Day 1: Arrive Washington, DC
Gather in the capital and settle in; gentle orientation and an opening gathering. An easy first day with no air-travel risk for most groups.
Opening Mass / devotional service to begin the pilgrimage.
Day 2: Washington — the National Shrine
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the largest Catholic church in North America, with its many chapels to Our Lady — give it most of a day — and the Saint John Paul II National Shrine.
Mass at the National Shrine; pray at a chapel of Our Lady.
Day 3: Emmitsburg — St Elizabeth Ann Seton
Travel to Emmitsburg, Maryland: the National Shrine of St Elizabeth Ann Seton, first American-born saint, and the nearby National Shrine Grotto of Lourdes. A devotional day in the countryside.
Mass at the Seton Shrine; pray the rosary at the Grotto of Lourdes.
Day 4: Philadelphia — St Katharine Drexel & St John Neumann
Continue to Philadelphia: the shrine of St John Neumann at St Peter's, the St Katharine Drexel shrine, and the cathedral basilica. A day among American saints.
Pray at the shrine of St John Neumann; Mass in Philadelphia.
Day 5: Auriesville / the North American Martyrs
Travel toward upstate New York and the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs at Auriesville and the St Kateri Tekakwitha shrine at Fonda — the ground of the Jesuit martyrs and the 'Lily of the Mohawks'.
Mass at the Martyrs' Shrine; reflection on missionary witness and St Kateri.
Day 6: Closing & departure
A final morning for reflection and any nearby shrine before the group disperses for home.
Closing Mass and a blessing for the journey home.
