Pope Leo is set to visit the Canary Islands next month, focusing on the critical migrant entry points off Africa’s western coast, the Vatican announced on Wednesday.
The pontiff’s trip to Spain, from 6-12 June, marks his first to a European Union nation outside Italy.
During the final two days of his visit, the first US pope will be on Tenerife and Gran Canaria, where he plans to meet with migrants and the organisations dedicated to assisting them.
These islands are major destinations for those undertaking perilous journeys across the Atlantic in often makeshift dinghies, with NGO Caminando Fronteras reporting over 3,000 deaths in 2025 alone.
The visit comes as Spain’s Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s government has launched a one-year mass amnesty programme, offering legal status to an estimated 500,000 immigrants.
Pope Leo, who previously drew criticism from Donald Trump for his stance on the Iran war and anti-immigration policies, will also travel to Madrid. There, he is scheduled to meet King Felipe and Queen Letizia, and deliver addresses at the Royal Palace and the Spanish Parliament.
The pope will likewise travel to Montserrat in Catalonia, where he will visit with the historic Benedictine community, and Barcelona, where he will inaugurate the newest tower of the Sagrada Familia, the famed modernist basilica that has become the world’s tallest church.
Other planned events for the tour include a prayer vigil with young people, an outdoor Mass in Madrid’s landmark Plaza de Cibeles, and a meeting with the nation’s Catholic bishops.
The pope, who on Friday marks his first year leading the 1.4-billion-member Church, has grown more outspoken on the world stage in recent weeks.
During a four-nation Africa tour last month, he forcefully decried the direction of global leadership and said the world was “being ravaged by a handful of tyrants”.
Spain is Leo’s fourth tour outside Italy after also visiting Monaco in March, and Lebanon and Turkey last year.
The pope will make another visit on July 4 to a port of call for migrants entering Europe, travelling to Lampedusa, an Italian island south of Sicily.
The choice to visit the island on the day the U.S. celebrates the 250th anniversary of its independence has drawn wide attention.