Tips to those who visit the Sanctuary for the 1st time

Are you getting ready to come to the Home of Mother Aparecida for the first time? Check some important tips to make the best use of a day of prayer and touring in the largest Marian complex in the world.

After arriving at the Sanctuary, a devotee will comfortably find a place to park his/her vehicle in one of the three thousand spaces available for passenger cars. The parking ticket is valid for 24 hours.

When organizing a tour it is important that a devotee dedicates a special time to take part in the Holy Mass, to light a candle in the Chapel of Candles, to visit the image found in the Paraíba do Sul River, which is located in its niche in the Southern Nave of the Basilica, and to visit some tourist attractions that tell the 300-year history of devotion to the Patroness of Brazil.

To take part in the Eucharistic Celebrations in the Sanctuary, a devotee can choose one of the six masses held every day, from Monday thru Friday, or one of the seven masses held on weekend days.

Another special opportunity to those visiting the Home of Mother is to receive the Reconciliation Sacrament. The Chapel of Confessions, in the Basilica’s basement, offers services everyday. On Saturdays and Sundays, due to the large number of visitors, in average 15 clergymen are available to administer the sacrament.

Thiago Leon

Also in the basement, with entrance through the ramps located in the side wings of the Basilica, a devotee may visit the space dedicated to the Child Devotees, the Official Store, the House of Bread offering snacks and the famous bread of Our Lady, Aparecida TV’S studio with the possibility of taking part in the live recording of a TV show, the Hall of Promises, the space to provide services to the Devotees’ Campaign Family, in addition to a Bazar, with an assortment of clothes and products at promotional prices. All the spaces can be easily found by following the signs.

In the patio of the Sanctuary a Devotee will also find a corridor to access the Pilgrim Support Center (CAR). The center has a sheltering structure that includes souvenir stores, a food plaza, and a baby-changing area, bathrooms adapted to disabled people, a 24-h banking terminal, and an aquarium.

In the access corridor to CAR a devotee will also find the Sanctuary’s minibus stop, which takes elderly people, pregnant women, women carrying infants and disabled people for free to the upper parking lots. This service is provided non-stop on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, from 5 AM to 6 PM. To enjoy that benefit a devotee just has to wait at the stop located in the access corridor to CAR, or at the stop located in the upper parking lot.