Worms Cathedral
A four-towered Romanesque cathedral with a choir at each end, so it has no conventional front.
Saved in this browser only - no account, nothing sent anywhere. See your map
St Peter's at Worms is one of the three Imperial Cathedrals of the Rhineland with Speyer and Mainz, built mainly between about 1130 and 1181 in red sandstone with four round towers and two domes. It has apses at both the east and west ends and no great west portal, a plan found in this group of buildings, so the main entrance is on the side. The interior is austere Romanesque with a baroque high altar by Balthasar Neumann added in the 1740s. The Nibelungenlied places several scenes in Worms, including the queens' quarrel at the cathedral door, and the city runs a festival on the epic each summer.
What you actually see
- The double choir - apses at both ends and no west front.
- The four towers - round towers and two domes in red sandstone.
- The Neumann altar - a baroque high altar in a Romanesque interior.
- The Nibelungen link - scenes from the epic set at the cathedral.
When to go
Year-round; the cathedral closes during services. The Nibelungen festival is staged in front of it in summer, restricting access to the square.
Honest expectations
The interior is deliberately plain. The city around it was heavily bombed and rebuilt. Festival staging occupies the cathedral square in summer.
Nearby
Speyer lies south; Mainz is north.
What to pack for Worms Cathedral
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
