Church of the Week Join us

St. Patrick's Cathedral's white marble twin spires on Fifth Avenue against a blue sky

PHOTOGRAPH · ERDO

CATHEDRAL · MIDTOWN MANHATTAN

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Seat of the Archbishop of New York

New York's cathedral: white marble Gothic on Fifth Avenue, across from Rockefeller Center, and still a working parish with Mass from 7 am.

Open daily 6:30 am – 8:45 pm

All Mass and confession times

Sunday: 7:00 · 8:00 · 9:00 · 10:15 choir · 12:00 · 1:00 · 4:00 Spanish · 5:30
Mon–Fri: 7:00 · 7:30 · 8:00 · 12:00 · 12:30 · 1:00 · 5:30
Saturday: 8:00 Lady Chapel · 12:00 · 5:30 vigil (counts for Sunday)
Confession: Mon–Fri after the morning Masses and 12:00–1:20 pm · Sat 12:00–12:45 and 3:30–5:30 pm · none on Sunday

CHANGES ON HOLY DAYS · AS LISTED ON THE PARISH WEBSITE, CHECKED OCTOBER 31, 2026

Directions Plan visit

BUILT 1858–1879GOTHIC REVIVALFREE ENTRYRAMP ON 51ST ST

Why it matters

St. Patrick's is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of New York and the seat of its archbishop. When Archbishop John Hughes laid the cornerstone in 1858, this stretch of Fifth Avenue was near the northern edge of the city, and critics called the project "Hughes's folly." Work stopped during the Civil War; the cathedral was dedicated in 1879 and its two spires were finished in 1888.

James Renwick Jr. designed it in white marble in the Gothic Revival style, looking to the great cathedrals of France and Germany. The city grew up around it, and it has stayed a working church at the heart of Midtown: Mass from early morning to evening every day, the archbishop's Mass on Sundays, and the St. Patrick's Day Mass before the parade goes past its doors.

Things to find

NO. 1 ON THE PLAN

The bronze doors

ENTRANCE: FIFTH AVE (BOTTOM)
NOT TO SCALE

Visiting

AS LISTED ON THE PARISH WEBSITE, CHECKED OCTOBER 31, 2026

Hours and entry

Free entry, open every day
6:30 am – 8:45 pm
Please don't sightsee during Mass
Hours change on holy days and for big events

Tours

Official self-guided audio tour, about an hour
$25 adults, $20 children 3–11, from the tour desk or online
No tours during Mass; avoid Sunday mornings

Dress and security

Bag check at the doors
Dress as you would for church
No photos or video during services

Access and getting there

Wheelchair ramp on 51st Street
B, D, F, M to 47–50 Sts–Rockefeller Center
E, M to 5 Av/53 St; 6 to 51 St

Christmas and Easter

Midnight Mass: seats by ticket only
Christmas Eve vigil Mass 5:30 pm
Expect lines on every major feast

Feast days

17 March

St. Patrick: morning Mass before the parade

25 May

Anniversary of the dedication, 1879

24 December

Midnight Mass, seats by ticket only

Photographs

6 PHOTOGRAPHS · SWIPE

Ribbed Gothic vaults and clustered columns along the nave of St. Patrick's Cathedral — The nave vault at St. Patrick's Cathedral

The rose window and organ gallery seen from the crossing of St. Patrick's Cathedral — The rose window at St. Patrick's Cathedral

Looking across the crossing at St. Patrick's Cathedral toward the side windows — The crossing at St. Patrick's Cathedral

A carved white side altar in an arched chapel at St. Patrick's Cathedral — A side altar at St. Patrick's Cathedral

A shrine with rows of votive candles at St. Patrick's Cathedral — A candlelit shrine at St. Patrick's Cathedral

The great doors of St. Patrick's Cathedral seen from inside, between painted banners — The great doors from inside St. Patrick's Cathedral

Where it is

40.7585° N · 73.9760° W

SCHEMATIC · NOT TO SCALE

Fifth Avenue between 50th and 51st Streets
New York, NY 10022

NEARBY ON THE ATLAS

St. Thomas ChurchEpiscopal · two blocks northSOON St. Bartholomew's ChurchEpiscopal · Park Avenue at 51stSOON St. Patrick's Old CathedralThe first cathedral · Mulberry Street

All New York churches →

Fact file

TYPE: Cathedral; seat of the Archbishop of New York
BUILT: 1858–1879; spires 1888
ARCHITECT: James Renwick Jr.
STYLE: Gothic Revival
SPIRES: 330 ft (100 m)
LANDMARK: National Historic Landmark
ADMISSION: Free; audio tour ticketed

SEND A CORRECTION

PhotographsAll photographs by Erdo, taken in person, November 2026, unless credited. Image rights

SourcesSt. Patrick's Cathedral, official site · Archdiocese of New York

This pageLast updated November 4, 2026. Parish staff can update these facts for free.