Papel Palace, Avignon

For roughly seventy years in the 14th century, the most powerful institution in the Western world was not in Rome. It was in Avignon, and the building that served as its centre still stands at the top of the city: the Palais des Papes, the largest Gothic palace complex in Europe, covering nearly 15,000 square metres on a rock above the Rhone.

The reason for this relocation was political rather than spiritual. Pope Clement V, elected in 1305, was a Frenchman who had been archbishop of Bordeaux. He refused to move to Rome, in part because the city was torn apart by factional violence between the powerful Colonna and Orsini families who had long dominated the papacy. The French crown, under Philip IV, had also demonstrated its capacity for violence toward the papacy: his agents had arrested and physically abused Clement’s predecessor, Boniface VIII, in a confrontation that likely contributed to Boniface’s death. Avignon, owned at the time by a papal vassal rather than directly by France, was safer. Clement settled there in 1309. He and six subsequent popes, all French, remained. The Italian poet Petrarch, who lived nearby and found the court corrupt, called it the “Babylonian captivity” of the church, comparing the papal absence from Rome to the exile of the Jews in the Old Testament. The label stuck.

The palace itself was built in two main phases. The Palais Vieux, the Old Palace, was constructed under Benedict XII in the 1330s and reflects his Cistercian taste: austere, fortified, functional. The Palais Neuf, the New Palace, was added by Clement VI in the 1340s and is considerably more ornate, reflecting a pope who regarded grandeur as a theological statement. The two sections together give the complex an unusual internal contrast between austerity and excess.

Visiting in 2026

Standard adult admission is 12 euros; students and seniors pay 10 euros; under-18s enter free. A combined ticket covering the Palais des Papes and the Pont d’Avignon costs 15.50 euros, saving two euros versus separate admissions. From March through early November the palace opens at 9 am; winter hours run from 10 am. Last admission is one hour before closing. Online booking is recommended and allows you to choose a specific entry time, though the flow inside the palace does not enforce strict timed windows once you are in.

From May 2026, the palace has introduced new interactive rooms and opened sections not previously accessible to visitors. Entry and exit between 5 and 29 May 2026 use a temporary route through the Benedict XII gardens at the rear while construction work is completed. Standard Histopad audio guide tablets, available free at the entrance in seven languages, are not available during that period.

The Histopad itself is worth using. It allows augmented reality overlays on many rooms, showing what the painted walls and furnished interiors looked like in the 14th century. Most rooms are now stripped, but in Clement VI’s time the papal apartments were covered with frescoes depicting hunting scenes, birdcages, and botanical motifs executed by Matteo Giovannetti, the leading painter working in Avignon during that period. The Chambre du Cerf, the Stag Room, retains some of these frescoes and is one of the few places in the palace where the 14th-century surface survives.

The Pont d’Avignon

The Pont Saint-Benezet, universally known as the Pont d’Avignon from the folk song, dates from the 12th century. Of its original 22 arches, four remain, ending mid-river. It was repeatedly damaged by floods and partially demolished by the 17th century. Walking out on the surviving section costs 5.50 euros separately, or is included in the combined ticket. The view back toward the palace from the bridge is the best angle for photography.

Where to eat

La Mirande, directly adjacent to the eastern facade of the palace, holds a Michelin star under chef Florent Pietravalle. The restaurant operates inside one of the most extraordinary hotel buildings in France: a 15th-century cardinal’s livery converted into a hotel in the 1990s. Dinner here is expensive by any standard but the cooking is serious and the location is unrepeatable. The hotel also runs cooking classes in a restored 19th-century kitchen.

For something less formal, the street market on Place Pie on Tuesdays and Saturdays offers good local produce from the surrounding Luberon and Vaucluse farms. Several restaurants around the Rue des Teinturiers, a canal-side street with working water wheels in the old dyers’ quarter, provide unpretentious Provencal cooking at reasonable prices.

Where to stay

La Mirande operates 26 rooms and suites and is the most coveted address in Avignon; book months ahead. L’Atelier in Villeneuve-les-Avignon, just across the Rhone, is a 16th-century residence with exposed beams, a garden, and a roof terrace. It is good value relative to the Avignon side and the commute into the centre takes under 15 minutes. Budget options exist within the city walls but fill quickly in summer.

The Festival d’Avignon

The annual theatre festival runs for three weeks each July. The 80th edition takes place from 4 to 25 July 2026. During this period the city changes character entirely: performers, critics, and audiences fill every available space, outdoor stages appear in courtyards and squares, and the population effectively doubles. The palace courtyard itself serves as the main stage for the festival’s most prestigious productions. Accommodation during July is extremely competitive; central hotels book out by May and prices rise sharply. If you are coming during the festival, book rooms at least four to five months ahead. If you want to visit the palace quietly and with the normal price structure, September and October are far more comfortable months.

Getting there

Avignon has two train stations. Avignon TGV, south of the city, handles high-speed services from Paris (roughly two and a half hours) and Marseille (under 30 minutes). A shuttle runs between the TGV station and the city centre. Avignon Centre station, within walking distance of the palace, handles regional services. The nearest major airport is Marseille-Provence, about 80 kilometres away by road or rail connection via Arles.

Central European Time applies (UTC+1 in winter, UTC+2 in summer). July temperatures in Avignon regularly exceed 35 degrees Celsius and sun exposure on the Place du Palais at midday is intense. The best time to walk the exterior and surrounding streets is the early morning, before 9 am, when the light is also better for photography and the tour groups have not yet arrived.