Five Days at the Santuario del Cuore Immacolato
You arrive at the Santuario Cuore Immacolato di Maria in Borgo Maggiore on a June evening and the first thing you notice is the sound: the rosary being recited, the sanctuary choir warming up, and the low hum of a crowd that has come from across the castello and beyond. For five days in 2026 — 10 to 14 June — Borgo Maggiore holds its Festa del Cuore Immacolato di Maria, an annual celebration under the patronage of the Giunta di Castello di Borgo Maggiore. The 2026 edition is dedicated to the memory and devotion of San Giovanni Paolo II, and the programme weaves together prayer, film, music, processions and food in a way that is both solemn and genuinely communal.
Everything happens at and around the sanctuary, on the upper and lower piazzas and along the park paths that connect them. You do not need to be a pilgrim to take part — you need only show up and follow the rhythm of the days.
Welcome the Relic and Walk the Procession
The festival opens on Wednesday 10 June at 17:00 with a gathering at the roseto to welcome the relic of San Giovanni Paolo II, followed by a procession up to the upper sanctuary. This is the moment that sets the tone for the whole five days: a slow, communal walk uphill, the relic carried ahead, the crowd falling in behind. At 17:30 the rosary is prayed, and at 18:00 the sanctuary choir sings at Mass.
If you can only attend one evening, make it Saturday 13 June. The rosary begins at 17:30, Mass for the sanctification of families and wedding anniversaries is at 18:00, and at 20:00 there is a meditated rosary. Then at 20:30 a solemn Mass is presided by H.E. Mons. Domenico Beneventi, Bishop of the Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro. After Mass, a torchlight procession winds through the park paths to the Monastero Santa Chiara, animated by the "Cuore Immacolato di Maria" choir. The evening closes with refreshments in the lower piazza of the sanctuary — stay for that.
- Wednesday 10 June, 17:00: gathering at the roseto, welcome of the relic, procession to the upper sanctuary
- Saturday 13 June, 20:30: solemn Mass, then torchlight procession through the park paths to Monastero Santa Chiara
- After the procession: refreshments in the lower piazza of the sanctuary
Concerts, Film Screenings and an Evening of Catechesis
The festival's cultural programme runs alongside the liturgies. On Wednesday 10 June at 20:30, under the tendone (marquee), the first part of the film "Un uomo diventato Papa" is screened. The second part follows on Thursday 11 June at the same time and place. These screenings are part of the 2026 dedication to San Giovanni Paolo II, and they draw a mixed crowd of locals and visitors.
On Friday 12 June at 20:30, don Pawel Stanislaw Galuszka — priest and head of family pastoral care of the Archdiocese of Kraków — gives a catechesis on "the Marian 'thread' as leitmotif of the life and pontificate of San Giovanni Paolo II." It is a serious talk, not a performance, but it is open to anyone and it gives the festival's theme its intellectual spine.
Live music arrives on the final day. On Sunday 14 June, a folk orchestra plays from 16:00 to 17:30 and again from 19:00 to 23:30 in the sanctuary piazza. That is the soundtrack to your afternoon and evening — bring a chair if you want one, or stand and listen.
Sunday in the Piazza: Lunch, Games and Food Stands
Sunday 14 June is the fullest day. The rosary is at 10:00, followed at 10:30 by a solemn Mass for living and deceased benefactors of the Centro Mariano, presided by don Pawel Stanislaw Galuszka. At 12:30 there is a community lunch at €18.00 per person — book through the Frati del Santuario or by calling 0549 902935. This is the meal to plan around: long tables, local families, and the kind of cooking that comes out of a sanctuary kitchen on a feast day.
In the sanctuary piazza during the afternoon and evening, you will find the "Ruota" game and a charity raffle (pesca di beneficenza). The folk orchestra plays from 16:00 to 17:30, then the rosary is at 17:30 and the closing Mass at 18:00, presided by p. Simone Giampieri, Provincial Minister of the Friars Minor of Marche and San Marino. Food stands open for dinner from 19:00 to 22:30, and the orchestra returns from 19:00 to 23:30. Eat at the stands, play the Ruota, stay for the music.
- 12:30: community lunch, €18.00 per person — book via the Frati del Santuario or tel. 0549 902935
- Afternoon and evening: "Ruota" game and charity raffle in the sanctuary piazza
- 19:00–22:30: food stands open for dinner
- 16:00–17:30 and 19:00–23:30: live folk orchestra in the sanctuary piazza
A Day of Relief and Quiet Devotion
Thursday 11 June is described in the programme as the "day of relief." At 15:00 there is a Mass with Anointing of the Sick, presided by p. Marco Buccolini and animated by U.S.T.A.L. and the Parkinson Association. It is a gentle, unhurried afternoon — the rosary follows at 17:30 and Mass at 18:00, with the second part of the film screening at 20:30. If you want to see the festival at its most pastoral rather than its most festive, come on Thursday.
Friday morning offers something different again: from 09:00 to 12:30, Eucharistic Adoration for vocations and the sanctification of priests and religious, ending with Ora Media and Eucharistic Benediction. The evening repeats the familiar pattern — rosary at 17:30, Mass at 18:00 — before the catechesis at 20:30. You can move between these moments freely; the sanctuary is the anchor, and the park paths and piazzas are where people gather between services.
Plan Around the Five Days
The festival runs 10–14 June 2026 at the Santuario Cuore Immacolato di Maria in Borgo Maggiore. The sanctuary sits in the upper part of the castello, with the lower piazza and park paths connecting the different spaces — you will walk between them more than once. For the community lunch on Sunday, call 0549 902935 or speak to the Frati del Santuario to reserve. Book your accommodation in Borgo Maggiore or nearby well ahead, and build your days around the evening programme: the processions, the torchlight, the music and the food stands are what you will remember. Start with the Wednesday opening and the Saturday torchlight, and let the rest of the five days fill in around them.