Paris (AFP)
The 37th Heritage Days attracted far fewer people than in previous editions, due to restrictions and cancellations linked to the health crisis, and visitors favored monuments next to their homes, according to a report from the Ministry of Culture Sunday evening.
This year, nearly 13,000 venues were open to the public, with 20,000 events on offer.
For around 20% of these events, visitors had to have reserved their seats in advance on the internet, due to established gauges, which vary greatly depending on the size of the venue.
If the previous editions have each attracted twelve million people, the ministry does not give an overall assessment for this year.
Due to the theme chosen this year "Heritage and education: learning for life!", Many schools and places of learning and training have opened their doors to the public.
Among the most visited sites during the weekend, the Domaine national de Chambord (4,500 visitors), the museums of Strasbourg (9,000), the Hôtel de Ville de Lyon (7,100) or the Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel ( 6.030).
In Paris, success for the Invalides (24,000), the National Institute of Art History in Paris (11,700) or the Senate (8,883).
Figures, however, much lower than those of previous years.
Several institutions have chosen to offer virtual events, like the SNCF, which has recorded more than 50,000 visitors to its heritage.sncf.com platform.
The Minister of Culture announced in mid-September that the State would devote, as part of the recovery plan, a record budget of 614 million to heritage.
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