The National Architecture Days are back in Paris and the Île-de-France region from October 15–18, 2026. It’s a highlight on the cultural calendar, drawing architecture enthusiasts—historic and contemporary alike—into a broad lineup of often free events, centered on the works of architects.
A great way to discover the treasures of theParis region. For the occasion, participating sites are offering a variety of unusual programs, including architectural tours, workshops for young and old, and surprise events.
And one of the must-see venues for the Journées de l'Architecture is the Cité de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine, a fascinating place that awaits you inside the Palais de Chaillot, on Place du Trocadéro, one of the capital's most iconic spots! Inaugurated in 2007, it's the world's largest architecture center! Throughout the year, you'll find exciting exhibitions, conferences and workshops.
Please note that some events require reservations!
Cité de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine in Paris, opening hours, tickets and exhibitions
The Cité de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine, located in the Palais Chaillot on Place du Trocadéro, is an exceptional, monumental 22,000 m2 museum housing numerous models, city plans and immense scupltures. Here, you can take an in-depth look at some of the world's most beautiful buildings, and immerse yourself in the world of technology, architecture and urban planning. [Read more]
Tell Me About the Blagis
Tell Me the Blagis Jokes
A report on the workshops conducted with youths aged 16 to 25 as part of the cultural partnership between the Cité de l’Architecture and the Blagis City Politique de la Ville district, spanning the communes of Bagneux, Bourg-la-Reine, Fontenay-aux-Roses and Sceaux.
A showcase of a model, photographs and a vlog about the Blagis neighborhood
The project invites Blagis youths to view their living environment with fresh eyes and to reinvent their neighborhood through images, words and a scale model.
From their wandering through their surroundings emerged photographs, conversations—and a gigantic, real-and-imagined scale model!
Free admission
Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Participation requirements: Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026, 11:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m. | Sunday, October 18, 2026, 11:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m.
Nohant-Vic video mapping
A fresh digital experience (video mapping) to decipher the frescoes of the Romanesque church of Nohant-Vic!
The Cité is expanding its permanent programme with new digital mediation tools. The first device is now up and running, and you can explore it in the gallery of wall paintings.
Participation requirements: Free | No reservations required
Hours: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 11:00–18:30 | Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 11:00–18:30
Temporary Exhibition "Heritages in Resistance — From Timbuktu to Odessa"
From Timbuktu to Odessa, from Bamiyan to Gaza, armed conflicts turn heritage into a prime target. In the face of such destruction, the exhibition “Patrimonies in Resistance” questions acts of erasure, as well as the forms of resistance and repair that allow us to imagine the future from the ruins.
Guided tours led by our lecturer-guides will give you a clearer understanding of this crucial topic for humanity’s heritage.
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/exposition/patrimoines-en-resistance
Participation terms: Free | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, October 17, 2026, 11:00 AM–6:30 PM | Sunday, October 18, 2026, 11:00 AM–6:30 PM
Temporary Exhibition Atelier Architecture Perraudin — 2024 National Grand Prize for Architecture
“Architecture? It’s about making people happy.”
Winner of the 2024 Grand National Architecture Prize, Atelier Architecture Perraudin brings its work to the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine with an exhibition that lays out a humane, sustainable vision of architecture, where every action forges a connection between people, materials, and the land.
Free admission, open to all
Participation requirements: Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 11:00–18:30 | Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 11:00–18:30
Temporary Exhibition: Kennedy Yanko
As part of a program that bridges architecture and contemporary art, the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine invites Kennedy Yanko, a leading American artist, to occupy its spaces. There, she unveils a new suite of sculptures conceived to resonate with the Carlu gallery’s casts, offering a contemporary perspective on this venue.
Free, open to the public
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/exposition/kennedy-yanko
How to participate: Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 11:00 AM–6:30 PM | Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 11:00 AM–6:30 PM
Temporary exhibition: François Morellet, Traits of Wit
As part of the program dedicated to the dialogue between architecture and contemporary art
On the occasion of the centenary of François Morellet's birth, the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine, in partnership with the Centre Pompidou and the CNAP, presents a singular installation that reveals how the artist transformed architectural space into a playground for contemporary art.
Free admission, open to the public
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/exposition/francois-morellet-traits-desprit
Participation conditions: Free | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 11:00 AM to 6:30 PM | Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 11:00 AM to 6:30 PM
Flash Tours: Major Architectural Movements
Our guides give you a quick tour of a particular architectural trend or style.
Free — ongoing
Duration: 15 minutes
Participation terms: Free | No reservation required
Opening hours: Saturday, October 17, 2026 – 11:00 ⤏ 18:00 | Sunday, October 18, 2026 – 11:00 ⤏ 18:00
Guided tour of the Kennedy Yanko exhibition (in English)
Join this guided tour to explore the museum and discover the sculptures of a leading American artist in dialogue with the museum’s own works.
In the presence of the exhibition curator, Matthieu Poirier, and artist Kennedy Yanko
Tour at 2:30 PM / IN ENGLISH
Free of charge – on-site registration on the day
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/exposition/kennedy-yanko
Participation conditions: English-language tour, limited to 30 participants - Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM
An unconventional tour, "The Psychoanalysis of the Museum"
Ready for an astonishing experience? Step into a psychanalytic tour led by Laurent Petit, a renowned urban psychoanalyst who’s known the world over.
Is the Citadel as radiant as it seems? To answer that question, the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine commissioned a psychoanalytic appraisal. Laurent Petit invites you to hear his verdict—a tour that’s as witty as it is insightful, packed with illuminating anecdotes. Flipping the script on traditional guided visits, he offers a historical dive that’s at once unconventional and a tad burlesque.
With this performance where fact and fiction mingle, you’ll see the museum in a light you’ve never imagined.
A co-production of the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine and L'ANPU.fr
Paid activity
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/visite/la-psychanalyse-du-musee
Participation conditions: Limited to 30 participants. Paid tour: €10 - reservation required | Regular price - https://billetterie.citedelarchitecture.fr/Exhibitions/Register?ID=b507daa0-bfdc-f011-9596-b28721114d72
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 – 3:00 PM–4:30 PM, 5:00 PM–6:30 PM
Guided tour of the Patrimoines en résistance exhibition
This guided tour of the Patrimoines en résistance exhibition explains the stakes of heritage in times of war. From efforts to erase a culture to acts of commitment toward repair, the tour invites reflection on topics that are as complex as they are timely.
With the exhibition curator, Elisabeth Essaïan
3:00 PM
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/visite/visite-guidee-patrimoines-en-resistance
Participation conditions: Limited to 20 participants — reservations required | Standard admission — https://billetterie.citedelarchitecture.fr/Exhibitions/Register?ID=b64c7e63-9b26-f111-9596-b28721114d72
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 - 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM
Family-friendly construction games workshop — Happy Cabane!
The City invites people of all ages to try their hand at playful, offbeat architecture and to dream up their surroundings through building games. Families discover the art of construction: we invent together and work hand in hand.
What if we built a house? Families dive into the “Happy squares” activity, made from panels and connectors by architect-artist Emilie Queney, and collaboratively create ephemeral architecture. The program: experimentation and exploration!
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/activite/happy-cabane
Participation conditions: Limited to 16 people — booking required | Standard rate - https://billetterie.citedelarchitecture.fr/Exhibitions/Register?ID=e107fa5c-3327-ef11-a2e5-aa52214691b6
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM | Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM
Guided tour of the Atelier Architecture Perraudin exhibition — National Grand Prize for Architecture
Guided tour of the Atelier Architecture Perraudin exhibition, part of the National Grand Prize for Architecture
3:30 PM
Free — registration on site on the day
Participation conditions: Limited to 24 people – Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Guided tour of the François Morellet exhibition
Join this guided tour to explore François Morellet’s work, through a display of landmark architectural projects.
With Jean-Roch Bouiller, the director of the City’s Collections Department, in attendance.
4:00 PM
Free of charge — register on site the same day
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/exposition/francois-morellet-traits-desprit
Participation terms: Limited to 30 people — Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, October 17, 2026 — 4:00–5:00 PM
Family storytelling tour: The Treasure of Jacques Cœur
During a single visit, the City unfolds like a grand open book.
Let yourself be swept up in the thrilling adventures of a hero who has lost his heart. To find his way back—and his identity—he must endure many trials, confront fantastical creatures, and outsmart countless obstacles.
As the journey unfolds, both young and old will discover a captivating tale where courage, mystery, and imagination intertwine. A storytelling tour to share with family, between heritage and legend.
Paid storytelling tour
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/visite/le-tresor-de-jacques-coeur
Participation requirements: Limited to 12 people – Booking required – https://billetterie.citedelarchitecture.fr/Exhibitions/Register?ID=f0bfc02e-3163-f111-9596-f3cca8aede45
Schedule: Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 11:15 AM to 12:00 PM
Guided tour: The Age of Cathedrals
Discover the finest Romanesque and Gothic monuments! From Moissac Abbey to the Wonder of Mont-Saint-Michel, and including the cathedrals of Paris and Strasbourg, this tour invites you on a grand medieval journey through the City's unique collections.
4 p.m.
Paid guided tour
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/visite/au-temps-des-cathedrales
Participation conditions: Limited to 20 attendees - Booking required - https://billetterie.citedelarchitecture.fr/Exhibitions/Register?ID=a4215f79-1c63-f111-9596-f3cca8aede45
Timings: Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 4:00 PM ⤏ 5:30 PM
Fashion Show: “Reg’arts on the Blagis”
A wave of young artists from the Blagis district has taken on the challenge of translating the everyday architecture of suburban Paris into fashion. Come to a fashion show that reinterprets the area’s built environment, brought to life by its residents.
Free admission
Participation requirements: Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Sunday, October 18, 2026 — 4:45 PM to 5:15 PM
Conference: Rehabilitate, Build the Future
Opening of National Architecture Days 2026
Against the backdrop of the ecological transition and to demonstrate architecture’s ability to meet it, the Ministry of Culture has chosen to center National Architecture Days 2026 (JNA) on a core living-environment challenge: rehabilitating existing buildings.
For the opening of these National Days, at the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, the Ministry of Culture highlights the new questions that rehabilitation raises for the world of architecture through a cross-disciplinary view—from architects and urban planners to landscape designers, teachers, researchers and engineers.
Free, registration required
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/colloque-conference-debat/rehabiliter-batir-lavenir
Participation requirements: Limited to 280 attendees — Free | Registration required - https://www.eventbrite.fr/e/rehabiliter-batir-lavenir-tickets-2002708924304?aff=oddtdtcreator
Schedule: Thursday, 15 October 2026 — 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Do You Love Me
Directed by Lana Daher, Lebanon, France, Germany, Qatar, 2025, 1h15, VOSTF
Through 70 years of archival footage, Do You Love Me crafts a sensitive, fragmented portrait of Lebanon. Between intimate memory and collective history, Lana Daher’s film makes Beirut the central character of an audiovisual odyssey in which creativity becomes a form of resistance.
Free with registration
https://www.citedelarchitecture.fr/fr/agenda/cinema-photographie/do-you-love-me
Participation conditions : Limited to 280 attendees — reservation required | Free - https://www.eventbrite.fr/e/billets-do-you-love-me-2000977692142?aff=oddtdtcreator&_gl=119m57hu_upMQ.._gaMjA3MjIyOTQ3Ny4xNzg5MzkyNjQw_ga_TQVES5V6SH*czE3ODkzOTI2MzkkbzEkZzAkdDE3ODkzOTI2MzkkajYwJGwwJGgwJGRvcVg3Q1hwNnViOVZVU0o4a0lIbjY2c0FxTTBWdTdaT3Zn&keep_tld=true
Schedule : Friday, October 16, 2026 — 7:00 PM to 8:15 PM
Dates and Opening Time
From October 15, 2026 to October 18, 2026
Location
Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine
1 Place du Trocadéro et du 11 Novembre
75116 Paris 16
Route planner
Accessibility info
Access
Metro Trocadéro or Iena
Prices
Free
Official website
journeesarchitecture.culture.gouv.fr
Cité de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine in Paris, opening hours, tickets and exhibitions
