Following the claims that there were apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes to Bernadette Soubirous in 1858 , Lourdes has developed into a major place of Christian pilgrimage . Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees , famous for the Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes that are reported to have occurred in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous .