Game of Thrones in Girona: Filming Locations in the Old Town

What Game of Thrones filmed in Girona

The production used Girona for series six, and the city appears on screen as three distinct places. King's Landing takes the Cathedral of Santa Maria and its stairway for the Great Sept of Baelor, while the monastery of Sant Pere de Galligants supplies the library of Oldtown. Braavos claims the largest share: the lanes around the cathedral, the Passeig Arqueològic, the Plaça dels Jurats and the Pujada de Sant Domènec all appear as the city where Arya Stark trained and begged.

The scenes are tied to specific characters, which is what makes the walk legible. Jaime Lannister rides up the cathedral steps to interrupt Margaery Tyrell's walk of shame, Arya watches a street play in the Plaça dels Jurats, and her flight from the Waif runs through the Jewish quarter and ends near the Arab Baths. Samwell Tarly's library ambitions were shot inside Sant Pere de Galligants.

Treat the claim as series six only: the shoot that brought the production to Girona was the sixth season. For the city beyond the series, the things to do in Girona guide covers the monuments that never appeared on screen.

How the locations fit together on foot

Everything sits within the old town, so a sensible order starts high and works downhill: the cathedral and its steps first, then the lanes behind it, the Passeig Arqueològic, the Plaça dels Jurats, the Pujada de Sant Domènec and the Escales de Sant Martí, before finishing at the Arab Baths and Sant Pere de Galligants. Walking this way keeps the steepest climb at the start, when legs are fresh.

The route crosses ground that has nothing to do with television and everything to do with the city's past. The upper town grew around the Força Vella, the original fortified core, and the medieval lanes below it hold one of Europe's best-preserved Jewish quarters, El Call. Read up on the Girona history if you want the medieval street plan to make sense as you go.

A printed or offline Girona map earns its place here: the Braavos lanes are narrow, they bend, and several locations are reached through passages rather than from the main squares. Mark the cathedral, Plaça dels Jurats, the Arab Baths and Sant Pere de Galligants before setting off, and the walk becomes a loop rather than a hunt.

The Cathedral of Santa Maria: the Great Sept of Baelor steps

The cathedral's baroque façade and the broad staircase leading up to the Plaça de la Catedral are the most instantly recognisable Game of Thrones location in Girona. The steps stand in for the Great Sept of Baelor, and the scene is Margaery Tyrell beginning her walk of shame while Jaime Lannister and his soldiers try to stop it. Almost nothing had to be added to make Girona read as King's Landing.

Two details reward a closer look. The staircases flanking the approach were dressed in reverse for the shoot, with the left side standing in for the right and vice versa, which is easy to miss unless you compare them. The south façade also carries La Bruixa de la Catedral, the human-shaped gargoyle of local legend, best seen from the Jardins de la Francesa.

This is also the most crowded point on the route, because every visitor to the old town passes it whether or not they care about the series. The stairs themselves are open to anyone, but the cathedral interior is a separate visit on its own terms. Come early if you want the steps clear.

Plaça dels Jurats: the Braavos theatre

The Plaça dels Jurats, a small enclosed square in the lower old town, became the theatre of Braavos where Arya watches a street performance recounting the fate of the Lannisters. It is one of the few filming stops whose real life matches the fiction: the square still hosts performances. Look for the arcaded walls and the tight proportions that made the producers choose it.

The square is free and open, so it fits into the walk without a booking or a ticket. It is small enough to be easily missed if you are following the shopping streets rather than the lanes; approach it from the cathedral side, where the modern Girona Centre Eix Comercial pulls attention away from the medieval grid.

Carrer del Bisbe Cartañà and the Passeig Arqueològic: the blind beggar and the market

Carrer del Bisbe Josep Cartañà, behind the cathedral, is where Arya appears as a blind beggar in the first episode of series six, seated on a flight of steps. The lane keeps its medieval, enclosed feel, which is exactly why it was chosen. From there the Passeig Arqueològic, running along the old walls, and Carrer Ferran el Catòlic serve as the noisy market of Braavos through which she pushes in search of a way out of the city.

This stretch doubles as the best introduction to the old town's fabric, since the walkway follows the line of the fortifications. If you only have time for one section of the route, take this one: the streets are free, close together, and show the medieval and Jewish heritage that earned Girona its reputation.

Pujada de Sant Domènec: Arya's flight through the stalls

The Pujada de Sant Domènec is the most cinematic of the Braavos locations: Arya sprints down the stepped street, vaulting and dodging through the market stalls after her pursuer. The slope and the stone steps give the scene its momentum without any dressing up. Walk down rather than up, and the scene plays out in front of you in the right direction.

The nearby Escales de Sant Martí, inside El Call, continue the chase: this is where Arya tries to escape the Waif and falls down the stairs. The Girona Jewish quarter around these steps is atmospheric in its own right, with narrow, shaded alleys that stay cool even in the middle of a Catalan summer. Treat the chase locations as an entry point to the quarter rather than a reason to rush through it.

The Arab Baths: Arya's hiding place

The Banys Àrabs, a short climb from the cathedral, served as Arya's hiding place while she recovered from her wounds before the final confrontation. Inside, the stone chambers and shafts of light make the connection obvious even without a screen grab. Check the current entry terms before you go, as the baths are a small interior rather than an open street.

Unlike the streets, this is an interior rather than a public lane, so treat it as a stop in its own right instead of something you can wander into between other sights. The baths are small, so a short visit is normal; confirm the current entry terms with the baths directly.

Sant Pere de Galligants: the Oldtown library and cloister

The monastery of Sant Pere de Galligants, by the Galligants stream on the edge of the old town, is the library of Oldtown where Samwell Tarly hopes to become a maester, and its cloister also appears in King's Landing scenes. The Romanesque building now houses the Museum of Archaeology of Catalonia, so the filming stop and the museum visit are the same ticket. That makes it the most efficient stop on the route for anyone who wants more than a photograph.

If you want to extend the museum side of the day, the museums in Girona guide covers the city's other collections, including the Museu d'Art de Girona. None of them are filming locations, but they fill the hours when the streets are busiest.

The Galligants bridge and the Onyar riverside

The Pont de Galligants, the bridge by the monastery, appears as the bridge of Braavos during Arya's flight. It is a short detour from the main route but a natural continuation after the museum stop. From there, the walk back towards the centre brings you to the Onyar, the river lined with the painted houses that supply Girona's most photographed view.

The iron Pont de les Peixateries Velles, known as the Eiffel bridge, crosses to the Casas del Onyar, the tall coloured façades reflected in the water. None of this was filmed for the series, but it closes the loop neatly and puts you back in the modern city. The Riu Onyar riverside walk is the least taxing part of the day.

Practical trade-offs for the walk

The route splits into streets and interiors. The cathedral steps, Plaça dels Jurats, Carrer del Bisbe Cartañà, the Passeig Arqueològic, the Pujada de Sant Domènec, the Escales de Sant Martí and the bridges are public ground and can be walked at any hour. The cathedral interior, the Arab Baths and Sant Pere de Galligants are separate admissions with their own arrangements, so check each one before building a day around it.

Crowds concentrate at the cathedral stairs, and groups tend to arrive through the morning. The lanes behind the cathedral and El Call absorb people far better, so schedule the tight, shaded streets for the busiest part of the day and the open steps for early or late. In summer, the stone streets hold the heat, and the climb to the cathedral is the steepest part of the route.

A guided Girona walking tour suits anyone who wants the scene-by-scene commentary without planning the order themselves, while the self-guided walk suits anyone who would rather stop for the museum and the baths. Both cover the same ground; the difference is pace and the amount of explanation at each stop.

A themed outdoor escape game through the locations

GamAgency runs an outdoor escape game in Girona built around the series, in which teams solve puzzles across the same old town locations while chasing a mission to save Westeros. The operator lists it in two versions, Clàssica at 89 EUR per group and Contactless at 69 EUR per group, each lasting two hours and designed for groups of two to six people. Extra players are priced at 15 EUR each, or 10 EUR in the Contactless version, and groups of ten or more are split into separate teams.

Book it as an alternative to the plain walk rather than an addition, since it occupies the same streets for a fixed two hours. The price is per group, which makes it better value the fuller the team; confirm the listed figures at the time of booking in case they change.

Which Game of Thrones route suits your day

Choose the self-guided walk if you want to combine filming locations with the cathedral, the Arab Baths and the archaeology museum at Sant Pere de Galligants, since the route passes all three and each is a separate paid interior. Choose the outdoor escape game if the group wants a timed challenge in the same streets and is happy to skip the interiors.

Either way, start at the cathedral steps, work downhill through the Braavos lanes to the Galligants bridge, and end along the Onyar. Confirm the cathedral, baths and museum arrangements on the day, and book the escape game ahead if that is the plan.