How to find out what is on in your area of France
The 39th edition of the European Heritage Days (Journées du patrimoine) takes place this weekend (September 17th and 18th) under the theme “Sustainable Heritage”.
The annual event offers people the opportunity to visit historic buildings and monuments, many of which are often closed to the public. There are also thousands of other cultural and historical events organized across the country.
The idea started in France in 1984 and has now spread to around 50 other European countries.
Rima Abdul Malak, France’s Minister for Culture, said of this year’s event:
“Heritage plays a role in creating a more sustainable and greener future.
“By reviewing practices, lessons from traditions and continuity of know-how, heritage stakeholders such as museums, historical monuments centres, archivists, etc. are already acting today to strengthen heritage transmission.
“[There are] so many old-fashioned techniques, such as using local resources with recognized qualities, raw earth or dry stone, inspiring new, more sustainable construction methods to create the living environment of tomorrow.”
Read more: 100 French sites selected for restoration as part of annual Heritage Mission
find events
Thousands of events, visits, guided tours, book readings, music performances, etc. take place across the country.
The easiest way to find out what’s going on in your area is to use the map tool available on the Ministry of Culture’s website You will find here.
This lists all of the events that are taking place and all of the buildings that are open for tours.
Some of the events are aimed specifically at school children and will take place on Friday (September 16), the day before the official start of the event.
This video explains how to use the map to find out what events are happening near you.
If you’re overwhelmed with options, many local media in France list some of their standout options.
If you google Journees du patrimoine and the name of your department or region you will find many different articles explaining what is going on.
For example, this article describes the options available in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, such as: B. Guided tours around the Théâtre Antique d’Orange in Vaucluse.
Or there is this article that describes some of the 160 different events that take place in Calvados (Normandy).
Many of the events are free of charge, some require a fee. Details can be found on the map of the Ministry of Education.
Finally, you can also follow the event on social media via the Journées du Patrimoine’s Twitter page here and his Facebook page here.
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