ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV is adding another trip to his already busy 2026 travel schedule, making a four-day visit to France at the end of September that also includes a visit to the U.N. culture agency.
The Vatican confirmed Saturday the Sept. 25-28 trip, which will be Leo’s fourth foreign voyage of the year: Leo made a day trip to Monaco in March, visited four African nations in April and is due to visit Spain and the Canary Islands in June.
The late Pope Francis famously stayed away from the big European centers of Christianity during his 12-year pontificate, preferring instead to visit small Catholic communities far from Rome. With the trip to France confirmed, Leo now appears to be paying more attention to the experience of European faithful, amid anecdotal reports of renewed interest in the faith among young adults.
The visit to the UNESCO headquarters will also give Leo the chance to speak to a global audience in a year in which he decided against traveling to his native United States, where he could have addressed the U.N. General Assembly, as past popes have done.
Francis did visit France on two occasions, but never on a state visit to Paris: He made a day trip to Strasbourg in 2014 to address the European Parliament and Council of Europe. He then visited the port city of Marseille for a conference on migration in 2023.
Still unconfirmed and uncertain is a possible visit to Latin America, including Leo’s beloved second home of Peru, at the end of the year.
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
San Mateo Bonsai Club - Bonsai Show Read moreSan Mateo Bonsai Club - Bonsai Show
Connie Weiss said:
CA Is Burning said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.