Popes traditionally visit the tombs of past pontiffs the day after All Saints Day.

"Tomorrow afternoon I will pray in the Vatican Grottoes, at the tombs of the Popes ... I will have a special thought for the beloved John Paul II," Benedict XVI said today, to cheers from the thousands of people in St. Peter's Square, according to Reuters.

The cause for the beatification of John Paul II, who died April 2, is under way. His tomb under St. Peter's Basilica has become a focal point for pilgrims.