Where will the pope journey this 12 months?

The Vatican introduced earlier this month that Pope Leo is not going to go to the United States this 12 months, placing a halt to hypothesis that the pope would possibly go to his dwelling nation for the 250th anniversary of its independence.

But the pope is predicted to take care of a energetic journey schedule this 12 months and past, with quite a lot of journeys confirmed and several other others seemingly.

Where is the pope going? When will he journey? And what’s going to he do within the locations he intends to go to?

The Vatican press workplace said on Feb. 10 that Pope Leo was contemplating a one-day journey to Monaco in late March.

However, Riviera Radio, an area radio station, reported a day later that the go to could occur in April or June as a substitute.

Monaco, situated south of France, is among the few remaining micronations in Europe, and is among the few confessionally Catholic international locations on the earth.

Prince Albert II of Monaco made worldwide headlines in Nov. 2025 when he blocked a invoice which might have legalized abortion within the principality.

The prince was obtained in an viewers by the pope on Jan. 17, after which had a gathering with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of state, and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, secretary for relations with states.

If the papal go to materializes, Pope Leo would change into the primary pope to go to the rich microstate. However, no additional particulars of the potential papal go to have been made public but.

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During the in-flight press convention after his go to to Turkey and Lebanon, Pope Leo expressed a want to go to Africa.

“Personally, I hope to go to Algeria to visit the places of Saint Augustine, but also in order to continue the conversation of dialogue, of building bridges between the Christian world and the Muslim world,” he mentioned.

Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco of Algiers advised journalists exterior the Paul VI viewers corridor after the extraordinary consistory on Jan. 8 that he mentioned a potential journey to Algeria with the pope and that the go to was “on track.”

The papal nuncio to Algeria, Archbishop Javier Herrera, additionally mentioned the chance throughout a Feb. 8 press convention after he offered his diplomatic credentials to Algeria’s president.

Herrera mentioned he had mentioned the go to with the president throughout their assembly, and added {that a} papal go to would “strengthen the ties of friendship and respect between our two countries.”

Meanwhile, two different African international locations have formally introduced that Pope Leo will go to their nation within the first half of 2026.

In January, Archbishop Kryspin Dubiel, apostolic nuncio to Angola, mentioned Pope Leo had accepted an invite to go to Angola as a part of a multi-country journey.

Every week later, the bishops’ convention of Equatorial Guinea introduced, alongside the nation’s president Teodoro Obiang Nguema, that the pope had accepted an invite to go to the nation. The final papal journey to Equatorial Guinea was made by Saint John Paul II in 1982.

Cameroon has additionally been rumored for a possible papal go to, however latest instability after a controversial presidential election in Oct. 2025 would possibly imply the pope decides to go elsewhere.

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In a press convention throughout his journey to Turkey and Lebanon, the pope was requested if he hoped to go to Spain quickly, to which he replied, “You can have more than hope.”

In early January, Cardinal José Cobo of Madrid and Archbishop Luis Argüello, president of the Spanish bishops’ convention, had a gathering on the Secretariat of State to prepare the journey, after which they confirmed that the pope intends to go to Spain, and that the principle locations will probably be Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands.

In a Feb. 17 interview with the bishops’ convention radio station, Archbishop Joan Planellas of Tarragona mentioned that the go to will happen June 6-12. The Vatican has not confirmed the data, however the Spanish bishops have already appointed an organizing committee and began fundraising for the go to.

According to Planellas, confirming a number of earlier media reviews, the pope is about to go to Madrid June 6-9. June 7 is Corpus Christi this 12 months, which has raised hypothesis a few potential Corpus Christi procession led by the pope within the streets of Madrid.

Other reviews have speculated a few huge occasion with younger folks on the Santiago Bernabéu soccer stadium, the identical place the place Saint John Paul II had the same encounter throughout his first go to to Spain in 1982. However, the stadium would possibly show too small for such an occasion, resulting in different prospects being thought of.

The cease in Madrid would presumably additionally embody a gathering with Spanish authorities at a time through which relations between the native hierarchy and the Spanish authorities are tense.

It is predicted that the pope will go to Barcelona on June 10 to have fun the centenary of the dying of Ven. Antoni Gaudí, the architect of the Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona, and to inaugurate the Jesus Christ tower of the basilica, the most important within the church.

Lastly, the pope is predicted to go to the Canary Islands, following Pope Francis’ want to go to the islands.

While Francis by no means travelled to Spain as a pope, he repeatedly confirmed an curiosity in travelling to the Canary Islands, as they’ve obtained 1000’s of migrants and refugees from Africa.

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It is broadly anticipated that Pope Leo will go to his beloved Peru this 12 months, in what’s going to seemingly be a multi-country tour of South America.

Bishop Carlos García, president of the Peruvian bishops’ convention, mentioned after his advert limina go to on Jan. 31 that there was an 80% likelihood that the pope would this 12 months go to the nation through which he served as a bishop and missionary for 3 many years.

After the advert limina go to, the Peruvian minister of international affairs, Hugo de Zela, confirmed that the Peruvian authorities had despatched a proper a call for participation to the pope, and that the “Vatican confirmed he wants to come to Peru, he decided to come to our country.”

The go to is predicted to happen in November or early December. The pope reportedly desires to attend till the nation has held its presidential elections, which is able to happen in April, and its regional elections, which fall in October.

While no particulars have been confirmed, it’s broadly believed that the pope will go to the capital of Lima, in addition to Chiclayo, the diocese through which he served as a bishop for a decade. No different place has been particularly mentioned, however it’s seemingly that the pope will go to not less than yet another Peruvian metropolis.

Moreover, additionally it is believed that the pope will add stops to Argentina and Uruguay to this journey, as he talked about each international locations when requested about upcoming papal journeys throughout a press convention exterior Castel Gandolfo in November 2025.

Pope Francis famously by no means returned to his dwelling nation after changing into pope. Pope Francis mentioned in a 2024 interview that he had tried to plan a 2017 journey to Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, however the journey was deliberate for January, when the overwhelming majority of Argentines go on trip and Buenos Aires is abandoned.

And whereas the pope expressed a want to return to his dwelling nation in 2024 and 2025, his already full travelling schedule, elections in Argentina, and his well being prevented such a visit.

Meanwhile, Uruguayan president Yamandú Orsi mentioned Pope Leo expressed curiosity in visiting his nation following a papal viewers in Oct. 2025.

And Bishop Guillermo Cornejo, auxiliary bishop of Lima, mentioned in an interview after his advert limina go to that the pope had talked about the opportunity of going to Ecuador throughout his journey to South America.

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During a November press convention in Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo talked about that he wish to go to go to Our Lady of Fátima in Portugal, and Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, fueling hypothesis about potential journeys.

Cardinal Carlos Aguiar, Archbishop of Mexico City, had an viewers with Pope Leo on Jan. 15, throughout which he invited the pope to go to the nation and mentioned that the pope was “very thankful [with the invitation] and showed his wish and desired to be soon in our country to place his pontificate at the hands of Our Lady of Guadalupe.”

However, with all of the journeys deliberate for this 12 months, it’s unlikely that he’ll go to both of those locations in 2026.

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Pope Leo indicated he’ll go to Sydney in 2028 to preside over the International Eucharistic Congress, based on Bishop Richard Umber, auxiliary bishop of Sydney and head of the congress’ organizing committee.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese invited the pope for the congress the day after his set up as pope in May final 12 months.

Umbers additionally mentioned that the pope confirmed his intention to Archbishop Anthony Fisher throughout a latest assembly between the 2.

“[Fisher] said to him, ‘Look, we’re counting down the days for you to come to the International Eucharistic Congress, which will be held here in 2028’ and the pope said, ‘Well, it’s still a way off, but I’ll be there.’”

While the pope has not commented on his participation within the 2027 World Youth Day in Seoul, he can be the primary pontiff in historical past to overlook the occasion if he didn’t attend, making his absence unlikely.