Built on the site of a former slaughterhouse and designed by architect Bernard Tschumi to redevelop an old disused area, the Parc de la Villette is the largest urban cultural park in the capital, a true masterpiece of contemporary architecture.
With its 35 hectares of greenery and its 3,000 m² of ecological gardens promoting biodiversity, the Parc de la Villette is one of the largest and most beautiful green spaces in Paris. This important multicultural and artistic centre welcomes more than 10 million visitors every year. Here you can find art and culture in all its forms, science and education, without forgetting leisure and play.
Punctuated by 26 Folies, the bright red architectural structures designed by Bernard Tschumi, now dedicated to many disciplines, the Parc de la Villette is an inexhaustible playground, a dynamic site in perpetual renewal, abounding with often unusual, innovative or spectacular activities.
The City of Science and Industry works to disseminate science and technology to a very diverse public. Created 30 years ago, it offers visitors the opportunity to be both spectators and actors in permanent or temporary exhibitions.
Specially designed for young children, the Cité des enfants offers two fun and educational interactive spaces for children aged 2 to 7 and 5 to 12.
La Géode, an extraordinary room with a hemispherical screen, projects breathtaking documentaries in giant format, while the planetarium offers a 360° immersion in the Universe thanks to the 8K High Definition Laser, state-of-the-art equipment unique in Europe.
Home to numerous concert halls, La Villette is a must for the world’s greatest artists. Inaugurated in 2015, the Philharmonie celebrates the love of music. This striking aluminium hill designed by Jean Nouvel includes a 2,400-seat auditorium, 6 rehearsal rooms, 10 studios, workshops, exhibition spaces, an education centre, VIP areas, a cafeteria, and a panoramic restaurant.
It is an architectural and acoustic space entirely dedicated to classical music, chamber music, world music and jazz. Integrated in this exceptional structure, the Cité de la Musique and its museum complete the exploration of the musical universe and offer pop concerts, major exhibitions and educational activities.
Filled with a collection of over 7,000 instruments and works of art, the Musée de la Musique and its permanent exhibition space tell the story of Western music from the 16th century to the present day and offer an overview of the main musical cultures around the world.
This museum feeds the ambition of the Philharmonie’s heritage and offers many activities for everyone: concerts, tours, performances, workshops and large-scale exhibitions. On the occasion of the recent donation of Pierre Henry’s compositional material, the museum opens a new permanent space.
This space appeals to all thrill-seekers: here you can try indoor skydiving. Located near the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, IFly Paris offers all the sensations of skydiving from a plane.
You will experience all the sensations of a 14 m drop inside a 33 m high glass tube (the highest in France), with a 270 km/h air flow generated by a 450 HP engine and a 7 m deep landing pit.
As far as safety is concerned, there is absolutely nothing to fear. Put on your suit, goggles and helmet and let yourself be guided by a qualified instructor, savouring the sensation of dancing in the air.
La Grande Halle, located a stone’s throw from the City of Science and Industry, is the former slaughterhouse of La Villette. Built between 1865 and 1867 entirely of iron, it is included in the inventory of historical monuments in Paris. Rehabilitated between 2005 and 2007 by Bernard Reichen and Philippe Robert, it has become a cultural centre hosting shows, concerts, exhibitions and festivals.
This 18,000 m² fully modular exhibition space also hosts numerous fairs, cocktail parties and parties and vibrates every year to the sound of two major festivals: Villette Sonique, a meeting place for the international and Parisian underground scene, and the Pitchfork Festival, the European version of the Chicago festival.
Created in 2001, the gardens were inspired by The Planetary Garden exhibition , presented in 1999 in the Grande Halle by landscape architect Gilles Clément, whose aim was to raise public awareness of major ecological issues.
On the site of the former sheep market, this 3,000 m² ecological island is home to different ecosystems: grove, wasteland, pond and dry stone wall. These ecological gardens with an educational and sympathetic vocation serve as support for educational workshops to raise awareness of biodiversity for young and old. This state of mind encourages experimentation with organic cultivation methods and closer observation of living organisms.
In contrast, the themed gardens unfold like a piece of film cast at random in the park. The visitor’s gaze discovers, according to successive shots, a series of twelve theme gardens bordered by walkways and, at night, by a bright dotted line. Depending on one’s mood, the walker can explore different garden configurations: playgrounds, tree-lined terrain, sound elements, aquatic atmospheres and intimate spaces that encourage reflection.
This open-air children’s playground, with no gates enclosing it, houses a collection of twelve themed gardens
Don’t miss the Jardin du Dragon, which houses a large sculptural steel dragon with an 80-metre slide for children to play on; the Jardin des Dunes et des Vents, which offers an undulating landscape, pedal-powered windmills and air-cushioned areas where children can expend a lot of energy; and the Jardin des Voltiges, a play area with different types of mobile apparatus, and many other games.
Located in the Parc de la Villette, the Zénith de Paris is one of the capital’s great performance halls. With its 6,200 m² surface area, its modularity and its acoustics, the Zénith is designed to host large popular musical events.
The programme (170 events per year) alternates between rock concerts, French and international variety shows, one man and one woman shows and entertainment shows. The world’s biggest stars perform on the Zenith stage.
Created by Méziane Azaïche, the Cabaret Sauvage opened its doors in December 1997: red velvet and chiselled wood, tables and benches, beveled lights and mirrors, dance floor…
The spectator can eat, drink, laugh, be moved, dance, talk, move, meet his table neighbour or even a trapeze artist: through its varied programme, the Cabaret Sauvage welcomes artists from all over the world, for concerts, cabaret shows, dancing.
The Argonaute is a real hunting submarine from the 1950s: from its commissioning in 1958 until 1982, the Argonaute circled the Earth 10 times and spent more than 32,000 hours underwater.
Transformed into a museum, it can be visited with audio guides, from the crew station to the torpedo tube. The discovery of its technological secrets and the living conditions of the forty men who made up the crew will delight young and old alike.
Thanks to this visit, the world of submarines will have almost no more secrets: in particular, you will learn about the ‘hot berth’ regime, discover the technical complexity of such a vehicle and understand why the Argonaute was able to be a remarkable player in intelligence and special operations.
Topped by one of Swiss architect Bernard Tschumi’s famous scarlet folies, Le Trabendo is a beautiful Parisian concert hall, decorated with a large terrace.
Right in the heart of the Parc de la Villette, which has become the epicentre of music in the Ile-de-France, Le Trabendo was completely renovated in April 2012 under the impetus of a new team. With a capacity of 700 seats, the hall defends an ambitious programme offering the best of today’s music.
Trabendo offers an eclectic programme, ranging from rock to electro with clubbing nights, from hip hop to song. The group Justice, Local Natives, the Black Lips, rapper Tyler The Creator or singer Ariane Moffat are some of the artists who have performed at Trabendo since its reopening.
Throughout the summer, the capital’s bathing establishment invades the shores of the Bassin de la Villette for the enjoyment of young and old alike, with swimming and water sports.
At 800 metres long and 70 metres wide, the Bassin de la Villette is the largest artificial stretch of water in Paris, connecting the Canal de l’Ourcq to the Canal Saint-Martin and developing river transport.
Numerous events and cultural activities (shows, concerts, theatre) make this basin a festive place popular with Parisians, especially in summer.
Located in the Folie des Merveilles, in the heart of the Parc de la Villette, VILLETTE MAKERZ by WoMa is a new space dedicated to the discovery and experimentation of Do It Yourself.
It is aimed at all those (young audience, family, adult, entrepreneur, company, etc.) who want to connect the idea and the material or discover the technologies of contemporary creation such as design, 3D, code, textiles, electronics, audiovisual, internet.
A collaborative design and production workshop, VILLETTE MAKERZ is a space for makers to work, experiment and disseminate. This place/tool in perpetual motion also offers a makerz school, a cultural programme for prototyping services and innovation support.
In the following map you can see the location of the main places of interest mentioned in this article.
Throughout the year, the Parc de la Villette hosts numerous events in its various spaces, such as festivals, fairs, exhibitions and concerts. Days Off, Jazz à la Villette, Comic Con Paris, Oktoberfest, Salon du fantastique, Vegan pop festival, 100%, l’été du canal have made it their headquarters and from year to year, events increase and proliferate.
In summer, La Villette stands out as one of the places not to be missed. Alongside its musical programme, it offers one of the Parisians’ favourite events: the Cinéma en Plein Air festival. Every year, on the lawns along the Grande Halle, film screenings are organised around a theme. On a deckchair or on the green grass, the event is a must to enjoy this exceptional complex and the beautiful days under the capital’s sky.
The Parc de la Villette is located in the IXX arrondissement, in the Pont de Flanders district, between Port de la Villette and Port de Pantin.
It can be reached using public transport, such as the metro line 5, stops Bobigny, Place d′Italie and Porte de la Villette, or line 7, stops Villejuif-Louis Aragon / La Courneuve.
Alternatively, you can use the many buses that stop at Porte de Pantin (Grande Halle), lines 75, 151, PC 2 and 3 or Porte de la Villette (Cité des Sciences), lines 75, 139, 150, 152, PC2, PC3, Station Porte de la Villette.
The park is located in the 19th arrondissement, specifically in the Pont de Flanders district, between Port de la Villette and Port de Pantin.
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