Lourdes
Roman Catholic Pilgrimage Site
Sanctuaires Nôtre-Dame de Lourdes
Located in the foothills of the Pyrénées Mountains not far from the border with Spain, Lourdes is a very important site for Catholics. Pilgrims come from far and wide in very large numbers to visit the Grotto where apparitions of the Virgin Mary appeared eighteen times to a local girl, Bernadette Soubirous aged 14, in 1858.
Pilgrims can drink or wash in what they believe is the Holy Water flowing from the Spring. Some fill plastic bottles shaped like the Virgin which they are able to buy locally and take home.
Basilique De L’Immaculée Conception
The impressive Basilica above the Grotto was built in the Romanesque style during the late nineteenth century and consecrated in 1876. Often called the Upper Basilica, it is divided into nine bays and the stained glass windows recount the story of the Virgin Mary and the Apparitions.