On 20th and 21st September 2008, gain entrance to a host of otherwise closed buildings and sample their private, hidden opulence…

Romanian Embassy. All rights reserved


It’s an exceptional event, and there are some exceptional places in Paris that are only open for these two days, so make despite inevitable queues for some of the bigger attractions, it’s worth the effort.

For example, many French go for the Elysée to see where Nicolas Sarkozy works, others stand in line to see Hôtel de Ville where Bertrand Delanoë works his magic. We say forget the former and definitely go for the latter; Hôtel de Ville is like some kind of amazing palace with a huge ballroom, beautiful murals and detailed gold leaf like something from Florence!

Another idea would be the Société Générale bank near Opéra. Although open (for business) during the year, the Heritage Days give you special access with extra information and the time to really take in every detail. It’s a spectacular building that many miss because it looks like your average Parisian building from the outside. We say seek it out!

All rights reserved

Each year there’s a special theme to the Heritage Days, and this year it’s ‘Heritage and Artistic Creation’, with several sites showing how the arts can be hosted and encouraged in exceptional settings. There’s also a special day on the 19th September with seven Parisian sites open to people with handicaps. For example, The Arc de Triomphe will be giving guided visits in sign language, and organising another visit especially for people in wheelchairs. The Pantheon will also have sign language visits, as well as another guided tour for people with visual difficulties. Other sites have organised visits for the mentally handicapped. More details are available here.

Also this year the event embraces the web and 2.0 mentality by encouraging you to contributing to their Flickr page, adding your video to their Dailymotion page and joining their Facebook group. Good thing too!

For more details on the 2008 Heritage Days in Paris and plan what you want to see, check out the official site here.

UPDATE – Here’s the poster for an exhibition of police vehicles which will be happening at place Louis Lepine, métro Cité (line 4).