Light through the stained glass of the choir inside St Vitus Cathedral, Prague

Two hundred and forty-two guides · Sixteen countries and the Holy Land

Churches worth going out of your way for

What to look at, how to get in, and what everybody else walks past. Written for people on holiday, not for architectural historians.

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Inside St Vitus, Prague — photograph by Rodi Düger on Pexels

There is no shortage of pages telling you that a cathedral is beautiful. There is a shortage of pages telling you that the entrance is hidden in an arcade, that the good frescoes are seventy metres up so bring binoculars, or that doing the two halves of a day trip in the obvious order will cost you an hour. That is the gap this site is trying to fill.

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Two hundred and forty-two guides across sixteen countries and the Holy Land. Search by name, town, county or region, or choose a country. Every guide carries the date its hours and prices were last checked.

Where they are

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Every guide on the site, plotted from its own coordinates. Choose a country to zoom in, or go straight to a church by clicking its marker.

Basilica of St George — PragueSt Vitus Cathedral — PragueLoreta Prague — PragueSt Nicholas Church, Malá Strana — PragueSt Nicholas Church, Old Town — PragueChurch of Our Lady before Týn — PragueStrahov Monastery — PragueChurch of Our Lady Victorious — PragueBasilica of St Peter and St Paul, Vyšehrad — PragueSedlec Ossuary — Kutná HoraCathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady and St John the Baptist — Kutná HoraSt Barbara's Church — Kutná HoraSvatá Hora Basilica of the Assumption — PříbramSt Wenceslas Cathedral — OlomoucPilgrimage Church of St John of Nepomuk at Zelená Hora — Žďár nad SázavouCathedral of Saints Peter and Paul — BrnoBasilica of the Assumption and Saints Cyril and Methodius — VelehradLindisfarne Priory — Berwick-upon-TweedTynemouth Priory — TynemouthSt Paul's Church — JarrowHexham Abbey — HexhamNewcastle Cathedral — Newcastle upon TyneLanercost Priory — BramptonSt Peter's Church, Monkwearmouth — SunderlandCarlisle Cathedral — CarlisleDurham Cathedral — DurhamEscomb Saxon Church — EscombWhitby Abbey — WhitbyMount Grace Priory — NorthallertonJervaulx Abbey — RiponRievaulx Abbey — HelmsleyByland Abbey — CoxwoldCartmel Priory — CartmelFurness Abbey — Barrow-in-FurnessRipon Cathedral — RiponSt Mary's Church, Studley Royal — RiponFountains Abbey — RiponBolton Priory — SkiptonYork Minster — YorkHoly Trinity Church, Goodramgate — YorkSt Mary's Church — BeverleyBeverley Minster — BeverleyKirkstall Abbey — LeedsSelby Abbey — SelbyHull Minster — HullSt Patrick's Church — PatringtonSt Peter's Church — Barton-upon-HumberManchester Cathedral — ManchesterRoche Abbey — RotherhamLiverpool Cathedral — LiverpoolSheffield Cathedral — SheffieldLincoln Cathedral — LincolnChester Cathedral — ChesterSouthwell Minster — SouthwellSt Botolph's Church — BostonDerby Cathedral — DerbyBinham Priory — BinhamShrine of Our Lady of Walsingham — Little WalsinghamSt Lawrence's Church — Castle RisingChurch of St Peter and St Paul — SalleSt Agnes's Church — CawstonShrewsbury Abbey — ShrewsburyCastle Acre Priory — Castle AcreLichfield Cathedral — LichfieldLeicester Cathedral — LeicesterNorwich Cathedral — NorwichPeterborough Cathedral — PeterboroughWymondham Abbey — WymondhamSt Wendreda's Church — MarchBirmingham Cathedral — BirminghamCoventry Cathedral — CoventryEly Cathedral — ElySt Laurence's Church — LudlowAll Saints' Church — BrixworthHoly Trinity Church, Blythburgh — HalesworthCollegiate Church of St Mary — WarwickBury St Edmunds Abbey — Bury St EdmundsSt Edmundsbury Cathedral — Bury St EdmundsKing's College Chapel — CambridgeWorcester Cathedral — WorcesterHoly Trinity Church — Stratford-upon-AvonGreat Malvern Priory — MalvernPershore Abbey — PershoreChurch of St Peter and St Paul — LavenhamHoly Trinity Church — Long MelfordHereford Cathedral — HerefordSt James's Church — Chipping CampdenTewkesbury Abbey — TewkesburyHailes Abbey — WinchcombeChurch of St Mary and St David, Kilpeck — HerefordDore Abbey — Abbey DoreSt Mary's Priory Church — DeerhurstChurch of St John the Baptist — ThaxtedGloucester Cathedral — GloucesterChurch of St Peter and St Paul — NorthleachSt Albans Cathedral — St AlbansChrist Church Cathedral — OxfordChelmsford Cathedral — ChelmsfordSt Mary the Virgin, Iffley — OxfordChurch of St John Baptist — CirencesterSt Mary's Church — FairfordDorchester Abbey — Dorchester-on-ThamesMalmesbury Abbey — MalmesburySt Bartholomew the Great — LondonSt Paul's Cathedral — LondonTemple Church — LondonSouthwark Cathedral — LondonWestminster Abbey — LondonWestminster Cathedral — Westminster, LondonBristol Cathedral — BristolSt Mary Redcliffe — BristolLacock Abbey — LacockRochester Cathedral — RochesterBath Abbey — BathSaxon Church of St Laurence — Bradford-on-AvonCanterbury Cathedral — CanterburyGuildford Cathedral — GuildfordWells Cathedral — WellsGlastonbury Abbey — GlastonburySalisbury Cathedral — SalisburyWinchester Cathedral — WinchesterRomsey Abbey — RomseySherborne Abbey — SherborneBoxgrove Priory — BoxgroveArundel Cathedral — ArundelChichester Cathedral — ChichesterWimborne Minster — Wimborne MinsterPortsmouth Cathedral — PortsmouthSt Mary's Church — Ottery St MaryChristchurch Priory — ChristchurchExeter Cathedral — ExeterBuckfast Abbey — BuckfastleighTruro Cathedral — TruroSt Magnus Cathedral — KirkwallElgin Cathedral — ElginDunkeld Cathedral — DunkeldSt Andrews Cathedral — St AndrewsIona Abbey — IonaDunfermline Abbey — DunfermlineSt Giles' Cathedral — EdinburghGlasgow Cathedral — GlasgowRosslyn Chapel — RoslinPaisley Abbey — PaisleyMelrose Abbey — MelroseDryburgh Abbey — St BoswellsJedburgh Abbey — JedburghSweetheart Abbey — New AbbeyValle Crucis Abbey — LlangollenStrata Florida Abbey — PontrhydfendigaidBrecon Cathedral — BreconSt Davids Cathedral — St DavidsTintern Abbey — TinternLlandaff Cathedral — CardiffGrey Abbey — GreyabbeySt Patrick's Cathedral — ArmaghDown Cathedral — DownpatrickAmiens Cathedral — AmiensRouen Cathedral — RouenReims Cathedral — ReimsBasilica of Saint-Denis — Saint-DenisBasilica of the Sacred Heart of Montmartre — ParisSainte-Chapelle — ParisNotre-Dame de Paris — ParisChurch of Saint-Sulpice — ParisMont-Saint-Michel Abbey — Le Mont-Saint-MichelStrasbourg Cathedral — StrasbourgChartres Cathedral — ChartresBasilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière — LyonSanta Maria delle Grazie — MilanMilan Cathedral — MilanBasilica of Sant'Ambrogio — MilanSt Mark's Basilica — VeniceSanta Maria della Salute — VeniceBasilica of St Anthony of Padua — PaduaBasilica of Superga — TurinBasilica of San Vitale — RavennaFlorence Cathedral — FlorenceBasilica of Santa Croce — FlorencePisa Cathedral — PisaSiena Cathedral — SienaBasilica of St Francis of Assisi — AssisiOrvieto Cathedral — OrvietoThe Sistine Chapel — Vatican CitySt Peter's Basilica — Vatican CityThe Pantheon — RomeSanta Maria Maggiore — RomeBasilica of San Clemente al Laterano — RomeArchbasilica of St John Lateran — RomeAmalfi Cathedral (Cattedrale di Sant'Andrea) — AmalfiMonreale Cathedral — MonrealeSanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte — BragaIgreja do Carmo — PortoPorto Cathedral (Sé do Porto) — PortoBatalha Monastery — BatalhaSanctuary of Fátima — FátimaConvent of Christ — TomarAlcobaça Monastery — AlcobaçaLisbon Cathedral — LisbonJerónimos Monastery — LisbonCapela dos Ossos — ÉvoraSantiago de Compostela Cathedral — Santiago de CompostelaBurgos Cathedral — BurgosSanta Maria de Montserrat Abbey — MontserratSagrada Família — BarcelonaBarcelona Cathedral — BarcelonaRoyal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial — San Lorenzo de El EscorialToledo Cathedral — ToledoPalma Cathedral — PalmaValencia Cathedral (Catedral de Santa María) — ValenciaMosque-Cathedral of Córdoba — CórdobaSeville Cathedral — SevilleBerlin Cathedral — BerlinKaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church — BerlinFrauenkirche Dresden — DresdenCologne Cathedral — CologneAachen Cathedral — AachenSpeyer Cathedral — SpeyerUlm Minster — UlmMelk Abbey — MelkSt. Stephen's Cathedral — ViennaKarlskirche — ViennaHallstatt Charnel House (Beinhaus) — HallstattKylemore Abbey — Connemara, County GalwayChrist Church Cathedral — DublinSt Patrick's Cathedral — DublinGlendalough Monastic Site — GlendaloughRock of Cashel — Cashel, County TipperarySkellig Michael — County KerryGergeti Trinity Church — Stepantsminda (Kazbegi)Svetitskhoveli Cathedral — MtskhetaEtchmiadzin Cathedral — VagharshapatGeghard Monastery — Kotayk ProvinceKhor Virap Monastery — Ararat ProvinceMount Athos — Mount AthosMonasteries of Meteora — KalambakaThree Bells of Fira (Catholic Church of the Dormition) — Fira, SantoriniChurch of the Savior on Spilled Blood — Saint PetersburgSt Isaac's Cathedral — Saint PetersburgSt Basil's Cathedral — MoscowBasilica of the Annunciation — NazarethChurch of the Holy Sepulchre — JerusalemChurch of the Nativity — Bethlehem

Three places to begin

Kutná Hora

Sedlec Ossuary

Forty thousand people arranged into furniture by a woodcarver who signed his work in finger bones.

England

Wells Cathedral

An emergency repair from 1338 that turned out to be the most beautiful thing in the building.

Vatican City

St Peter's Basilica

Free to walk into, and most people still pay. The dome is the ticket that is actually worth buying.

Six that repay the detour

St Vitus CathedralPrague · inside the castle walls York MinsterEngland · the Great East Window San ClementeRome · three levels down BatalhaPortugal · the roofless chapels Skellig MichaelIreland · six hundred steps out of the Atlantic Khor VirapArmenia · Ararat behind it

How every guide is built

The story

What happened here, and why it earns the detour — before any practicalities.

The cheat sheet

Hours, admission, the ticket you actually need, and the date it was last checked.

What to find inside

The handful of things worth seeking out, and where in the building they are.

From having been

The queue, the light, the order to do things in, and what everybody else walks past.

A note on what counts. This is a guide to Christian places of worship that are open to visitors — cathedrals, basilicas, abbeys, monasteries, chapels, stave churches, rock-cut churches, ossuaries and significant ruins. Buildings raised as churches are covered even where they now serve another faith, and so are buildings in Christian use whatever they were built as. More on the scope and how these guides are written.