Italy JUBILEE 2025
Trip Overview – 11 days
Every 25 years, Catholics celebrate the Year of Jubilee. So 2025 will be full of celebration and ceremony in Rome and all over Italy. Join us in July of 2025 for the Jubilee Tour of Italy. Who is invited? Parents, alumni and families from the Holy Family Catholic HS community as well as those connected to southwest metro parishes.
We will start on Lake Como for a tour of the picturesque towns and decadent villas. Then a day in fashionable Milan to see Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper, the Duomo of Milan and do some window shopping. Next we’ll head to Florence, the center of the Italian Renaissance. Michaelangelo’s colossal David will amaze you; Ponte Vecchio will dazzle you; and the beauty of the city will make you promise you’ll come back. With all the famous wine country nearby, we will of course stop by a winery to taste the local food and wine.
Then we move on to Rome, the Eternal City. We will walk through the Jubilee doors, opened only every 25 years, bask in the streams of sunlight in St. Peter’s Basilica, and see where St. Peter himself is laid to rest. Rome will not disappoint. We’ll won’t miss the Sistine Chapel, the Vatican Museums, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. Also on the agenda are St. Paul’s burial place, a papal audience and probably a gelato or two.
Of course, there is so much more to see in Rome and the rest of Italy so we may have options to add some activities. Send your questions and suggestions to squisitotours@gmail.com.
Inclusions
- Breakfast daily
- Daily Mass
- Five dinners
- Entrance to sites
- Local certified guides
- Full-time group guide
- Ground transport
- Airfare, unless you choose to purchase it on your own
- Nine nights accommodations in monasteries. See description below in “What to expect”
- 4-star hotel accommodations, at additional cost, are available upon request.
What to expect
The monasteries are operated by religious sisters as a ministry to travelers and to provide income for their orders. The sisters are incredibly helpful, welcoming, and keep everything impeccably clean. The monasteries are all within the historic city centers. They include chapels, common rooms, gardens, and sometimes terraces. The rooms generally have 1-3 single beds with a private bathroom. You will only share rooms with family members. There will be a supplemental fee for single rooms. See the photos below.
We will do a fair amount of walking. Five to ten miles won’t be uncommon. However, we will balance activities so there is rest built in also. Although we will have lots scheduled, it will usually be possible to opt out of an activity.
Included meals will be at our accommodations and local restaurants. There will be a modified menu to choose from but you will be able to purchase additional items separately. There will be breakfast available at the monasteries and we will have 5 included group lunches or dinners. Any other meals will be on your own.
We will have a preparatory meeting about a month before departure to get you all clear on logistics. If you’d like to arrange a call or other meeting, please email to set it up. During the trip, we will communicate over WhatsApp as a group.
Masses will be available every day either in the monastery or nearby. There is no obligation to come.
There are occasional closures of sites and interruptions to travel that are unpredictable, especially in Italy. The group guide will always make efforts to keep the group together and happy with the experience.
Estimated Pricing
Per person staying in monasteries (see photos and explanation above)
$3,600.00
Optional group airfare
$1,600.00
Optional single supplement
$1,000.00
Example Itinerary
| Date | City | Plans |
| Tuesday, July 8 | Fly from MSP to Milan | |
| Wednesday, July 9 | Como | Arrive in Como (on Lake Como) |
| Check into hotel in Como | ||
| Dinner | ||
| Thursday, July 10 | Como | Tour of towns and villas on Lake Como |
| Dinner | ||
| Friday, July 11 | Como-Milan-Florence | Il Duomo |
| Shopping | ||
| DaVinci’s Last Supper | ||
| Train to Florence | ||
| Check into monastery in Florence | ||
| Saturday, July 12 | Florence | Piazzale Michelangelo hike |
| Ponte Vecchio | ||
| Accademia (to see Michelangelo’s David) | ||
| Sunday, July 13 | Florence | Sunday Mass |
| Uffizi museum | ||
| Explore Florence | ||
| Dinner | ||
| Monday, July 14 | Florence | Tuscan countryside excursion |
| Vinyard tour | ||
| Wine tasting | ||
| Tuesday, July 15 | Florence-Rome | Early Train to Rome |
| Check into monastery in Rome | ||
| Roman Forum and Colosseum | ||
| Dinner | ||
| Wednesday, July 16 | Rome | Papal Audience |
| St. Peter’s and the Vatican Museums | ||
| Dinner | ||
| Thursday, July 17 | Rome | Trevi Fountain |
| Spanish Steps | ||
| Pantheon | ||
| Friday, July 18 | Rome- home | Fly Rome (FCO) to home |
| Arrive home |
Example Flight
Let’s get you registered!
- Email Squisito! Include your name and questions.
- Fill out the Participant Info Form HERE.
- Pay the $300 non-refundable deposit to reserve a spot. Your deposit goes toward your total cost. The remaining balance may be paid in installments. Payment in full is due by March 24, 2025. Pay via Zelle or checks made to Squisito Tours LLC. See the payment schedule and payment code HERE.
- Apply for a passport and visa if you are not a US citizen. Find where to submit your passport application.
- There will be a participant meeting about one month before the trip. Feel free to email Squisito with any questions that come to mind before then.
- Medical and emergency travel insurance is included through Seven Corners. They also offer additional coverage for purchase. Their “Cancel for any reason” insurance must be purchased within 20 days of the initial deposit on the trip.
- You’ll need to complete and submit a Trip Service Order agreement, and other forms in the coming months.
- Consider this packing list.