Fátima is a city of approximately 10,000 inhabitants located in the district of Santarém in central Portugal, 187 km south of Porto and 123 km north of Lisbon,famous for the religious visions that are said to have taken place there in 1917.
Fátima's claim to fame is the shrine called the Sanctuary of Fátima, built to commemorate the events of 1917 when three peasant children claimed to have seen the "Virgin of the Rosary", Our Lady of Fatima.
Fátima now attracts hosts of believers from far and wide, particularly on the pilgrimage days, and the shrine has been developed on a correspondingly large scale. The large torch-light processions in the evening are particularly impressive.