Château Pastré opens for the European Heritage Days — Marseille

At the far southern end of Marseille, where the corniche runs out towards the calanques, a bastide sits in a park of a hundred hectares above the sea. Château Pastré is closed to visitors for most of the year. On 19 and 20 September 2026, for the European Heritage Days, it opens.

The house carries the name of Lily Pastré, the Marseille patron who during the war turned her estate into a refuge for artists, and the guided visits over the weekend follow that history through the building and the grounds. The mairie of the 6th and 8th arrondissements, which organises the two days in this part of the city, has also arranged music: on the Sunday afternoon, musicians from the Opéra de Marseille play in the château at 3.30pm and 5pm.

The 43rd European Heritage Days take photography as their theme. In the same two districts the weekend also opens the Château Borély, the botanical garden, the Cantini museum and the basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde — but Château Pastré is the one that is not there the rest of the year.

Practical details

• When: Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September 2026, guided visits 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm; music on the Sunday at 3.30pm and 5pm
• Where: Château Pastré, 157 avenue de Montredon, 13008 Marseille, France
• Admission: free
• Booking: the programme published by the mairie does not require booking for the château; several other visits in the two districts do, through the Marseille tourist office

The full programme for the 6th and 8th arrondissements is published by the mairie. Cultural Heritage Online lists this event for readers in Marseille that weekend.