For 350 years believers have been making pilgrimages to the church of pilgrimage Maria Loretto. Burned down twice by the Turks, the church was rebuilt and extended again and again. In 1659 the church of the Leitha Mountains was solemnly consecrated. On May 6, 1997, the parish and pilgrimage church of the "Immaculate Conception" was awarded the title of "Papal Basilica Minor" by Pope John Paul II at the request of Diocesan Bishop Dr. Paul Iby. Today, numerous cultural encounters such as concerts, exhibitions and readings find a worthy setting here.
The municipality of Loretto itself has less than 500 inhabitants, yet an estimated 100,000 pilgrims are counted here each year. The biggest pilgrimage days are the "Great Women's Day" (Assumption Day) on August 15, when between 15,000 and 20,000 people come to Loretto, the Feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary on September 8 and the "Croatian Sunday", the pilgrimage of the Burgenland Croats, on the third Sunday in September. Many of the pilgrims still come by walking today.