Normandy · Le Mont-Saint-Michel · the abbey on the rock
Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey: tickets, hours and what to see
An abbey built on a granite rock in the middle of a bay. Here is how to choose your ticket, when to go and how to arrive.
Today
Opening hours for every month are on the Opening hours page.
Checked against the official website on 31 October 2026 · Official source
In short
- The abbey is open every day except 1 January, 1 May and 25 December. From 1 May to 31 August it opens from 9:00 to 19:00, and from 1 September to 30 April from 9:30 to 18:00. Last entry is one hour before closing.
- The village at the foot of the abbey is free: you need a ticket only for the abbey. The site is on a rock with many steps, so wear good shoes.
- Suitcases and large bags are not allowed, and there is no cloakroom inside. Dogs are not allowed, not even in a bag. Booking ahead is strongly recommended.
- Short on time? Take the entry ticket and go on your own. Want to hear the story? Choose the guided walk through the village, with the abbey entry as an option.
The abbey church: Romanesque stone on top of the rock
The nave was begun in 1060, in Romanesque style. The choir at the east end was rebuilt much later, between 1446 and 1523, in flamboyant Gothic. Under the church there are crypts that date from the 1030s and 1040s.
A smaller, older church, Notre-Dame-Sous-Terre, lies below. It was found in 1898 and fully excavated in 1959.
La Merveille: the Gothic buildings of the abbey
La Merveille, "the Marvel", is a group of Gothic buildings built between 1211 and 1228. The refectory dates from 1217 to 1220, the Knights' Hall from 1220 to 1225 and the cloister from 1225 to 1228.
The visit route goes from the crypts to the cloister, passing through the refectory.
The archangel on the spire
On top of the spire stands the statue of the archangel Michael. It is 4 metres high and its top is 157.10 metres above the shore. The sculptor was Emmanuel Frémiet, who worked on it from 1895 to 1898.
The neo-Gothic spire that carries it was built in 1896.
The village and the Grande Rue
The village is free to enter, with no ticket and no opening hours. The Grande Rue climbs between old houses, shops and restaurants. On the way you pass the parish church of Saint-Pierre, and the ramparts: in 1417 the abbot Robert Jollivet had the lower town ringed with a crenellated wall.
Streets are narrow and steep, and it is busy in summer: go early or late in the day.
Visitor guide
Mont-Saint-Michel Tickets: Abbey Entry and Guided Tours
Mont-Saint-Michel tickets: how abbey entry works, when to book, who gets in free, the bag rules and whether to choose plain entry or a guided walking tour.
What to See at Mont-Saint-Michel: Abbey and Village
What to see at Mont-Saint-Michel: the abbey church, the crypts, the Merveille's cloister and refectory, the ramparts, the Grande Rue and the archangel.