Spiritual tourism - Destination Camargue

In the footsteps of Marie-Madeleine

According to a Provence legend, Marie-Madeleine fled persecution in the 1^st century and arrived at Les Saintes-Marie-de-la-Mer by boat. She traveled a part of Provence to carry the word of the gospels before reaching a cave of the Sainte-Baume, where she did penitence for 30 years. It’s a shrine accessible to pilgrims.

10 stages and 222 km connect Les Saintes-Marie-de-la-Mer to Saint-Maximin in the Var department, following the route of Marie-Madeleine. This pilgrimage route is part of the regional Climate Plan “Garder une COP d’avance” aiming to preserve and promote the biodiversity of the territory.

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Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle by the southern route

It’s a historical route, also called Via Arletanensis or Via Tolosana, that will take you from the Camargue to Toulouse crossing the Occitanie region. Leading from the Camargue through the Languedoc scrubland, the trail further passes at the foot of the Larzac plateau, climbs the Haut-Languedoc and follows the Canal du Midi to Toulouse.

It’s a journey bathed in the light of the south that starts in Arles and crosses important places of spirituality and contrasting landscapes.

Make a retreat in the Camargue

When you follow the route of Arles, take a break, a stop-over, a night time or a longer stay to recharge your batteries all by yourself, as a couple or a group at the small benedictine community of the Camargue.

Did you know?

It is a tradition in Provence, that on the 4th of December every family puts wheat or lentils to gem. They fill three saucers as a symbol of the Trinity and Hope. If the stems grow straight and green, the coming year is predicted to be a prosperous one. The cups take place in the family crib at Christmas.