The site of this gravity-defying village rises abruptly across the landscape. Its single street, lined with souvenir shops, runs along the side of a steep hill. It's best seen when approached from the road coming in from the tiny village of L'Hospitalet. Once in Rocamadour, you can take a flight of steps or an elevator from the lower town (Basse Ville) to the town's Cité Réligieuse, a cluster of chapels and churches halfway up the cliff.
To help people negotiate the town's steep inclines, the town maintains two elevators. One goes from the Basse Ville to the Cité Réligieuse, midway up the rocky heights of Rocamadour. The ride costs 2€ ($2.60) one-way, 3€ ($3.90) round-trip. The other goes from the Cité Réligieuse to the panoramic medieval ramparts (le château) near the hill's summit; it costs 2.50€ ($3.25) one-way, 4€ ($5.20) round-trip.
Château de Rocamadour (le château) perches on a rock spur above the town center. You can reach it by way of the curvy "chemin de la Croix." It was built in the 14th century and restored by the local bishops in the 19th century. Its interior is off-limits except for guests of the church officials who live and work here. You can, however, walk along its panoramic ramparts, which are open daily 8am to 8pm (to 6pm Oct-Apr). Admission to the ramparts costs 2€ ($2.60).
The most photogenic entrance to the Basse Ville is the Porte du Figuier (Fig Tree Gate), through which many of the most illustrious Europeans of the 13th century passed.
One of the oldest places of pilgrimage in France, Rocamadour became famous as a cult center of the black Madonna. Zacchaeus, who entertained Christ at Jericho, supposedly founded it. He reputedly came here with a black wooden statue of the Virgin, although some authorities have suggested that the statue was carved in the 9th century.
