Girona Cathedral: Tickets, Opening Hours & What to See
Updated
Girona Cathedral’s Gothic church took almost three hundred years to build, and for much of that time its builders argued about its shape. The result sits behind a Baroque front and 90 steps: a single hall almost 23 metres wide, with no rows of columns at all. No other Gothic church in the world has a nave that wide.
This guide covers what a visit costs, when it’s open, and what to look for inside, in the order you’ll reach it.
The short version:
- Ticket: €7.50, with the Basilica of Sant Feliu and an audio guide included.
- Time: about an hour inside, plus half an hour for Sant Feliu.
- Hours: from 10:00, or from 12:00 on Sundays and holidays. Closing time depends on the season (below).
- Free: the steps and the square in front, any time.
Tickets
There are two tickets, both sold on the cathedral’s official ticket site. Adult and reduced tickets include the audio guide.
| Ticket | Adult | Pensioners & students | Under 16 | Under 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cathedral + Basilica of Sant Feliu | €7.50 | €5 | €1.50 | free |
| Girona Episcopal: the above + Girona Art Museum | €12 | €8 | €1.50 | free |
The Cathedral ticket also covers the cloister and the treasury, so you need nothing extra for the highlights below. The Art Museum is right next to the Cathedral. Take the bigger ticket only if you want another hour of art.
Opening hours
15 June to 15 September:
| Monday to Friday | Saturday | Sundays & holidays |
|---|---|---|
| 10:00 to 19:00 | 10:00 to 20:00 | 12:00 to 19:00 |
Rest of the year: it opens at 10:00 (12:00 on Sundays and holidays). Closing time changes with the month, so check the official site for your dates.
The Cathedral is closed on 25 December and 1 January. Sunday visits only start at noon, so on a Sunday day trip, see El Call first and the Cathedral after.
What to see
1. The 90 steps
The staircase up from Plaça de la Catedral is late 17th-century Baroque: 90 steps in three flights. Turn around at the top, before you go in, for the view over the rooftops of the old town.
2. The nave
This is the reason to go inside. The nave is 22.98 metres wide, 34 metres high and 50 metres long: the widest Gothic nave in the world. Among all churches, only St Peter’s in Rome has a wider nave.
It nearly turned out differently. The Gothic rebuild began at the east end in 1312, planned like most cathedrals with a central nave and two side aisles. Whether to keep that plan or cover the whole space with one vault was argued over for decades. In 1416 and 1417 the bishop called in a panel of master builders for their opinion. The cathedral’s own master builder, Guillem Bofill, pushed for the single vault, and the single vault won. The nave was finally finished in 1604.
Stand at the back and look up. Nothing breaks up the space from wall to wall.
3. The cloister and the Charlemagne Tower
The Romanesque cloister dates from the second half of the 12th century. Walk the four galleries slowly and look at the carved capitals on top of the columns.
Above the cloister rises the Charlemagne Tower, a Romanesque bell tower begun in the 11th century. Despite the name, it went up about two hundred years after Charlemagne died.
4. The treasury
Two pieces here are worth the whole visit:
- The Tapestry of Creation, a medieval embroidered hanging that shows the creation of the world. Almost nothing like it survives anywhere.
- The Girona Beatus, an illuminated manuscript completed in 975.
5. The Witch, outside
Back outside, walk round to the side of the Cathedral by the Charlemagne Tower and look up for the Witch (la Bruixa), the only gargoyle on the Cathedral shaped like a person. Legend says she was a woman who threw stones at the Cathedral and cursed it, until she was turned to stone and fixed to its wall. Now, when it rains, only clean water comes out of her mouth.
Sant Feliu, on the same ticket
Your Cathedral ticket also covers the Basilica of Sant Feliu, a few minutes’ walk downhill. Allow about half an hour.
The Parlawalk app has a free story for Sant Feliu too. The other free stops are El Call, the Eiffel Bridge and Plaça de la Independència.
Quick questions
Is Girona Cathedral worth visiting? Yes. The nave alone is worth the ticket, and the cloister and the Tapestry of Creation are a bonus on top.
How long do I need? About an hour for the Cathedral, and another half hour for Sant Feliu.
Is it free? The steps and the square are. Going inside costs €7.50, and children under 8 go free.
What’s nearby? The Jewish Quarter is right below the steps: see our El Call walking guide. For a whole day, see the Girona day trip from Barcelona.
Checked in October 2026. Opening hours and prices change, so check the cathedral’s website before you go.
Hear the Cathedral's story on the steps
The Cathedral, El Call and three more stops are free in the Parlawalk app. Unlock all of Girona for €9.99, once. It works offline.
