Every year, the Journées du Patrimoine (Heritage Days) offer the general public an opportunity to discover historic, cultural and heritage sites that are sometimes little-known, through visits, exhibitions and events. Held throughout France, these days celebrate the richness of tangible and intangible heritage, while highlighting places of remembrance. On September 21, 2025, the Shoah Memorial in Drancy will be joining in the celebrations, offering the public a chance to immerse themselves in history, through a unique site charged with meaning.
Located opposite the Cité de la Muette, the Drancy Shoah Memorial was inaugurated in 2012. It pays tribute to the thousands of Jews interned in this transit camp between 1941 and 1944, before their deportation to the extermination camps. The building, designed by architect Roger Diener, houses permanent and temporary exhibitions, testimonials and invaluable historical documentation. This place of remembrance complements the Shoah Memorial in Paris, and plays an essential role in transmitting history to younger generations.
A visit to the Drancy Shoah Memorial during the Heritage Days is an opportunity to plunge into the heart of an essential site for understanding the history of the Second World War and the Shoah in France. It's also an opportunity to discover a site of great symbolic significance, where remembrance and education combine to raise public awareness. The guided tours and events organized for the event will provide a precise and emotional understanding of history, in a setting conducive to reflection and meditation.
The Shoah Memorial in Drancy invites you to discover a rare selection of graffiti created by internees before their deportation. A museum mediator will explain the history of these inscriptions, trace the careers of some of the internees and shed light on their daily lives in the Drancy camp. This visit will also be an opportunity to explore the work of French visual artist Chemsedine Herriche, author of a fresco installed opposite the Cité de la Muette. His work pays tribute to the memory of the site and echoes the various messages left by the internees.
For volunteers, an original tour of the Drancy camp prison will be offered at the end of the session. Please note: the site, located in the Cité de la Muette, is very small and cramped. It can only be visited by people in good physical condition.
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Dates and Opening Time
On September 21, 2025
From 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
From 02:30 p.m. to 04:30 p.m.
Location
Drancy Shoah Memorial
112 Avenue Jean Jaurès
93700 Drancy
Access
Metro line 5 stop "Bobigny Pablo Picasso", then bus 251 stop "Place du 19 mars 1962". RER B station "Le Bourget", then bus 143 stop "Square de la Libération". Buses 151, 251, 551 and 684 stop at "Place du 19 mars 1962". A Paris-Drancy shuttle bus is also available, free of charge and without reservation, one Sunday a month: - 2:00 pm: departure from the Mémorial de la Shoah-Paris (17, rue Geoffroy l'Asnier 75004 Paris) - 5:30 pm: bus returns to the Mémorial de la Shoah-Paris. Arrival in Paris around 6:15-6:30 pm.
Prices
Free
More information
Visits from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm and from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm.
