Pope Leo XIV will visit Argentina as part of a South American tour, the Holy See’s press office confirmed on Wednesday.
According to a statement, the pope is scheduled to meet with “heads of state and ecclesiastical authorities” during a trip to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from November 6 to 17.
His visit to Argentina will run from November 8 to 11 and include stops in Buenos Aires, Córdoba, and Luján, home to the Basilica of Our Lady of Luján, dedicated to Argentina’s patron saint.
The rest of the tour will include visits to Montevideo, Paysandú, and Florida in Uruguay, as well as Lima, Chiclayo, Cusco, and Pucallpa in Peru.
No further details of the itinerary have been announced.
Milei’s reaction
Argentine President Javier Milei celebrated the announcement through his X account.
“I have been officially notified that Argentina will host an apostolic visit by His Holiness Leo XIV, who has accepted the invitation we extended to him at the beginning of the year,” Milei wrote. “From November 8 through 11, we will welcome the Holy Father to our country. This will be a historic visit for all Argentines.”
The President’s Office also released a statement describing the visit as “an event of enormous spiritual and institutional significance for our country and for all Argentines.”
It added that the government was committed to “ensuring that his visit is a time of joy and hope for all Argentines.”
This will mark the second meeting between Leo and Milei. The two previously held a private encounter in June 2025 during the Argentine president’s visit to Italy.
The pope returns to Argentina
Leo’s visit will mark the first papal trip to Argentina in 39 years. The last was John Paul II’s 1987 tour.
That visit included stops in 10 major cities. John Paul II also presided over the second World Youth Day — the first held outside Rome — and celebrated Palm Sunday Mass before an estimated one million people on Buenos Aires’ 9 de Julio Avenue.
John Paul II had previously visited Argentina in June 1982 during the Malvinas War.
He remains the first and only pope to have visited Argentina. Leo’s predecessor, Argentine-born Pope Francis, never returned to his homeland despite making several trips to South America, including visits to Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, Colombia, Chile, and Peru.
Editorial disclaimer: Although the UK refers to the territory as the “Falkland Islands”, Argentina strongly contests this name. The Buenos Aires Herald uses “Malvinas” to refer to the islands.
