Argentina Declares Public Holiday for Papal Visit
Two million Catholics are expected to turn out to see Leo at a city near Buenos Aires.
The province of Buenos Aires in Argentina has declared November 11 as a public holiday in honor of the visit of Pope Leo XIV. The gesture will facilitate travel for the faithful attending the Mass the Pope will celebrate in front of the Basilica of Our Lady of Luján, located about 70 kilometers from the Argentine capital, which is the separate jurisdiction of the city of Buenos Aires.
According to the Argentine newspaper *El Cronista*, authorities anticipate an attendance of up to two million people from across the country. Given this projection, consideration is being given to extending the holiday—initially limited to the province of Buenos Aires—to the entire nation. At Lujan is a basilica that is a pilgrimage center where a miraculous image of the Virgin Mary is venerated.
The celebration in Luján will take place on the final day of Leo XIV’s visit to Argentina. The basilica, one of the country's major Catholic pilgrimage sites, houses the image of Our Lady of Luján, the patroness of Argentina.
The pope will visit Argentina from November 8 to 11, with scheduled stops in Buenos Aires, Córdoba, and Luján. This will also mark the current Pontiff's first visit to the native country of his predecessor, Francis. Unlike Leo, who was born in the United States and holds Peruvian citizenship, Pope Francis never visited Argentina during his pontificate despite having been born there and was archbishop of Buenos Aires.
Before arriving in Argentina, the Pope will stay in Uruguay from November 6 to 8. After concluding the Argentine leg of the trip, he will travel to Peru for a seven-day visit.
The visit to Peru will hold special significance regarding Leo XIV's personal history. Before his election to the papacy, the former Robert Francis Prevost carried out his ministry in the Andean nation for nearly two decades, serving first as an Augustinian missionary and later as a bishop. Pope Francis designated him to the cardinalate in 2023 before the latter's elevation to the papacy in 2025.
The announcement of the holiday in Buenos Aires comes two months ahead of a visit for which Argentine authorities expect a particularly large turnout in Luján, where the November 11 Mass will be one of the major public celebrations of the Pope's time in the country.