Citadelle de Namur tickets: what you pay for and what you do not
People arrive looking for the gate, and there is no gate. You can climb the Route Merveilleuse at seven in the morning in February and nobody will stop you or ask you for anything. The tickets on this page buy two things only: the parts of the fortress that are underground or indoors, and the ride that saves you the climb.
What each ticket costs
This is the one page on the site that prints figures, because a tariff is the kind of thing you want to see rather than read around. Everything in the table is the published individual-visitor rate.
| Ticket | Adult | Reduced |
|---|---|---|
| Underground galleries (the souterrains) | €14 | €12 |
| The Citadel in the Middle Ages | €14 | €10 |
| Tourist train | €6 | €5 |
| Visitor Center, audio-guided (Terra Nova) | €6 | €5 |
| Citadelle Pass, three visits | €22 | €20 |
| Citadelle Pass, four visits | €36 | €32 |
Published by the operator of the Citadelle de Namur at citadelle.namur.be. The reduced column covers children of six to eighteen, students and visitors of sixty-five and over; teachers and journalists are admitted free. This page is not the till, and a tariff can be revised between one season and the next, so check the figure on the operator’s own site on the day before you plan a budget around it.
The two passes, and exactly what is in them
The three-visit pass is an either/or, and that is the part people miss at the desk. It admits you to either the underground passages or the Citadel in the Middle Ages, and then adds the miniature train and the audio-guided visitor centre. The operator puts it at around three hours.
The four-visit pass removes the choice. It has the underground passages and the Citadel in the Middle Ages, plus the same train and the same visitor centre, and the operator puts it at about four and a half hours. Costed against the singles, the four-visit pass is the one that pays for itself if you were going to do both the tunnels and the medieval visit anyway.
Neither pass contains the cable car. That is worth repeating because the ride and the fortress feel like one attraction when you are standing at the bottom of the hill, and they are billed by two different operators.
Decide about the tunnels before you decide about a pass. If you want the souterrains and nothing else, the single ticket is the cheaper afternoon. If you want the souterrains and the medieval visit, only the four-visit pass has both, and it is the longer commitment of the two.
The cable car is a separate ticket
The téléphérique runs from the town up to the fortress and is operated by a different company from the citadel. You buy it at its own counter, at its own prices, and no Citadelle Pass covers it.
| Cable car fare | One way | Return |
|---|---|---|
| Adult, 18–64 | €5.50 | €8.00 |
| Senior, 65 and over | €4.00 | €6.50 |
| Youth or student, 6–17, and 18+ with a card | €4.00 | €6.00 |
| Child, 4–5 | €3.50 | €5.00 |
| Disabled visitor | €3.50 | €5.00 |
| Toddler, 0–3 | Free | Free |
| Article 27 social rate | €1.25 | €1.25 |
Published by Téléphérique de Namur, which runs it from ten in the morning until half past six. A ticket stays valid for thirty days from purchase, so a one-way bought on a Monday will still carry you up on the Wednesday. The ride itself is described on the cable car page. Same caution as above: fares are revised, so check the operator’s own page on the day.
What costs nothing
The operator’s own FAQ puts it more plainly than I could: “The Citadel is a large public park, where anyone can walk freely. Therefore, it can be visited anytime during the year at no cost.” The ramparts, the paths, the park itself, the view out over the valley: none of that is ticketed, and none of it closes when the desk does.
Leaving the car is free as well. The operator lists free parking in front of the Guy Delforge perfumery, along the Route Merveilleuse, at the Terra Nova Visitor’s Centre and on the Esplanade of the Citadel. Which of those you want depends on how you arrive, and that is covered on how to get there. The longer version of the free argument, including what you can see without paying for anything, is on what costs nothing here.
Children under six are admitted free to the ticketed attractions, and toddlers of three and under ride the cable car free. If you are planning the day around small legs, the Citadelle with children is the page for that.
When the desk is open
The ticketed attractions run daily from ten in the morning to six in the evening between the first of April and the first of November. From the second of November to the third of January they close an hour earlier, at five, and they shut on Mondays. The park does not close at all. The dates are set out on opening hours, and how much of a day the whole thing takes is on how long to spend up here.
None of this is bookable through this site
I would rather say it here than let you find out at the desk. Everything in the two tables above is sold by the citadel’s own operator and by the cable-car company, and there is no affiliate route to either. Nothing booked through the links on this site puts you inside the souterrains, into Terra Nova, on the medieval visit or in possession of a pass.
What is bookable is the guided day around the fortress, and two of the twelve tours listed here reach the Citadelle itself: the photo shoot, which climbs by cable car or on foot, and the private day trip from Brussels, whose inclusions name Namur and its citadel. Neither includes paid entry to anything ticketed.
Photo shootNamur: Photo shoot with a professional photographer
Namur includedFrom Brussels: Dinant and Namur Private Day Trip
The other ten, and what each one honestly does, are on every tour we list. If you want to know whether any of it is worth the money before you spend it, is it worth it is the page where I argue with myself about it.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to visit the Citadelle de Namur?
Walking the citadel costs nothing at all, at any time of year, and parking is free too. Paying starts underground: the souterrains and the Citadel in the Middle Ages are about fourteen euros each for an adult, the tourist train and the audio-guided visitor centre about six, and the two passes bundle them for roughly twenty-two or thirty-six. The exact figures are in the table above, and the free side is set out on what costs nothing here.
Is the cable car included in a Citadelle Pass?
No. The téléphérique is run by a different operator and sold as its own ticket, which stays valid for thirty days from purchase. Neither the three-visit nor the four-visit pass covers it, and the walk up the Route Merveilleuse is free if you would rather not pay twice. Fares and stations are on the cable car page.
What is the difference between the three-visit and four-visit pass?
The three-visit pass makes you choose: the underground passages or the Citadel in the Middle Ages, plus the miniature train and the audio-guided visitor centre, at around three hours. The four-visit pass gives you both instead of either, with the same train and visitor centre, at about four and a half hours. Neither includes the cable car. How that fits a day is on how long to spend up here.
Do children pay to get in?
Under-sixes are free at the citadel’s ticketed attractions, and toddlers of three and under travel free on the cable car. Between six and eighteen a child pays the reduced rate in the table above, as do students and visitors of sixty-five and over. Planning a day around them is covered on the Citadelle with children.
Can I buy Citadelle tickets through GetYourGuide?
No. The souterrains, Terra Nova, the Citadel in the Middle Ages and both passes are sold at the citadel’s own desk and there is no affiliate route to them. What you can book is a guided day, and only two of the twelve on every tour we list reach the fortress at all — neither with entry included. Read the souterrains page before deciding whether the tunnel ticket is for you.