Rediscover America's Catholic heritage with the Catholic Go app

Dec 3, 2025 by

Brandon Duncan

What if your next pilgrimage didn’t require a passport, a plane ticket, or months of planning—but just a short drive down the road?

Discovering the holy sites in your own backyard might sound like a poetic idea, but for Christian and Darcie Nielsen, founders of Catholic Go, it’s the driving force behind a fast-growing platform that’s helping Catholics rediscover their heritage in a surprisingly accessible way. In our latest episode of The Engaged Parish Podcast, we sat down with the couple to learn how Catholic Go began, why “micro-pilgrimages” matter, and how parishes can use this new tool to deepen community life.

What started as a simple curiosity during their early marriage—finding shrines, retreat centers, and holy sites near their home in New England—grew into a mission: to inspire an adventure of faith and build community on the journey. Today, Catholic Go features an expanding map of historic cathedrals, miraculous shrines, retreat centers, cemeteries, outdoor Stations, and even the occasional monastery-run coffee shop. The platform offers visitor information, historical context, testimonials, and even the ability to mark where you’ve visited or prayed. During the conversation, Christian and Darcie explained why so many Catholics don’t know these places exist and why recovering them matters for evangelization. From St. Thérèse’s “little way,” to the deep roots of religious orders across the American landscape, their passion for helping people reconnect with the beauty and history of their Catholic faith is contagious. They also shared inspiring stories from pilgrims who discovered new sites simply because Catholic Go placed them on the map.

For parishes, the use case for this new app is clear: group outings, youth ministry trips, Good Friday Stations, family day pilgrimages, school excursions, and more can become opportunities for grace, community building, and renewing parish culture.

Whether you're considering making a pilgrimage or simply want to explore what’s nearby this weekend, Catholic Go is making it easier to begin.

Visit CatholicGo.com to explore the interactive map, submit your parish holy site or shrine, or create a free pilgrimage account to get started.