Major Basilicas + Relics + Vocation – 3 Day Rome Pilgrimage
This 3 Day Rome Pilgrimage brings together the four Major Basilicas, relics of Christ and the Apostles, and the story of Catholic religious life. Across four guided pilgrim experiences, you will visit Rome’s principal basilicas and follow a spiritual route from the martyrs and early Church to monasticism, the mendicant orders and Christian vocation. The standard small-group programme begins on Thursday and runs to Saturday. Private packages can begin on any day, with the same experiences reordered around church opening times and the operating days of the individual tours.
What is included in the 3-day pilgrimage?
The package combines these four Crucis tours:
- Thursday morning: St Peter’s Basilica Tour
- Thursday afternoon: Sts Peter & Paul in Chains Tour
- Friday morning: Via Crucis – Relics of Christ Tour
- Saturday morning: Medieval Rome Walking Tour – Religious Life & Vocation
Together these routes include St Peter’s, St Paul Outside the Walls, St Mary Major and the Archbasilica of St John Lateran. They also reach sacred places connected with the Passion of Christ, the martyrdoms of St Peter and St Paul, and the development of religious life in Rome.
Rome’s four Major Basilicas
The four Major Basilicas are the highest-ranking Catholic churches in Rome: St Peter’s Basilica, St Paul Outside the Walls, St Mary Major and St John Lateran. St John Lateran is the Cathedral of Rome and the highest-ranking church in the Catholic world. Each basilica has a Holy Door. The doors opened for the Jubilee Year of 2025 are now closed, but they remain visible and your guides explain their history, symbolism and role in a Holy Year. The next anticipated Jubilee of the Redemption is in 2033, marking 2,000 years since the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Relics of Christ, St Peter and St Paul
The Via Crucis – Relics of Christ Tour follows the Way of the Cross through churches associated with relics of the Passion. The route includes St Mary Major, St Prassede, St Alphonsus Liguori, the Scala Santa, St John Lateran and the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem. The Sts Peter & Paul in Chains Tour explores the lives, imprisonment and martyrdoms of the Apostles in Rome. It connects the chains of St Peter, the site traditionally associated with St Paul’s martyrdom and his tomb at St Paul Outside the Walls.
Religious life and vocation in Rome
On the final morning, the pilgrimage turns to the development of religious life. The route moves from early monasticism to the friars and mendicant orders, visiting churches and communities on the Aventine before descending towards Santa Maria in Cosmedin and the older Christian traditions of Rome. This is not simply an architectural survey. Your expert Catholic guide uses the places, saints and religious communities to explore vocation, prayer and the different forms of consecrated life that shaped the Church.
Departure and private arrangements
The booking form lists the standard small-group departure at 8:45am on Thursday. Because access to St Peter’s depends on seasonal queues, the meeting time may be brought forward and will be confirmed before the tour. Private packages are available on any day and the order of the four experiences is adjusted accordingly. For a shorter itinerary without the vocation day, see the 4 Major Basilicas + Relics – 2 Day Rome Pilgrimage. Pilgrims wishing to continue to all seven churches of St Philip Neri’s route can choose the 7 Pilgrim Churches – 4-Day Rome Pilgrimage. Individual basilica visits are available through our 4 Major Basilicas tours.
Day 1 (Thursday) – Morning – St Peter’s Basilica
| MEETING POINT |
Outside Radio Vaticana, Piazza Pia, 3 Location on Google Maps What3Words: adopting.visual.caravan |
| START |
8.45 am meet 15 mins earlier |
| END |
Approximately 11.00am outside the basilica |
| DURATION |
2 hours depending on queues |
| DRESS CODE |
Comfortable clothing, covering shoulders and knees |
| INCLUDED |
| Expert Catholic Guide |
See and learn about the Holy Door |
| Taxes |
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| NOT INCLUDED |
| Accommodation |
| Guide tip |
| Transport to/from the pilgrim experience |
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Day 1 (Thursday Afternoon) – Sts Peter & Paul in Chains Tour
| MEETING POINT |
To the right of the main entrance of the Basilica of St Peter in Chains (San Pietro in Vincoli), by the statue of Jesus depicted as a beggar.
Location on Google Maps What3Words: lizards.washing.nuns |
| START |
2.45 meet for 3.00pm start |
| END |
6.00pm at the Major Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls |
| DURATION |
3 hours depending on traffic |
| DRESS CODE |
Comfortable clothing, covering shoulders and knees |
| INCLUDED |
| Expert Catholic Guide |
See and learn about the Holy Door |
| Taxes |
Transport between locations |
|
| NOT INCLUDED |
| Accommodation |
| Guide tip |
| Transport to/from the pilgrim experience |
|
Day 2 – (Friday) – Morning – Via Crucis – Relics of Christ Tour
| MEETING POINT |
The fountain in front of the entrance of St Mary Major (Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore) under the large column. (Please note, the front of the basilica faces south-east, away from Via Cavour). Location on Google Maps What3Words: chemistry.ember.braked |
| START |
8.45am meet 15 mins before |
| END |
12:15 pm at the Basilica of the Holy Cross of Jerusalem |
| DURATION |
3-3.5 hours depending on queues |
| DRESS CODE |
Comfortable clothing, covering shoulders and knees |
| INCLUDED |
| Expert Catholic Guide |
See and learn about the Holy Door |
| Taxes |
|
|
| NOT INCLUDED |
| Accommodation |
| Guide tip |
| Transport to/from the pilgrim experience |
|
Day 3 (Saturday) – Medieval Rome Walking Tour – Religious Life & Vocation
| MEETING POINT |
Piazza dei Cavalieri di Malta, to the left of the famous keyhole. Location on Google Maps What3Words: risks.voucher.lights |
| START |
8.45am meet for 9.00am start |
| END |
Midday at the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere |
| DURATION |
3 hours |
| DRESS CODE |
Comfortable clothing, covering shoulders and knees |
| INCLUDED |
| Expert Catholic Guide |
Entrance fees |
| Taxes |
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| NOT INCLUDED |
| Accommodation |
| Guide tip |
| Transport to/from the pilgrim experience |
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Plan the Major Basilicas within a longer Rome pilgrimage using the Crucis Catholic guide to the four Major Basilicas and the Rome pilgrimage planner for one to four days.
Additional information
| Ticket Type | Adult (16+), Student ID, Child (under 16) |
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Tour Reviews
My 13 year old daughter and I had a fantastic 3 days of walking tours in Rome, which included St Peter’s and all four major basilicas, and the Holy Doors, the “Via Crucis” tour, which was extremely impactful for both of us, a Sts Peter and Paul tour, and a Religious Orders tour.
The booking process was straightforward, with personal and responsive communication.
Our guide, Tom, was punctual and organised – we walked straight into all of the sites we visited. The tours were dense with fascinating content, and very well conceived – he managed to develop and tie the stories together beautifully, marrying the historic, artistic, symbolic and spiritual and religious dimensions very meaningfully. We got so much more out of visiting all these places, as we were able to see the context and meaning. He was extremely sensitive to the sacredness of the spaces we were in, and the amazing relics we encountered. We learnt so much about the history of The Church.
Overall, it was a lifechanging exeprience for both of us. I am so grateful to have happened across Crucis Tours, and will be recommending them, as I do here, now.
Originally posted on Google
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