This may be our favourite weekend of the year in Paris – Open House weekend is back with some amazing places to visit, open specially for just two days.

This year’s theme is “The arts and entertainment” and there are over fifty venues that await you in Paris, with over 1,000 activities!

We have some suggestions for where you might like to go, not far from our hotels…

With so much choice on offer for Open House weekend (les Journées du Patrimoine), it can be difficult deciding what’s best to see, so let’s take a look first at what’s close to our hotels – our neighbourhood has some amazing things on offer.

Near the Hotel des Grands Hommes and Hotel les Dames du Panthéon you can:

— take a guided visit of the venerable Lycée Henri-IV college,

— enter the (usually closed) Pavillon Boncourt which houses the Ministry of Further Education, Research and Innovation,

— see the Scottish college, built in 1665,

— visit the Pantheon for free,

— take a guided visit of the town hall of the 5th arrondissement, and see its marvellous art déco interiors,

— see the jaw-dropping Saint-Geneviève Library,

— take a guided visit of the nearby Bibliothèque Sainte-Barbe (formerly the Collège Sainte-Barbe),

— check out the Irish Cultural Centre, its beautiful chapel, the Ursula Burke “A False Dawn” exhibition…

— explore the Curie Museum…

Close to the Hotel Design Sorbonne and Hotel Baume there’s:

— the impressive Collège de France,

— La Sorbonne, not to be missed!

— the Cluny Museum,

— special visits of the Odeon Theatre,

— Auguste Comte’s apartment (that we really enjoyed last year),

— the Senate (incredible),

— the hothouses of the Jardin du Luxembourg

— the Faculté de pharmacie with its lovely library and botanical garden…

— the Saint-Joseph-des-Carmes church, and Saint-Sulpice church, both extraordinary places…

And nearer the Hotel & Spa La Belle Juliette, there’s:

— the former Laënnec Hospiral, which is now headquarters for the Maison Balenciaga,

— the Chapelle des sœurs auxiliatrices

— the Hotel de Montmorin, the Ministry for Overseas,

— the astonishing Valentin Haüy museum founded by a blind man, Edgard Guilbeau, to show the value of braille (their bespoke Art Nouveau furniture is supposed to be amazing),

— and dozens of other churches and chapels, too many to list here ?

Make the most of this very special weekend! Be sure to check out the official website for at least a few minutes in order to plan your visits (many places are only open one of the two days).

Open House weekend (les Journées du Patrimoine) is happening in Paris (and all over Europe) on 21st & 22nd September 2019

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