How to build Golden Gate Bridge in Minecraft

San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge in International Orange, stretched 217 blocks between two rocky headlands. Two Art Deco towers with stepped tops and stacked portal openings carry the main cables, which sag in true parabolic curves from the anchorages over the towers down to mid-span. Suspender cables drop every two blocks to a truss-stiffened deck with six lanes of traffic, while a sailboat sits on the blue water of the strait below and Fort Point hides under the southern approach.

Open the interactive 3D plan above to build it one layer at a time: every layer has a numbered top-down plan, a block list and full-screen step-by-step instructions you can tick off as you go. You can also download it for Litematica, WorldEdit or Minecraft Bedrock, or view it in your room in AR.

Materials list

BlockAmountStacks
Water5,88992 stacks + 1
Light Gray Concrete4,34467 stacks + 56
Orange Concrete3,69057 stacks + 42
Gray Concrete2,62441 stacks
Grass Block2,56640 stacks + 6
Stone2,41637 stacks + 48
Orange Terracotta2,27535 stacks + 35
Orange Stained Glass Pane2,17834 stacks + 2
Red Terracotta6009 stacks + 24
Andesite5969 stacks + 20
Bricks5708 stacks + 58
Blue Concrete3375 stacks + 17
Spruce Leaves3325 stacks + 12
White Concrete2423 stacks + 50
Yellow Concrete2203 stacks + 28
Sand1742 stacks + 46
Gravel1642 stacks + 36
Brick Slab721 stack + 8
Brick Wall38
Lantern38
White Wool28
Spruce Log23
Black Concrete21
Light Blue Stained Glass12
Red Concrete11
Oak Fence9
Orange Stained Glass8
Red Wool8
Redstone Lamp (lit)4
Cyan Concrete3
Lime Concrete3
Oak Slab3

Building tips

  1. Start with the two towers, then plot the cable before anything else. On the main span the cable height is 15 + 30 × (distance from centre ÷ 50)², rounded: it drops fast near the towers and flattens out near the middle.
  2. Make sure each cable step joins the one before it. Where the curve drops more than one block between columns, fill the gap vertically so there are no holes in the line.
  3. Hang a suspender every second block from the cable down to the deck railing. Stained glass panes read as thin cables from a distance; solid blocks make the span look like a wall.
  4. The towers narrow in three steps (7, 5 then 3 blocks wide). Put the cross struts at the same heights on both towers and the portal openings between them will line up perfectly when you look down the road.
  5. Use orange concrete for the main steel and orange or red terracotta for the truss and recessed panels. The two shades give the bridge depth without breaking the International Orange look.
  6. Build the deck truss as a zigzag: a vertical every 4 blocks with diagonals between, leaving the gaps open so light shows through like on the real bridge.
  7. Shape the headlands with steep stone cliffs at the water and grass on top. The Marin side (east here) should rise higher than the San Francisco side.

Step-by-step: all 47 layers

  1. Layer 1 Water ×5889, Light Gray Concrete ×506, Blue Concrete ×334, Gray Concrete ×272, Gravel ×78, Andesite ×19, Sand ×16
  2. Layer 2 Light Gray Concrete ×634, Sand ×158, Gray Concrete ×144, Gravel ×86, Andesite ×27, White Concrete ×18
  3. Layer 3 Light Gray Concrete ×634, Bricks ×110, Stone ×84, Grass Block ×45, Andesite ×24, Oak Slab ×3, Oak Fence ×1
  4. Layer 4 Light Gray Concrete ×634, Bricks ×101, Stone ×95, Grass Block ×32, Andesite ×19, Black Concrete ×9, White Wool ×7, Oak Fence ×1
  5. Layer 5 Gray Concrete ×128, Bricks ×110, Stone ×97, Orange Concrete ×60, Grass Block ×39, Red Terracotta ×24, Andesite ×16, White Wool ×4, Red Wool ×3, Oak Fence ×1
  6. Layer 6 Light Gray Concrete ×128, Bricks ×101, Stone ×87, Orange Concrete ×60, Grass Block ×51, Red Terracotta ×24, Andesite ×18, Black Concrete ×9, White Wool ×6, Oak Fence ×1
  7. Layer 7 Orange Concrete ×146, Light Gray Concrete ×128, Bricks ×110, Stone ×85, Red Terracotta ×64, Grass Block ×52, Andesite ×20, Red Wool ×3, White Wool ×3, Oak Fence ×1
  8. Layer 8 Orange Concrete ×190, Light Gray Concrete ×128, Stone ×86, Brick Slab ×72, Grass Block ×62, Bricks ×38, Red Terracotta ×24, Andesite ×19, White Wool ×4, Oak Fence ×1
  9. Layer 9 Orange Concrete ×190, Gray Concrete ×128, Stone ×80, Grass Block ×53, Brick Wall ×38, Andesite ×24, Red Terracotta ×24, Red Wool ×2, White Wool ×2, Oak Fence ×1
  10. Layer 10 Orange Terracotta ×130, Light Gray Concrete ×128, Stone ×75, Grass Block ×61, Orange Concrete ×60, Andesite ×25, Red Terracotta ×24, Oak Fence ×1, White Wool ×1
  11. Layer 11 Orange Terracotta ×1121, Light Gray Concrete ×120, Stone ×68, Orange Concrete ×60, Grass Block ×58, Red Terracotta ×24, Andesite ×18, Oak Fence ×1, White Wool ×1
  12. Layer 12 Orange Terracotta ×206, Light Gray Concrete ×120, Stone ×74, Grass Block ×71, Orange Concrete ×60, Red Terracotta ×24, Andesite ×19
  13. Layer 13 Grass Block ×603, Light Gray Concrete ×510, Orange Terracotta ×302, Stone ×104, Orange Concrete ×84, Andesite ×22
  14. Layer 14 Gray Concrete ×1952, Orange Concrete ×490, Light Gray Concrete ×474, White Concrete ×218, Yellow Concrete ×217, Stone ×122, Grass Block ×43, Andesite ×28
  15. Layer 15 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×406, Stone ×122, Orange Concrete ×98, Light Gray Concrete ×40, Grass Block ×39, Andesite ×29, Red Terracotta ×24, Red Concrete ×9, White Concrete ×6, Black Concrete ×3, Blue Concrete ×3, Cyan Concrete ×3, Lime Concrete ×3, Yellow Concrete ×3, Spruce Log ×1
  16. Layer 16 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×144, Stone ×123, Orange Concrete ×86, Grass Block ×45, Light Gray Concrete ×40, Lantern ×38, Andesite ×30, Spruce Leaves ×21, Red Terracotta ×16, Light Blue Stained Glass ×12, Red Concrete ×2, Spruce Log ×1
  17. Layer 17 Grass Block ×596, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×136, Stone ×109, Orange Concrete ×80, Light Gray Concrete ×40, Spruce Leaves ×21, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×15, Spruce Log ×1
  18. Layer 18 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×128, Orange Concrete ×76, Stone ×60, Light Gray Concrete ×40, Grass Block ×20, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×14, Spruce Leaves ×6, Spruce Log ×5
  19. Layer 19 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×120, Orange Concrete ×80, Stone ×61, Light Gray Concrete ×40, Grass Block ×19, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×13, Spruce Leaves ×7, Spruce Log ×5
  20. Layer 20 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×112, Spruce Leaves ×104, Orange Concrete ×76, Stone ×65, Grass Block ×18, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×15, Spruce Log ×5
  21. Layer 21 Spruce Leaves ×109, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×104, Orange Concrete ×76, Stone ×63, Grass Block ×19, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×15, Spruce Log ×5
  22. Layer 22 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×100, Orange Concrete ×72, Stone ×62, Spruce Leaves ×31, Grass Block ×20, Red Terracotta ×16, Andesite ×14
  23. Layer 23 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×92, Orange Terracotta ×76, Stone ×62, Spruce Leaves ×33, Grass Block ×15, Andesite ×13, Orange Concrete ×12
  24. Layer 24 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×84, Stone ×58, Orange Concrete ×56, Grass Block ×21, Andesite ×15, Red Terracotta ×8
  25. Layer 25 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×80, Orange Concrete ×64, Stone ×55, Andesite ×17, Grass Block ×17
  26. Layer 26 Orange Concrete ×150, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×76, Stone ×55, Red Terracotta ×40, Grass Block ×18, Andesite ×16
  27. Layer 27 Orange Concrete ×182, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×68, Stone ×57, Grass Block ×16, Andesite ×11, Red Terracotta ×8
  28. Layer 28 Orange Terracotta ×130, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×64, Stone ×58, Orange Concrete ×56, Grass Block ×22, Andesite ×10, Red Terracotta ×8
  29. Layer 29 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×60, Stone ×55, Orange Concrete ×52, Grass Block ×17, Andesite ×11, Red Terracotta ×8
  30. Layer 30 Orange Stained Glass Pane ×56, Orange Concrete ×52, Stone ×52, Grass Block ×20, Andesite ×13, Red Terracotta ×8
  31. Layer 31 Grass Block ×234, Orange Concrete ×52, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×52, Stone ×41, Andesite ×8, Red Terracotta ×8
  32. Layer 32 Orange Concrete ×56, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×48, Stone ×26, Grass Block ×9, Red Terracotta ×8, Andesite ×7
  33. Layer 33 Orange Concrete ×52, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×40, Stone ×29, Red Terracotta ×8, Grass Block ×6, Andesite ×4
  34. Layer 34 Orange Concrete ×138, Red Terracotta ×48, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×40, Stone ×27, Grass Block ×11, Andesite ×6
  35. Layer 35 Orange Concrete ×182, Stone ×38, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×32, Grass Block ×22, Red Terracotta ×8, Andesite ×4
  36. Layer 36 Orange Terracotta ×182, Grass Block ×44, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×32, Stone ×28, Orange Concrete ×8, Andesite ×6
  37. Layer 37 Orange Concrete ×44, Grass Block ×43, Stone ×27, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×24, Andesite ×5
  38. Layer 38 Grass Block ×48, Orange Concrete ×44, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×24, Stone ×15, Andesite ×5
  39. Layer 39 Grass Block ×36, Orange Concrete ×36, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×16, Stone ×10, Red Terracotta ×8, Andesite ×2
  40. Layer 40 Orange Concrete ×36, Grass Block ×20, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×16, Red Terracotta ×8, Stone ×1
  41. Layer 41 Orange Concrete ×36, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×8, Red Terracotta ×8, Grass Block ×1
  42. Layer 42 Orange Concrete ×86, Red Terracotta ×32, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×8
  43. Layer 43 Orange Concrete ×112, Orange Stained Glass Pane ×8, Red Terracotta ×8
  44. Layer 44 Orange Concrete ×114, Red Terracotta ×8
  45. Layer 45 Orange Terracotta ×106, Orange Concrete ×8
  46. Layer 46 Orange Terracotta ×18, Orange Concrete ×8, Orange Stained Glass ×8
  47. Layer 47 Orange Concrete ×10, Orange Terracotta ×4, Redstone Lamp (lit) ×4

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