

  Your private guided tour today features the Arc de Triomphe, Louvre, Champs-Elysées, and the Eiffel Tower. Visit the Basilica of Sacre Coeur on Montmartre Hill. Later explore the architectural wonders of Notre Dame Cathedral, where the relics of the Passion of the Christ can be seen on the first Friday of the month. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 4:

  PARIS / LISIEUX (EXCURSION) PARIS

  Today we travel to Lisieux and visit Les Buisson-nets, the family home of St. Therese. Attend Mass (French only) at the basilica. St. Therese was also known as “The Little Flower” and for her charming autobiography, “The Story of a Soul.” Next, visit St. Peter’s Cathedral, where her family attended Mass, and the Carmelite Convent, where she lived as a nun. Return to Paris in time for dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 5:

  PARIS

  After breakfast enjoy a special visit to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Shrine, where the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Catherine Laboure in 1830. Then, visit the St. Vincent de Paul Shrine, where you can see the reliquary of the saint who has inspired thousands of charities and volunteers. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 6:

  PARIS / POITIERS

  After breakfast, travel south to the cobblestone city of Poitiers, strategically perched atop a rocky outcrop and surrounded by two rivers. Settled by the Romans and then residence to early Christians, the city is a showcase of historical Romanesque architecture, and is home to the oldest surviving church in France and to the second-oldest univer-sity in the country. Enjoy a visit to the 4th-century baptistery of St. John with its ancient frescoes, baptismal fonts, and intricately carved sarcofagi dating from the 5th to the 7th centuries. Poitiers was also the site of two pivotal military battles, making its role in French history significant. It was here in 732 AD that the Franks halted and turned back Muslim expansion into Europe, while in 1356 during the Hundred Years’ War, French forces suffered a major defeat at the hands of skilled English archers. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 7:

  POITIERS / LOURDES

  Travel to Lourdes, one of the world’s most famous places of pilgrimage. Visit the grotto where the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette in 1858. Join this evening’s memorable rosary and candle-light procession held every night. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 8:

  LOURDES

  Start the day attending the international Mass at the Basilica of St. Pius X. Then, join a Local Guide for a walking tour including visits to Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine and St. Bernadette’s birthplace and family home. You may wish to experience the powerful healing baths or attend the “Blessing of the Sick.” Dinner and overnight. (Candlelight procession & group rosary only occur April-October).
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 9:

  LOURDES

  Full day at leisure to further explore Lourdes on your own or join an optional excursion to the nearby Pyrenees. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 10:

  LOURDES / CARCASSONNE / AVIGNON

  First stop is Carcassonne, a medieval town and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Then, continue to Avignon. Enjoy a walk to the Palace of the Popes, residence of the papacy in the 14th century. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 11:

  AVIGNON / PARAY-LE-MONIAL / NEVERS

  Following morning Mass in the Cathedral of Avignon (French only), travel to Paray-le-Monial, home to the Chapel of the Apparitions and where Jesus revealed his Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. Also visit the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Continue to Nevers. Dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 12:

  NEVERS / CHARTRES / PARIS

  Visit St. Gildard in Nevers, where St. Bernadette spent her life as a nun. See the beautiful and miraculously incorrupt body of St. Bernadette. Continue to Chartres and visit the Cathedral, a masterpiece of gothic architecture, one of Europe’s most celebrated shrines, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Return to Paris for dinner and overnight.
  Breakfast and Dinner included

• DAY 13:

  HOME

  After breakfast this morning we transfer to the airport for our flight home.
  Breakfast included