The royal house had not suffered such a shutdown since 1939, with the Second world War. Eighty years later, it is a pandemic of global scope that has interrupted the life of the Castle of Versailles. After 11 weeks of inactivity, the field will finally reopen its doors on the 6th of June, with some new features and a host of visitors changed.
We’ve made it so that life can resume the day came to
Catherine Pégard, president of the établissement public du château, du musée et du domaine national de Versailles
Closed for almost three months, the chateau of Versailles took the opportunity for a makeover. Catherine Pégard, president of the établissement public du château, du musée et du domaine national de Versailles, says that the containment has been the opportunity to renovate the roof of the royal chapel, up the clocks, but also to dust off the hall of Mirrors… for the first time since its restoration in 2007. “In strict compliance with the sanitary rules, we’ve made it so that life can return to the day come”, she said in an interview in the Point.
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in Addition to its work on the refurbishment, visitors will be able to discover new pieces, including the apartment of the queen and the king’s office, that ends soon its renovation. It will also be possible to walk again in the gardens of the castle, the park and the area of the Trianon, and this the usual hours of opening. Other places will remain closed for some time”, says Catherine Pégard, such as the Carriage museum and the Galleries of Louis XIV or Empire.
Wearing the masks required
While the home to 8 million people each year, visitors to this déconfinement will be far fewer… and may as well take time to discover the castle from a new angle. “I am confident that the discoveries of the galerie des Glaces, where, in fact, we welcome that very few visitors, in 800 square meters, will be quite extraordinary”, promises the president of the public establishment.
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To visit the inside and the outside of the building royale, it would now be necessary to go through a ticket with a reservation time zone, in order to “regulate the flow”, is it stated in a press release. In regard to the gestures of the barrier, wearing a mask is mandatory from the age of 11, and each will wash their hands in the hydroalcoholic gel from the entrance. A sense of movement was also established, to ensure that visitors meet. As to the gardens, Catherine Pégard made use of the “prudence” and “reason” visitors “that they disperse in the alleys that hold so many secrets.”
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As with many cultural institutions forced to close during the confinement, the reopening will enable the area to regain its financial equilibrium. The castle has indeed been weakened during this period, since as pointed out by the president of the public establishment, usually, 80% of the visitors are foreigners.
Several events had to be postponed until 2021, but the musical season and the 250 years of the creation of the royal Opera house could not be saved. The exhibition devoted to Hyacinthe Rigaud, portrait painter of the king, has been kept on 17 November 2020 march 14, 2021. “A disaster,” says Catherine Pégard, who wishes more than anything that “these places back to life”.
The editorial team conseilleVisitez the Versailles of Louis XIV in virtual reality since in vousL’invention of Versailles after the FrondeVingt years after the storm, the rebirth of the park VersaillesSujetsChâteau of VersaillesTourismedéconfinement#HeroesShineBright1 commentaireenfaitpourquoile 04/06/2020 10:12
to walk in the alleys of the park – as in all areas, large and very airy – with a mask is stupid… or no dusting of the hall of Mirrors since 2007, neither winding of the clocks,… it seems to me that the work was not well done before! signed: an ex-Versailles.
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