Day by day itinerary

Toronto on an overnight direct flight to Zagreb, Croatia. Dinner and breakfast served on board

(≈ 550 km/6-hour drive)

Arrival to Zagreb airport. You will meet our guide and driver who will escort you to Medjugorje. Transfer to Medjugorje with a short stop on the way. Check in at the Hotel/Pansion in Medjugorje. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel. You will meet your local guide at the hotel reception. You will then be transferred to St. James Church for the orientation. St. James Church is the centre of the spiritual life of the shrine. You will get all necessary information about the church and the prayer program as well as the surrounding area that includes the statue of Our Lady – the marble statue of the Queen of Peace, which became a symbol of the Shrine (the work of Dino Felici from Italy) was put up in 1987 at the square in front of the church; the exterior altar built in 1989, and the surrounding prayer area (with about 5000 seats); the bronze statue of St. Leopold Bogdan Mandić (the work of Carmelo Puzzolo from Italy), patron saint of confessors; an area for silent prayer arranged around a wooden cross; a bronze statue of the Risen Savior (the work of Slovenian sculptor Andrej Ajdič) the space around the statue was arranged for personal and group prayer of the Stations of the Cross for those who cannot climb Cross Mountain. After the tour, transfer to the hotel. Free time on your own in Medjugorje. Evening program at St. James church. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. You will meet your local guide to have a guided tour of Apparition Hill. According to the visionaries, it is the place of the first apparitions several hundred meters above Medjugorje called Podbrdo. A steep path leads from the houses to the very place of the apparitions, along which – in 1989 – bronze reliefs were placed representing the Joyful and the Sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary. On the way towards the place of the apparitions, a large wooden cross was erected, signaling the place where – through Marija Pavlović, on the third day of the apparitions – Our Lady gave the call to peace for the first time. At the very place of the apparitions, in honor of the 20th anniversary of the apparitions, a statue of the Queen of Peace was placed. It is important to point out that Apparition Hill is the place of silent prayer. After the tour transfer to the hotel. Free time in Medjugorje. Evening program at St. James church. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. You will meet your local guide to visit Cross mountain. Cross Mountain is a hill above Medjugorje (520 m) where on March 15 1934, the parishioners constructed 8.56m high concrete cross, built in remembrance of the 1900 years since the death of Jesus. On the cross is written: “To Jesus Christ, Redeemer of the human race, as a sign of their faith, love and hope, in remembrance of the 1900 years since the death of Jesus.” Relics received from Rome for the occasion are embedded in the cross bar itself. Since then, the custom was established of celebrating Holy Mass at the foot of the cross in commemoration of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, on the 1st Sunday after the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. After the tour, transfer to the hotel. Free time. Evening program at St. James Church. The International Youth Festival will start on this date. Every day there will be interesting program at the shrine including testimonies, sharing, prayer program and mass. Dinner. Overnight.

(≈ 35km/45 min drive each way) Breakfast at the hotel. Excursion to Široki Brijeg, to the shrine of the assumption of Our Lady into heaven. Visit to the church and monastery. The old church was the first church in western Herzegovina since the mid-sixteenth century, after the Turks destroyed all the churches and monasteries on the west side of the Neretva. Inside the church is a tomb built as a result of the massacre of 65 Franciscan martyrs by the communists in 1945. Free time in the shrine. Return to Medjugorje. Evening program at St. James Church. Dinner. Overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the Cenacolo community. The community was founded in Saluzzo (Italy) by Sr. Elvira Petrozzi in 1983, to help drug addicts. The main goal of the community is to discover and to live true values of Christian life. According to their words, their therapy is Jesus Christ, and the way of healing is prayer, work and friendship. Sr. Elvira opened two houses in Medjugorje: a house for boys called “Field of Life,” in 1991, and a house for girls called “Field of Joy,” in 2000. The boys from the community gladly receive pilgrims and give witness of their conversion and liberation from drug addiction. After the visit, return to hotel. Free time. Evening program at St. James Church (During the anniversary of the apparitions in Medjugorje, the visionaries will take part at the evening mass). Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit to the Mother’s Village in Medjugorje. Mother’s Village is an establishment for the education and care of abandoned and neglected children. It has existed since 1993. It emerged from the desire of its founder, Fr. Slavko Barbarić, to offer children and youth a planned, organized education, as well as care, so that they can develop physically, intellectually, morally, spiritually, and culturally. Through Catholic contents and ideas, the collaborators offer them a condition of freedom, dignity, acceptance, and above all, love and understanding. The care of children was entrusted to the Franciscan School Sisters from Herzegovina, and to lay staff members. The establishment started its work officially on September 8, 1996. After the visit, transfer to hotel. Free time. Evening program at St. James church. Dinner and overnight.

(≈ 35km/45 min drive each way)

Breakfast at the hotel. Excursion to the shrine of Tihaljina, the shrine of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady. Tihaljina has a very special role in sharing the message of peace from Medjugorje. Everything started with the apparitions of Our Lady in Medjugorje. On their way to Medjugorje, pilgrims from all over the world would usually make a short stop at the shrine Tihaljina since it is located close to the border. It was also the church where Fr. Jozo Zovko was transferred to after being parish priests of Medjugorje at the start of the apparitons. His powerful homilies drew many busloads each day to the shrine.  The first thing they would see was one of the most beautiful statueS of Our Lady of Mercy located in the church of the Immaculate Conception. Return to Medjugorje. Free time. Evening program at St. James Church. Dinner and overnight.

(≈ 130km/2-hour drive each way

Visit to Dubrovnik: After breakfast we will depart Medjugorje for Dubrovnik, the ‘Pearl of the Adriatic.’ We will visit one of the world’s oldest pharmacies, the medieval walls, and historical buildings, including a rector’s palace, monasteries, and the harbor. We will also visit the Basilica of St. Blaise, the patron Saint of Dubrovnik and other historical church. Dinner and overnight in Medjugorje.

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the Blue Cross site. At the foot of Apparition Hill is the Blue Cross, placed there in 1985. At this place, Ivan the visionary’s prayer group gathers regularly, since July 4th, 1982. It was chosen by Ivan to conduct his regular prayer group as an alternative to Apparition Hill, in order to evade the communist police at the time.  Over the years, some of the visionaries still have apparitions at the Blue Cross. It is a prayerful and peaceful place where healings have been reported. After the visit to the Blue Cross, if possible, you will also visit Vicka’s (one of the visionaries) old house (close to the site), which was also the place of the first apparitions. After the visit, return to the hotel. Free time. Evening program at St. James church. Dinner and overnight.

Airport Breakfast and check out. Transfer to Zagreb airport for our direct flight back home.