The sacred sites of Poland

The sacred sites of Poland

Warszawa - Częstochowa - Tyniec - Kraków - Łagiewniki - Kalwaria Zebrzydowska - Lanckorona - Wieliczka - Auchwitz - Wrocław - Świdnica - Trzebnica - Płock - Niepokalanów

DAY 1

Arrival in Warsaw. Airport transfer to the hotel. Dinner.

DAY 2

Breakfast. Guided tour of  Warsaw - the capital of Poland. We will start in the Old Town, since 1980 on UNESCO list as "an exceptional example of the comprehensive reconstruction of a city that had been deliberately and totally destroyed". You'll see the Royal Castle, St. John's Cathedral, Old Market Square and Barbican. Next we move to one of the most beautiful parks in Warsaw – Lazienki Park (with Palace on The Water and Federic Chopin Monument).

Departure for Czestochowa. Dinner and overnight in Częstochowa.

DAY 3

Breakfast. Visit the Jasna Gora Monastery - the most famous Marian sanctuary and pilgrimage place in Poland, with the miraculous icon of Black Madonna.

Visit to the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec - the Monastery, situated 12 km from the city centre of Krakow, was founded in 11th century. We will visit the Barroque church with altars created by Italian sculptor Francesco Placidi, beautiful courtyard with a wooden well-house and admire the romantic view over the river and Wolski Forest.

Dinner in local restaurant and overnight in Krakow.

DAY 4

Breakfast. Walking tour of the Old Town Starting with the Wawel hill with an impressive castle and the cathedral. Next we follow the Royal Way to admire the beautiful tenement houses and churches, we reach the Market Square – the largest medieval market place in Europe!  We’ll stop for a while in the Market Square to listen to the bugle call played by a trumpeter from St. Mary’s Church tower. We visit the church with the famous wooden altar Wit Stwosz and the Cloth Hall – a perfect place to buy some souvenirs from Krakow. During the tour you will also visit the university quarter with Collegium Maius – the oldest building of the Jagiellonian University. John Paul II was studying here .

In the afternoon – a walking tour of Kazimierz – the old Jewish quarter. The history of Kazimierz dates back to 1335 when it was founded as an island town by King Kazimierz the Great. During over 500 years it was housing the Krakow’s Jews and became a major European centre for the Diaspora. You’ll feel here the unforgettable and unique atmosphere of this quarter with its synagogues and museums, cafés, restaurants and art galleries. During the tour we’ll visit the Remuh Synagogue and old cemetery.  Dinner with klezmer music concert and overnight.

DAY 5

Breakfast. Visit to the Sanctuary of Divine Mercy in Lagiewniki. Saint Faustina Kowalska lived and died here.
We continue to Wadowice – the birthplace of John Paul II. In Karol Wojtyla’s hometown we’ll see the house where he used to live and we will visit the basilica where he was baptized.
Next we travel to Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (UNESCO). The sanctuary in Kalwaria (XVII) is one of the most famous pilgrimage places in Poland. The Pope visited it very often as a young boy, priest and bishop to pray when strolling along the Paths of Calvary.
The last point of the tour will be Lanckorona – a small, picturesque town with its landmark - steep market square surrounded by wooden arcaded houses of the 19th century. 

In the afternoon - guided tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mine (UNESCO). The mine, one of the oldest in the world, is visited every year by over one million of tourist from all over the world -  20 salt rock chambers with a magnificent St. King’s chapel, underground saline lakes, numerous salt sculptures and impressive timber constructions.
Dinner and overnight in Krakow.

DAY 6

Breakfast. Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum (UNESCO). Located about 70 km from Krakow, this former Nazi concentration camp is one of the best known places of genocide in the world. About 1,3 million people lost their life there. John Paul II visited the former concentration camp during his first pilgrimage (as a Pope) to Poland in 1979.

Continuation of the journey to Wroclaw. Short visit to Swidnica, a small Silesian town with beautiful Baroque houses in the Market Square and the most important – the Church of Peace (UNESCO). The church is the largest timber-framed religious building of its kind in Europe.

Dinner and overnight in Wroclaw.

DAY 7

Breakfast. Guided tour of Wroclaw. Wroclaw is the fourth largest city in Poland. The city, located on 12 islands on Odra river and having about 200 bridges is often called the Polish Venice. During the guided tour you'll see all the highlight of the stunning architecture of the city: the Polish second largest (after Krakow) Market Square with a beautiful Gothic Town Hall, the University with impressing Baroque Aula Leopoldina Hall and Ostrow Tumski – the oldest part of the city with St. John's Cathedral.
Dinner in restaurant and overnight in Wroclaw.

DAY 8

Breakfast. Visit to Trzebnica famous for Saint Jadwiga. Her husband Duke Henry the Bearded founded in 1202 in Trzebnica the convent of Cistercian sisters. Jadwiga's grave, in the convent church is a destination for pilgrims from Poland, Czech Republic and Germany. The church was the first brick building in Silesia.

Plock. Visit to the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary – erected in 12th century, one of the most valuable representatives of Romanesque architecture in Europe. In Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Plock the mission of St. Sister Faustina Kowalska began.

It's a place where Jesus was revealed to Sister Faustina, instructing her to paint His picture with the inscription: Jesus, I trust in You.

On the Way to Warsaw we will stop in Niepokalanow where Saint Maximilian Kolbe established a monastery in 1927. Father Kolbe gave his life in exchange for the life of another man in Auschwitz concentration camp.

Dinner and overnight in Warsaw.

DAY 9

Airport transfer and departure from Poland.