News and Events

Letter for the Friends of Lourdes

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

Dear Friends of Lourdes,

Aren’t the Lourdes processions beautiful! From the Grotto of Massabielle to the Esplanade of the Rosary Basilica, the route is always the same. And yet, each procession is different, coloured by the diversity of banners and flags, the pilgrims’ many different cultures and backgrounds. I'm determined to find the right way to share the Virgin Mary's invitation “to come here in procession” as widely as possible.

Although the pilgrimage season is gradually drawing to a close, the Sanctuary is certainly not closing its doors. Every day of the year, we continue to welcome people who wish to visit the Grotto of Massabielle, as Bernadette so often did.

Welcoming pilgrims with the respect they deserve entails considerable administrative and operating costs. Without donations and offerings, the Sanctuary can do nothing. Let's pool our strengths and our Christian hope, so that the mission endures and the procession we all form never wanes. Thank you for your faithful generosity.

May the Virgin Mary intercede for you and shower you with her grace, as she did so generously for little Bernadette.

I make a donation

The Sanctuary responds to the September floods

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

In September 2024, flooding hit Lourdes. Pilgrims were quickly able to return to the Grotto thanks to the hard work and determination of the Sanctuary's host community. Today, the Sanctuary is beginning to assess the cumulative damage to banks and bridges caused by flooding over the past 10 years.

The National Meetings in Lourdes organised by the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Society will be held at the Sanctuary from 9th to 13th October.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

From 9th October, more than 1,500 volunteers and people supported by the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul association will be gathering in Lourdes for five days of reflection and prayer at the Sanctuary.

This important event for the association is an opportunity to unite its members around the founding values of charity, fellowship and solidarity. A packed programme awaits the association's pilgrims, who will also be walking in procession towards Mary.

The Auteuil Apprentices pilgrimage: 4,500 young people in Lourdes from 19th to 21st October.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

The 26th Auteuil Apprentices pilgrimage will take place on the weekend of 19th October. The Sanctuary is delighted to welcome 4,500 young people and families from all cultures, beliefs and denominations, who will share an unforgettable experience of prayer, joy and fellowship. The pilgrimage programme includes Masses, workshops, an interfaith vigil, an all-new musical and, of course, a torch-lit Marian procession.

The pilgrimage to Lourdes will also mark the close of a year-long celebration of 100 years of cooperation between the Spiritans (Congregation of the Holy Spirit) and the foundation, supporting vulnerable families and education.

The Bigorre pilgrimage gathers in Lourdes from 19th to 22nd October

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

From 19th October onwards, the residents of Bigorre will be gathering in Lourdes for a not-to-be-missed event for the Diocese of Tarbes and Lourdes. The Bigorre pilgrimage is an event that brings together all the various parts of the diocese in Lourdes: parishes, services, movements, associations and schools. All are invited to give thanks for the life of the Church in the land of Bernadette.

At the start of the All Saints' break, the pilgrimage kicks off on Thursday, 17th October, with the arrival of 1,500 students from the diocese's Catholic schools. They will be welcomed by Mgr. Micas, bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, for this now customary day which precedes the pilgrimage for the older children.

The Sanctuary welcomes you to its children's and family area over the All Saints' Autumn break.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

The Little House of Bernadette - children's and families' area - is open during the All Saints' holidays, Monday to Saturday from 10am to 12pm and from 2pm to 5pm, and on Sunday from 2pm to 5pm.

The Sanctuary's host community looks forward to welcoming you in large numbers for this first break after the start of the new school year.

France's bishops gather in Lourdes from 5th - 10th November for their Annual Assembly.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

As every year, the French Bishops' Conference (Metropolitan and Overseas) will meet in Lourdes from 5th to 10th November 2024, for its Annual Assembly in the hemicycle of the Sanctuary. This is the second annual meeting to be held in Lourdes, after the Spring Assembly.

The mass on 10th November at 11:00 a.m. will be broadcast live on France 2's Jour du Seigneur programme.

The national Farmers’ pilgrimage will be walking in procession to the Grotto from 5th to 7th December.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

The Farmers' Pilgrimage will come to the Sanctuary for a time of prayer and celebration ahead of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Farmers and stockbreeders alike will gather to walk in procession towards Mary as part of this pilgrimage, which was created in 2005 and aims to become a national pilgrimage for the first time this year.

Experience the celebrations of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe alongside the pilgrims present in Lourdes.

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

On 12th December, the Sanctuary will celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe, patron saint of the Americas. An important date for pilgrims to the Marian city, and particularly for the Latin American community, who are very loyal and ardent in their devotion to the Virgin Mary.

An opportunity to pray together to the one who appeared to Juan Diego in a dazzling light, just as Our Lady of Lourdes appeared to Bernadette.

A pictorial review of the Rosary pilgrimage

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

The Dominican family gave thanks to Our Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of the Rosary at the beginning of October, gathering over 17,000 pilgrims on the Rosary esplanade for high mass and processions. A highlight at the end of the pilgrimage season. Watch the liturgical celebrations and highlights once again.