3 Best Sights in The Basque Country, Gascony, and Hautes-Pyrenees, France

Lourdes wouldn't even be on the map if it weren't for this deep grotto near the Gave de Pau where 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous first claimed to see visions of the Virgin Mary in 1858. Church authorities initially reacted with skepticism: it took four years for the miracle to be authenticated by Rome and a sanctuary erected over the grotto. In 1864 the first organized procession was held, and now there are six official annual pilgrimages between Easter and All Saints' Day, the most important being on August 15. In fall and winter there are far fewer visitors—a plus for those seeking tranquility.

The cachot, a tiny room where, in extreme poverty, Bernadette and her family took refuge in 1856, can be visited.

Across the river is the Boly Mill, where Bernadette was born on January 7, 1844.