Normandy Impressionism: the Château d'Auvers-sur-Oise

Find a little taste of Italy in Normandy at the seventeenth-century Château d'Auvers-sur-Oise.

Built by a rich Italian financer in Catherine de Medici's entourage around 1635, the Château is largely influenced by the architecture in France's neighbor to the southeast.

Harmonious gardens (inspired by the Villa d'Este in Tivoli), pools, fountains, and two orangeries, all built by the best and the brightest of the age, will delight visitors.

In 1662, the Italian castel was transofmred into a French château.

Multimedia Experience: Travel Back in Time to the Impressionist Era

In the 1980s, the château's edifice was completely restored.

Since 1994, the site has been home to the Voyage au Temps des Impressionistes multimedia experience, in homage to the painters that left their mark on the Oise Valley.

Special effects, big screen projections, old photographs and films, and musical decorations and ambiances will help you discover life at the end of the nineteenth century.

Immerse yourself in the works of Toulouse-Lautrec, Monet, Pissarro, Degas, Renoir, and more, and experience a "live shows" of the Impressionist period, such as:

  • Old Paris,
  • Cabarets and cafés-concerts with French cancan shows,
  • The difficult fashion and universe of workers,
  • Steam trains and train stations,
  • Open-air cafés and dance halls along the water,
  • Lunch on the grass and other open-air activites.

Another note on the region's art history: the Auvers commune was also the last home of Van Gogh.

The painter's spirit still echoes in the attic of the Auberge Ravous, classified as a Historical Monument and preserved in its original state.

Access

The Château d’Auvers is located 30 mn from Paris and 40 minutes from Versailles and Beauvais.

  • Driving from Paris Paris
    A86/A15 then A115, direction Cergy-Pontoise.
    Exit Auvers-sur-Oise, direction Château d’Auvers
  • By train
    Gare du Nord towards Valmondois: change at Valmondois station for Auvers-sur-Oise.
    Gare St Lazare towards Pontoise: change at Pontoise station for Auvers-sur-Oise.
  • Direct train
    From April to October, every Saturday, Sunday, and national holidays, a direct SNCF Transilien train links Paris Gare du Nord to Auvers-sur-Oise.
    Departure: 9:56 AM (arrival at Auvers at 10:28 AM)
    Return from Auvers at 6:15 PM (arrival Paris Gare du Nord at 6:48 PM).

Address

Château d’Auvers
Rue de Léry
BP 21
95430 Auvers-sur-Oise

Auvers-sur-Oise