It’s been more than five and a half years since a spark beneath the roof of Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral sent flames tearing through the 860-year-old Gothic icon on April 15, 2019, collapsing its roof and toppling its wooden spire, which had been in place since 1859. But following a $760 million restoration project by more than 2,000 artisans and carpenters, the UNESCO-listed cathedral will finally reopen its immense wood and iron doors to the public on December 8, 2024.
An invite-only grand opening on December 7 will be broadcast globally, with French President Emmanuel Macron in attendance and rumors of surprise guests and performances swirling. For the first eight days of its opening, limited visitor hours will be in place due to scheduled celebratory events. Regular visiting hours (7:45 a.m. to 7 p.m.) will commence on December 16.
A new era of Notre-Dame
With its next chapter, Notre-Dame will also offer a new experience: self-guided routes through the 51,667-square-foot cathedral that trace a symbolic path from north to south, light to darkness. A free mobile app (in English, French, and Spanish) is expected to be available in app stores by the end of November, with downloadable thematic tours guiding visitors to historic and educational points of interest within the cathedral. Improved signage will also enhance the experience for visitors, who will see new liturgical furniture and 1,500 new oak chairs, while a new display for the crown of thorns, a sacred relic, will be installed in a 13-foot-high cedar wood reliquary.
Just last week, eight of Notre-Dame’s bells pealed throughout Paris for the first time since 2019. Three new bells were recently hung above the altar, including one rung by athletes at the Stade de France whenever a gold medal was won or a record was broken during this past summer’s Olympic Games. Access to the celebrated bell towers—and their amazing views over Paris—is still closed to the public until further notice.
Visiting Notre-Dame Cathedral
As before, entry will remain free of charge. However, with an anticipated 15 million annual visitors, a new mobile app and online reservation system aimed at mitigating wait times will now offer free booking of specific time slots, although entry will still be granted without one. This system is expected to be live on the Notre-Dame website on December 1. Until June 8, 2025, only individuals will be granted entry; tour groups will be welcomed thereafter.
Despite the highly anticipated reopening, restoration work continues. The apse and sacristy are expected to be finished sometime in 2025. New stained-glass windows are planned for installation in six chapels on the south aisle of the cathedral’s nave in 2026. Eight contemporary artists have been announced as finalists. The winner will be selected by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris and President Macron and could be announced by December 8, giving visitors yet another reason to swoon over one of the world’s most renowned landmarks.
