Booking choice: The patios and garden ticket, from $10 per person. Check dates Tour details
People often mix them up. The Palacio de Viana is a palace museum with a ticket and regular hours. The Festival de los Patios is a city competition in early May, when dozens of family patios, mostly in the old quarters, open for free.
The festival is on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage since 2012. The palace is open on every day except Mondays.
The quick answer
The Viana Palace is open year-round (closed Mondays) and costs €8.50 for 12 patios. The 2026 Patios Festival ran from 4 to 17 May, free, 11:00 to 14:00 and 18:00 to 22:00, with queues at each patio. In May you can do both; the rest of the year, pair the palace with a San Basilio patio tour.
Is the Viana Palace part of the Patios Festival?
No. The palace is a separate, ticketed museum open all year, though it does take part in the festival out of competition.
In the 2026 festival list the palace appeared outside the competition, with its Patio de la Cancela. That doesn't change its ticket: the 12 patios still cost €8.50 on a normal day. In 2024 it held an open day during the festival, so it pays to check the official site in early May.
When is the Córdoba Patios Festival in 2026?
It ran from 4 to 17 May 2026, both days included, with patios open 11:00 to 14:00 and 18:00 to 22:00.
The dates and hours are in the city's official 2026 competition rules. On the last Sunday patios close at 20:30. The festival always falls in the first half of May; the 2027 dates are usually published early in the year.
Visiting outside May? The palace patios are open year-round, and the ticket cancels free.
Check dates for the patios and garden ticketIs the Patios Festival free?
Yes. Entry to the festival patios is free and needs no booking: you go to the patio and join the queue.
The festival's official site says exactly that. In 2026, 53 patios competed and 11 more opened outside the competition, spread over five routes: Santa Marina-San Agustín, San Lorenzo, San Pedro-Santiago, Judería-San Francisco and San Basilio.
How do the palace and the festival compare?
The palace gives you more patios with less queuing; the festival gives you real family homes, for free, in a short window.
| Viana Palace | Patios Festival | |
|---|---|---|
| When | All year, closed Mondays | 4 to 17 May 2026 |
| Hours | 10:00 to 19:00 (Sun 10:00 to 15:00); summer 9:00 to 15:00 | 11:00 to 14:00 and 18:00 to 22:00 |
| Cost | €8.50 patios, €14 with the interior | Free |
| Booking | Optional, mobile ticket online | None, queue at each patio |
| Patios | 12 plus a garden, in one place | Dozens of private homes, spread out |
| Crowds | Busy in spring, calm on weekday mornings | Queues at the popular patios |
| Photos | Allowed in the patios | Allowed, keep moving in the queue |
How bad are the festival crowds?
Expect queues at the best-known patios, mostly in San Basilio and on weekends.
The patios are small homes, so only a few people fit at a time. Go at 11:00 sharp or after 20:00, and start with the less famous routes. When the queues wear you down, the palace sits right on the Santa Marina-San Agustín route and has room to breathe. Best times to visit the palace has more on beating the crowds.
Can you see San Basilio patios outside May?
Yes, on a guided patio tour that includes the entry to patios that open for visits all year.
Several tours run every month, with the patio tickets in the price. The authentic patios tour takes you into five private patios, and during the festival it switches to patios in San Francisco and Santiago. Compare them all in Córdoba patio tours compared.
Want to meet the people who tend the pots? Five private patios in two hours, tickets included.
Explore the authentic patios tour Tour detailsCan you do both in one trip?
Yes, in May: festival patios in the morning and evening, the palace in the afternoon gap.
The festival patios close from 14:00 to 18:00. The palace stays open until 19:00 from Tuesday to Saturday, which makes it the obvious place to spend that afternoon gap. On Sundays it closes at 15:00, and on Mondays it is shut.
Fitting the palace into a festival day? The patios ticket is valid for the date you pick.
Check dates for the patios and garden ticketWhich should you choose?
Outside early May, the palace, easily. During the festival, do both if you can; if you only have one afternoon, pick the palace.
- Visiting from June to April: the palace, plus a San Basilio patio tour.
- In Córdoba during the festival: festival patios mornings and evenings, the palace in the afternoon.
- Hate queues: the palace on a weekday morning.
- Want to talk to patio owners: the festival, or the authentic patios tour.
- Tight budget: the festival is free.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Viana Palace free during the Patios Festival?
Not as a rule. The palace has held a festival open day before (8 May 2024), so check its website in early May.
Are the Córdoba patios open outside May?
The Viana Palace patios are open all year. Private patios mostly open in May, though guided tours visit some San Basilio patios year-round.
Do you need tickets for the Patios Festival?
No. Festival patios are free and you just queue at the door.
Ready to book
Choose your visit
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on every option. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
Viana Palace Patios & Gardens Ticket
- Entry to the 12 patios and the garden
- Self-guided, at your own pace (allow 1 to 1.5 hours)
- Mobile ticket, ready on your phone right after booking
Authentic Patios: 2-Hour Tour with Tickets
Five private patios and the people who tend them
