FAQ

The Cité internationale de la langue française will open to the public soon.
Visitors will initially be able to discover the permanent visitor circuit, the Francophone bookshop, the auditorium and the Jeu de Paume tennis court where a glass roof with a ‘lexical sky’ will be installed.
The other areas of the site will subsequently open: temporary exhibition areas, a café, residency workshops for artists, researchers and entrepreneurs, and areas for educational activities on the French language.
The institute will offer a multidisciplinary programme of exhibitions, performances and events for all.
To find out more about the Cité internationale de la langue française, click here.

The Cité internationale de la langue française will be open long hours in connection with its artistic and cultural programmes.
These opening times will be shortly be available in the ‘Practical information’ section of the institute’s website.

You will have to pay to access the permanent visitor circuit’s 1,200 m² surface area (a full price table will be available shortly).
Visitors will be able to cross the site for free and walk from the town to the grounds during the opening times of the Cité internationale de la langue française. They will also be able to freely enter the room ‘A chateau, a domain’, the café-tearoom, the bookshop and the Jeu de Paume court.
Events in the cultural and artistic programme will set their own prices.
Practical information will be available shortly by clicking here.

The Cité internationale de la langue française will be located within the Château de Villers-Cotterêts in the town of Villers-Cotterêts in the Aisne department of France, 85 km from Paris, 47 km from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, and 23 km from Soissons.

The Cité internationale de la langue française will be reachable via France’s TER regional rail network, on the Paris–Laon line that leaves from the Gare du Nord train station in Paris (journey time: around 45 minutes).
All train times can be viewed at https://www.sncf-connect.com/train/horaires/paris/villers-cotterets
The institute is about a ten-minute walk away from Villers-Cotterêts train station.

The Cité internationale de la langue française is bordered on its south side by the town centre of Villers-Cotterêts and, on its north side by lush greenery in sunny weather: the château’s grounds and the royal avenue leading into the heart of the Forest of Retz.

The Cité internationale de la langue française will include a café-tearoom, which will open in 2023.
Specially designed outdoor furniture will be provided for picnics on the site’s lawns.
Thanks to its location in the town centre of Villers-Cotterêts, the many restaurants, brasseries and bakeries in the shopping streets around the site will be easily accessible.

The Cité internationale de la langue française is located in an area that is rich in both cultural heritage (Musée Alexandre Dumas, Château de Pierrefonds, etc.) and natural heritage (13,000 hectares of the Forest of Retz).
To find out more: www.tourisme-villers-cotterets.fr

The Cité internationale de la langue française operates under the auspices of the Centre des monuments nationaux (CMN), which operates under the aegis of France’s ministry of culture.

Advertisements for jobs and internships at the different cultural sites of the Centre des monuments nationaux can be found here.

Applications (CV + cover letter) should be sent:

• by post to:
  Centre des Monuments nationaux
  Direction des ressources humaines
  Hôtel de Sully
  62 rue Saint-Antoine
  75004 Paris
  FRANCE
• by email to:
  recrutement@monuments-nationaux.fr 

The Cité internationale de la langue française is keen to welcome all members of the public. The institute’s different areas will be accessible to everyone.
The visitor circuit will be available in French sign language via an application.

A variety of freely accessible learning resources will shortly be available on the website of the Cité internationale de la langue française. Please be patient for a just a little longer!

Go to the ‘Professionals’ section of the institute’s website to find out more.

A group/booking service will soon be set up to organise group visits in the best conditions.
Go to the ‘Professionals’ section of the institute’s website to find out more.

Once the heritage areas have been restored (the royal apartments with the King’s and Queen’s stairs and the Chapel with Renaissance ornamentation), the château will house the Cité internationale de la langue française (its permanent and temporary visitor circuits, areas for residencies and educational activities, a bookshop and a café).
The Jeu de Paume court will house a modular auditorium that will offer a varied programme of conferences, plays and concerts, among others.
To find out more, go to the page presenting the project by clicking here.

You can follow news about the Cité internationale de la langue française on its website, in the section ‘What’s on at the Cité internationale de la langue française?’, and on the institute’s Twitter account @citelanguefr: https://twitter.com/citelanguefr

While awaiting its opening in a few months’ time, the Cité internationale de la langue française is offering a sneak preview at its Maison du Projetshowcase centre and at cultural events.

Enjoy an advance preview visit of the château’s heritage treasures from March, and discover the site through the European Heritage Days in September.

The full programme can be found in the section ‘What’s on at the Cité internationale de la langue française?’ on the institute’s website.

You can track developments in the project and the major stages on the social media pages of the Cité internationale de la langue française and in the ‘Restoration works’ section on its website.