Top 10 Most Beautiful Cathedrals in Spain: An Art Historian’s Guide to Sacred Wonders [and Secrets Tourists Often Miss]

Have you ever stood beneath the golden spires of Burgos at sunrise, feeling strangely humbled by something built centuries before your first breath? Cathedrals in Spain carry the weight of history—in stone arches and silent saints carved by hands long forgotten. Perhaps you’ve wondered, as bells softly echoed through quiet plazas, why there are so many—87, to be exact—spread from Galicia’s misty hills to Andalusia’s sunlit plains. The answer lies in Spain’s layered past, a tapestry woven by different cultures who left intricate carvings and stained-glass windows, painting the air in sapphire and ruby hues.

Yet, most travelers merely skim the surface of these Spanish cathedrals, snapping hurried photos before moving on. However, beyond postcard-perfect facades and bustling tourist crowds, lie secrets rarely seen: a forgotten chapel bathed in candlelight, an ancient mural faded by time, or mysterious inscriptions left by a stonemason whose name history no longer remembers.

This journey gathers ten of the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain. Not simply for their size or fame, but for how they make you feel: small and wide-eyed at once. Along the way, we’ll glimpse lost relics, sculpted saints worn smooth by centuries, and stories still echoing softly through vaulted naves. Not everything sacred is easily visible. Nevertheless, among carvings overlooked by tourists and symbols half-erased by time, some wonders still whisper—if you listen closely enough…

Post last updated on May 6, 2025 (originally published on May 8, 2025) by Roberta Darie.

“A church is God’s house on earth, but a cathedral is humanity’s attempt to touch the sky.”

— Anonymous

1.    Seville Cathedral – The Giant of Gothic Grandeur Among Cathedrals in Spain

When Christopher Columbus passed away in 1506, he could scarcely have imagined his bones would travel almost as much in death as they had in life. For centuries, his final resting place remained a puzzle—spoken of in hushed tones through narrow streets and cloisters. Today, visitors step beneath the soaring vaults of Seville Cathedral—one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain—and pause before a tomb carried by sculpted knights. Still, historians quietly debate whether the bones inside truly belong to the famed explorer.

Yet beyond legend, few cathedrals in Spain carry such layered history. The site once held a 12th-century mosque, built under the Almohads—North African Berbers who ruled much of Al-Andalus. The mosque’s courtyard, the Patio de los Naranjos, still survives, now dappled with shade from orange trees where ritual washing once took place. After Seville’s reconquest in 1248, the mosque was consecrated as a cathedral. Over a century later, it was demolished to make way for a church so grand its creators vowed future generations would think them mad.

That ambition gave rise to the largest Gothic cathedral on Earth—a UNESCO World Heritage site covering 11,520 square meters (124,000 square feet). Inside, the gilded Retablo Mayor, carved over nearly a hundred years, remains one of the largest altarpieces ever made. But beneath its grandeur, quieter marvels endure: shadowy panels of saints, miracles half-erased by time.

And then, there is the Giralda. Once a mosque’s minaret, now a bell tower, it rises 104 meters (341 feet) into Seville’s sky. Its gently sloping ramps—originally built for horseback ascents—lead not just upward, but backward through history. Look closely. You’ll find mason marks, floral carvings, and forgotten inscriptions—whispers from the builders who shaped one of the greatest Spanish cathedrals.

2.    Toledo Cathedral – A Treasure Chest of Styles in the Heart of Cathedrals in Spain

At the heart of Toledo, where Roman roads meet Visigothic ruins and Muslim arches open into Christian chapels, stands a cathedral that reads like a manuscript written over and over. Among cathedrals in Spain, few offer such a rich layering of cultures, faiths, and centuries. Construction began in 1226 under Ferdinand III of Castile and spanned more than 250 years. Beneath it lie the remains of a mosque—and, before that, likely a Visigothic church—making Toledo Cathedral a physical record of Spain’s evolving soul.

This mosaic of influence reflects how many Spanish cathedrals came into being. Not through a single hand or era, but through generations of stonemasons, guilds, and silent artisans whose names have long been forgotten.

Inside, light filters through stained-glass onto Gothic columns that stretch like ribs across a stone forest. Yet not everything is Gothic. Mudejar ceilings and horseshoe arches still echo the building’s Islamic past. In the sacristy, El Greco’s The Disrobing of Christ hangs among works by Titian, Goya, and Caravaggio—a sacred gallery tucked inside a house of worship.

Most visitors are drawn to the High Altar and the Transparente, a swirling Baroque sculpture pierced by sunlight. But don’t miss the quieter details: carved monkeys behind the choir, monks asleep at prayer, musicians mid-note. Among the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain, Toledo’s stands not only for its grandeur, but for how it contains the city’s soul—layered, luminous, and still speaking in many tongues.

3.    Santiago de Compostela Cathedral – Journey’s End, Faith’s Beginning

For over a thousand years, weary feet have traced a path across northern Spain, driven by faith, curiosity, or something harder to name. That path—el Camino—ends here, at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Among all cathedrals in Spain, none carries the same emotional weight. For many, it is not just a destination, but a culmination.

Built between 1075 and 1211 over what was believed to be the tomb of Saint James the Greater, one of Christ’s apostles, the cathedral quickly became the heart of a vast pilgrimage network. Whether Saint James is truly buried here remains a subject of quiet speculation. His bones, discovered in the 9th century, were said to emit a holy light, guiding a hermit to the spot. The legend was powerful enough to reshape medieval Spain.

Architecturally, the cathedral is a confluence of Romanesque foundations, later Gothic additions, and Baroque drama—most famously the exuberant facade facing the Obradoiro Square. Step inside during the Pilgrim’s Mass, and you might witness the botafumeiro, a massive incense burner swinging high over the nave. But beyond the spectacle lies a quieter magic.

Beneath the main altar rests a silver reliquary, said to contain the apostle’s remains. In a side chapel, medieval carvings show pilgrims arriving barefoot, wide-eyed, and grateful. Some of these stone figures still bear faint traces of original pigment—blue, ochre, umber—ghosts of an older palette. Among the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain, Santiago’s endures not only for its art or scale, but for what it represents: arrival, reverence, and the silent wonder of those who finally stop walking.

4.    Burgos Cathedral – Gothic Elegance Frozen in Stone

On a quiet morning, when the plaza is still empty and the sky turns pale behind its spires, Burgos Cathedral feels like something carved out of air. Among the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain, this one stands out—not just for its symmetry or size, but for the feeling it gives you: that you’ve stepped into a place both vast and intimate, built to awe and to endure.

Construction began in 1221 under King Ferdinand III, inspired by the great Gothic cathedrals of northern France. It would take more than three centuries to complete. The result is a masterpiece of Spanish Gothic architecture, crowned with lace-like spires and filled with delicate traceries and soaring vaults. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, Burgos Cathedral is not only one of the most iconic Gothic cathedrals in Spain, but one of the most refined in Europe.

Inside, beneath a lantern vault that filters sunlight like a sieve, lies the tomb of El Cid and his wife, Doña Jimena. Their resting place anchors the narrative of Burgos as both a city and a legend. Yet, the cathedral holds subtler treasures. A narrow spiral staircase, almost hidden behind the choir, leads to the Chapel of the Constables—a jewel box of sculpture and heraldry few visitors find.

In a country filled with renowned buildings, the Burgos cathedral manages to feel both monumental and quiet. Its beauty isn’t immediate or loud—it reveals itself slowly, through the play of light on stone, or the hush of a chapel no one else has entered. And for those who linger, it offers more than grandeur. It offers grace.

5.    León Cathedral – The Jewel Box of Stained Glass Among Cathedrals in Spain

At sunrise, the interior of León Cathedral becomes something almost weightless. Light pours through more than 1,800 square meters (19,375 square feet) of stained-glass, flooding the stone with color: crimson, indigo, amber… Here, you don’t just see the windows. You feel them. Among Spanish cathedrals, few offer such a delicate balance between stone and light, silence and spectacle.

Built in the 13th century atop the ruins of Roman baths and a Visigothic church, this Spanish Gothic cathedral reflects French influence more than most cathedrals in Spain, especially in its emphasis on height and transparency. It was designed to feel open, even ethereal—a structure that, despite its scale, seems to float.

But it’s the glass that tells the story. Much of it dates from the 13th to the 15th century, making it one of the largest surviving collections of medieval stained-glass in Europe. Look closely, and you’ll see not only saints and kings, but mythical beasts, daily life, even symbols once meant to be read like silent prayers. Hidden in the margins are signs of donors, craftsmen, and forgotten stories. Clues to a city that once flourished at the crossroads of pilgrimage and politics.

While the soaring nave and rose windows often draw attention, the quieter side chapels reward those who linger. One window, near the ambulatory, shows a stonemason at work, framed in the very medium that made his craft immortal.

Among the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain, León’s offers no gilded altarpiece or monumental tomb. Its treasure is less tangible: how it captures sunlight, distills it, and returns it to you wrapped in story and color. Because, sometimes, wonder is best seen through a stained-glass.

6.    Palma de Mallorca Cathedral (La Seu) – Mediterranean Gothic by Gaudí

It’s easy to be surprised by the sheer scale of Palma’s cathedral. On an island known more for turquoise coves than towering spires, La Seu rises like a sandstone ship overlooking the sea. Among all cathedrals in Spain, this one feels like an anomaly. Why does Palma have such a huge cathedral? The answer lies in ambition and the slow churn of history.

Its construction began in 1229, shortly after James I of Aragon conquered Mallorca from the Moors. He vowed to build a church worthy of both victory and divine gratitude. Over the centuries, this Spanish cathedral became a canvas for Gothic architecture, marked by flying buttresses, slender columns, and soaring vaults. Its nave, more than 44 meters (144 feet) high, is one of the tallest in Europe. And then there’s the rose window—12.5 meters (41 feet) in diameter—one of the largest Gothic oculi in the world. When morning light floods through it, the floor becomes a kaleidoscope.

But La Seu didn’t remain frozen in the past. In 1904, Antoni Gaudí was invited to oversee renovations. His touch is subtle but striking: a baldachin suspended like a crown of thorns, rearranged choir stalls, and a renewed sense of vertical space. Few Spanish cathedrals carry his fingerprint. Look more closely and you’ll find modern additions, too—ceramic murals by contemporary artist Miquel Barceló in a side chapel, where fish, loaves, and skulls swirl in a sea of clay and color.

7.    Córdoba’s Mezquita-Catedral – A Beautiful Clash of Cultures

Step inside Córdoba’s Mezquita-Catedral, and the silence feels layered. Columns multiply like reflections in water, red-and-white arches ripple across the space, and time folds in on itself. Among all cathedrals in Spain, this one unsettles the boundary between mosque and church, past and present.

The structure began in 785 as the Great Mosque of Córdoba, built by Abd al-Rahman I on the ruins of a Visigothic church. Over the next two centuries, it expanded into one of the most important Islamic buildings in the West. Then, in 1236, Córdoba was reclaimed by Christian forces during the Reconquista. However, rather than destroying the mosque, they consecrated it as a cathedral: adding chapels, altars, and eventually, a Renaissance nave. The result is a rare architectural hybrid, one that asks a silent question: Are all churches in Spain Catholic? Historically, no—not always, and not entirely.

Today, this Spanish cathedral still hosts Mass beneath horseshoe arches originally meant for prayer in Arabic. Its mihrab—a niche that once indicated the direction of Mecca—remains intact, richly adorned with gold mosaic. In quieter corners, remnants of Kufic script and Arabic epigraphy survive, half-hidden among Christian carvings and Gothic vaults.

At 23,400 square meters (252,900 square feet), the Mezquita-Catedral is one of the largest religious buildings in the world. But its grandeur isn’t measured in square meters alone. It’s the tension—delicate, unresolved—between traditions, faiths, and eras that makes it one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain. Not despite its contradictions, but because of them.

8.    Ávila Cathedral – Where Stone Defends the Sacred

At first glance, Ávila Cathedral resembles a fortress more than a church. Its granite walls rise directly from the medieval ramparts, as if grown from the city itself. Among all cathedrals in Spain, this one blurs the line between sanctuary and stronghold—equal parts prayer and protection.

Its construction began in the 12th century, when Castile’s frontiers were still uncertain. Built into Ávila’s defensive walls, the cathedral served both sacred and strategic roles. It answers an often-asked question: Why does every city in Spain have a cathedral? Because in medieval times, a cathedral wasn’t just a seat of worship—it was a declaration of presence and power.

Ávila’s cathedral marks a pivotal shift in architectural history. Often cited as the first Gothic cathedral in Spain, it retains Romanesque traits—thick walls, narrow windows, semicircular apses—that speak to its transitional roots. Inside, the light filters slowly, casting soft shadows across stone altars and ironwork. Chapels dedicated to Saint Teresa, born nearby in 1515, still hold the aura of her quiet defiance and mystic resolve.

Look closer. Scratched into the choir stalls or sacristy walls are crude etchings left by stonecutters and choirboys—graffiti from centuries ago. Simple. Human. Unscripted.

9.    Barcelona Cathedral – Catalonia’s Gothic Heartbeat

In the heart of Barcelona’s tangled Gothic Quarter, narrow alleys suddenly open onto a quiet square where stone spires rise like prayers. This is the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulàlia—though locals call it La Seu, short for la seu episcopal (the bishop’s seat). Among all cathedrals in Spain, few are as intimately tied to the pulse of their city.

Construction began in 1298 over the ruins of a Roman temple and a Visigothic church. The project spanned more than 150 years. Dedicated to Saint Eulàlia—Barcelona’s young martyr—the cathedral shelters her remains beneath the high altar. Legend tells us she was only thirteen when martyred by Roman officials, exposed in the public square, until a sudden snowfall veiled her. In the cloister, thirteen white geese still pace in her honor—one for each year of her short life.

Gothic in form but deeply Catalan in soul, the cathedral’s soaring vaults, gargoyles, and flying buttresses echo the grandeur of other Spanish cathedrals. Yet, La Seu feels closer to the street. It hums with everyday footsteps and city breath. The grand neo-Gothic facade, completed in the 19th century, belies the quiet intimacy of its chapels and shadowed corners.

From its rooftop, Barcelona unfolds: Roman walls, medieval watchtowers, modernist rooftops—all in one frame. Few notice the hidden frescoes or crumbling saints tucked below, their details fading, yet still present.

10. Salamanca’s New Cathedral – Where Cathedrals in Spain Keep the Old Beside the New

Few cathedrals in Spain embody the passing of time quite like Salamanca’s. Here, two cathedrals—one Romanesque, the other late Gothic—stand not in opposition, but in quiet dialogue. The Old Cathedral, begun in the early 12th century, is one of the oldest Spanish cathedrals still intact. Rather than demolish it, as many cities did when architectural tastes changed, Salamanca chose to preserve it. By the 16th century, when wealth from the Americas flooded Castile and artistic ambition swelled with imperial pride, the New Cathedral rose beside it—layered with Gothic vaults, Plateresque ornament, and early Baroque flair.

This rare decision—to build rather than replace—was not born of constraint but of reverence. It speaks to Salamanca’s identity as a city of scholars, where memory holds weight. The Old Cathedral remains intimate and austere, with frescoes from the Romanesque apse still faintly visible. Its domed Torre del Gallo peeks modestly beside the towering structure next door.

Inside the New Cathedral, light pours through stained glass into a forest of slender columns. Vaulted ceilings, gilded retablos, and carved choir stalls reflect the craftsmanship of generations. And nestled into a portal—added during 1990s restorations—is a small, now-famous astronaut. A playful 20th-century addition, it reminds visitors that even sacred spaces evolve.

Looking Beyond the Façade of the Most Beautiful Cathedrals in Spain

As the sun sets behind León’s rose window or warms the honey-colored walls of Salamanca, you might find yourself recalling that first quiet question: Why so many cathedrals in Spain? By now, the answer is clearer. These sacred spaces are more than monuments. They are memory keepers—shaped by Visigoths, caliphs, kings, and anonymous hands working centuries apart, yet toward the same upward gaze.

Through their stained glass and stone vaults, Spanish cathedrals invite us not just to look, but to linger. From Seville’s grandeur to Ávila’s austerity, from Santiago’s pilgrims to Córdoba’s echoing arches, each cathedral offers a different rhythm, a different truth. Together, they reveal a nation stitched together by light, faith, and silence—sometimes in harmony, sometimes in tension.

So, when you visit one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Spain, pause a little longer. Trace the chisel marks in the choir, climb the stairs no one else does, stand where a monk once stood at dawn. Because in cathedrals in Spain, not all stories are written in guidebooks—and some are only told if you’re willing to listen.