Pope Leo XIV will relocate to the Villa Barberini residence in Castel Gandolfo this Sunday afternoon, where he will spend his summer vacation. The Prefecture of the Papal Household, which coordinates the Pope’s schedule, announced that the Holy Father will remain at the 17th-century fortified palace on the shores of Lake Albano until Monday, July 27, “to enjoy a period of rest.”
During the three-week stay, Wednesday General Audiences will be suspended and are set to resume in August. The Pope will also pause high-level official receptions and meetings with ecclesial and social groups.His only public appearance during this time will be the Sunday Angelus. Instead of praying from the window of his private study in the Apostolic Palace, “on Sundays in July, the Holy Father will pray the Angelus in the Piazza della Libertà in Castel Gandolfo,” the Vatican said.General Audiences will return to St. Peter’s Square on Wednesday, August 5.
Although public appearances will be reduced, the Pope will continue working on documents and speeches for the coming months.Pope Leo XIV also typically takes Tuesdays as a weekly day of rest at the papal retreat, located about 29 kilometers south of Rome. Traditionally, no formal audiences are held on Tuesdays, giving him more free time at the hilltop property sometimes called the “second Vatican City.”Unlike his predecessor, Pope Francis, who declined to use the summer residence and remained in Vatican City during the summer months, Pope Leo XIV has chosen to spend the season at Castel Gandolfo.