Every year this Marian shrine at the foot of the Pyrenees draws millions of pilgrims to the Grotto of Massabielle where, in 1858, the Virgin Mary appeared to a local girl named Marie-Bernarde Soubirous. She was canonised as St. Bernadette in 1933 and the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes was erected in recognition of the eighteen apparitions she experienced of Our Blessed Mother.
Lourdes has been a focal point for Christian pilgrims for the last 150 years, especially popular among the sick and the disabled due to the Sanctuary’s excellent facilities and traditional healing baths.
Much of this 3-day itinerary is based in the Sanctuary, exploring the history, tradition and Christian significance of the apparitions of Our Lady, Saint Bernadette’s experience of them and what her life was like before and after the apparitions.
Your hotel is located nearby the Sanctuary, meaning convenient, short walks between meals and Sanctuary group activities. Daily Mass will be arranged when not joining international Mass in the wonderful Pius X Basilica. Free time is also included so that individuals can pursue their own interests in the Sanctuary and around Lourdes.
• Visit the Grotto and touch the rocks around the cave of apparitions
• Pray the Rosary right across the River Gave with our group
• Bathe in the Sanctuary’s marble baths filled with water flowing from the spring that Saint Bernadette drank from at Our Lady’s request: “Go drink at the spring and wash yourself there”. The water is said to have special curative effects (you can also collect and take home the holy water).
• Stations of the Cross can be followed along the High Mountain, Lower Stations, or the Way of the Cross for the disabled and sick.
• Light candles and attend, individually or as a group, the daily Candlelight Procession, Blessing of the Sick and the Blessed Sacrament Procession.
• Visit the Upper Basilica, the Crypt, the Rosary Basilica and the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament as well as many other holy sites in Lourdes.
• Enjoy a group video presentation in the Sanctuary theatre, featuring the life of Saint Bernadette and the apparitions.
• Participate in the International Masses at the Pius X Basilica which is held every Wednesday and Sunday.
• Outside of the Sanctuary, visit Bolly Mill where Bernadette was born and lived with her family, and The Cachot where Bernadette’s family lived during the time of the apparitions.
Bartres – Bernadette lived here for a few years when she was a young child.
Pyrenees Mountain/Gavarni – beautiful mountain scenery and more
Cost depends on the number of participants.
If you require wheelchair assistance at the airport this can be arranged. Please request this in writing prior to booking as airlines limit the number of less able pilgrims on each flight. The Sanctuary itself is very well equipped for disabled visitors.
The booking deadline at this price is 27/09/2024. If you are booking after this date, please contact us first to confirm the current price.
A deposit payment of £200 with your completed booking form will confirm your place on this tour. The final balance is due 2 months prior to the departure date.
We’ll mail your travel pack around two weeks before travelling, including your flight information, boarding passes (if applicable), general information booklet, hymn and prayer booklets, name badge, lanyard and luggage label.
All Saints Travel is an ATOL licence holder (no. 6049). In the very unlikely event of company insolvency, you are guaranteed a refund and repatriation back to the UK through the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Air Travel Trust Fund (ATTF). Please visit www.caa.co.uk/atol-protection for further information.
It’s your responsibility to ensure you have a passport with at least 6 months validity remaining from the date of return, in addition to any visas required to travel to the relevant countries. Please call us on 01793 881166 for further information.
For the latest travel advice please visit www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice
While people of all ages are invited to travel on this tour, a reasonable level of fitness is required in order to keep pace with the group. There may be extended periods of standing and walking on hard surfaces.
It’s compulsory to have adequate travel insurance for your journey. You have the option of purchasing cover from Global Travel Insurance when booking with us, or you can buy your insurance independently.
