We fly from London this morning, and drive south towards Oberammergau. Before arriving here, we visit the nearby Monastery of Ettal after also visiting two spectacular churches at Andechs and then (time permitting) Diessen. On arrival in Oberammergau we celebrate Mass, to commemorate the Passion of our Lord. We check into our hotel, situated in the village. Dinner will be in our hotel for the two nights of our stay.

We make an early start after breakfast and drive north west from Oberammergau, visiting first of all the Wieskirche, Germany’s best known pilgrimage church, now known as a UNESCO world heritage site. We hope to celebrate Mass here, before leaving for a visit to the 8th century Benedictine Abbey of Ottobeuren. In the afternoon we visit the Neuschwanstein Castle, built by King Ludwig II in 1886 as a private refuge, and now one of the most popular of all palaces and castles in Europe.

We continue our pilgimage to Munich where we will settle in to our centrally located hotel for a three night stay. In the morning we have a guided tour of the city, including the Theatinerkirchner, Peterskirche, the Marienplatz, the Square which is at the heart of Munich and the Frauenkirche (once the cathedral of Cardinal Ratzinger), where Mass will be celebrated. Lunch and Dinner are at choice during our stay in Munich, but for those who wish, the hotel has a good restaurant. On June 27 1977 Joseph Ratzinger was elevated to Cardinal Archbishop of Munich by Pope Paul VI. Years earlier, he had spent time as a student at the Ludwig-Maximilian-Univerisity (also known as the University of Munich). He also served as a young Priest at two Munich Churches: St Martin’s Parish Church in Munich-Moosach, and the Church of the Precious Blood (Heilig Blood) in Bogenhaussen.

Today we take an excursion by coach to the small city of Eichstätt, to the north west of Munich, one of Bavaria’s leading Catholic towns. We will visit the Cathedral which contains the 15th century Pappenheim Reredos, with its astonishing representation of the crucifixion. We also visit the Marktplatz, with its statue of St Willibald (an 8th century Bishop of Eichstätt), and the Kloster St Walburg, a Benedictine Monastery with gothic crypt that contains the tomb of St Walburga, the sister of the first bishop of Eichstätt. Both SS Willibald and Walburga are English Saints so this will be a good opportunity to pay our respects to them. Mass will be celebrated during the course of the morning and there will be time to have lunch before we return to Munich via the infamous concentration camp, Dachau. Here we will visit the Catholic Chapel which commemorates the many martyrs who died in the camp. There will be a short service of Eucharistic adoration here before we return to our hotel for an evening at leisure. (Maybe dinner and Bavarian evening at the Hofbräuhaus).

This morning we visit Freising, a quaint Bavarian town where Pope Benedict was ordained into the priesthood. He also spent some of his early years studying at the Freising Higher School of Philosophy and Theology. Mass will be celebrated in Freising. After time for lunch we return to Munich for an afternoon at leisure.

We make an early start to visit the quiet village of Marktl am Inn to the east of Munich, the birthplace of our present Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. We hope to celebrate Mass in the church where, as Joseph Ratzinger, the Holy Father was baptised in 1927. After our visit to Marktl we drive the short distance to one of Germany’s most well-known pilgrimage shrines, Our Lady of Altötting, in the heart of Bavaria. Numerous miracles and cures have been attributed to Mary’s intercessions on behalf of suppliants to the “Miraculous statue”. Pope John Paul II made a pilgrimage to the shrine in 1980, and Pope Benedict XVI in 2006. We will see the miraculous statue located in the Chapel of Mercy. Afterwards we drive to Traunstein where Joseph Ratzinger spent most of his childhood and adolescence and attended St Michael’s Seminary. On arrival we will check in to our hotel for a two-night stay.

The Pope entered St Michael's Seminary in 1939 as a teenager. He has spent several winter holidays in Traunstein since. We will celebrate Mass here in the morning and afterwards there will be time to explore the town.

Early departure by coach for a visit to Salzburg. Mass will be celebrated in one of the churches in the city. We will have time at leisure to explore the city on our own including time for lunch.