DUNBOYNE CHOIR TO ROME & ASSISI brochure.pdf · Piazza Navona, an ancient stadium that has been transformed into one or Rome’s most picturesque squares. On the way we will visit

DUNBOYNE CHOIR TO ROME & ASSISI February 18th – 23rd, 2019 €785 p.p.s.

Staying five nights in a 3 star hotel on a bed and breakfast basis.

One four-course dinner

Coach tour by night Audience with Pope Francis Day trip to Assisi

Trip to Lake Albano & Castelgandolfo

Catacombs and St Paul’s Basilica

Trevi fountain and Spanish Steps

Pantheon and Piazza Navona

Colosseum and Roman Forum

Choir events organised

Tour organizers: Cultural Connections Ltd, T.A. 0776

St Peter’s Square

St BOOKING CONTACT:

Cultural Connections Ltd. Newtown, Rahan, Tullamore, Co. Offaly

Tel: 00353 57 93 55050 Email: [email protected]

HOW TO BOOK:

Fill out your booking form, having read the Terms & Conditions. Return it to us with a deposit of 100 euro per person (plus single supplement and insurance premium if applicable). Make cheques payable to: CULTURAL CONNECTIONS LTD. .

Catacombs

osseum

Pantheon St Francis Basilica Assisi

Colosseum

CULTURAL CONNECTIONS LTD IS LICENSED BY THE COMMISSION FOR AVIATION REGULATION. T.A. 0776

Tel: 00353 57 93 55050 Email: [email protected]

INCLUDED IN THE PRICE OF €785 p.p.s.

Return flight (Dub-Rome-Dub) with Ryanair

5 nights in a 3 star hotel in Rome centre, B&B

One four-course dinner with drinks and musical entertainment included

Coach tour of the city by night

Day trip to Assisi

Full time accompaniment

10kg of hand luggage per person

Coaching for all excursions on the itinerary

Guided tours of all places visited

Organization of a full choir programme

All taxes (governmental and local) EXTRA COSTS

Single room supplement of €40 per night Travel insurance Entrance fee to Catacombs (8 euro p.p.) 15 kg suitcase (optional - €70)

Day One, Monday Arrival Check-in at Dublin Airport by 1.30pm. Our Ryanair flight departs for Rome at 4pm. On arrival you will be taken by coach to your hotel. There are many restaurants in the area if people wish to go for dinner afterwards. Your courier will be available to give directions.

Day Two, Tuesday Colosseum, St Peter’s, night tour After breakfast we will board the coach and drive to the Colosseum where we will have a tour from the outside. This amphitheatre was completed in the year 80 AD and is considered the symbol of Rome. Many Christians were martyred in the arena and it is now the setting for Stations of the Cross with the Holy Father every Good Friday. Our tour will include the entrance of the Emperor and all the main architectural features. Free time for lunch in the area of the hotel. In the afternoon we will visit St Peter’s Basilica and see all the principal sights including the Pietà of Michelangelo and the tombs of St Peter and St John Paul II. The choir will sing at evening Mass in the Basilica. At 7pm we will start our night tour of the city by coach including a four-course dinner with music in a restaurant along the way. Our tour will take in the Circus Maximus and Palatine hill, the Jewish Ghetto, St Peter’s/Vatican City, the Colosseum and Forum, Piazza Venezia and Capitoline Hill, and more.

Day Three, Wednesday Papal Audience, Lake Albano, Castelgandolfo This morning we will have breakfast at 7am and then go to St Peter’s for an audience with the Holy Father (depends on his health/schedule and cannot be guaranteed). The audience will likely be held in the Paul VI audience hall. Directly after the audience the coach will take us to the picturesque town of Castelgandolfo. From here there are beautiful views of Lake Albano which is located in the crater of an old volcano. Free time for lunch. Return to hotel by 4pm. Optional night walk in the centre after dinner.

Day Four, Thursday Day trip to Assisi Day trip to the beautiful town of Assisi in Umbria. We will first visit the Basilica of St Clare, which contains the tomb of the saint and the Cross that spoke to St Francis. Free time for lunch in the central Piazza del Comune. Nearby is the paternal home of St Francis (now a church) and the Cathedral of St Rufino, where both Francis and Clare were baptised. Visit the Basilica of San Francesco with the world-famous frescoes of Giotto. The tomb of St Francis is in the crypt. Celebration of Mass. Return to Rome by about 8pm. Free evening.

Day Five, Friday Pantheon, Piazza Navona, St Mary Major Morning visit to the Pantheon, ancient Rome’s best preserved monument. This temple to all the gods is now a church dedicated to Our Lady. It has the largest unreinforced dome in the world. Nearby is Piazza Navona, an ancient stadium that has been transformed into one or Rome’s most picturesque squares. On the way we will visit the Caravaggio paintings in the French national church of St Luigi. The area has a huge selection of good value restaurants. Free time for lunch in the area. Time for rest in the afternoon. At 4pm, we will visit St Mary Major basilica, the most important church in Rome dedicated to Our Lady. Pope Francis lays flowers in front of an icon here before and after every foreign visit. Dunboyne choir will sing at the 6pm parish Mass underneath this icon. A walking tour will be organised later in the evening.

Day Six, Saturday Irish College, Catacombs, St Paul’s, Departure After breakfast, check out. Visit the Irish College. The choir will sing at Mass in the College chapel. Continue to St Paul’s Outside the Walls. This magnificent Basilica was once the largest in the world. The sarcophagus of St Paul is now visible since the 2008 excavations. Free time for lunch in the Basilica café. Visit the Catacombs of St Callixtus. These were the official burial tunnels of the first Christian community in Rome and contain the most ancient examples of Christian art, as well as the tombs of popes and martyrs. Continue to Ciampino airport for 6pm check-in on our Ryanair flight to Dublin.