How can I get to Lourdes on pilgrimage?			What is a chaplain?
	How can I obtain water from the Grotto of Lourdes?			What is a member of Hospitality?
	How can I have a Mass said?			What is a "feutier"?
	What happens to the prayer petitions?			What is a Rosary beads?
	How can I have a candle burned?			What is the Rosary?
	How can I leave an ex-voto offering?			What is the Cachot?
	How can I be bathed in the Baths?			What is Adoration?
	How can I look at the webcam?			What is a Blessing?
	What is the Immaculate Conception?

How can I get to Lourdes on pilgrimage?
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is open all year round.  If you wish to come alone or as a family group, you may do so at any time during the year.  The pilgrimage season runs from the beginning of April to the end of October.  This is the time when the daily processions and International Mass takes place.  To take part in an organised diocesan pilgrimage you should contact your local diocesan pilgrimage director.

How can I obtain water from the Grotto of Lourdes?
Write to:
Sanctuaires Notre-Dame de Lourdes
"Service expédition d'eau"
1 Avenue Monseigneur Théas
65108 LOURDES CEDEX
Tel: 33 (0)5 62 42 78 78
E-mail : lourdes.water@lourdes-france.com

How can I have a Mass said?
Contact the Mass Bureau
E-mail : bureau.dons@lourdes-france.com

What happens to the prayer petitions?
The prayer petitions received through internet are passed on to a Chaplain of the Sanctuary who places them in the box in the Grotto during the evening Mass at the Grotto.
Envoyer une intention de prière

How can I have a candle burned?
Candles are not shipped out of the Sanctuary.  It is possible to have a candle lit at the Grotto.  They are given to the people who look after the candles and are burned beside the Grotto.
Write to:
Sanctuaires Notre-Dame de Lourdes
Bureau des Dons
1, avenue Monseigneur Théas
65108 LOURDES CEDEX
E-mail : bureau.dons@lourdes-france.com

How can I leave an ex-voto offering?
You can have a stone tablet engraved with your prayer of petition or thanksgiving or your commemoration of an event and installed in the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Contact:
Bureau des dons
1 Avenue Monseigneur Théas
65108 LOURDES CEDEX
Tel: 33 (0)5 62 42 78 78
E-mail : bureau.dons@lourdes-france.com

How can I be bathed in the Baths?
The Baths of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes are marble bathing pools where pilgrims are immersed as they respond to the request of Our Lady to Bernadette: “Go drink of the spring and wash yourself there”.  Going through the Baths at Lourdes is a human and spiritual experience carried out by pilgrims who wish to renew their Baptismal Commitment.   The water for the Baths is provided by the spring of the Grotto.
There is free access to the Baths; there is no need to make a reservation.  Pilgrims do not need to bring anything with them.  All that is required is provided on the spot to preserve a person’s modesty and dignity.  Pilgrims are advised to arrive about an hour before the opening times.
Opening Times:
April to October: weekdays: 9.00am to 11.00am and 2.30pm to 4.00pm - Sundays and Holidays: 2.00pm to 4.00pm.
November to March: Weekdays: 10.00am to 11.00am and 3.00pm to 4.00pm - Sundays and Holidays: 2.30pm to 4.00pm.

How can I look at the webcam?
You need only click on the webcam button on the home page or on the following web page: http://www.lourdes-france.org/index.php?id=507&contexte=en. If you use Windows XP, you may prefer the Sun Java (You will download it from http://java.sun.com).
For your information, in the Sanctuary, there are two cameras that broadcast 15-second sequences on the internet.
The first is found on the right hand side of the Gave opposite the Grotto of the Apparitions.  It records the surrounds of the Grotto every 15 minutes throughout the day.  It also provides other events such as Masses (everyday at 6.07am, 8.07am and 11.07pm), the Rosary on the radio each day at 3.38pm, the Blessed Sacrament Procession  at 5.08pm, the Torchlight Marian Procession at 9.30pm and the Grotto at night about 12.15am.
The second webcam is found beside the Crowned Statue on the Rosary Square.  It offers 4 programmes: the Rosary Basilica from a distance and from close up, the Crowned Statue and the Rosary Square.

What is the Immaculate Conception?
It is a title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God.  By reason of her calling to be Mother of God, Mary was preserved free from all stain of sin, including Original Sin, from the first moment of her existence.  The Dogma of the Immaculate Conception was proclaimed by Pope Pius IX in 1854.  On 25th March 1858, the Blessed Virgin Mary named herself the "Immaculate Conception" at the Grotto.

What is a chaplain?
A chaplain is a priest who is appointed by the Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes for pastoral ministry in the Sanctuary. He is responsible for welcoming pilgrims and providing the pastoral ministry of the Sanctuary.  They are the guardians and the servants of the chapel requested by the Blessed Virgin Mary.  The Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes is, by his office, the Guardian of the Grotto of the Apparitions.

What is a member of Hospitality?
A volunteer helper who is present to assist the sick and disabled pilgrims in the Sanctuary.  They are recognisable by a special uniforms particular to each pilgrimage.

What is a "feutier"?
A job and a name that is unique to Lourdes.  The fireman or "feutier" is responsible for the candles (cleaning, emptying, burning, safety, etc) left at the Grotto by pilgrims.

What is a Rosary beads?
A set of beads used to recite the prayer of the Rosary.  It contains 5 groups of 10 beads corresponding to the decades of the Rosary and interspersed by single beads for the recitation of the "Our Father".  

What is the Rosary?
It is the Marian prayer that helps the faithful to meditate on the 20 different mysteries of the life of Christ.  These Mysteries of the Rosary are divided into four themes: The Joyful Mysteries, the Mysteries of Light, the Sorrowful Mysteries and the Glorious Mysteries.  The Mysteries of Light were added by the late Pope John-Paul II.  There is a Rosary Way in the Sanctuary – a set of images recalling the Mysteries of the Rosary to help pilgrims pray the Rosary.  Please contact the Information Forum of the Sanctuary.

What is the Cachot?
The “Cachot” is the room in the town of Lourdes where Bernadette lived with her family at the time of the Apparitions.  The word "Cachot" means a prison cell. It is open to visitors daily.  It is situated in the town of Lourdes, rue des Petits-Fossés, about 15 minutes on foot from the Sanctuary.

What is Adoration?
It is a time of silent prayer in front of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.  Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament takes place each day during the pilgrimage season in the Tent of Adoration and in the Adoration Chapel which is situated beside the Church of St. Bernadette.

What is a blessing?
The Sign of the Cross made by people or by a priest on objects to make them holy. The Blessed Sacrament Procession that takes place during the pilgrimage season concludes with the blessing or benediction of the pilgrims present in the Underground Basilica of St. Pius X.