Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi has confirmed that Pope Francis will be crossing the Atlantic once more next year, heading to Mexico and making a stop at the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, one of the most prominent pilgrimage sites for Catholics in the country, reported The Guardian. 

Pope Francis is also expected to travel to an area on the border with the U.S. where migrants are known to cross illegally. It has been speculated that the Holy Father thought of crossing the border in the same fashion during his most recent trip to the U.S.

Though the exact dates for the visit, as well as the Pope's itinerary, have not fully been released, it is believed that the visit will happen sometime in the first half of 2016, according to Fox News Latino.

The last Pope to grace Mexico with his presence was Francis's predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, who set foot in the country in March 2012. After flying over the basilica in a Mexican military helicopter, Benedict rode in the popemobile through a very enthusiastic crowd.

Francis, who is widely seen almost as an antithesis to the austere and reserved Benedict, is expected to draw much support from the 100 million Catholics residing in Mexico.

Over 80 percent of Mexico's population are listed as Catholics, in contrast to the U.S., where Catholics only constitute 22 percent of the population.

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