Lourdes

We were in Saint Jean de Luz this summer and drove to Lourdes. It took us about an hour and a half to get there. The highway is good but then you have to go onto country roads.

On the way back we stopped in Pau. Nice big town/small city of 75,000. It is the birth place of Good King Henry IV of France.

Thank you for your suggestions.. did you enjoy Lourdes? And how long would you recommend if we want to see the sights? Is Pau somewhere to overnight?

Suellen, I sent you PM.

I’ve visited Lourdes three times, but not in the last 10 years. The main sites in Lourdes are the church and the grotto. They are pretty much right next to each other. The church is beautiful. The grotto is nice for a quick walk through then watch the people visiting there hoping for a miracle (if you’re there when there are some).

To me once you’ve left that area, the rest of the town has little to offer. The streets closest to the church are lined with typical tourist shops selling trinkets and “Our Lady of Lourdes” shaped plastic waters bottles to fill up at the fountain near the grotto. A few hours, unless you plan on attending a service, is sufficient to get a good feel of the town. I’m sure others will have a different opinion.

In that area we’ve stayed in Bayonne then visited St. Jean Pied de Port en route to Pamplona. I had a rental car each time I visited the Lourdes.

We drove last year to Lourdes from Gensac (entre-deux-mers region), taking the toll roads. It was about 2.5hrs one way, mainly on toll roads. We just did a day trip but loved Lourdes. I would suggest staying outside of Bordeaux if you are planning to visit as a day trip. Only because the traffic in the Bordeaux area (getting in/out of the city and the ring road highway) is super heavy most of the time. Also, I would suggest that you do not spend the night in Libourne. I love Libourne during the day but it does get a bit seedy after dark in my opinion (others may disagree.) You could stay in Cadillac, Sauternes, over even Agen if you want a nice town/city closer to Bordeaux. These towns are on the Garonne river and are easily accessed by the train. Or, as another poster suggested, stay by the ocean (Saint Jean de Luz, Biarritz) or even Bayonne or Pau.

If the weather is any good I'd head up the valley to Cauterets

3 nights gives you two full days in Lourdes: I would use one of those to go towards Cauterets in good weather, and towards Pau in less good weather.

And Bordeaux would be the most convenient stopover for three nights on the way to Lourdes.

Dear Travel Friends,
Thank you all for such wonderful suggestions! Unfortunately, we had to postpone the trip the night before travel my husband got COVID!! Of all times we could have used Lourdes.
But we will do it again soon! And use the suggested itineraries. Travel safely. Until next time. Suellen