Free Tours and Demonstrations

Cathedral Floor Tours

Daily tours available on request  (subject to availability)

We have over 250 knowledgeable volunteer guides who will welcome you and help you get the most from your visit. If there are enough guides available, you might even get your own private tour! Alternatively, you can explore at your own pace using one of our free family-friendly guide maps or our fun Cathedral trail for younger children.

Medieval Clock demonstration: marking the centuries

Mondays – Fridays after prayers at 11:05 in the North Nave Aisle
Saturdays at 10:30 in the North Nave Aisle

Make sure you join us in time to see, and hear, the world’s oldest working mechanical clock in action.  Made in 1386 or earlier, it is mounted in an iron frame and has no dial!  In the past the clock struck a bell to remind the priests to pray.

Today the clock still measures the day with a steady tick but can now be seen at ground level in the Cathedral rather than in the tower.  It is wound up every day and has ticked over 5 billion times.  Come and watch while the mechanism is unlocked allowing the clock to strike a bell as it first did over 600 years ago.

Stained Glass Window Tours

Mondays at 12:00 and Sundays at 14:00, subject to availability – please check the What’s On calendar for the date of your visit.
Meet at the tour start point at the West end of the Cathedral, no booking required.

Discover the rich history of our beautiful stained glass windows. The tour sheds new light on the Cathedral’s history and its community, from the scandal of the medieval glass abandoned in a ditch during the late 1700s, to windows commemorating wars, suffrage and even a Cathedral cat. Tours last approximately one hour.

Meet the Stonemasons

Tuesdays 10:30-12:30

Meet the experts who maintain and restore our Cathedral using tools and techniques that haven’t changed for hundreds of years. We welcome you to ask questions to find out more about life as a Salisbury Cathedral stonemason.

Opus Anglicanum Demo

Mondays between 13.30 -16.30

Try some medieval embroidery! Our sewing volunteers are taking part in a major project to produce an original textile called ‘The Circle of Life’ and you can add your own stitch to our Visitor’s Frame. They are using a famous style of English needlework called ‘Opus Anglicanum’, dating back to the 13th century.

‘The Circle of Life’ records the 400th anniversary of The Worshipful Company of Upholders and is supported by the Royal School of Needlework. Over the following year, teams from twelve Cathedrals and one prison will create their own panels, designed by artist Aidan Hart. Together, the panels will form a large circular artwork that will go on display around the country.

The Opus Anglicanum embroidery project is sponsored by the Worshipful Company of Upholders, a City of London Livery Company.

Stories from the Archive

Thursdays and Saturdays at 14.15

The talk will not be running on Saturday 4 October, Thursday 9 October and Saturday 11 October.

A 10-15 minute talk showcasing a selection of fascinating items from the Cathedral’s Archive.