Under the Auspices of H.G. Bishop David
Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of New York & New England
You are invited to
The 2nd Annual Young Professional Trip to Italy
Coptic Pilgrimage to Italy 2018
When: Saturday,Saturday 7/28 – Sunday 8/5, 2018
Price: $2,200 per person (Double Occupancy).
It is cheaper to reserve individual airline tickets from Kayak or other discount flight websites.
Please click here to view the flight we will be using
or call/text Fr. Andrew (203) 455-7447 for information about Airline reservation & Trip
Please Reserve by: May 15, 2018
HG Bishop David will Honor us during the Trip
To Reserve or More information Please text
Father Andrew
203-455-7447
Checks should be Payable to “St. Peter & St. Andrew Church”
Attention Father Andrew Awad
138 Evergreen Hill Road
Fairfield CT 06824
You can send payment through Venmo @Abouna
Day 1. Saturday, July 28, 2018
Arrival to Milan. Meet your escort – Ivan Krucican and a driver, then proceed for a city tour. Start with the Sforza Castle, to learn about Milan’s history, proceed on foot to one of the most beautiful churches in Milan – St. Maurice’, dedicated to the martyric commander of the legendary Thebaid legion. From there onto to the Basilica of St. Ambrose, where the relics of the Saint are resting amidst relics of Ancient Christian Martyrs Gervasius and Protasius. Final stop of the day will be at the mighty Duomo, one of the largest Gothic Cathedral in Europe. In the crypt under the Cathedral, we could see the remains of the Ancient Baptistery where St. Ambrose, saintly Bishop of Milan, baptized St. Augustine of Hippo. Enjoy some free time in the city center. Later in the evening, transfer to the hotel for overnight. Overnight: Milan.
Day 2. Sunday, July 29, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
We will be leaving ancient city of Milan this morning, heading East toward Venice. En route we will stop to see Padua. Padua is the historical city and renowned Christian center in Northern Italy, where in the Basilica of St. Justina the relics of St. Apostle and Evangelist Luke are laid to rest. Original complex was built over the tomb or an early Christian Saint Justina (5ht cent AD), hence the name, and soon there after a monastery was founded here, that would destine to become one of the most important monasteries in Veneto, housing the tombs of several saints in addition to St. Justina and St. Luke, namely Sts. Felicitas, Prosdocimus, Maximus, Julian, Urius, and also of the Apostle Matthias. From Basilica proceed via the largest and certainly one of the most beautiful of all Italian squares -Piazza prate Della Valle to the one lavish 13 century Basilica of St. Anthony of Padua. This ancient Italian town is also known for its magnificent frescoes and centuries-old university. Prior to our arrival to Mestre, we will stop at Noventa do Piave Designer Outlet, where any possible thirst for shopping could be well- satisfied at once. Toward the evening we will arrive to our hotel in Mestre. Overnight: Mestre (Venice).
Day 3. Monday, July 30, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
Today we will spend full day in Venice. We’ll start our tour with a visit to St. Mark’s Cathedral, which hosts the relics of another Evangelist, St. Mark. The cathedral was built in distinctive Byzantine style in the mid-11th century, to store the relics of St. Mark, which the Venetians stole from Alexandria. The Cathedral is of exceptional beauty, and also has a magnificent collection of Byzantine treasures, that came to Venice, for the most part, after that universal tragedy, the sack of Constantinople by the Crusaders in 1204. There are over thirty Orthodox Saints that are in repose in Venice, among them St. Zacharias, St. Helen, St. Athanasius of Alexandria, SS. Cosmas and Damian and many others. These relics and church historical artifacts deserve the most serious attention compared to similar ones throughout Western
Europe, because most of them came to Venice from Constantinople. Your afternoon may be at leisure, unless you’d like to continue your exploration of Venice with a visit to the Doge’s Palace – the place where the mighty rulers of the prosperous marine republic lived and where the city councils gathered for various assemblies. Overnight: Mestre (Venice).
Day 4. Tuesday, July 31, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
After breakfast we will have a pleasant transfer to Ravenna, the former capital of the Byzantine Empire. Despite the fact that it has not been the capital of the mighty empire for over a thousand years, this present day sleepy Italian coast along the Adriatic shore conquers your imagination with images from the past. Its splendid basilicas with the most luxurious mosaics earned it the name of the mosaic capital of the world. No picture, photograph, exhibit or story will ever do justice to what we are about to see today. Several basilicas, baptisteries and a splendid tomb will uncover to you the images of the glorious art and religious devotion of the Ancient Christian Empire. Overnight: Florence
Day 5. Wednesday, August 1, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
The splendor of Renaissance Florence makes it the number one destination for tourist groups in Italy. Most visitors say that the old city is just too overcrowded but conquered by its beauty; they leave just to come back again and again. Florence offers countless sites of interest, the famous Duomo with its magnificent Tower, Medici’s Chapel and St. Mark’s Monastery, the home for many years for famous Girolamo Savonarola, and of course one of the best art galleries – the Uffizi. We’ll see some of the most important sites through the day, among them of particular interest to us, the Baptistery with stunning Byzantine mosaics and Lorenzo Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise. Overnight: Florence
If you would like to have a tour of Uffizi Gallery, please contact tour organizers for time and prices. The tour of Uffizi can be arranged at your request after the tour of city.
Day 6. Thursday, August 2, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
Today we will transfer further South, and around Noon we will arrive to the “Eternal City”. Today we’ll see St. Maria Maggiore Church, one of the largest and oldest churches dedicated to the Virgin Mary. In a special chapel you may see a few pieces of wood that supposedly are that of Christ’s manger; St. John Lateran Cathedral is the cathedral of Rome, since the Vatican is a different state. The Cathedral is built on the place where the ancient Papal palaces once stood. The most important relics the church contains are the heads of the apostles Peter and Paul, executed in 64 AD during the persecutions of Nero. The Church of the Holy Stairs was built for one reason, to hold the stairs that Christ ascended to the Roman Praetorium in Jerusalem on the day of His judgment by Pontius Pilate. We will finish our day of our exploration of Christian Rome by visiting one the Basilica of “Paul outside the Walls”. Overnight: Rome
Day 7. Friday, August 3, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
Today will start with the exploration of the remnants of the city that gave Rome the title Eternal. We will see the largest stadium of antiquity, the Coliseum, a circus that hosted up to 80,000 spectators, and the even larger Circus Maximus, the horse race stadium, witness to the cheer of 250,000 Romans. We will also see ancient Rome’s downtown, the Forum and Palatine Hill. Just before the lunch brake, we will visit the place of Apostle Peter’s imprisonment – Mamertime Prison and the church that holds his prison chains. In the afternoon, we will explore famous “tourist’s traps” of city – the Pantehon, the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, etc. Overnight: Rome
Day 8. Saturday, August 4, 2018
Meals: Breakfast
Vatican City is the smallest state in existence. But it is more famous for the residence of the Pope of Rome, once the most important out of five keepers of the ancient Christian Patriarchal sees. Besides that, few people know that the Vatican is built on the place of an early Christian cemetery where many Christian martyrs were buried. St. Peter’s Basilica itself is a resting place of many Orthodox saints, among whom is the beloved Orthodox and Ecumenical Teacher St. John Chrysostom. There are no words to describe the glory and beauty of St. Peter’s Basilica, and of Sistine Chapel painted by the hand of the Renaissance genius of Michelangelo. In the afternoon we will visit one of the Catacombs, place of the earliest Christian worship and burial of the martyrs. The rest of your day in Rome may be at leisure, alternatively we will be happy to offer you a tour through one of the most exquisite Museums of Rome – Galleria Borghese, with its stunning collection of Roman mosaics, Bernini’ sculptures, and others incredible pieces of art. Overnight: Rome
Day 9. Sunday, August 5, 2018
Meals: Breakfast Departure back home
Price includes:
- Four-star hotels semi-central located but well connected with the city center with breakfasts daily
- Daily city taxes
- Comfortable motorcoach with A/C
- Road tolls, city entrance fees, parking,
- Round trip boat-transfer in Venice from Trancetto (bus station) to Mark’s square
- Entry fees, skip the line pre-reservations, etc. to the museums & churches as per itinerary:
St. Ambrose and Duomo in Milan; St. Mark Cathedral in Venice; Combined ticket to ALL UNESCO monuments in Ravenna; inclusive of San Apollinaire in Classe; San Marco, Medici’ Chapel, Santa Croce and Baptistery in Florence; Colosseum/Forum combined entrance, Mamertine prison, Vatican museums, inclusive of Sistine Chapel, Priscilla or Callixtus Catacombs (or similar), Pantheon in Rome
- English speaking guide-escort and art/history expert Ivan Krucican
- Local guides where necessary
- Whisper sets
Optional visits (Not Included) and tours [prices are per person]:
Venice:
- Doges’ Palace – 35 Euro, includes tour and tickets, based on minimum of ten people Florence:
- Uffizi Gallery [tickets only]: based on availability, 17 – 25EUR Rome:
- Entry fee and a tour of Galleria Borghese, 25 EUR (min. 20, 25 people per group)
In case of major currency fluctuation or reduced number of participants, all prices are subject to change according to the rate of exchange available at the time of final payment. Our hope is that the price of our pilgrimage will remain essentially the same. In any case you’ll be informed right away of any possible financial changes or adjustments.
Price does NOT include:
- International Airfare
- Cancellation/Medical insurance
- Individual transfers from/to the airport
- Meals other than breakfasts
- Optional/additional tours and/or extensions and associated entrance fees
- Entrance to temporary exhibits … or to any exhibits that cost extra to the general museum fee
- Porterage, gratuities* and extras
- Optional Extensions
Cancellation policy:
No Refunds
Special notes:
- It is strongly suggested for a traveler to obtain insurance covering medical needs and coverage regarding personal property
- be aware that all medical needs will be sole responsibility of the traveler;
- act in a manner consistent with the surrounding environment;
- make arrangement to have sufficient funds to cover personal needs and unexpected happenings.
- Tour operator reserves the right to alter, modify or withdraw the itinerary if air schedules and/or events on the ground beyond his control deem it In the event it becomes necessary for the comfort or well-being of the travelers to alter or modify the itinerary or arrangements, such alterations will be made without penalty to the tour operator.