Whether the motivation is a boycott of the United States over its current posturing towards Canada, the ongoing affordability crisis, or a host of other reasons, it is clear a greater number of Canadians plan to spend summer in their homeland.
High-profile secular summer staples, such as the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, the Montreal International Jazz Festival, and the Calgary Stampede, are poised to garner greater spectator interest in 2025.
For Canadian Catholics seeking a deeper, spiritually enriching experience during July and August, there are special Jubilee 2025 pilgrimage sites being promoted from coast to coast to coast.
Based on the recommendations provided by diocesan offices throughout the country, here are top locations Canadian Pilgrims of Hope should consider visiting in the weeks ahead.
British Columbia
St. Anthony of Padua Parish and Archdiocesan Shrine of Santo Nino de Cebu, Agassiz
Surrounded by the stunning mountains of the Fraser Valley, about a 90-minute drive from Vancouver, St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Agassiz — along with the adjacent Shrine of Santo Nino de Cebu — is a peaceful and prayerful place to make a Jubilee pilgrimage this summer. As one of three designated Jubilee sites in the Archdiocese of Vancouver, it offers pilgrims a chance to step away from the city and encounter God in quiet beauty.
Established in 1913, the parish has deep roots in the Catholic missionary presence in the region, with early ties to local Indigenous communities and settlers. Visitors will still find the original bell cast in France, historic statues, and the first organ donated by the town’s namesake, Mr. Agassiz, still on display. The parish is small but vibrant, supported by a generous community of volunteers, an on-site thrift store, and a strong spirit of hospitality.
The designated pilgrimage site includes the Archdiocesan Shrine of the Santo Nino de Cebu, built in 2022 to commemorate 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. Devotion to the Holy Child holds deep meaning for many Filipino Catholics, and the shrine offers a beautiful space for prayer.
The parish grounds offer a peaceful atmosphere for prayer and reflection, featuring a Marian grotto, wide green spaces, and a beautifully laid-out Stations of the Cross in the garden. Visitors are welcome to pray, walk at their own pace, or simply enjoy the stillness that’s hard to find in the city. Picnic tables invite pilgrims to share a quiet meal outdoors, and the quaint on-site thrift store adds a touch of small-town charm to the experience.
Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Fraser Valley Heritage Park, Mission
The grotto was the dying wish of Bishop Louis Joseph d’Herbomez, the first bishop of B.C. The original shrine was torn down in 1965, and in 1988 the Knights of Columbus and the Mission Heritage Association raised funds to rebuild the grotto. Since then the Archdiocese has organized an annual pilgrimage to the grotto on the third Sunday of August (Aug. 16 this year) near the Feast of the Assumption of Mary.
Yukon
The Diocese of Whitehorse has designated four official Jubilee sites, inviting the faithful to make a sacred journey through some of the most remote and awe-inspiring regions of the country.
Pilgrims can visit Sacred Heart Cathedral in Whitehorse, St. Mary’s in historic Dawson City, and St. Ann’s in Watson Lake, Yukon, along with Our Lady of Sorrows in Fort Nelson, B.C. Each site offers not only a chance for prayer and reflection but also the possibility of receiving a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions.
Northwest Territories
Our Lady of Victory Church, Inuvik
Oblate architect and missionary Brother Maurice Larocque designed what is commonly called the Igloo Church, completed in 1960, also featuring interior paintings by Inuit artist Mona Thrasher.
Church of Our Lady of Good Hope, Fort Good Hope
The small church built in the late 1800s, a national historic site, was built by the Oblates and features unique interior decoration.
Nunavut
The historic small community was home to the first Catholic mission in Nunavut in 1912 that included a residential school run by the Oblates and a hospital served by the Grey Nuns.
Alberta
The Shrine Church of Our Lady of the Rockies in Canmore
Conceptualized since its inception by Calgary Bishop William McGrattan as a place of diocesan devotion and pilgrimage, the Shrine Church of Our Lady of the Rockies’s ornate interior and exterior construction — a synthesis between modern and classical design elements — was deemed pivotal.
There was a bit of a need for the house of worship to be fitting of its magnificent Rocky Mountains’ backdrop.
Father Pilmaiken Lezano says this is a particularly good place to contemplate Mary.
“The shrine was dedicated to this particular devotion to foster our relationship with the Mother of God and through her we may be able to get closer to our Lord Jesus Christ,” said Lezano.
Lac Ste. Anne Pilgrimage, Lac Ste. Anne
Thousands of pilgrims from across Canada gather for the Lac Ste. Anne Pilgrimage, which runs from July 19 to 24. The Lac Ste. Anne site has been recognized by Indigenous people for thousands of years for its powers to heal and transform physical, mental, and spiritual ailments. It was called God’s Lake by the Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, Spirit Lake by the Cree, and then named by missionaries after Mary’s mother. Pope Francis visited Lac Ste. Anne Pilgrimage during his 2022 pilgrimage to Canada.
Saskatchewan
St. Laurent Shrine near Duck Lake
Situated on 32.4 hectares of property over 11 kilometres northeast of Duck Lake, the grounds hosting the St. Laurent Shrine to Our Lady of Lourdes features a house of worship made of logs, a wood-frame rectory, and a grotto.
Novenas are staged each evening from July 6–14 with a theme of Pilgrims of Hope.
According to Saskhistory.ca, “Mr. Charles Nolin donated a statue for the cure of his wife, who has suffered many years from hemorrhages. Under the guidance of Brother (Jean-Pierre-Marie) Piquet, OMI, on the evening Dec. 16, 1884, a novena to Our Lady was started. By the end of the nine days Mrs. Nolin’s pain disappeared without leaving a trace of the disease.”
Manitoba
Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Saint Malo
It is recognized that the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes was a sought-out spiritual landmark even before the Archdiocese of St. Boniface established it as an annual site of regional pilgrimages in 1951.
It is cherished as a spot to put meaningful time aside for Christ and Mary. One of the reasons it remains a vibrant touchstone after many decades, wrote Archbishop Albert LeGatt, is the interest generated by immigrants to Canada.
“Many newcomers are now attending — Vietnamese, Eritreans, Hispanics. In their respective cultures, there is a strong tradition of Marian devotion,” wrote LeGatt. “When they arrived in Manitoba, these groups realized that there was a pilgrimage and wanted to participate. Let’s rent a bus and let’s go!”
Ontario
The national holy place of worship to honour the lives of the Canadian Martyrs was established a century ago in honour of the Jesuit missionaries who left their contented lifestyle in France to work with the Wendat people who dwelled and operated the territory near Midland, Ont.
“Their story often evokes a deep instinctive reaction,” Father John O’Brien, director of Martyrs’ Shrine, told The Catholic Register’s Luke Mandato. “The heroism, sacrifice and love for Indigenous peoples resound powerfully across the ages, and take us back to a time when Canada was young and new, when it was possible to dream of a society of different peoples living together in harmony and peace.”
Quebec
St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal
A National Historic Site of Canada, this minor basilica and national shrine is recognized for boasting one of the largest church domes in the world, its status as the highest building in Montreal at 130 metres tall, and its meticulous design fashioned by many architects and thousands of workers over 60 years.
It was commissioned by St. Brother Andre Bessette to honour St. Joseph, Patron of Canada.
Isabel Correa, the Archdiocese of Montreal’s director of communications and media relations, said the oratory offers “a unique opportunity this summer to experience an urban pilgrimage filled with faith, discovery and reflection. Pilgrims can take part in on-site activities tailored to the site’s history and mission, explore the sacred spaces and take time for personal prayer.”
Nova Scotia
St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Halifax
The well-established heart of Catholic life in Nova Scotia’s capital was first brought into being in 1820 when construction got underway. Renamed St. Mary’s in 1833, the house of worship transformed in style over time, most notably in the 1860s when renovations bestowed the cathedral with its current neo-Gothic style.
Notably, the cathedral once hosted Pope John Paul II in 1984 as he presided over a bicentennial celebration of the first Catholic church established in Halifax.
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Saint John, New Brunswick. (Diocese of Saint John)
New Brunswick
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Saint John
Coinciding with the 2025 Jubilee is the 170th anniversary of the consecration of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.
Natasha Mazerolle, the Diocese of Saint John’s communications and special projects officer, said these two celebrations occurring in the same annum suggests “this is a unique grace-filled time to visit.”
Visiting this site which holds particular significance to Irish Catholic settlers, said Mazerolle, “is an invitation to be part of the spiritual restoration of our diocesan family, a vibrant renewal already underway evidenced by growing numbers, increased outreach and Eucharistic, Sacramental and Marian devotion.”
Prince Edward Island
St. Dunstan’s Basilica in Charlottetown
This year marks the 35th year since St. Dunstan’s Basilica was commemorated as a National Historic Site of Canada. This church evolved from a wooden cathedral into stone in the Gothic style. The current house of worship came to be in 1919 and was hailed as one of the most fire-resistant parishes in Canada, which would enable it to avoid the fate of its predecessor.
The history section of the St. Dunstan’s Basilica website touts the “four carvings at the outside doors depict Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,” and “nearly 300 angel representations are presented in stained glass.”
Newfoundland and Labrador
Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Flatrock
In an email to The Catholic Register, Archbishop Peter Hundt shared the following:
“Pope St. John Paul II knelt and prayed at Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Flatrock, Newfoundland, during his 1984 papal visit to Canada. Located on Windgap Road in this small fishing village a 15-minute drive from the City of St. John’s, it was inspired by the grotto in Lourdes, France, where the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette. Construction of this grotto began in 1954 and it was dedicated by the Archbishop of St. John’s in 1958.”
Canadian Catholic News, with B.C. Catholic files
What places do you recommend for a Canadian pilgrimage of faith? Join the conversation here.
