Ermitage Notre-Dame de Belle-Grâce (Lieu-Plaisant)

Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert

At the end of a garrigue path, a small sanctuary is set against the rock. A spring gushes out beneath the rock, behind the hermitage. It bears two names: Notre-Dame-de-Belle-Grâce and Notre-Dame-du-Lieu-Plaisant. The commune of Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert says it is documented from the 14th century. Monks of the hospital of the abbey of Gellone are said to have occupied it. Two pilgrimages perpetuate vows there. On Easter Monday, the inhabitants give thanks for having been protected from the plague of 1628. On the second Sunday of October, they keep a vow made in 1724, during a flood of the Verdus. The 17th-century statue of the Virgin that adorned the hermitage is kept in the village church. The path passes a calvary, an oratory of Saint Joseph and the Cap du Ginestet, which overlooks the Séranne.

Commune de Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert — Randonnée Notre-Dame-du-Lieu-Plaisant ↗

Getting there: Reached on foot from the village square of Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert, by the GR 74: loop of about 10 km, three to four hours, medium level. Parking in the village is paid. I found no opening times for the interior of the sanctuary. Two pilgrimages are held there each year.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound