The Journées du Patrimoine will be held for the 42nd time in September. This year, art and history lovers and the curious should make a note of September 20 and 21, 2025. During this exceptional weekend, many museums, monuments, castles, institutions and other places usually closed to the public will be offering special programs, with free visits and original events. A great way to (re)discover the treasures of our heritage from another angle.
Paris, of course, but not just Paris: the whole ofthe Île-de-France region is also part of the event! So why not take this opportunity to explore the amazing places that await you in the Ile-de-France region? For a getaway accessible by public transport, the Hauts-de-Seine region is home to the town of Nanterre, just outside Paris. Here, you'll find a wide range of visits to places of interest, all specially programmed for this weekend. Here are the details of what to do in Nanterre for the Journées du Patrimoine 2025.
Heritage Days 2025 at the Hauts-de-Seine Departmental Archives in Nanterre
Discover conservation areas and restoration and preventive conservation techniques.
As French architectural heritage is the focus of this 42nd edition of the European Heritage Days, discover the architectural heritage of Hauts-de-Seine through unique models and architectural documents.
Come and discover the backstage exhibition of Hauts-de-Seine theatres and the spaces of the Archives in a unique way, with actors from the Kalam theater. An original, interactive and creative one-hour visit.
The region is home to numerous public and private theaters, including two national drama centers and two national stages. The Archives départementales holds the archives of two national drama centers, Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers and Théâtre de Gennevilliers, and one national stage, Théâtre 71 in Malakoff. These archives, covering a period from 1963 to 2015, resonate with other sources, the oldest of which date back to the 19th century. Architecture, apprenticeship, rehearsals, graphics, machinery, sets, great theatrical figures... all these facets are evoked through a scenographic tour combining props, archive documents and the exceptional loan of costumes from the Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers. It's a panorama of artistic creation in the Alto-Sequan region, and a behind-the-scenes look at the performing arts.
A mischievous ghost has stolen an ancient document and hidden it in an archive room. Now you're locked in the heart of a conservation area. You're not in a set, but in the middle of original documents, immersed in them, and you have to investigate, gather clues and solve enigmas. In teams, come and test your logic, team spirit, memory, sense of observation and curiosity.
Heritage Days 2025 at the Hauts-de-Seine Prefecture in Nanterre
Come and take part in the workshops organized by the Prefecture's State Representation Office. Republican ceremonies, protocol placements, the role of the prefect... They'll explain it all!
Workshops for children and adults.
Take a free tour of the listed areas of the Hauts-de-Seine prefecture: the grand hall, the Claude Erignac salon d'honeur, the prefect's reception rooms and the former Conseil Départemental areas.
The reception rooms: home to numerous works of art, including tapestries, paintings and designer furniture from the 60s and 70s.
The Salon d'Honneur Claude Erignac: A large reception room, it houses the prefecture's most emblematic work, the monumental tapestry, a composition by Victor Vasarely.
The former departmental council areas: the best preserved, located in the most unusual part created by the architect, with period telephone booths, a bar area with skylights, and a spiral ramp leading to the deliberation room. Everything has remained as it was in the beginning.
The great halls: stroll through...
Discover the history and architecture of the prefecture with a guided tour of the main hall on the second floor, the former departmental council areas, the Claude Erignac VIP lounge, the prefect's reception rooms and the prefect's and secretary general's offices on the 24th floor.
Total tour duration: 1 hour.
Afterwards, if you wish, you can take part in the workshop on ceremonies and protocol in the Salon d'Honneur Claude Erignac, and visit the departmental operations center.
Take a guided tour of the prefecture's crisis room.
A genuine strategic tool for the prefect, the departmental operations center is the place where all the players come together in the event of a crisis in the department (climatic crisis, urban crisis, etc.).
Heritage Days 2025 at La Contemporaine in Nanterre
Located on the Université Paris Nanterre campus, the Albert Tower, designed by architect Edouard Albert (1910-1968), is a remarkable piece of real estate and documentary heritage, shared between the university library and La Contemporaine.
From the new Albert gallery to the library, via the storerooms housing the collections of la Contemporaine (newspapers, books from the early 20th century to the present day...), the university library and la Contemporaine offer an exceptional tour of the building, at the crossroads of architecture and contemporary history.
Groups limited, booking essential.
La Contemporaine opens its doors to you! Come and discover the building designed by architect Bruno Gaudin, which houses exhibition rooms and a reading room open to all. The tour also includes a behind-the-scenes look at the building, with access to the storerooms, the collection processing room, and a presentation of La Contemporaine's holdings...
Further information on la Contemporaine: www.lacontemporaine.fr
History Workshop
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### a museum for understanding how history is written
How and from what materials is the history of the present written? How did we come to take an interest in hitherto neglected sources - the press, graphic works, leaflets, photographs, posters, audiovisuals, the web? Why are we so keen to preserve traces of our personal or family history? Why do activists collect archives of their commitment? How do the points of view of the historian, the activist and the citizen interact? Why and how do we pass on these materials to future generations?
Through a stroll through the collections of La Contemporaine - paintings from the Great War, tracts, sketches from the trials of the Liberation or the notebooks of Algerian war recruits, archives collected on the spot during the Russian Revolution or samizdats from the 1970s-1980s, the work of photojournalists, filmed interviews, activist or association archives... - l'Atelier de l'histoire questions our relationship to contemporary history and its sources.
Group size limited, booking essential.
Audioguides in French and English are available free of charge from reception in exchange for ID.
Aucun événement annoncé à ce jour, le programme est mis à jour en fonction des annonces officielles.
Journées du Patrimoine 2025 at the Nanterre hospital care center
During this unique exploratory tour, the CASH de Nanterre invites you to discover the genesis of this more than one-hundred-year-old facility and its successive transformations. Wandering around this site, exceptional in its size and architecture, is an opportunity to understand how care for the most destitute has been organized over time.
The guided tour ends with an exhibition of archive documents, and a presentation of sketches of the future hospital, which opens a new page in the history of this site.
Heritage Days 2025 at the Nanterre Polytechnic Center
On the occasion of the European Heritage Days, we invite you to take a behind-the-scenes look at an emblematic site combining history and innovation. The Nanterre La Folie polytechnic center is opening its doors, offering an insight into its architectural and industrial heritage. The day will also be an opportunity to board a brand-new train on line E: the RER Nouvelle Génération (RER NG). A journey that combines memories of the site with technical discussions about the new train.
Journées du Patrimoine 2025 in Nanterre electricity, gas and street lighting memory
The MEGE (Mémoire de l'Electricité du Gaz et de l'Eclairage public) association, based in Nanterre (see link https://mege-paris.org/), preserves materials that tell the story of gas and electricity distribution in the Paris region.
You'll discover the evolution of gas and electricity distribution techniques and equipment, from the 19th century to the present day, an extraordinary collection of street lighting bulbs and lanterns, tools, meters, old documents, particularly on safety, and numerous models. A copy of Raoul Dufy's lithograph La Fée Electricité has been on display since summer 2024.
You'll see collections of old equipment used to distribute electricity and gas and to light public spaces and monuments, as well as the evolution over time of electricity and gas metering equipment.
Last but not least, you'll be able to see a number of scale models of the vehicles used by distributors over the last 70 years, as well as everyday objects related to the use of electricity in everyday life.
During your visit, you'll be accompanied by electricians and gas specialists who are volunteer members of the association, and who will share with you their passion for the distribution professions.
Booklet-game for 7-12 year-olds.
Dates and Opening Time
From September 20, 2025 to September 21, 2025
Location
Downtown Nanterre
Centre ville
92000 Nanterre
Official website
www.nanterre.fr
