Saint John Paul II and Saint Faustina Kowalska 6/8-day private tour

Krakow – Czestochowa – Wadowice – Auschwitz – Zakopane – Krakow

Day 1

Arrival at Krakow Balice Airport. Transfer to your hotel. Free time for the rest of the day.

Overnight in Krakow.

Day 2

After breakfast, a half-day private Krakow city tour. The program includes the Unesco-listed Main Market Square with Saint Mary’s Basilica, Krakow Barbican, Collegium Maius courtyard (the oldest part of the Jagiellonian University), and Sukiennice (Krakow Cloth Hall) – once a major center of international trade. Afterward, a visit to Wawel Hill with the Cathedral, the Royal Castle, and the famous Wawel Dragon. Wawel Hill is a place of great historical significance for Polish people. It is where royal weddings, funerals, and coronations took place.

Afterward, you will see the Bishop’s Palace, known for being the residence of the Pope during his pilgrimages to Poland. During his visits in Krakow, the Pope used to give his blessings and talk to the crowds from one of the Palace’s windows, commonly known as Pope’s Window at 3 Franciszkanska street. Next to the Bishop’s Palace, the Church of St. Francis of Assisi is situated. Cardinal Karol Wojtyla prayed there very often. As Pope, he visited the church twice – in 1979 and 1991. Inside, there is the Pope’s favorite bench where he used to meditate. You will also visit Krakow’s church of St. Florian’s where the Pope used to work as a vicar.

Then, you will visit the newly-opened Have No Fear! John Paul II Centre in Lagiewniki. The complex consists of a sanctuary, museum, tower with an observation deck, hotel, amphitheater, and Stations of the Cross. A reliquary containing the blood of Pope John Paul II can be found in the sanctuary. On the walls, you will find pictures presenting the Pope’s visit to Lourdes, Fatima, Mariazell, Czestochowa, and Kalwaria Zebrzydowska.

At the end of the Krakow tour, you will have the opportunity to pay a visit to the Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy in Lagiewniki. This holy place was consecrated by the Pope at the beginning of the 21st century. Nowadays it is an important pilgrimage destination, because of the holy relics of Saint Faustina Kowalska. She was a famous Polish nun who lived there before World War II and had visions of Jesus. In her diary, then published as a book “Divine Mercy in My Soul”, she described her thoughts, prayers, and mystic conversation with Jesus Christ. Sister Faustina founded the cult of Divine Mercy and was beatified in 1993 and canonized as a saint in 2000. To commemorate her life, Pope John Paul II established the first Sunday after Easter as the Feast of Divine Mercy Sunday. Just next to the sanctuary you will see the monastery buildings where Sister Faustina lived and worked.

Overnight in Krakow.

Day 3

Morning transfer to the city of Czestochowa and visit at the famous Pauline Monastery of Jasna Gora. It is the main Catholic center in Poland and its greatest pilgrimage destination, visited by more than 5 million pilgrims yearly. Every August, people join walking pilgrimages to Jasna Gora to pray in front of the famous Black Madonna painting – one of the most recognizable sacred images in Poland. The Monastery is also home to votive objects connected to Saint John Paul II, such as the golden rose given to the Monastery in 1979 or a part of the cassock stained with blood with a hole after the assassination attempt in 1981. The Pope himself visited the sanctuary every time he was in Poland. In 1991, he chose Czestochowa to be the venue for World Youth Day. During the tour, you will also have a chance to admire the Golghota – new Stations of the Cross designed by the famous Polish painter Jerzy Duda-Gracz.

Overnight in Krakow.

Day 4

Morning transfer to Kalwaria Zebrzydowska often called the Polish Golgotha. Its devotional complex is visited by one million pilgrims each year and is one of Europe’s most interesting landscape and architectural projects. John Paul II frequently visited Kalwaria before and during his pontificate. The origins of the Sanctuary go back to the beginning of the 17^th century and today it is part of the UNESCO World Heritage List. Kalwaria is widely known for its Stations of the Cross inspired by the Calvary of Jerusalem.

The next destination is Wadowice – the birthplace of Karol Wojtyla. You will visit his home, later converted into a museum. Inside the house “where it all began” you may see a rich collection of his family memorabilia. The exhibition contains a variety of possessions such as furniture, an oven, a table, personal belongings, etc. Just next to Pope’s family house you will see the Basilica of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary from the 15th century, where Karol Wojtyla was baptized. On the wall, you can find the picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The Pope prayed daily in front of it. Then, you will visit the secondary school and Saint Peters Church, built to express gratefulness for electing Karol Wojtyla in the Papal conclave and saving his life in 1981. After sightseeing, you will taste “kremowka”, the favorite cake of young Karol.

On the way back to Krakow you will stop at Auschwitz Nazi Camp – a primary symbol of the Holocaust. It was built and operated by Nazi Germany during World War II. It functioned as a concentration and extermination camp. The museum exhibition contains original documents, suitcases, shoes, and other belongings of the murdered prisoners. The camp is an important part of the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Overnight in Krakow.

 Day 5

Morning transfer to Zakopane, a picturesque town at the foothill of the Tatra Mountains, beloved by the Pope. Zakopane is known as ‘the winter capital of Poland’ and a center of Goral (Polish highlanders) culture. You will walk down the famous Krupowki street full of hand-made, regional products and you will try out the local cuisine, including the traditional oscypek cheese made of salted sheep milk. Then you will see the Sanctuary in Krzeptowki and the House of Grey Ursulines in Jaszczurowka, both frequently visited by the Pope. John Paul II loved trekking and skiing in the Tatra Mountains. He marveled at the Morskie Oko Lake and Chochołowska Valley. At the end of the tour, you will have a short funicular ride to Gubalowka Hill where you will have a chance to admire the stunning panorama of the High Tatras.

Overnight in Krakow.

Day 6

Transfer to Krakow Airport or extension of the tour.

Day 6 (extension)

Morning departure from Krakow. A stop in Glogowiec, where sister Faustina was born in 1905. An exhibition in her house contains family memorabilia. Just 2 km away there is a village called Swinice Warckie. In the parish church where little Faustina was baptized, you can admire three baroque altars and a picture of Saint Faustina.

Afterward, you will visit Niepokalanow, home of a Franciscan monastic complex founded in 1927 and devoted to the cult of Saint Maximilian Kolbe. During World War II he provided shelter for injured soldiers, refugees, Jews and volunteered to die for a stranger in Auschwitz Nazi camp. Pope John Paul II canonized Maximilian Kolbe and visited Niepokalanow where he blessed 70 missionary crosses. The complex also serves as a Marian shrine where many pilgrims pray every year.

Arrival in Warsaw and an afternoon private Warsaw city tour. The program includes sites located in Old Town, which is the main tourist attraction in Warsaw. You will see the Royal Castle, the  Old Town Market Place, the Warsaw Mermaid and the most important church in the capital– St. John’s Cathedral. You will also visit St. Anna’s Church where Pope John Paul II celebrated the Holy Mass in 1979. That year he met with students and said: “I looked for you and you have come to me. This is what I thank you for”. Thousands of Varsovians gathered in this church after Pope John Paul II’s death.

Overnight in Warsaw.

Day 7 (extension)

After breakfast, the second part of the Warsaw city tour, beginning with Pilsudski Square. There, during his first visit to Poland as a Pope in 1979, John Paul II said some of his most memorable words: “Let your Spirit descent and renew the face of the Earth, the face of this land”. These words became the slogan of the Solidarity movement and had a special significance for the Polish nation, at the times when the idea of changing the political system was evolving. That Holy Mass gathered approximately 500 000 people.

On Zytnia Street you will admire the Convent of the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy which sister Faustine entered in 1925. Nearby there is a chapel of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Family of Mary. Sister Faustine prayed here in 1932.

Following the Royal Route which leads from the Old Town to Wilanow Palace, you will listen to the history of its most precious objects like the Presidential Palace, Holy Cross Church with the urn of Frederic Chopin’s heart immured in a pillar, the University of Warsaw and the baroque Visitationist Church. When visiting Lazienki Park, you will see the Old Orangery and walk around the beautifully maintained gardens from the 18th century until they reach the outstanding Palace on the Isle. This is also where the iconic Chopin Monument is located.

Overnight in Warsaw.

Day 8 (extension)

Check-out from the hotel and transfer to Warsaw Chopin Airport, according to your flight schedule.

On special request, there is a possibility to visit Plock (120km northwest of Warsaw) where Sister Faustine had her first visions of Jesus Christ and where the famous painting of Jesus was created.