Religious Building · Cologne, Germany
Cologne Cathedral
Cologne Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Built 1248. It drew 6,000,000 visitors in 2004.
Photo: Raimond Spekking via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped and resized for display.
Landmark facts
| Location | Cologne, Germany |
|---|---|
| Type | Religious Building |
| Built | 1248 |
| Architect | Andreas von Everdingen, Arnold Wolff |
| Height | Height: 157 m |
| Annual visitors (2004) | 6,000,000 |
| Coordinates | 50.9414° N, 6.9583° E |
Every fact above is taken from the sources listed below; anything no source states is left blank rather than guessed.
What Cologne Cathedral is known for
Cologne Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
About Cologne Cathedral
Cologne Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is a renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996.
History
Within the construction of the Gothic cathedral in 1248, the Old Cathedral was to be demolished step by step. However, careless demolition work and fire destroyed not only the east choir, but almost the entire cathedral; the Shrine of the Three Kings was saved from the fire. The western parts of Hildebold Cathedral were provisionally rebuilt and were only taken down after 1322, when the Gothic choir was completed and construction of the Gothic nave began.
Planning a visit? Visit the official Cologne Cathedral website — the official site has the current visiting information.
How to get there
| Nearest town | Cologne |
|---|---|
| Nearest airport | Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN) |
| Distance from the airport | 8.4 miles (straight line) |
Nearest major airport by straight-line distance from the landmark’s coordinates; road distance will be longer.
Airports near this landmark
The airports a visitor would actually fly into, nearest first — each link opens its profile on our sister site AirportProfiles.
- Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN) · Köln (Cologne), Germany · 9.6 miles away
- Düsseldorf Airport (DUS) · Düsseldorf, Germany · 25.4 miles away
- Dortmund Airport (DTM) · Dortmund, Germany · 48.9 miles away
Landmarks nearby
The closest landmarks in this library, by straight-line distance.
More landmarks in Germany
More religious buildings
Frequently asked questions
What is Cologne Cathedral?
Cologne Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Where is Cologne Cathedral located?
Cologne Cathedral is in Cologne, Germany. Its coordinates are 50.9414° N, 6.9583° E.
How do I get to Cologne Cathedral?
The nearest town is Cologne, and the nearest airport is Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN), about 8.4 miles away (straight line).
When was Cologne Cathedral built?
Cologne Cathedral was built 1248.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne_Cathedral — Wikipedia article — overview, history and core facts (CC BY-SA).
- https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4176 — Wikidata — built year, architect, height/size, visitors, official website (CC0).
- http://www.koelner-dom.de/ — Official website of the landmark / managing body.
- https://github.com/jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports — Nearest major airport computed from landmark and airport coordinates (haversine); airport list: jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports.
Page last updated 13 November 2026.