St. Thomas More Academy Italy – August-September 2025

Pilgrimage to Italy

Trip Date:
Aug 27, 2025
- Sep 5, 2025
Group Type
Private
Activity Level
Difficult
Price
From $4,161
Deposit $500
Hosted by
St. Thomas More Academy
or call us at (574) 383-9396

Trip Overview

More than a trip, the STMA pilgrimage to Italy has been designed from the ground up to be an authentically Catholic spiritual journey and capstone experience for our students. Hiking across the Italian countryside in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi, visiting historical sites in the cradle of Western civilization, and worshipping together at the heart of the Church will make our curriculum come alive and create extraordinary opportunities for growing in faith, virtue, and friendship in Christ.

What’s Included?

  • Local, licensed tour guide(s)
  • Round-trip airfare from Chicago O'Hare
  • Airport and hotel transfers in Italy
  • Private transportation on motor coach
  • All tickets and donations for included activities listed on itinerary
  • Simple accommodations in double, triple, or quad-occupancy rooms
  • Daily Mass
  • Breakfast daily at hotel, 1 lunch, 3 dinners
  • Verso pilgrimage booklets and pilgrim kits
  • Audio headsets

Itinerary

August 27, 2025
  • Depart Chicago on an overnight group flight to Rome
August 28, 2025
  • Arrive in Rome and be greeted by your tour escort
  • Transfer from the Rome airport to Assisi
  • Stop in the Lower City of Assisi for a Welcome Mass at Santa Maria Degli Angeli, where St Francis started the Franciscan order and where he died
  • Welcome dinner in a local restaurant
  • Overnight in Assisi

Accommodations: Accoglienza Muro Rupto

Meals included: Dinner

August 29, 2025
  • Bus from Assisi to La Verna / Pieve Santo Stefano to Assisi
  • Hike from La Verna to Pieve Santo Stefano:
    • Distance: 15km
    • Details: Visit the Franciscan Sanctuary of La Verna, the official starting point of the Via di Francesco atop
      Mount Penna in the heart of the Tuscan Appenines. Given to St Francis as a place for retreat, this is where he
      received the stigmata – the Chapel of the Stigmata now marking the site. See his bed and the Sasso Spicco
      where he prayed, before beginning the first leg of the Via di Francesco, hiking from La Verna to Pieva Santo
      Stefano through the Casentinesi Forests National Park.
  • Mass in La Verna
  • Overnight in Assisi

Accommodations: Accoglienza Muro Rupto

Meals included: Breakfast

August 30, 2025
  • Bus from Assisi to Gubbio / Gubbio to Assisi
  • Hike in Gubbio:
    • Distance: 20km
    • Details: While Gubbio has been popularized as the place where St Francis tamed a wild wolf, it is significant
      as the place St Francis journeyed to after leaving his parents’ home. See the thirteenth-century church and cloister built over the site where St Francis stayed and was first clothed in what would become the Franciscan
      habit. Starting in Gubbio’s historic city center, walk along an ancient mule track up the mountains to reach the
      Abbey of San’Ubaldo and the fortress of Mount Ignino. Follow a medieval aqueduct over the Bottaccione gorge
      to return back to city center.
  • Mass in Gubbio
  • Overnight in Assisi

Accommodations: Accoglienza Muro Rupto

Meals included: Breakfast

August 31, 2025
  • Bus from Assisi to Terni / Greccio to Assisi
  • Hike from Terni to Greccio:
    • Distance: 20km
    • Details: Start with Mass at the Chiesa di San Francesco in Terni, built over the site of a chapel given to St
      Francis by the bishop. Cross the river Nera into the medieval village of Stroncone, with its meadows at the foot
      of Monte Macchialunga. Continue downhill to Greccio, where St Francis began the tradition of re-enacting the
      Nativity story – establishing the world’s first nativity scene – and visit the Hermitage of Greccio, one of four
      sanctuaries established by St Francis in the Sacred Valley.
  • Mass in Terni
  • Overnight in Assisi

Accommodations: Accoglienza Muro Rupto

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch

September 1, 2025
  • Mass at the Basilica of St. Francis, where St. Francis is buried and famous for its frescoes by Giotto
    Self-guided exploration of the Old City of Assisi, starting at the Basilica of St. Francis and ending at the Basilica of St. Clare, which holds the San Damiano Crucifix and the tomb of St Clare
  • Lunch on your own
  • Continue to visit other notable sites, including the tomb of Bl. Carlo Acutis, San Damiano Monastery, the Cathedral of
    San Rufino, Chiesa Nuova, or the fortress of Rocca Maggiore
  • Dinner on your own
  • Overnight in Assisi

Accommodations: Accoglienza Muro Rupto

Meals included: Breakfast

September 2, 2025
  • Depart by bus for Rome
    Mass and tour of the Basilica of San Clemente, run by the Irish Dominicans, including the ancient excavations beneath the modern church
  • Lunch on your own
  • Afternoon entrance to the Colosseum – Rome’s famous amphitheater where you can see the Gladiator’s Gate, Emperor’s Seat, and Imperial Box which now commemorates the Christian martyrs – and the Roman Forum, the ruins of what was once the hub of Roman politics
  • Dinner in local restaurant
  • Overnight in Rome

Accommodations: San Giuseppe House

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner

September 3, 2025
  • Mass in the Crypt at St. Peter’s Basilica, followed by a tour of the Basilica, including the tomb of Pope St. John Paul II
  • Free time in St. Peter’s and lunch on your own
  • Visit to the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme to venerate the relics from Christ’s Passion
  • Pray on the Holy Stairs that Christ climbed on his way to his trial in the palace of Pontius Pilate, brought to Rome
    from Jerusalem by St. Helena
  • Visit to the Papal Basilica of St. John Lateran, the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome and where a relic of the table of the Last Supper is held
  • Dinner on your own
  • Overnight in Rome

Accommodations: San Giuseppe House

Meals included: Breakfast

September 4, 2025
  • Morning entrance to the Vatican Museums, with the opportunity to see the Sistine Chapel, the Raphael Rooms, and the Gallery of Maps
  • Lunch on your own
  • In the afternoon, explore the piazzas and churches of Rome in a city center walking tour.
    • Stops can include San Luigi dei Francesi (where you can see Caravaggio’s The Calling of Saint Matthew); Santa Maria Sopra Minerva (home of the tomb of St Catherine of Siena and Michelangelo’s Risen Christ); the
      Pantheon; Santi Apostoli (where Sts Philip and James are buried); San Pietro in Vincoli (contains the chains used to hold St Peter whilst he was imprisoned in Jerusalem and Michelangelo’s Moses)
  • Closing Mass at a local church
  • Farewell dinner in a local restaurant
  • Overnight in Rome

Accommodations: San Giuseppe House

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner

September 5, 2025
  • Transfer to the airport and depart Rome on a group flight back to Chicago

Meals included: Breakfast

Accommodations

Simple Accommodations

  • Assisi: Accoglienza Muro Rupto
  • Rome: San Giuseppe House

Pricing

Package Cost
$4,161

Optional Add-ons

Single Room Supplement (limited availability)
$690/person
Prepaid Gratuities
TBD
Travel protection
Quotation provided upon request*

Pricing listed per person in double, triple, or quad-occupancy rooms and includes airfare.
The number of available single-occupancy rooms is limited.

Mr. Ouellette, Director of Mission Advancement, will be teaching students how to write letters and talk to family and friends about supporting them financially and spiritually on this pilgrimage.

*Travel protection premium is calculated based on a variety of factors and optional plans are provided by Travel Insured International”

Rates assume a minimum of 20 full-paying pilgrims.

Flights

This pilgrimage includes a group flight. Information is below.

Arrival Flight - August 27, 2025

  • ITA Airways Flight AZ629
    • Departing Chicago O'Hare (ORD) at 3:00 p.m.
    • Arriving Rome (FCO) at 7:25 a.m. (next day)

Departure Flight - September 5, 2025

  • ITA Airways Flight AZ628
    • Departing Rome (FCO) at 9:25 a.m.
    • Arriving Chicago O'Hare (ORD) at 1:10 p.m.

More Details

  • Verso Pilgrimage Director (included if group size is 40 pilgrims or more)
  • Airport transfer from South Bend to Chicago
  • Gratuities for pilgrimage director, guide(s), driver(s), hotel staff, and meals (optional add on)
  • Passport, visa, or luggage fees
  • Any personal purchases
  • Any meals not indicated on itinerary
  • Any required COVID tests or vaccinations
  • Recommended travel protection with Cancel for Any Reason coverage
  • Anything else not explicitly mentioned as included

Payment Schedule

  • March 31, 2025: Deposit due upon registration – $500/person
  • May 30, 2025: Payment due  – $1,500/person
  • July 15, 2025: Final balance due  – Expected remaining balance

As part of the Explorer Package, Verso Ministries only collects payments from the group leader/organization. All pilgrims should pay the group leader/organization, who in turn will pay Verso. To secure your space, Verso requires a group deposit, payable by the group leader/organization. This deposit is applied to the group invoice for the contracted number of pilgrims.

All final balances are due 120 days before departure. Group payments can be made by check or bank transfer (note: for bank transfer, payment fees apply).

 

Cancellation Policy

Cancellation fees apply to organizing groups if the original number of pilgrims is reduced below the contracted amount at the rate of the group deposit multiplied by the number of pilgrims reduced. Verso will assess this fee at the 120 day payment deadline. If the group chooses to cancel its pilgrimage in its entirety, Verso Ministries retains the group deposit and will provide any eligible refunds, depending on when cancellation by the group occurs. If an individual pilgrim chooses to cancel from the pilgrimage, the refund amount will depend on when the pilgrim cancels and is subject to the cancellation schedule below.

All cancellations of individual pilgrims must be made in writing (email or letter) to Verso Ministries. Individual pilgrims should cancel with their group leaders, who are then responsible for notifying Verso Ministries in writing (email or letter). Cancellations are possible at any time, but refunds are subject to cancellation fees at the rates listed here. Cancellation fees are for individual pilgrims. Any cancellation charges incurred from other suppliers or vendors (flight, lodging, ground transportation, tickets, etc.) may come in addition to the administrative fees listed here. All group flight airline tickets, optional excursions, trip options, pre/post extensions, private transfers, and additional hotel nights are non-refundable 100 days or less prior to departure unless otherwise noted. We highly recommend the purchase of individual travel insurance.

  • After deposit & 91 days or more from departure: Deposit is retained
  • 90-61 days prior to departure: 25% of trip cost is non-refundable
  • 60-31 days prior to departure: 50% of trip cost is non-refundable
  • 30 days or less prior to departure: 100% of trip cost is non-refundable

*Final package pricing may adjust based on confirmed accommodations and/or any significant changes in currency exchange rates.

**Group Deposit guarantees a minimum number of full-paying pilgrims and secures all Verso services. Any cancellation charges incurred from other supplies or vendors (flight, lodging, ground transportation, etc.) will come in addition to the administrative fees listed within this contract. Cancellation fees will be charged per person, per booking. Cancellation fees apply to individual pilgrims who cancel their booking or organizing groups if the original number of pilgrims is reduced and the group size is altered.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Jubilee Year? Why is it important?

Click here to learn more about the Jubilee Year and why Jubilee pilgrimages are important in the life of the Church. Additionally, check out our Pilgrim Support Center for answers to more frequently asked questions!
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Who can I contact for more information?

Our team is eager to help and is available 9am-5pm EST by phone at 574-383-9396 or by email at hello@versoministries.com
Read More

Why should I register now?

The sooner you register for the pilgrimage, the better! Pilgrimages can fill up quickly, especially if pilgrims decide to bulk register as a group, so registering as soon as you think you will be able to travel with us guarantees you a spot on open pilgrimages. If you register and find out you can no longer attend, as long as you registered more than 180 days prior to the departure and cancel within 14-days of registering, we will fully refund your deposit. Just send us a written confirmation of your cancellation and we will take care of the rest.
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Why should I travel with Verso Ministries?

At Verso, we believe in crafting pilgrimages that offer you a view of God’s world and his work in it that you can’t get anywhere else.    We believe that everything – from the holy sites, to the meals, to daily Mass, to your fellow pilgrims – shape the ways God can speak to you, which means we’re intentional about it all.  We believe a pilgrimage isn’t just the days you travel, but it’s how you prepare – from the moment you sign up, to the days and weeks after you arrive home. We shepherd you through the entire process so you can achieve the most transformative experience possible.  We’re not just travel experts; we’re experts in Catholic pilgrimage.
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Resources

This will be a list of blog articles from their site that the user can view for more information on the location or the trip. We’ll probably need a about 3-5 items listed here

A picture of the cieling of St. Peter's Basilica.

Finding the Saints in Rome

A metaphor of one of the benefits of going on a pilgrimage, a highway comes into sharp focus through a camera lens.

5 Benefits of Going on a Pilgrimage

Be a Pilgrim of Hope!

What Our Pilgrims Have to Say

Father Kuhn

Jocelyn

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