The Department of Tourism – Central Visayas (DOT7) and the Archdiocese of Cebu have designed a pilgrimage to Jubilee churches in the scenic southern countryside of Cebu province.

The Southern Cebu Jubilee Churches Tour, a two-day itinerary, is recommended for the upcoming Holy Week observance.

The Southern Cebu Jubilee Churches Pilgrimage takes pilgrims: Boljoon’s Patrocinio de Maria Church.

Entering through the Holy Door at five (5) of the seven (7) churches in the itinerary is a key feature of the pilgrimage. Plenary indulgence, a special blessing for the total removal of one’s sins, is granted with the performance of a prescribed act such passage through the Holy Door at any of 500 Jubilee Churches in the Philippines within the Jubilee Year 2021-2022, together with confession, receiving communion and praying for the Pope.

The pilgrimage takes guests to the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño, churches in Carcar City, Argao, Dalaguete, Boljoon and Barili, as well as to the St. Gregory the Great Parish Church in Ginatilan, where San Pedro Calungsod, the teenage second Filipino saint, is said to have his roots. Pilgrims, together with their chaplain, will pray at the Holy Doors before entering the churches.

The tour takes off from the historic Basilica Minore, center of the celebration of the 500 Years of Christianity in the Philippines. The church is the oldest in the country and the only basilica in the Visayas and Mindanao. The group joins the Mass at the Basilica and tour the Sto. Niño Pilgrim Center and its museum.

The Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Catherine of Alexandria in Carcar City is one of the best-preserved heritage churches in the province and stands out for its byzantine-influenced architecture with Moorish onion-shaped domes crowning twin belltowers. The city itself is a heritage zone showcasing Spanish and American period structures. 

Stops will also be done in Argao, at the Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Michael, an imposing structure that houses one of a few pipe organs still being played for Masses, and Dalaguete, at the San Guillermo de Aquitania Church, another prized heritage site renowned for its distinct artistic quality and serene atmosphere.

The climax of the pilgrimage happens in Boljoon. The town’s Patrocinio de Maria Church is a National Cultural Treasure and National Historical Landmark in the tentative list of sites for nomination as a World Heritage Site. The baroque structure hosts a pseudo baroque-rococo retablo. The church complex includes an expansive plaza and a two-storey convent with a museum on the ground floor.

The Southern Cebu Jubilee Churches Pilgrimage takes pilgrims: San Guillermo de Aquitania Parish Church in Dalaguete (top) and Sta. Ana Parish in Barili.

The pilgrimage is punctuated with a stop at the Sta. Ana Church in Barili, also a Jubilee Church. This is the only parish in Cebu dedicated to the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary and was the first to be run by secular priests.

Aside from immersing in guided, faith-based activities, pilgrims will experience the culture and savor the culinary offerings of Cebu’s southern towns in the pilgrimage. Integrated in the itinerary are stops at a torta maker’s shop and canyoneering in Badian.

Visitors are advised to contact DOT-accredited tour operators.