Tour overview
Krakow
A Sample 8 Day Pilgrimage
Our pilgrimage is centred around Krakow, the historic and spiritual city of the nation, and one of the noblest cities of Europe. We visit Czestochowa, Poland’s centre of pilgrimage, Wadowice, birth place of Pope John Paul II, Lagiewniki, the Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy.
In addition we will also visit the famous Salt Mine museum and Auschwitz to remember the millions that were exterminated there by the Nazis.
Included
- Scheduled flights on British Airways from London Heathrow
- All airport departure & passenger taxes (UK & Poland)
- Accommodation at selected 4 star hotel
- All entrance fees and local government taxes
Not Included
- Single room (limited availability) £375
- Travel Insurance
- Gratuities
- Any items of a personal nature (laundry & drinks etc)
Day 1
Depart from London Heathrow to Krakow International Airport. On arrival we transfer to our hotel for our first evening's dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2
This morning we will visit St. Stanislaus Kostka Church where, as a seminarian, Karol Woytola attended Mass every day. We will then continue to Wawel Cathedral, the burial place of the Polish kings. St. John Paul II offered his first Mass here in the Crypt of St. Leonard. For the fit there is an opportunity to ascend the steps of the bell tower to see one of the largest working bells in the world. We then continue in the footsteps of St. John Paul II in the Old Town to visit Kanonicza Street where he resided while living in Krakow.
Explore the courtyards of the Collegiums Maius. Visit the Franciscan Church where Fr. Wojtyla loved to come and spend quiet time in prayer.
We will view Archbishop’s Palace where Fr. Wojtyla attended the seminary and was ordained and lived as a Cardinal.
We will also visit the Basilica of St. Mary (Mariacki) before continuing to the Market Square, one of the largest medieval market squares in Europe before returning to our hotel for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3
After breakfast we shall visit Wadowice, the birth-place of St. John Paul II, born Karol Józef Wojtyła on 18th May 1920, and will visit sites associated with St. John Paul II, including the family home at 7 Koscielna Street, which is now a museum. We will then visit the parish church where Karol Józef Wojtyła was baptized, confirmed, served as an altar boy and prayed daily.
After a break for lunch, we will visit the Calvary Sanctuary in Kalwaria Zebrzy-Dowska where a young Karol visited with his father following his mother’s death and where his lifelong devotion to the Virgin began. Afterwards we shall return to our Krakow hotel for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 4
This morning we travel to Auschwitz for a guided tour of the Concentration Camp and Museum.
Auschwitz was a Nazi death camp where in excess of 4 million mostly Jewish people were executed during World War II. It is also the site of martyrdom for St. Maximilian Kolbe, who willingly offered to die in a stranger’s place as an act of Christian charity. Edith Stein (St. Theresa Benedicta) also died here as she stood up for the lives of others.
After time for reflection and prayer we will return to Krakow and visit the Divine Mercy Shrine, dedicated by St. John Paul II during his last visit to Poland in 2002. After which we shall return to our hotel for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 5
After breakfast we will visit the Jewish Quarter Kazimierz which was the centre of Jewish life in Kraków for over 500 years, before it was systematically destroyed during World War II and was rediscovered in the 1990s. Thanks to the fall of Communism and worldwide exposure through the lens of Steven Spielberg, Kazimierz has rebounded and today is Kraków’s most exciting district with historical sites, atmospheric cafes and art galleries.
Following a break for lunch we will tour the UNESCO site of Wieliczka, one of the oldest salt mines in Europe. Polish miners have created an underground world of decorated chapels and other vast galleries made of salt. From Wieliczka we shall return to our hotel in Krakow for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 6
We leave Krakow after breakfast and travel to the city of Czestochowa, where we will visit the Jasna Gora Paulite Monastery, the largest Marian shrine in Poland and home to the miraculous “Black Madonna”. After Mass we visit the Monastery with its Chapel of the Virgin where the sacred icon is kept for veneration by the faithful. We also have the opportunity to visit the Basilica of the Holy Cross and the Nativity of Mary with its magnificent Baroque altar depicting the Assumption of Our Lady into Heaven before returning to Krakow for our dinner and overnight stay.
Day 7
This morning we will visit the Church of The Lord’s Ark, a remarkable building and symbol of Polish Catholicism. The first stone was laid down by Cardinal Karol Wojtyła in1969 and was consecrated in 1977.
Built to resemble Noah’s Ark with a 30-foot mast-shaped crucifix rising from the centre. View the octagonal lower church dedicated to St John Paul II, known as the Church of the Relics (Kosciol Relikwi), decorated with vividly-coloured images depicting events from the pontificate of Pope St John Paul II and his visits to the world’s most famous Marian sanctuaries and contains a vial with the relic of the blood of St. John Paul II on display.
The afternoon will be free for you to explore the city of Krakow before returning to our hotel for our last night's dinner and overnight stay.
Day 8
After a leisurely breakfast we leave our hotel to join a cruise on the Vistula River. On our return from the river cruise we shall visit Krakow Square for a break before making our way back to Krakow airport for our return evening flight to London.
