The city of Lourdes was made famous by the numerous apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous between February 11 and July 16, 1858. It is nowadays the second most important site of Catholic pilgrimage in the world after Rome, and its sanctuaries attract millions of visitors and pilgrims each year. Among Lourdes' most remarkable places are the Esplanade du Rosaire dominated by the Notre-Dame basilica, the crypt, and the basilica of the Immaculate Conception where the Virgin would have appeared 18 times.