Religious tourism to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Kodeń

The image of Our Lady of Kodeń has been worshiped by the inhabitants, who were touched by numerous graced as early as the 12th century. Owing to that, it was crowned by pope Clement XI in 1723. For over 300 years, pilgrims have travelled to Kodeń, and the pilgrimage traffic continues. The purpose of this article is to show the spatial extent of the impact of the sanctuary at the beginning of the 21 st century through a study of pilgrimages and a presentation of the pilgrims. It was noted that, similar to other sanctuaries, the pilgrimage traffic in Kodeń is seasonal and interregional. More and more often, Kodeń is visited by tourists from all over Poland and from neighbouring countries: Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, as well as France, Ireland, Lithuania, Germany, Italy and other continents, from China and Australia.

The article presents the complex of Batu Caves which is on the one hand, one of the most recognizable religious centres of Hinduism in the area of Muslim Malaysia, annually visited by thousands of pilgrims within Holy Thaipusam festival, and, on the  other hand, the complex of caves popular with tourist and willingly visited. The author presents both the character and specific custom elements of this popular festival and discusses the advantages of caves as formation of inanimate nature available to tourism.

New pilgrimage centre in Kraków’s Łagiewniki-Borek Fałęcki district

Kraków is a city with a unique, rich religious heritage, including major sanctuaries. However, their situation has largely changed over the history. The most important ones started in the 1980s and are still being developed. As a result of the growing worship of Divine Mercy and Sister Faustyna, the convent in Kraków-Łagiewniki has been transformed into an international pilgrimage centre, hosting approx. 2 million pilgrims per year. In the early 21st century a new complex of sacred buildings, the “ Have No Fear ” John Paul II Centre, began to be built in the close vicinity of the sanctuary, as a centre devoted to the worship and remembrance of the great Pole and Pope. In this way a new religious pilgrimage centre sprang up far from the Krakow city centre. The aim of the present article is to present the centre and its importance for religious tourism now promoted in the city.