gross st. martin

The inside of the church was under renovation, so you will end entering and find nothing much. The outside is another story: beautiful building. The neighborhood is very nice too.

This church was partially destroyed during the war, but has been restored. It is a bit sparse in the inside but this is due to being put back together. There are interesting statues and a very large interior. It is worth a visit while in Cologne.

From outside it is quite impressive. From inside it is rather simple, but quite nice anyway. Strange that it is almost built-in in another buildings around, why they should do that?

As my review history may suggest I am an old church fan. Great St. Martin has a unique and beautiful exterior. That is about all I can say about it. The interior is basically gutted with a bare stone alter and a few folding chairs. The good friars in attendance do sing the liturgy of the hours throughout the day if that sort of thing interests you. You really should take a look at the outside, particularly from the river, but you can save yourself the trouble of finding the small entrance hidden towards the rear of one side as there is really nothing to see inside.

Situated in one of the most beautiful area of the old town,this church is far more impressive viewed from the outside.The inside part is rather plain,colorless,not very adorned.Badly damaged in WW II,almost totally destroyed,it was completely rebuilt and now is the second most beautiful church in Koln,in my opinion.When I visited it,around 9:30 in the morning,a nun was playing the flute,creating an very peaceful atmosphere.

When you just visited the Dom, this one is going to be a disappointment. Of course it is from a different category but nevertheless it was not one of churches I will remember. Skip it, there are far better places to go in Cologne.

What a beautiful church, shares the skyline with Cologne Cathedral (Dom). Very peaceful and well worth a visit. Visit coincided with Nuns and Brothers/Priests signing psalms, stayed longer than planned as so beautiful and ethereal, quite took my breath away.

Looks very impressive on the outside. Simple yet grand. Beneath the church there are the remains of Roman times, very impressive

The church is nice outside, but very little information is available, and what is does not come in English. We had to google it when we got back to the hotel to research the details. Very quiet, almost no one there.

This 13th C church in romanesque style looks very impressive on the outside but is rather sparsely decorated on the inside. There are archeological excavations below the floor from the Roman period which you can view for 0,50 euro.

It was very nice to be able to see the roman ruins underneath. Well preserved! The place in itself is majestic, the dome is impressive .

This church, another entry in the list of 12 Romanesque churches is a Cologne landmark, and the most dominant structure in the skyline next to the Cathedral. One will find the characteristic spire of G.S. Martin with its 4 corner towerlets a bit to the south of the Cathedral. While the church is relatively undecorated in the inside, owing to the war and other events, it is one of the major attractions. Unlike the Cathedral which is surrounded by and urban concrete desert, St. Martin lies in the middle of the (mostly reconstructed) and pleasant old town, with many pubs and restaurants many of them with outside catering nearby. The presbytery actually looks upon the Rhine promenade,

This is one of the buildings I really love in Cologne. Never got the chance to go inside when I was living there in the late 1970s as it was still being reconstructed. But I have to say that it is not that big of a tourist attraction. If you are looking to see what a Cologne romanesque church really looked like, go see St Maria Lyskirchen, which got through the war without a scratch. That cannot be said for Gross St Martin. It was heavily damaged. The restoration is pretty good, architecturally, but the interior decorations and paintings are long gone. There are Roman ruins under the main hall which are interesting to visit (small charge) and I do recommend doing that if you go. Currently the church is run by a small community of priests, and it is not always open (especially during August when the community goes on vacation). Recommended if you are walking by the entrance and have a few minutes to spare. Other churches are more worth a special trip.

Simple yet grand. The Great St Martin Church was particularly interesting especially with its history of rebuilding and the ruins of the Roman Chapel. I stood in amazement of the restoration work.

Great St.Martin Church (Gross Sankt Martin) is a Romanesque Catholique Church with great history. Initially at the same place there was a Roman palaestra then it turned to a warehouse and after a while a Roman Chapel was built here (960 A.D.). On the remnants of this Chapel this church was built. The current buildings date from 1150-1250. Founded by Bruno the Great (953-965) it was a Benedictine Abbey for most of its history with Irish monks coming to settle down here until the local monks decided to take the responsibility of the Abbey. As of 2009 the Church is being used by a Branch of the Monastic Fraternities of Jerusalem. The first thing you see approaching Cologne, either by train or ship, is the Dom and St.Martin. Very simple and quiet, it gives you a break away from the innumerable tourists of the Cathedral. A short walk from the Railway Station and the Cathedral too, very close to Cologne's old part.