5 Days Korea Catholic Pilgrimage Private Tour with Meals/Lodging

What's Included

Meeting and pickup

Itinerary

Day 1
Pick up and tour start from Seoul
5 stops
1
Myeong-dong Cathedral
-Symbol and heart of Catholicism in Korea -The seat of the Archdiocese of Seoul -5 martyr saints and 4 other martyrs are entombed in the crypt -Seoul Archdiocese Catholic History Museum
1 hour 40 minutes • Admission ticket included
2
Bukchon Hanok Village
As you pass through Bukchon Hanok Village, you'll encounter Gahoe-dong Cathedral, a fusion of Eastern and Western architectural styles. Gahoe-dong Cathedral is as significant in the history of Korean Catholicism as it is in its fame. It was built on the site where the first mass in Joseon was celebrated by Father Ju Moon-mo in 1795.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
3
-98 executions of Catholic believers -44 were canozied in 1984 -27 were beatified in 2015
1 hour 40 minutes • Admission ticket included
4
-It's been used as the execution site for felons in the Joseon Dynasty -The Shrine honors the execution and martyrdom of 11 priests, including a Chinese priest, Fr James Wen-mo (1801), and 9 French priests from the Paris Foreign Missions Society (1839, 1866) -Korea's first Indigenous priest, St Andrew Kim Dae-geon, was brutally executed here during the Byeongoh Prosecution in 1846
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
5
-Hundreds of Catholics were executed from 1866 to 1873 -Jeoldo means to decapitate, and San means mountain after the tragic event in which so many faithful were killed by beheading
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
Day 2
The birthplace of the Korea Catholic Church & Pilgrimage to sacred sites in Gyeonggi-do
3 stops
6
Catholic Cheonjinam Shrine holds historical significance as the birthplace of Korean Catholicism, housing the remains of the founding ancestors of Korean Catholicism (Yi Byeok, Jeong Yak-jong, Kwon Cheol-sin, Kwon Il-sin, and Yi Seung-hun). The shrine boasts numerous attractions, including a statue of the Virgin Mary, the site of Cheonjinam Cathedral, and the Cathedral of the Virgin Mary. Tens of thousands of believers gather annually at the 30,000-pyeong (100,000-square-foot) cathedral site within the 360,000-square-meter sanctuary to commemorate the founding of the Korean Catholic Church.
2 hours • Admission ticket free
7
Eunyi Village was a Catholic village formed during the persecution period. During this time, Catholic believers gathered to live together to avoid the eyes of their persecutors. The name Eunyi means ‘hidden village.’ Eunyi Seongji was founded on January 13, 1836, by Father Maubant, the first French missionary to enter Joseon. He visited here around April of that year and baptized and gave first communion to Kim Dae-geon (1821-1846), then 15 years old, with the baptismal name "Andrea," and selected him as a seminarian. After he became a priest, he entered Joseon and began his pastoral work here, where he served as a parish priest. In 2001, when the Jingahang Cathedral in Shanghai, China, where Father Kim Dae-geon was ordained as a priest, was demolished, the demolished materials were brought in, and the Jingahang Cathedral (Yongin Local Cultural Property No. 71) was restored and rebuilt in September 2016 in the same condition as when it was demolished.
2 hours • Admission ticket included
8
During the persecutions of Sin-yu (1801) and Gi-hae (1839), Catholic believers hid here to protect their faith, making pottery and cultivating slash-and-burn fields. At night, the lanterns lit in each house looked like the Milky Way, so it came to be called Mirinae (the Korean word for “Milky Way”). The remains of Father Kim Dae-geon, the first Korean priest martyred during the Byeong-o (1846) persecution and a 2021 UNESCO World Monument, have come to have significant meaning in the church as they were laid to rest in Mirinae by Brother Vincent Lee Min-sik. The holy site includes the tomb of Father Kim Dae-geon, his mother, the late Ursula, Bishop Ferréol who ordained Father Kim Dae-geon, Father Marco Kang Do-yeong, the third priest in Korea, and the first parish priest of Mirinae Cathedral, and the tomb of Vincent Lee Min-sik, who moved Father Kim Dae-geon's body from Saenamteo to bury it here and dedicated the cemetery to the church.
2 hours • Admission ticket included
Day 3
Daejeon Diocese
5 stops
9
It was established in 1894 as a place where early missionaries landed at the port and began their missionary work. Initially, a private house in the middle of the village served as the church, but a priest's residence was built in 1897, and the main church was completed in 1922, making it the first parish in South Chungcheong Province. Within the grounds are the graves of three martyrs who were martyred during the Byeong-in Persecution. With its picturesque Gothic red-brick walls and tall spires, Gongseri Cathedral was selected as the most beautiful cathedral in Korea by the Korea Tourism Organization in 2005. It houses numerous cultural properties and nationally protected trees and boasts a history spanning over 130 years. Its unique, lyrical atmosphere has made it a famous filming location for many movies, dramas, and commercials. It's a great place to visit, along with the Gongseri Cathedral Museum.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
10
The Solmoe Holy Ground, the birthplace of Priest Andrew Kim Dae-geon, is the birthplace of the first priest in Korea, Saint Andrew Kim Dae-geon. Kim Dae-geon was born here on August 21, 1821. In 1836, at the age of 16, Kim Dae-geon was selected as a seminarian by Father Maubant, and together with Choi Yang-eop (Thomas) and Choi Bang-je (Francis), he studied theology in Macau and was ordained in Shanghai by Bishop Ferréol. Father Kim, who entered the country in 1845, worked hard on missionary work and tried to welcome his fellow deacon Choi Yang-eop and foreign missionary priests. He was arrested on June 5, 1846. He was executed by military execution at Saenamteo on September 16, 1846, and became a martyr. This happened after only 1 year and 1 month of his priestly life.
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
11
Bishop Daveluy, the fifth bishop of the Joseon Diocese, resided in the Sinri Holy Land. He worked in Joseon for 21 years, from October 1845, when he first set foot in Ganggyeong with Father Kim Dae-geon, until his martyrdom at Galmaemot in 1866. Sinri was recognized as the most essential Catholic village during the Catholic persecution. It was Joseon's most prominent Catholic village and a secret entry point for missionaries. This place, which greatly influenced the spread of Catholicism in Korea, is called the Catacomb of Joseon (a secret church from the Roman era). The reason Bishop Daveluy was able to play this role in Sinri was the close connection with the Paris Foreign Missions Society in China through the developed Sapgyocheon water system and the cultural openness of the Naepo region.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
12
Haemi, which never lost its chill during the 100 years of persecution, has the shocking story of thousands of nameless martyrs being driven into pits and holes and buried alive. During this period of persecution, the two large prisons in the Haemi camp were filled with captured believers, and they were dragged out of the west gate every day and killed by hanging, beheading, beating, stoning, death by hanging, and death by hanging. Even more brutal was the practice of grabbing the limbs of a stone bridge, throwing them against a stone, and dropping stone pillars on several people to kill them all at once. It is said that if they found a body that was still squirming because it was not breathing, they would burn its eyes with a torch. Thus, the west gate of Haemi Camp was always filled with the corpses of Catholics, and their blood was said to have filled the river.
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
13
Galmaemot, a martyrdom site on a sandy beach chosen as the execution ground, vividly bears witness to the tragic history of martyrdom in the Korean Catholic Church. During the Byeong-in Persecution of 1866, five people were martyred here by military execution: Bishop Daveluy, the fifth bishop of the Joseon Diocese; Fathers Omatre and Wien; Bishop Daveluy's acolyte and president, Hwang Seok-du Luke; and Joseph Jang Ju-gi of the Baron Theological Seminary. Among them, Bishop Daveluy entered Joseon in 1845, worked there, and was consecrated as an auxiliary bishop. When the fourth bishop, Bishop Berneux, was martyred, he became the bishop of the diocese on March 7, 1866, but was arrested in Naepo, Chungcheong Province, on the 11th, just four days later. At this time, Hwang Seok-du Luca, who was working as his acolyte, was arrested with him, and then Fathers Ometre and Wien, who had been taking refuge nearby, surrendered themselves in order to prevent further harm to the faithful.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
Day 4
Jeonju + Cheongju Diocese
5 stops
14
Jeondong Catholic Church
Jeondong Cathedral is the site of Korea's first Catholic martyrdom, where Blessed Paul Yun Ji-chung and Blessed James Kwon Sang-yeon were beheaded on December 8, 1791. On October 24, 1801, Blessed Augustine Yu Hang-geom, Francis Yun Ji-heon, and Yu Gwan-geom were martyred here by torture. Following this, Thomas Kim Yu-san and Yi Woo-jip were beheaded. The cathedral was established in May 1889, and the French priest Father Baudounet was appointed as the first parish priest. In 1891, he purchased the house and land here and began full-scale pastoral work in the Jeonju area. By 1892, 19 new baptized saints had been ordained, and various evangelization efforts had taken place.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
15
The Nabawi Shrine is the blessed land where Bishop Ferréol, Father Daveluy, Father Kim Dae-geon, and eleven Korean Catholics first set foot on Joseon on the night of October 12, 1845. It is also a sacred place where one can encounter the fervent desire and passion for evangelization of the first Korean priests and missionaries who entered the Joseon Church, which had lost its clergy due to persecution. Since Father Vermorell did not intend to commemorate Father Kim Dae-geon and his companions when he built the church here, its location can be seen as a special providence of God. Fr. Andrew Kim Dae-geon and his party landed in a small boat, and it is one of the major sites of martyrdom. After being ordained a priest in China in August 1845, Father Kim set sail from Shanghai, China, with Bishop Ferréol, Father Daveluy, and 11 other believers to spread the Gospel in Korea. Adrift in rough seas, finally anchored in Nabawi on October 12th of the same year, 42 days later.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
16
Gongju, along with Naepo, was the most active place for the spread of Catholicism. During the Joseon Dynasty, the Chungcheong Provincial Office (Gamyeong) was located there, making it the place where the largest number of Catholics were executed. Catholics captured from Chungcheong, Gyeongsang, and Jeolla provinces were transported to Gamyeong, and if they refused to renounce their faith, they were executed under the orders of the governor, who was authorized to issue death sentences. Research has uncovered a total of 337 martyrs, making this the largest recorded number in Korea. The Stork Rock Martyrs' Shrine is a place of learning and grace, where we can reflect on our lives and learn what faith is, what we should look for, and how we should live as believers, through the example of the martyrs' desperate and courageous lives.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
17
The Baeti Shrine is one of the most representative holy sites of Catholicism in Korea. First, it served as the pastoral center of Father Choi Yang-eop and his missionaries . Second, it was the first seminary in the Joseon Apostolic Vicariate. Third, it was the resting place of Blessed Paul O Ban-ji and other unknown martyrs . Fourth, it was a secret Catholic village during the era of persecution.
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
18
Fr. Camillo Lim, a member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, was appointed in 1894 to serve as the first parish priest in a historic Catholic village. While considering a relocation, he passed a palatial house at the foot of a mountain, and he instinctively recognized it as the perfect site for the parish. Immediately, Fr. Camillo Lim prayed, "Our Lady, if you grant me this palatial house and mountain, I will become your humble servant. And the patron saint of this place will be Our Lady of Maegoe." At the time, the palatial house belonged to Min Eung-sik, Empress Myeongseong's second cousin, and it was also where Empress Myeongseong sought refuge during the Imo Incident of 1882. In May 1896, the month dedicated to the Virgin Mary, all the house sites and the mountain were purchased, and the parish was established on October 7th, the month dedicated to the Virgin Mary. As Fr. Im Camillo had originally prayed, this became the Gamgok Maegoe Virgin Mary Pilgrimage Church.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
Day 5
Wonju Diocese and Back to Seoul
4 stops
19
Baeron Holy Site is an old Catholic village formed in the 1800s by Catholics who fled Joseon's persecution and came into hiding. The name "Baeron" comes from the legend that the village valley "resembles the sole of a ship." The Choi Yang-eop Thomas Memorial Cathedral, where pilgrim masses are held, is a symbol of the place name, and its ceiling resembles a ship's hull. When the persecution of Catholics broke out in 1801, Hwang Sa-yeong wrote a letter from this cave to the bishop in Beijing, China, seeking the restoration of the church and religious freedom, but his efforts were unsuccessful. St. Joseph's Seminary was the first seminary established in Korea to train clergy. Father Choi Yang-eop, the second Catholic priest in Joseon history, contributed significantly to the spread of Catholicism in Korea, including through the translation of Catholic doctrine.
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission ticket included
20
Pungsuwon Cathedral is a religious community formed in 1802 when approximately 40 believers, including Blessed Peter Shin Tae-bo, fled the Sinyu Persecution. For approximately 80 years, the faithful practiced their faith without a priest until June 20, 1888, when it was designated a parish. French priest Father Lemaire was appointed as the first parish priest and celebrated the first Mass in a thatched-roof sarangbang (a room with a thatched roof). In 1896, Father Jeong Gyu-ha (Augustine), the third Korean priest ordained, was appointed as the second parish priest and cultivated the community alongside the believers for 47 years.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
21
Yanggeun Holy Land is the birthplace of Nokam Kwon Cheol-sin, who led lectures at Jueosa Temple in Cheonjinam during the period when Catholicism was introduced before the Sinyu Persecution, and Kwon Il-sin, who is considered one of the main figures in the founding of Korean Catholicism. It is the birthplace of the first religious community and the motherland from which Catholicism spread throughout the country. It is also the birthplace or birthplace of Yun Yu-il (Paul), who went to Beijing twice as a secret envoy to bring in Father Ju Jun-mo, his younger brother Yun Yu-o (James), his fourth cousin Yun Jeom-hye (Agatha), Yun Un-hye (Martha), Yu Han-suk, Kwon Sang-moon (Sebastiano), Kim Il-ho, Lee Agatha, and the virgin couple Jo Suk and Kwon Teresa, who were arrested, testified to their faith, and were martyred (Yun Yu-il, Yun Yu-o, Yun Jeom-hye, Yun Un-hye, Kwon Sang-moon, etc. were beatified by Pope Francis on August 16, 2014).
1 hour • Admission ticket included
22
Gusan Shrine is a holy land imbued with the spirits of nine martyrs, including Saint Antonio Kim Seong-u, and is a village named Gusan, named after the mountain behind it that resembles a turtle. Around 1830, Saint Kim Seong-u, along with his two younger brothers, Deok-sim and Yun-sim, was baptized by Father Yu Bang-je. As president, he converted relatives and neighbors to Christianity, transforming the village into a Christian community. In 1836, he welcomed Father Maubant into his home, and to preserve the fragile church community amidst persecution, he risked his life and moved several times, faithfully fulfilling his role as president. During the Gihae Persecution (1839), he was arrested by the Hanyang Police Station and subjected to harsh interrogation and punishment. He left behind a confession of faith, “I am a Catholic, whether I live or die, I will live as a Catholic, and whether I die, I will die as a Catholic.” He was martyred on April 29, 1841, at the age of 48.
1 hour • Admission ticket included

Additional info

• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
• Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
• Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness

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