Chartres en lumières 2023

Chartres en lumières celebrates its 20th anniversary from 15 April 2023 to 6 January 2024!

Chartres en lumières returns for its 20th edition with 21 sites illuminated 7 nights a week, from 15 April 2023 to 6 January 2024.

With Chartres en lumières, plunge into a colourful fairytale world and discover in an atypical way the essential sites in the heart of Chartres from dusk to 1am (11.30pm after the switch to winter time).

Enjoy the stories that are told at your own pace and according to your wishes: you are free to choose your own route and stroll around the centre of Chartres.

    In 2023, Chartres en Lumière celebrates its 20th anniversary. For this special anniversary, the Fête de la lumière will make its comeback, after a 3-year break due to the covid-19 epidemic.

    The City of Chartres organised the first Festival of Light and Perfume in 2003. The following year, the illuminations lasted every evening of the summer. Since then, the success of the event has never waned and Chartres en lumières has grown over the years until today, when it is held every evening for ten months out of twelve.

    "This event allows visitors to discover the city in a "different light", at night, and to stop in front of buildings that reveal themselves in a different way. Indeed, the bridges and wash-houses of Chartres are made up of details that only light can sublimate, and the media library, a real architectural jewel, exposes all its secrets every evening... This year more than ever, Chartres is proud to have invested in low-energy devices, which allow this magical show to continue despite the current context."

    Jean-Pierre Gorges, Maire de Chartres

    The 2023 program

    The illuminations

     A new illumination was unveiled on the day of the Fête de la lumière :

    • Saint-Aignan's church adorned with the finest works of sacred art, from primitive mosaics to medieval goldsmiths' work, from stained glass to painted decorations.

    The Christmas illuminations

    Ten or so sites will be decked out in Christmas colours from the end of November. Gifts and snowy landscapes will return to the façades of Chartres cathedral, the Saint-André collegiate church and the bridges and wash houses of the lower town. A family will gather around a Christmas feast on the façades of the Montescot Hotel.

    > Dates : From Sunday 29 October to Saturday 6 January.

    Visit Chartres en lumières

    Dates and times

    The 20 sites of Chartres en lumières are illuminated EVERY night from dusk to 1am (11.30pm from 29 October), from 15 April 2023 to 6 January 2024.

    The lighting of the illuminations varies according to the time of nightfall.

    • September: around 9.15pm / 9pm
    • October: around 9pm
    • 29 and 30 October: around 6.15pm / 6pm
    • November: around 6.15 pm / 6 pm
    • December: around 5.45pm
    • January : around 5.45pm

    Free route

    Enjoy the stories that are told at your own pace and according to your desires: you are free to design your own itinerary and stroll through the city centre of Chartres.

    Geolocate all the illuminated sites on the Chartres en lumières map

    Guided tours

    Guided tour by C'Chartres Tourisme

    The tourist office offers guided tours and will reveal details, anecdotes and secrets. A suspended moment where the scenographies take all their meaning.

    These guided tours are only available in French

    Next dates : For Halloween, the Tourist Office is offering a unique tour of the banks of the Eure river

    Find out more

    By Petit Chart'train

    Go on a luminous journey without getting tired. From April to January, this small train winds its way through the city centre in the evening from one illuminated site to the next, commenting on the riches and mysteries of the old town of Chartres.

    Next dates :

    • June, September, October : Friday and Saturday evenings.
    • July, August and All Saints' Day vacations : every evening.
    • November, December and January : Saturday evenings.

    Find out more

     

    Download

    Chartres en lumières 2023 plan

    Download the Chartres en lumières 2023 plan (pdf - 3.46 Mi)

    You can also find it in public places and shops in Chartres.

    The partners