Mary Magdalene Pilgrimage in France: Beyond the Trail
Updated August 8 2026
I have just returned from my Mary Magdalene Pilgrimage in the South West of France, otherwise known as ‘Occitanie’ or Languedoc. A pilgrimage is a deeply personal and internal experience which is still percolating in me.
One thing I do feel called to share about is the amount of Grace that we experienced during our trip.
Mary Magdalene's presence is so strong in these parts of the country that I personally believe, contrary to local beliefs that she lived as a recluse, that she travelled to spread her teachings around the Southern part of France. The land is clearly imbued with her soul. Her energy isn't confined to a single reliquary or shrine.
This is something I channeled into Mary Magdalene: Voice of Occitanie, a light language activation for anyone who wants to feel her presence in the land the way I did, without ever setting foot in France.
What Is Grace, and Why Did It Follow Us Through France?
According to the Cambridge dictionary, Grace is a religious term that is defined as ‘approval or kindness, especially that is freely given by God to all humans.’ **
I describe myself as spiritual (not religious) because I adhere to the Native American notion of ‘Great Spirit: a benevolent and all encompassing energy that intercedes in our favor.
For me, Grace is ‘Spirit in action’: where there is Grace, there is also flow and synchronicities.
The Call: How I Knew I Had to Make This Pilgrimage
I was first called to do this pilgrimage in 2017 during a plant medicine ceremony, and then called again in 2018 and in 2019. Our pilgrimage was definitely destined as I kept getting pulled towards a part of France I wasn’t familiar with at all and kept having visions about the Knight Templars and the Cathars in my Holotropic Breathwork.
I finally stopped resisting the call and planned it for the summer of 2020, which was postponed due to Covid. As soon as we could, I rescheduled the plane tickets and prepared our itinerary.
Due to the nature of our family business, there was a likely chance that my husband wouldn’t be able to join me. Yet I remained convinced that his presence was necessary. So I just held the vision and let go of my expectations. Great Spirit’s will over my will. And he got on that plane with me.
Looking back, this letting go, this holding the vision without gripping the outcome, is exactly what I would now call preparing the vessel. It's the same groundwork I channeled into Soul Quest: Prepare the Vessel, a light language activation for grounding, clearing static, and softening control before any quest of your own.
Grace in Action: A Broken Car and a Blessing in Disguise
On the morning of the departure of the pilgrimage itself, we took the family car to run some errands for my mother and get the family car checked and ready for our trek around France. The car’s gear shift pedal broke and we were left stranded on the side of the road for most of the morning. I wasn’t sure we were going to be able to leave at all. Once again, I just held the vision and surrendered. Maybe the timing wasn’t right. Maybe we weren’t ready yet.
Fast forward a few hours, we managed to rent a small car (it is peak tourist season in the South of France) and head off on our pilgrimage. We could have broken down a 1000 kms away, which would have been a logistical nightmare, but it happened right before we left. A real blessing in disguise. Grace in action!
Sainte-Baume: Where the Relics Didn't Match the Reverence
Grace interceded again later that evening when we reached our first destination, the Basilica of St Maximin-la Ste Baume: Mary Magdalene’s skull, a piece of her skin that the Christ supposedly touched and her hair is venerated in a rather ostentatious reliquary. This huge derelict Basilica is in the middle of nowhere and its energy was patriarchal, dark and oppressive. Not at all the way I experience Mary Magdalene’s loving and nourishing energy.
That contrast, between the heavy, patriarchal energy of the reliquary and the soft, receptive energy I actually associate with her, is the same contrast at the heart of Yin Energy Integration, a light language activation for reclaiming the loving, nourishing feminine frequency that so many sacred sites have buried under centuries of institution.
Mary Magdalene reliquary in the Basilique de St Maximin-la-Ste Baume.
There was a man standing in front of the reliquary, who generously shared his remarkable historical knowledge of the village, Mary Magdalene and the Basilica. Funnily enough, one moment he was there and the next he was gone. We were never able to thank him or find out who he was. But we left the Basilica full of gratitude and hope, seeing his intercession as a good omen.
Cathar Country and Rennes-le-Château
We continued our pilgrimage through Cathar Country, experiencing Grace at every turn: people literally stepping in to support us without us even asking: everywhere we went, we were overwhelmed with openness and kindness.
We spent a whole day in Rennes-le-Chateau, a tiny village in Languedoc, which is known thanks to l’Abbe Sauniere, a mysterious and eccentric man who built the MagdalaTower and the Mary Magdalene Church. Since being mentioned in the Da Vinci Code, the village has become a new age destination for treasure hunters and spiritual seeker.
Magdala Tower, Rennes-le-Chateau
Whilst in Rennes-le Chateau, our guides surprised us with an invitation to a private concert with the renowned Harpist Ani Williams, who has a special affinity with Mary Magdalene and dedicates many of her songs to her.
Ani is from Sedona, Arizona but loves this part of France. She told me she had a dream that someone would give her a harp when she was 36 years old. When it happened in real life, she heeded the call to master the instrument.
Meeting Kathleen McGowan on Mary Magdalene's Day
However, the biggest serendipity I experienced was to meet Kathleen McGowan in person on July 22nd, Mary Magdalene’s day!
Kathleen McGowan is an American author, who has written a trilogy of books that I just adore and can’t recommend enough. The first book, called ‘The Expected One’, is all about Mary Magdalene.
Kathleen’s talent is to weave history, art and mysticism in her books. I had a total ‘mid-life fangirl’ moment and she was gracious enough to indulge me.
The Grotto of Sainte-Baume: Meeting Her in the Mountain
We concluded our pilgrimage where we started, in Ste Baume: we visited the Grotto of Ste Baume, where Mary Magdalene is rumored to have spent 30 years living as a hermit after being thrown out of Marseille. The Grotto is reached after a grueling 45 min hike up a mountain, which felt like a rite of passage in itself. The energy in the Grotto was really exceptional and we spent time in meditation, absorbing all the prayers and good intentions spread by the pilgrims.
Why I Believe Mary Magdalene Is in the Land, Not Just the Sites
Mary Magdalene’s presence is so strong in these parts of the country that I personally believe, contrary to local beliefs that she lived as a recluse, that she travelled to spread her teachings around the Southern part of France. The land is clearly imbued with her soul.
Since my return, many questions have surfaced about this state of Grace: Was it because we committed to the pilgrimage that it flowed through us? Was it Mary Magdalene’s spiritual presence that guided it? Was it because we were open, curious and flexible that things just aligned for us? And more importantly, how could I channel more of this Grace in my normal day-to-day life?
Cathar Memorial, Minerve.
If you feel this calling, Mary Magdalene: Voice of Occitanie, Soul Quest: Prepare the Vessel, and Yin Energy Integration were all channeled from this journey, to help you meet her presence, prepare your own vessel, and reclaim the receptive feminine frequency she carries.
FAQs: Mary Magdalene Pilgrimage in France
Q: Where did Mary Magdalene live in France?
A: Tradition holds she landed near Marseille and later lived in the Sainte-Baume mountains in Provence. Some accounts, including my own experience, suggest her influence spread more broadly across Occitanie and Languedoc rather than staying confined to one site.
Q: What is the Mary Magdalene pilgrimage route in France?
A: There's no single official route, but common stops include the Basilica of St Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, the Grotto of Sainte-Baume, Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and Rennes-le-Château in Cathar country, all in the South of France's Occitanie region.
Q: Is Rennes-le-Château connected to Mary Magdalene?
A: Yes. The village's Mary Magdalene Church and Magdala Tower were built by Abbé Bérenger Saunière, and the site became widely known after being referenced in The Da Vinci Code, drawing spiritual seekers and treasure hunters alike.
Q: What is Sainte-Baume known for?
A: Sainte-Baume is home to a basilica venerating relics attributed to Mary Magdalene, and a mountain grotto where she is said to have lived as a hermit for 30 years after being exiled from Marseille.
Q: Do you need to be religious to do a Mary Magdalene pilgrimage?
A: No. A pilgrimage like this can be a spiritual rather than religious experience, one centered on personal calling, synchronicity, and grace rather than doctrine.
Q: Can I feel Mary Magdalene's presence without traveling to France?
A: Yes. Mary Magdalene: Voice of Occitanie is a light language activation channeled directly from this land, created for anyone who feels her call but can't yet make the physical trip.