Pope Leo XIV to visit Peru, Argentina and Uruguay in November

The pontiff’s first Latin America trip will take him back to Peru, where he spent decades as a missionary and bishop.Pope Leo XIV will return to the region that shaped much of his ministry, making his first trip to Latin America as head of the Catholic Church in November.The Vatican announced on Wednesday that Leo will travel to the three South American countries — Uruguay, Argentina and Peru — from November 6 to 17.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4What is the Society of St Pius X? Why Pope Leo excommunicated its memberslist 2 of 4Who are the rogue bishops defying Pope Leo XIV?list 3 of 4Pope Leo, Mamdani send pro-immigrant message for US’s 250th anniversarylist 4 of 4Pope Leo urges migrant protection, integration on visit to Lampedusaend of listPope Leo’s stop in Peru is especially significant. He spent decades, on and off, in the Andean country, first as a missionary and later as a bishop for the Diocese of Chiclayo in northern Peru.The trip will also mark the first papal visit to Argentina and Uruguay in nearly 40 years.The itinerary includes stops in the cities of Montevideo, Paysandu and Florida in Uruguay from November 6 to 8; Buenos Aires, Cordoba and Lujan in Argentina from November 8 to 11; and Lima, Chiclayo, Cusco and Pucallpa in Peru from November 11 to 17. More details about the pope’s itinerary will be released closer to the trip.Pope Leo’s return to Chiclayo is likely to be one of the most emotional moments of the tour.Although born in Chicago, Pope Leo first arrived in Peru in 1985 at age 30. Over the next three decades, he moved between the United States and Peru as a missionary.In 2014, Pope Francis appointed him to the Diocese of Chiclayo. He became a Peruvian citizen the following year and led the diocese until 2023.Upon his election as pope in 2025, he thanked the diocese in his inaugural address — and the city embraced him as the first “papa chiclayano”, the first pope from Chiclayo. Thousands of people gathered in Chiclayo’s main square to celebrate the results of the papal conclave.