Guided Tour of Chartres Cathedral (France): Travel Diary

After a few days in Paris, S. and I have to part ways. She goes home, while I continue my mini road trip. Right on Whit Monday, I find myself in Chartres.

Part 1: Travel Journal
Part 2: Practical Tips

Part 1: Travel Journal

I’m glad I didn’t arrive too early because it’s impossible to reach my hotel. A giant mass is taking place around Chartres Cathedral and all roads are blocked, even for pedestrians. I arrive just as the mass ends and slip through the crowd to get to my hotel.

Getting lost in the crowd, I realize I’m in the right place at the right time: I’m right in front of the cathedral entrance, and a forest of flags is coming out of the cathedral.

A pilgrimage between Paris and Chartres takes place on May 27, 28, and 29, 2023. So I found myself, unknowingly, in Chartres on May 29. It was a scorching weekend; you could see the pilgrims really struggled: they’re all dirty, sweaty, skin reddened by the sun. Even the organizers were surprised by the number of participants and the amount of water needed over the weekend. The next day, all local newspapers ran headlines like “Record participation at Chartres pilgrimage 2023” or something like that. Chartres is one of the important pilgrimage sites thanks to the relic kept there.

The relic formerly known as the ” chemise ” and now called the Veil of the Virgin was given to the Church of Chartres around 876 by Charles the Bald. Its fame contributed to the growth of the pilgrimage. It was said that she had worn this garment on the day of Christ’s birth. Chartres thus became the place above all to pray the Incarnation – the coming of God to Earth. Great saints have come here, among the crowd of the anonymous: Saint Vincent de Paul, Saint Francis de Sales, the parents of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Saint John Paul II…

I know absolutely nothing about it, but seeing so much faith moves me deeply. Especially when the flags come out by the hundreds, all those who had the privilege of being inside the cathedral were so proud.

At one point, everyone kneels down and I’m sort of forced to do the same. I film the scene to ask JB what’s going on, and he explains that it’s a bishop making a hand gesture to bless the crowd. There must be several bishops because we knelt many times; apparently there are some relics brought from who knows where. All the while, the bells ring non-stop. Truly, it’s a very moving, very beautiful spectacle.

I had to wait until the last flag came out before I could finally walk to my hotel.

My hotel

My hotel is also very beautiful and looks like a monastery. Hôtellerie Saint-Yves, 72€/night, Booking link

I have a simple room overlooking a replica of the Chartres labyrinth (currently closed). There are too many people in the center, so I don’t go out tonight and make do with the leftover food in my bag.

The next day, I get up early and stroll around the cathedral. There are still some pilgrims in town. Some must have come from far away because they speak a language I don’t recognize. I wander through the center, discovering the little streets I already discovered years ago. JB and I came here one weekend before, but I admit I don’t recognize anything except the cathedral. Chartres has always attracted me since I learned there’s a stained glass center where you can learn to make real cathedral stained glass.

That’s exactly the place I want to go. I run into the teacher and her students doing so-called “Tiffany” stained glass. I ask questions about the traditional lead stained glass workshop, and she shows me some pieces made by students in a week. That’s it, I sign up for the workshop and will come back another time to attend it.

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There are no tourist attractions per se, but the city center is very very cute, as are the little houses. The shops are all closed between noon and two, so the only possible activity is going to a restaurant. I sit on a terrace at La Table du Marché and simply watch life go by. To my left, a shopkeeper calls his clients to negotiate a contract, a man comes by to book dinner for 20 and gets turned away by all the restaurateurs, another shopkeeper arrives and complains about the heat… It’s peaceful. I enjoy my duck breast. When was the last time I had duck breast? I can’t remember. In any case, inflation has definitely reached here. 22€ for the dish.

Guided tour of Chartres Cathedral

At 2 PM, I go to the cathedral and buy a combo ticket for the crypt and cathedral tour. It’s the same guide for both tours.

The crypt tour is interesting but not essential. It helps you understand the successive constructions on the site, why from the outside, on the side, you see different types of architecture, why the stained glass is so different, etc. Most notably, you find 60cm of the Veil of the Virgin Mary there. Yes, it’s the cathedral’s relic; before, it was several meters long, but it was partially destroyed, and there’s about 1.5m in the cathedral itself and 60cm kept in the crypt.

The cathedral tour lasts longer; I think we spent a good 2 hours with the guide, including 30 minutes just looking at the entrance and its beautiful statues. You really need a guide to see and appreciate all those little details. The guide tells us that Chartres Cathedral is the one containing the most symbols.

Many stained glass windows depict the Tree of Jesse. The windows are not symmetrical; for example, you’ll find square shapes on one side and round shapes on the other, simply to represent balance. Fortunately, the windows were well preserved during the war, even though it took a long time to take them down and hide them. If you have binoculars, bring them along to see the details better.

We’re lucky the central doors are open today. The cathedral would have been darker otherwise.

The work carried out over several years has thoroughly cleaned the stained glass, and now we get a clean, bright cathedral. The details are stunning. There’s still a section to renovate, including the library at the back and a rosette, but it’s already really beautiful.

I think it’s a shame that Chartres’ huge labyrinth is hidden by chairs. It’s open for meditative walks every Friday from 10:00 AM to 4:45 PM, from Lent (depending on the year: between February 20 and March 20) to All Saints’ Day (November 1st).

The guide explains how symbolic this labyrinth is. You can tell she’s someone who has lived a lot because her explanations go straight to the heart; whether you’re a believer or not, there are universal truths that transcend religions and beliefs. When you enter the labyrinth, you’re very, very close to the flower (the final destination), and you overestimate yourself, a bit like the Dunning-Kruger effect. And you keep going, and going… until a point where you’re super super close to the entrance. You feel like you’ve made all this effort, walked all this path for nothing, only to come back exactly to the starting point. But that’s not the case, because you just need to move forward a tiny bit and you’ll reach the center, the flower.

The labyrinth of Chartres represents the path to awakening, but also the path of life, which always rewards perseverance and constantly reminds us that life is like a cycle; there are ups and downs, but you have to keep moving forward because the goal is just a few meters away.

I’ll include the official text from the cathedral here:

The labyrinth ispath: it invites you to be a ‘pilgrim’. Neither a magic sign, nor a physical phenomenon, the only energies you find there are those that inhabit the men and women who walk it – ready to be ‘touched’ by the grace of the moment. Its purpose? To intelligently lead to an authentic meditation – experienced both in body and mind. Those who choose to walk can open up, step by step, to what surpasses them.Along the path, evocative of human existence– long, eventful, demanding – he advances with confidence towards his reconciliation. He thus rediscovers the meaning of his existence:the Wholly Other awaits him–definitively.

We then visit the choir, and the restorers have done excellent work; everything is IMPECCABLE.

Next, you can glimpse Mary’s veil; it’s a bit dark, but light would have damaged the relic.

After the guided tour, I stay in the cathedral for a while. I’ve always loved cathedrals, and cities with a beautiful cathedral (Rouen, Reims, Chartres, Amiens, Strasbourg).

I really really enjoyed this visit and highly recommend taking the guided tour to learn more about this magnificent place. It’s time for me to head to Rouen.

Part 2: Practical Tips

Practical info

• Lodging: Hôtellerie Saint-Yves, 72€/night, Booking link
• Transport: Paris Montparnasse – Chartres: TER, one train per hour, €18.4, journey time 1h04
• Restaurant: La Table du Marché, about €22/dish
• Cathedral:
  • 2 PM: crypt visit
  • 3 PM: cathedral visit
  • The shop on the left is where you buy tickets for public tours and is the meeting point for these tours.
• International Center for Stained Glass in Chartres: stained glass workshops all year round