Pilgrimage Itinerary

Day 1 - Monday 1 August
Morning check-in at Dublin airport with the help of a Marian Pilgrimage representative for our flight to Lourdes. On arrival meet our guide and take a coach transfer to the Hotel Padoue in Lourdes and check in for 2 nights with breakfast, lunch and evening meal served each day. After sometime to settle in and lunch we will Celebrate Mass, followed by orientation tour at the Sanctuary area. Return to the hotel for dinner before taking part in the evening Rosary and Torchlight procession at 9pm.

Day 2 - Tuesday 2 August
Lourdes
After breakfast in the hotel we will leave for morning Mass, followed by Stations of the Cross. Return to the hotel for lunch. After lunch this afternoon will take a walking tour to places associated with St. Bernadette, the Boly Mill, Cachot, Parish Church and Cemetery. In the evening we take part in the Blessed Sacrament Procession in the underground Basilicia before returning to the hotel for dinner. We return to the Sanctuary for the evening Torchlight procession at 9pm.

Day 3 - Wednesday 3 August
Depart for Rocamadour
After breakfast we celebrate Mass before departing for Rocamadour. We travel to the north-east passing by Toulouse (the Rose City) on route we will stop for a break to enjoy some lunch. Continue on to Rocamadour before we check into the hotel for 1 night, with dinner and breakfast included. After dinner there is the opportunity for an optional mini train trip across the valley to view the illuminations in the evening (roughly €10).

Day 4 - Thursday 4 August
Rocamadour
Enjoy breakfast in the hotel before spending the rest of the morning the old monastic city of Rocamadour, we visit the Cathedral, celebrate Mass in the Church of Our Lady and see the Miraculous Bell, and statue of the Black Madonna, churches of St. Blaise and St Michael, and the tomb of St. Amadour. In the afternoon we will drive to Nevers and check into our hotel for 1 night with dinner & breakfast included.

Day 5 - Friday 5 August
Nevers
After breakfast we make our way to the convent of St. Gildard to Celebrate Mass beside the body of St. Bernadette before visiting the infirmary where she died, the Museum and walk in her footsteps in the convent gardens. This afternoon drive to Paris and check into the hotel for 2 nights with breakfast and dinner. After dinner, there will be an optional cruise on river Seine (€20).

Day 6 - Saturday 6 August
Shrine of the Miraculous Medal
This morning we celebrate Mass at the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal, Rue du Bac and nearby visit the shrine of St. Vincent de Paul. Afterwards our guide will fill you in on lots of facts during our panoramic sightseeing tour of the highlights of Paris include the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomph, Champs Elysees, Notre Dame, Louvre and Les Invalides

Day 7 - Sunday 7 August
Paris to Lisieux
After breakfast we will take our coach to Lisieux and look forward to a day discovering St. Theresa. We will start with Mass in the Carmel chapel of St. Therese and in the afternoon visit Les Buisonnettes where St. Therese lived and the great Basilica dedicated to her. We leave Lisieux and continue to Honfluer a city in northern France’s Normandy region and check into hotel for 1 night with breakfast and evening meal.

Day 8 - Monday 8 August
Return Home
We enjoy breakfast in the hotel before we depart for the nearby 15th-century St. Catherine’s Church, a vaulted timber structure erected by shipbuilders, where we will celebrate our last Mass of the Pilgrimage. Afterwards we have some free time to explore this lovely fishing town, built on the estuary where the Seine river meets the English Channel. Walks along the harbour are especially recommended, Vieux-Bassin (old harbor), lined with 16th- to 18th-century townhouses, has been a subject for artists including Claude Monet and native son Eugène Boudin. Mid afternoon we will gather to depart for Beauvais airport for our return flight to Dublin.