Attending Church on tour

Did you have a particular tour in mind?

Or are you asking about the company's religious accommodation policies more generally?

Your free time is always yours to do with as you like. In addition, you can usually “opt out” of a tour activity as long as you communicate with a guide. You should be able to find an opportunity to go to mass.

Do not overlook going to Saturday evening Mass.

Depending on the tour schedule Sat evening may be easier to do than Sun AM.

Look at the itinerary for your and to see what is scheduled for the days that are Sat/Sun

Depends on which tour and where you are on Sunday. Look at the schedule for the tours you are interested in & figure out where you will be on a Sunday and what the tour will be doing. Most years are the same day just different date, ie if the tour begins on Monday, it will probably do so also next year. I like to go to churches on Sunday morning for a peaceful meditation in a lovely atmosphere. I used to always go to Notre Dame when in Paris and I'm not Catholic. The music, the stained glass, knowing where I was all made this a memorable experience. I also try to go to evensong when I am in London, but not on a Sunday.

My wife and I go to Mass when we can on a tour. Usually, as stated above, Saturday evenings work out best. Sunday mornings usually do not work as the tour is doing something. You could opt out unless it is a day you will be leaving for another town. We have been on 2 RS tours but have found the options for going to Mass to be about the same for other tour companies.

Add days before or after the tour for attending mass so that you don't have to miss anything the tour offers. I've had tours ending on a Saturday and staying an additional day would give that option. I've also had a Sunday available prior to a tour that started on a Monday. It's wise to arrive earlier and I've discovered I can find my way about a city easier after a tour.

Joe32f’s idea for Saturday evening may be much easier if you don’t want to miss anything in the tour. We typically were either traveling to the next location or having some type of morning activity each day. Of course, as Carol mentioned, you control what you want to do, so you could let your guide know you will be missing one of the activities.

On several of my tours the guide was most helpful to members wanting to attend a service. And as others have mentioned there are alternatives to going on Sunday. If the group has an activity planned the guide may be able to tell you how to meet up with them after you attend mass, though if it is a ticketed activity that might not be possible. And speaking of tickets, make sure the guide knows you're wanting to opt out a couple days ahead of time, as they do sometimes purchase advance tickets and would not need to buy one for you.

Another idea that you might keep in mind is going to Evensong if you’re in the British Isles. The services are on several nights a week and are very moving. We went to a service in York on tour. It was beautiful.

Maggie, I find it helps to plan ahead. Before we leave home, I look at where we'll be on Saturday/Sunday and use Google maps to locate a church. And thanks to Google translate, I can usually check out the church website to find the Mass times. It's usually not a problem to work around the tour schedule to get to Mass, and our guides have been very respectful.