The Association des Villes Sanctuaires en France has been in existence for nearly 30 years. It brings together 21 sanctuaries and 21 Tourist Offices located in the four corners of France. All are united by the same desire: to promote tourism based on spirituality and thus encourage the location of places of pilgrimage, culture and leisure that welcome national and international visitors.
- Alençon
- Ars-sur-Formans
- Brive-la-Gaillarde
- Chartres
- Cotignac
- La Salette
- Le Mont-Saint-Michel
- Le Puy-en-Velay
- Les-Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer
- Lalouvesc
- Lisieux
- Lourdes
- Nevers
- Paray-le-Monial
- Rocamadour
- Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume
- Sainte-Anne-d’Auray
- Souvigny
- Thierenbach
- Vendeville
- Vézelay
42 members, both religious and lay, share a common project, common objectives, and a common will to act: to constantly improve the welcome given to visitors, whether tourists or pilgrims in search of spirituality, in the site they are discovering or in their desire to broaden their knowledge of the Sanctuary’s tourist environment. They are also working to facilitate the stay of pilgrims and tourists, to respond with a single voice to the needs of pilgrimage organizers, to reflect on the tools to be put in place to accentuate communication on events linked to the theme.
Finally, these 21 destinations are distinguished not only by the singularity of their landscapes, their heritage often recognized by UNESCO, their paths surveyed by pilgrims from all over the world, but also by their saints, their national or even international notoriety, their traditions…
.
