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‘The Laurel Becomes Green Again’: Magdalene and Cathar Pilgrimage 2026


‘In 700 years, when the laurel becomes green again, we, the good men and women, shall return.’

Prophecy of Guilhem Belibaste, the last of the Cathars, before his execution in 1321

After many personal pilgrimages in the steps of Mary Magdalene and her ministry in southern France, I’m very happy to announce that I will be leading a pilgrimage to the Magdalene and Cathar sites in 2026.

We plan to visit all the famous sites connected with Mary Magdalene and the Cathars through both Occitania and Provence including Rennes le Chateau, Saintes-Maries -de-la-Mer, Sainte Baume and Montsegur.

I am a fluent French speaker, having lived in France myself. I have over 7 years’ experience of working with Mary Magdalene and studying Her mysteries in this region of France which I will be sharing through ritual, creativity, sharing and ceremony in the landscape, to facilitate everyone to come into their own gnosis of the many truths of Her and the Cathars, the lineage carriers of her ministry.

I can’t wait to share these amazingly beautiful and sacred sites and the pure love and wisdom of Mary Magdalene that flows through them.

With Love and Blessings

Donna 🌹

PRICE DETAILS AND BOOKING

The beach at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer where Mary Magdalene was said to have stepped ashore in southern France.

ITINERARY

Our beautifully curated itinerary, with pilgrimage sites and ceremonies that are led and supported by the womb awakening cross, is:

Day 1 - Saturday 6th June 2026

ARRIVAL We arrive in her footsteps

Arrivals at Marseille airport. Please aim to arrive around 2pm if possible.

Transfers to Saintes Maries de la Mer, where we stay for 3 nights.

 Evening – Opening circle on the beach

Day 2 - Sunday 7th June 2026

MAIDEN

A circle in the morning – meet the Maries, Saint Martha and Saint Sarah.

 Visit to Saint Martha’s tomb at Tarascon, time for lunch in beautiful Beaucaire just across the bridge.

Late afternoon visit to Nimes for ceremony at the Temple of Diana, time to explore the gorgeous Roman temples, awe-inspiring Roman Arena, visit gorgeous shops (don’t miss the Fragonard shop near the Maison Carre temple!)

 

Day 3 - Monday 8th June 2026

LOVER-MOTHER

A free day to explore Saintes Maries de la Mer, and mother and nurture ourselves.

Evening ceremony on the beach.

Day 4 - Tuesday 9th June 2026

CRONE

A circle in the morning to meet Saint Anne, grandmother of Yeshua and mother of Mother Mary.

After our circle, we depart Saintes Maries de la Mer to visit Arles, beginning with the Church of Saint Anne where her relics were placed.

Free time to explore this stunning town with its Roman arena and links with Vincent van Gogh.

In the evening we arrive at our accommodation at Sainte Baume where we will stay for three nights.

Day 5 - Wednesday 10th June 2026

A day exploring Sainte Baume, the mountain with the holy cave shrine where Mary Magdalene spent her crone years and left her physical life.

Option to also visit the Cave of Eggs.

 

Day 6 - Thursday 11th June 2026

EARTH

A day grounding into the beautiful landscape of Provence with its fragrant, native, healing fields of lavender.

 We visit:

1.        A lavender farm, where we can sit and relax in the lavender fields and buy from their plentiful home-grown lavender flower, oils and other products.

2.        A sublimely beautiful abbey that also grows its own lavender

3.        Beautiful Provencale villages where we can enjoy lunch (and maybe also the local lavender liqueur!)

4.        If time and group energies allow: Aix-En-Provence for its beautiful cathedral

5. We end our day at the Basilica of Saint-Maximin-La-Sainte Baume, receiving the transmission from Magdalene’s reliquary in the place where Maximinus was said to have buried her physical body in the earth at the base of the Sainte Baume mountain.

Day 7 - Friday 12th June 2026

FIRE

In the morning we depart our accommodation at Sainte Baume heading for Cathar country in the Pyrenees.

Our journey of a few hours will have stops at:

1.        Saint Zacharie – the village named for the husband of Saint Elizabeth, she who was mother of John the Baptist. A visit to the ancient Church of John the Baptist there.

2.        If time and group energies allow: Marseille - Church of Saint Lazarus, brother of Mary Magdalene and Martha, with a short break here in Marseille

3.        Beziers – As we move into Cathar country, the stunning city was a Cathar stronghold and site of many Cathar atrocities, most famously at the Church of the Magdalene on her feast day, 22nd July

In the evening, we arrive at Les Contes, our accommodation in the Pyrenees, where we will stay for 6 nights.

 

Day 8 - Saturday 13th June 2026

An opening circle at beautiful Les Contes, meaning ‘The Stories’, our home in Cathar country for 5 days.

 After our long day yesterday, we will make a leisurely start to head for Rennes-Le-Chateau (‘The Castle of the Queens’) (about 1 hour from Les Contes) with its:

1.        Church of Mary Magdalene, deeply coded with Her mysteries and that of the Grail bloodline,

2.        Museum of the House of Bérenger Saunière, the priest who was said to have discovered Mary Magdalene’s ‘treasure’ here

3.        Tour Magdala – the Magdalene Tower

and beautiful shops, restaurants and landscape to spend time in.

Fire ceremony on the land in the evening.

Day 9 - Sunday 14th June 2026

AIR

A gentle, airy day, with visits to

1.        Foix, home of Esclarmonde de Foix,

2.        The troubadour castle at Puivert.

Day 10 - Monday 15th June 2026

WATER

A delicious day of water ceremony, visiting:

1.        Rennes Les Bains - Roman bath town with a warm spring we can immerse in below the remains of a Roman Bath House

2.        Fontaine des Amours – a salt water spring and waterfalls where Mary Magdalene was said to have ministered baptisms.

3.        Throne of Isis – an ancient stone throne in the hills above Rennes Les Bains where we will end our day with an anointment ceremony, acknowledging all we have experienced and embodied during our journey to this point.

 

Day 11 - Tuesday 16th June 2026

DESCENT INTO THE WOMB

A sharing circle in the morning.

A day of deep ceremony:

1.        As we move into the heart of the mysteries, we pilgrimage to the prehistoric ancestral caves of Niaux and Alliat close to Tarascon-sur-Ariege to see the ancestral cave paintings and journey deep with the ancestral grandmothers into the wombspace both in the landscape and within.

 

BEYOND THE WOMB - The Dove and the Chalice 

2.        We spend the afternoon in deep reverence of the Cathars at the site of their last stand, the fortress at Montsegur. We will climb to the fortress, and descend to the field of the Inquisition fires, honouring them, Mary Magdalene and Yeshua and their Book of Love, and looking to the future – who do we become as we rise from these ashes?

 

Day 12 - Wednesday 17th June 2026

BEYOND THE WOMB

A sharing circle in the morning.

A pilgrimage to the beautiful yoni-shaped cave-chapel in the Gorge of Galamus for prayer and integration of our deep day yesterday.

 

Day 13 - Thursday 18th June 2026

We depart our accommodation at Les Contes en route to our final accommodation near the medieval citadel of Carcassonne, we visit:

1.        Alets-Les-Bains – ancient spa town with a ruined abbey, previously a temple to Cybele and a centre of prophecy

2.        Limoux and its sublime monastery of Saint Hilaire, with beautiful chalice wall paintings

3.        Villerouge-Termenes, visiting the Cathar village with its impressive chateau and site of the execution by the Inquisition of Guilhem Belibaste, the last Cathar parfait. We will pay our respects to him and all the Good Men and Women of the Cathar faith.

 

Day 14 - Friday 19th June 2026

A free day to explore Carcassonne

Final closing ceremony and closing circle.

Dinner in Carcassonne

Day 15 - Saturday 20th June 2026

DEPARTURES – The end of this journey and the beginning of the next

Departures to Carcassonne or Toulouse airports (Carcassonne preferred but transfers can also be made to Toulouse).

 

Option to travel on with us by road to Vezelay with Donna for 2 nights to celebrate summer solstice. (Pilgrims will need to arrange their own homeward journey from there.)

 

Please note that we reserve the right to adjust the itinerary to accommodate group needs.

Price details and booking

Carcassonne

Rennes-le-Chateau

Montsegur, the site of the Cathars’ last stand

Earlier Event: March 27
Reiki Level II Attunement
Later Event: June 20
Vezelay Solstice Pilgrimage 2026