Pope Leo XIV arrives in Uruguay to open 12-day South America tour

Pope Leo XIV arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay, on November 6, 2026, to begin a 12-day tour of South America. Al Jazeera reported that he flew from Rome on a 13-hour journey.

The pope, who leads the Roman Catholic Church, is 71 years old. He underwent surgery on October 13, 2026, to remove a cancerous lung tumour, less than four weeks before the trip began. Doctors cleared him to travel afterwards.

The journey takes him to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. The Holy See Press Office confirmed on October 26 that the trip, scheduled for November 6 to 17, would go ahead according to the programme it had published. Vatican News listed the Uruguay stage as lasting until November 8.

In Uruguay, the pope is due to visit Montevideo, the capital, along with Paysandú and Florida. The Mass in Paysandú is about 375 kilometres from Montevideo, and the Mass in Florida is about 100 kilometres away. AP reported that the itinerary also includes the Borro neighbourhood of Montevideo. Cardinal Daniel Sturla is the archbishop of Montevideo.

The visit is the first papal visit to Uruguay since 1988. Uruguay is a small, largely secular country, and the trip has drawn attention for that reason, though the Holy See has not framed it that way.

Argentina is the second stop. According to Vatican News, the pope will visit Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Luján.

Peru has a personal significance for the pope. He spent almost two decades as a missionary there. His Peru itinerary includes Cusco, the Amazon rainforest and Chiclayo, the diocese he previously led. Reuters noted before the trip that Catholicism is on the decline in Latin America, a region that has long been central to the Church's membership.

The tour runs until November 17.