Cologne Cathedral to charge tourists entry fee from July

Cologne Cathedral, one of the most popular attractions in Germany, has announced it will start charging tourists an entrance fee from July 2026.

Kölner Dom announces entrance fee

The chapter of Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) has announced that the church will begin charging tourists an entrance fee from July 2026.

It is yet unclear how much the entrance fee will be, but it will only apply to tourists. Churchgoers, worshippers and members of the Central Cathedral Building Association will all still be able to enter for free.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site is the third-tallest church in Europe and the third-tallest cathedral in the world. Construction began in 1248 and was only completed to its original medieval plan nearly 600 years later, in 1880.

Attracting 6,6 million visitors from across the world every year, 99 percent of whom are tourists, the new fee is set to raise significant funds, even if the decided amount is small.

More money needed to operate the church

Maintaining such an old building is costly. The chapter said it was necessary to introduce the tourist entrance fee to fund the increasing expenses of maintaining, operating and securing the church in central Cologne.

Despite being one of the most popular tourist attractions in Germany, according to the chapter, the church has recorded six consecutive years of losses since 2019.

“[Unless we introduce an entrance fee] we have reached a point where the reserves of Cologne Cathedral will be depleted in the foreseeable future," Cathedral Administrator Clemens van de Ven said, according to a report from Deutsche Welle.