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Holy Year 2027: the Holy Door opens on 31 December 2026 at midday

Checked online 5 November 2026

Opening of the Holy Door: Thursday 31 December 2026 at midday, in Santiago Cathedral. The exact time has not been published. The Archdiocese announced on 24 September 2026 that the opening is brought forward to midday; the Cathedral’s calendar gave 17:00. The Compostelan Holy Year 2027 begins with it.

2027 is a Compostelan Holy Year. It is one whenever 25 July falls on a Sunday. The Holy Door opens on Thursday 31 December 2026 at midday.

Praza do Obradoiro
Praza do Obradoiro · Photo: Stegop, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons (cropped)
—days until the Holy Door opens (31 December 2026, at midday)

If you are wondering whether the Holy Year changes anything for the Compostela, the answer is no. The Cathedral puts it like this: “it is possible to receive the Compostela without gaining the Jubilee”.

What is not yet known: the exact time of the opening. The Archdiocese has only said “midday”. I will change it here as soon as it is published.

To gain the Jubilee, according to the Cathedral: visit the Apostle’s Tomb in the Cathedral and say a prayer, go to confession (in the Cathedral or anywhere else, fifteen days before or after) and receive Communion.

You don’t have to arrive on foot: the Cathedral says the Jubilee can be gained “travelling by any means”.

You can’t go in with a backpack. The Cathedral says so itself. If you arrive with one, go to luggage storage first: where to leave your backpack.

Sources (every detail on this page comes from here):

Signed: David Sousa, from Teo (Santiago de Compostela). If something has changed and I don’t know yet, email me at [email protected].

Right now

Questions

What time does the Holy Door open on 31 December?

At midday. The Archdiocese of Santiago announced on 24 September 2026 that the opening is brought forward and has not published the exact time. The Cathedral’s calendar gave 17:00 when I read it on 21 October 2026.

Do you need to book for the opening of the Holy Door?

On its liturgy and pilgrimage pages, read on 21 October 2026, the Cathedral publishes no booking or ticket system for the opening. If it does, I will put it here.

Does it change anything for the Compostela?

No. The Cathedral says that “neither the Grace of the Jubilee nor the pilgrimage are, in themselves, linked to the Compostela”.

Why is 2027 a Holy Year?

Because 25 July 2027 falls on a Sunday. According to the Cathedral, it is a Holy Year when 25 July falls on a Sunday, every 11, 6, 5 and 6 years.

Spotted something wrong? Tell me

I read it myself and check the source before changing anything. Don’t include personal data.

What next?

See what’s still open at the time you arrive, or what you still have time to do: Santiago, now. If something else has come up: I have a problem.

Where to sleep? Albergues in Santiago de Compostela: public and private, with their phone and the ones closest to the gate you walk in through.

Let me know if this changes

If the opening hours, the location or the price on this page change, you’ll get an email. Just that. If nothing changes, I won’t write.

Only when something on this page changes. Signing up is free. So is unsubscribing.

What you need next

Pilgrim’s Mass9:30, 12:00 and 19:30 in San Agustín; 7:30 in the Cathedral.The CompostelaRúa Carretas 33, 10:00 to 19:00, with a QR ticket, and what they ask for.Where to leave your backpackCorreos €4/day, Quintana €3/day, 24 h lockers, with opening hours.Albergues by townPublic and private, with beds, phone and km.

Keep it on your phone like an app. No store and no download: an icon on your home screen. What you have already opened also works without signal.

Install on my phone