During his reign, Pope Francis made 34 pastoral visits within Italy and 47 foreign trips, visiting 66 countries in the process. His visit to the Philippines in January 2015 included the largest papal event in history with around 6–7 million attendees in his final Mass at Manila, surpassing the then-largest papal event at World Youth Day 1995 in the same venue twenty years earlier. Although Francis was born and served as priest and bishop of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, he never returned to Argentina after he became Pope.
International visits 2013
(22–29 July)
Francis visited Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for World Youth Day. This was the only scheduled foreign trip for him in the year. Francis was officially welcomed to Brazil during a ceremony at Guanabara Palace and met with Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff. Throughout the celebrations, Francis gathered up to 3.5 million pilgrims to celebrate Mass at Copacabana Beach. During his vigil address, Francis urged the pilgrims not to be "part-time Christians", but to lead full, meaningful lives. The trip was previously scheduled for his predecessor, Benedict XVI, before his retirement.
2014
, , and (24–26 May) Francis visited Amman, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem during his three-day trip to the region from 24 to 26 May. The trip was announced during the Sunday Angelus on 5 January. Francis arrived in Jordan on 24 May and after meeting with King Abdullah II, celebrated Mass at Amman International Stadium. During his trip, Francis prayed at the Israeli West Bank barrier and also visited the Victims of Acts of Terror Memorial with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Francis concluded his tour by meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew I to continue inter-faith dialogue with the Eastern Orthodox Church.
(14–18 August) Pope Francis arrived in Seoul Air Base on 14 August to start his five-day visit to South Korea on the occasion of the Sixth Asian Youth Day. Upon arrival, Francis was greeted by South Korean President Park Geun-hye. Afterwards, Francis held a private meeting with the families of victims of the MV Sewol ferry disaster. He later made a speech in English, his first as Pope. Speaking at the Presidential Office in Seoul he said "I came here thinking of peace and reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula." Francis held the first public Mass of his trip on 15 August in front of a 50,000 strong crowd at Daejeon World Cup Stadium where he asked Koreans to "reject inhumane economic models which create new forms of poverty and marginalize workers." He beatified the first generation of 124 Korean Martyrs in Gwangwhamun Square on front of an estimated crowd of 800,000 people on 16 August. Francis concluded his five-day visit with a Mass for peace and reconciliation of the divided Korean peninsula in Seoul's Myeongdong Cathedral.
(21 September) Pope Francis announced in his Angelus address on 15 June that he would make a one-day visit to the city of Tirana in Albania. He said: "With this brief visit, I want to confirm the Church of Albania in the faith, and bear witness to my encouragement and love for a country that has suffered for so long in consequence of the ideologies of the past". Security concerns were raised in the days before the visit after Iraqi governmental officials warned they had received intelligence reports suggesting Islamic fundamentalists may be planning an attempt on the Pope's life while in Albania.
The 11-hour visit was the first European trip made by Francis. He said in August that he had chosen Albania as the first destination because it has set a model for harmony between the various religions by establishing a national unity government that includes Muslims, Orthodox, and Catholic Christians. During his stay, he met Albanian President Bujar Nishani, celebrated Mass in Mother Teresa square in Tirana, and met with religious leaders, including those of the Muslim, Orthodox, Bektashi, Jewish and Protestant faiths. He also honored those persecuted under the rule of former communist dictator Enver Hoxha. Some 130 Christian clergy died in detention or were executed during the 1944–1985 dictatorship of Hoxha, who declared Albania the world's first atheist state in 1967. Pictures of some of the priests persecuted or executed during the period were hung in Tirana's main Martyrs of the Nation boulevard ahead of the pope's visit. Albania has since seen a revival of Catholicism partly owing to the popularity of Mother Teresa, who had Albanian origins despite being born in what is now Macedonia.
(25 November) Pope Francis made a four-hour visit, the shortest made by any pope abroad, to Strasbourg on 25 November 2014, where he addressed the European Parliament and the Council of Europe raising issues such as the dignified treatment of immigrants arriving illegally in Europe and better conditions for workers.
(28–30 November) Pope Francis accepted an invitation to visit Turkey at the behest of president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in September 2014. This invitation also came from Patriarch Bartholomew I in order to commemorate the feast day of Saint Andrew. Francis arrived at Esenboğa International Airport in Ankara on 28 November where he was met by Turkish dignitaries before he traveled to Anıtkabir, laying a wreath in memory of the Turkish Republic's founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Francis then traveled to the Presidential Palace where he met with President Erdoğan and gave a speech urging interfaith dialogue to counter fanaticism and fundamentalism and called for a renewed Middle-East peace push, saying the region had "for too long been a theatre of fratricidal wars". The following day, Francis visited the Blue Mosque in Istanbul where he prayed silently alongside senior Islamic clerics. Francis concluded his visit with a liturgy in the Church of St. George alongside Bartholomew I, asking for his blessing "for me and the Church of Rome" and also urging the re-unification between the two Churches, telling the Orthodox faithful gathered in St George's that "I want to assure each one of you gathered here that, to reach the desired goal of full unity, the Catholic Church does not intend to impose any conditions except that of the shared profession of faith".
2015
and (13–19 January)
Pope Francis visited Sri Lanka on 13–15 January and the Philippines (15–19) in January.
In Sri Lanka he paid pastoral visits to Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu in Madhu and Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka.
Pope Francis's visit to Philippines was the fourth papal visit to the island nation. Paul VI visited Philippines in 1970 and John Paul II came in 1981 for the beatifications of Lorenzo Ruiz and then Domingo Ibáñez de Erquicia and returned in 1995 for the celebration of the World Youth Day.
Pope Francis's visit to the Philippines in January 2015 had become the largest papal event in history with around 6–7 million attended his final Mass at Manila surpassing the then largest papal event at World Youth Day 1995 in the same venue 20 years earlier.
(6 June) Pope Francis announced on 1 February 2015 that he intended to visit Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on 6 June 2015. His visit placed importance on ecumenical dialogue. It is estimated that 67,000 people visited the event whose peak was the Mass at the Koševo Stadium. Most pilgrims were from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but there were also 1,000 pilgrims from Serbia, many groups from Hungary, Slovenia, Macedonia, communities of Croats from Germany, Austria, United States, and group of nuns from Panama and even Egypt.
, , and (5 July – 13 July) The Holy See announced in May 2015 that Pope Francis would visit Bolivia in July 2015, as well as Ecuador and Paraguay. Before the visit, Bolivian President Evo Morales had confirmed that Pope Francis would meet with indigenous organizations on the sidelines of official functions. The pope was scheduled to be in Ecuador from 5–8 July, Bolivia from 8–10 July and Paraguay from 10–12 July 2015. His return to Rome was scheduled for 13 July 2015. The Holy See Press Office's Director, Federico Lombardi, S.J., acknowledged there were reports that Pope Francis might chew coca leaves, or perhaps drink tea made from coca. (He ended up drinking coca tea with a couple other ingredients.) In that region, coca is considered sacred by some and is a key crop. It is rich in calcium, protein, and iron, among other nutrients, and could potentially fight altitude sickness. This is a popular reason for its use, but it is also the main ingredient in cocaine. Pope John Paul II and Pope Paul VI both had similar experiences, so engaging in this particular cultural custom would not be unprecedented.
In the course of his visit to Ecuador, Pope Francis met President Rafael Correa, visited with priests and seminarians, paid a private visit to a Jesuit priest friend, visited a home for the elderly in Quito and a shrine in the town of El Quinche. His last Mass in Ecuador drew about 1.5 million people.
Arriving in Bolivia on 8 July, Pope Francis was received by President Evo Morales at El Alto International Airport near La Paz. Francis spoke, in part: "Bolivia is making important steps towards including broad sectors in the country's economic, social and political life." Later, during their meeting, Morales awarded Pope Francis with the highest Bolivian decoration, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Condor of the Andes and State decoration of Luís Espinal Camps, named after a Jesuit priest and activist known for his commitment to the disadvantaged people of the country, who was murdered by paramilitary forces in March 1980. He also presented the pope with a crucifix in form of a hammer and sickle, which form the symbol of the Communist Party, which he explained had been a form created by Espinal; the gift immediately proved controversial. The Pope also prayed in the place near La Paz where the body of this murdered Jesuit priest was found, and he highlighted his preaching of the Gospel. Pope Francis visited also the Cathedral of La Paz, and after leaving, he traveled to Santa Cruz de la Sierra in the eastern part of Bolivia.Pope Francis: I have come to confirm the faith of believers Vatican Radio. 8 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.Bolivia distingue a Papa Francisco y entrega obsequios Bolivia TV 8 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.El Santo Padre rezó por Luis Espinal y resaltó su prédica del Evangelio Bolivia TV 8 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.Francisco pisa tierra cruceña y es recibido por autoridades Bolivia TV 8 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015. On 9 July Pope Francis celebrated Mass in Santa Cruz de la Sierra connected with the opening of the Fifth National Eucharistic Congress."Toma, bendice y entrega", el Papa al pueblo boliviano Radio Vaticano. 9 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015. He also attended the World Meeting of Popular Movements, in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, where he addressed Bolivia's poor and indigenous communities, and apologized to the country's indigenous people for the "grave sins" the church committed towards them during Spanish colonial rule. This event brought together delegates from popular movements from around the world; Morales also attended. Francis expressed in his speech on this event his solidarity with gathered popular movements and their efforts.Pope Francis: Speech at World Meeting of Popular Movements Vatican Radio. 10 July 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
and (19–27 September)