Tintern Abbey

Notice to visitors

The abbey church is currently undergoing a programme of conservation and repair work to ensure the continued preservation of the monument. This could affect your visit as we need to restrict access to some areas due to health and safety concerns.

Thank you for your patience and support.

The Cadw team.
To read more about the Abbey's history and the conservation programme, please go to the History page.
The appeal of this exceptional Cistercian abbey remains as enduring as ever

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An area of outstanding beauty complemented by this outstanding beauty in stone. If only the walls could talk! The chants of countless monks echo through the masonry here. Despite the shell of this grand structure being open to the skies, it remains the best-preserved medieval abbey in Wales. Although the abbey church was rebuilt under the patronage of Roger Bigod, lord of nearby Chepstow Castle, in the late 13th century, the monastery retains its original design.

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Tintern was only the second Cistercian foundation in Britain, and the first in Wales. The present-day remains are a mixture of building works covering a 400-year period between 1131 and 1536. Very little remains of the first buildings but you will marvel at the vast windows and later decorative details displayed in the walls, doorways and soaring archways.

The lands of the abbey were divided into agricultural units or granges, worked on by lay brothers.

On September 3, 1536 Abbot Wyche surrendered Tintern Abbey to King Henry VIII’s officials and ended a way of life which had lasted 400 years.

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There’s a lot still going on at Tintern Abbey 500 years on! A major two-year programme of conservation work has been completed on the iconic 13th-century west front – one of the great glories of Gothic architecture in Britain. The statue of Our Lady of Tintern is installed in the south aisle of the abbey for all to see.
Opening times
1 March - 30 June
Daily 9.30am - 5.00pm
1 July - 31 August
Daily 9.30am - 6.00pm
1 September - 31 October
Daily 9.30am - 5.00pm
1 November - 28 February
Daily 10.00am - 4.00pm
Please note: during extreme weather conditions we may need to close monuments at short notice, please check our social media channels before visiting to ensure the site is open and safe to visit.
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January
At all times the last admission is 30 minutes before closing.
Admission prices
Member Free
Adult £8.70
Family* £28.20
Juniors (Aged 5-17) £6.10
Seniors (Aged 65+) £8.10
NUS £6.10 (valid student ID must be shown)

*Admits 2 adults and up to 3 children
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