Mende’s, monumental Gothic Cathedral inGévaudan-Lozère, South France

©Visite guidée de la Cathédrale de Mende|FS - OTI Mende

©Visite guidée du centre-historique de Mende

Beautiful outside :

Built in the regional blond limestone, the cathedral plays with the sun which highlights its imposing volumes.
Its two bell towers bring an impressive monumentality to the whole, the great bell tower rises to 84 meters !
The large bell tower, whose size and richness of ornamentation testify to the conflict between the bishop and his canons, contrasts with the sobriety of the whole.
Only the neo-Gothic portals echo it, moreover the porch of the western front is one of the last elements built by the State on a cathedral since it is completed in 1906!

& Beautiful inside

Here, the architecture is discreet, it is a setting for an exceptional furniture: Virgin of the twelfth, portrait of Urbain of the fourteenth, organ and stalls of the seventeenth century, tapestry of Aubusson of 1707… And of course the winner of the “Non-Pareille“! (unrivalled).
This bell, of which only the clapper remains today, was the largest of all Christendom at the time of its realization in 1516!
Installed in the large bell tower, it was heard more than 10 km around!
Notre-Dame et Saint-Privat Cathedral is home to priceless treasures that alone deserve a visit!

Grandes Orgues 1 — ©Les grandes orgues de la Cathédrale de Mende|OTI Mende

©Tableau Resurection Lazare (XVIIè) - Cathédrale de Mende|C. Nouet - OTI Mende

©Chapelle Saint-Dominique - Cathedrale de Mende|C. Nouet

©Représentation Urbain V (XIVe) - cathédrale de Mende|C. Nouet - OTI Mende

©la chaire de la cathédrale de Mende|OTI Mende

Explore

The Cathedral of Mende

Please note!
The Cathedral’s opening hours vary depending on the day of the week and the season.
Always check before visiting the building.

free visits
Guided tours
Accessibility
Download

Self-guided tour of Mende Cathedral

You are passing through Mende and want to discover the city at your own pace and without guides, you can get the brochure «Circuit du Patrimoine de Mende» from the Tourist Office.
This brochure will take you on a small circuit of 28 stages in the city center and will also show you what to discover in its cathedral. Download the Mende Heritage brochure.

Watch out! Some places are only accessible to the public during guided tours (old pharmacy, town’s wedding hall, bell tower of the cathedral, and other small surprises…).
Find out at the Tourist Office.

©Intérieur de la Cathédrale de Mende|C.Nouet - OTI Mende

En haut du Clocher de la Cathédrale de Mende — ©Visite du clocher de la Cathédrale de Mende avec Alexandre, guide conférencier|F.S. - OTI Mende

Guided tour of Mende Cathedral:

Guided tours scheduled during the summer season for individual visitors are in only in French language.

You can follow the tour in French using an automatic translation app.
Our guides can arrange tours on request, subject to advance booking, in German and Spanish.

Check out the rates in summer

Contact the Tourist Office

©Plan de la cathédrale de Mende avec accès mobilité réduite|inconnu

Visit for people who has reduced mobility.

The Cathedral has 3 entrances:

The south door, located on Place Chaptal (on the right on the map) is accessible to people in wheelchairs.
The parish is located opposite this entrance in case it is necessary to open the door wide and thus shift the bottom of the door.

However, the West and North doors (respectively place Urbain V at the bottom of the plan and rue de la Rovère at the left of the plan) are not recommended because they have stairs.

The visits to the Cathedral, whether guided or free (with the explanatory brochure of the Tourist Office) are therefore quite accessible to people with reduced mobility.