World Heritage In Centre-Val De Loire (2024)

Do you want to visit the World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire? Search no further, as I’ve rounded up a complete list of the World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire. From Chartres to Bourges, get ready to discover unique, beautiful, and jaw-dropping sites!

The Centre-Val de Loire is an administrative region located in central France and its capital is the city of Orléans. In addition, it’s the twelfth most populous region in the country and the sixth largest, encompassing the Cher, Eure-et-Loir, Indre, Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher, and Loiret departments!

So, do you want to know more about the World Heritage In Centre-Val De Loire (2024)? Keep reading!

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I earn a small commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you. Please read my disclosure & privacy policy for more information.

No time to read now? Pin it for later!

World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire
World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire

World Heritage in France

These are the 52 sites currently listed as World Heritage in France:

  1. Abbey Church of Saint-Savin sur Gartempe (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
  2. Amiens Cathedral (Hauts-de-France)
  3. Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe (Grand Est, Occitania, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  4. Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  5. Belfries of Belgium and France (Hauts-de-France)
  6. Bordeaux, Port of the Moon (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
  7. Bourges Cathedral (Centre-Val de Loire)
  8. Canal du Midi (Occitania)
  9. Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Rémi and Palace of Tau, Reims (Grand Est)
  10. Chaîne des Puys – Limagne fault tectonic arena (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps)
  11. Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars (Grand Est)
  12. Chartres Cathedral (Centre-Val de Loire)
  13. Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)
  14. Cordouan Lighthouse (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
  15. Decorated Cave of Pont d’Arc, known as Grotte Chauvet-Pont d’Arc, Ardèche (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps)
  16. Episcopal City of Albi (Occitania)
  17. Fortifications of Vauban (Brittany, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Grand Est, Hauts-de-France, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Normandy, Occitania, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  18. French Austral Lands and Seas (French Southern and Antarctic Lands)
  19. From the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, the Production of Open-pan Salt (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)
  20. Funerary and Memory Sites of the First World War (Western Front) (Grand Est, Hauts-de-France, and Île-de-France)
  21. Gulf of Porto: Calanche of Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve Corsica)
  22. Historic Centre of Avignon: Papal Palace, Episcopal Ensemble and Avignon Bridge (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  23. Historic Fortified City of Carcassonne (Occitania)
  24. Historic Site of Lyon (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps)
  25. Jurisdiction of Saint-Emilion (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
  26. Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems (New Caledonia)
  27. Le Havre, the City Rebuilt by Auguste Perret (Normandy)
  28. Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay (Normandy)
  29. Nice, Winter Resort Town of the Riviera (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  30. Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin (Hauts-de-France)
  31. Palace and Park of Fontainebleau (Île-de-France)
  32. Palace and Park of Versailles (Île-de-France)
  33. Paris, Banks of the Seine (Île-de-France)
  34. Pitons, cirques and remparts of Reunion Island (Réunion)
  35. Place Stanislas, Place de la Carrière and Place d’Alliance in Nancy (Grand Est)
  36. Pont du Gard (Roman Aqueduct) (Occitania)
  37. Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)
  38. Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
  39. Provins, Town of Medieval Fairs (Île-de-France)
  40. Pyrénées – Mont Perdu (Occitania)
  41. Roman Theatre and its Surroundings and the “Triumphal Arch” of Orange (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  42. Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Centre-Val de Loire, Grand Est, Hauts-de-France, Île-de-France, Normandy, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Occitania, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  43. Strasbourg, Grande-Île and Neustadt (Grand Est)
  44. Taputapuātea (French Polynesia)
  45. The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Grand Est, Île-de-France, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Pays de la Loire, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur)
  46. The Causses and the Cévennes, Mediterranean agro-pastoral Cultural Landscape (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, and Occitania)
  47. The Climats, terroirs of Burgundy (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)
  48. The Great Spa Towns of Europe (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps)
  49. The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes (Centre-Val de Loire and Pays de la Loire)
  50. The Maison Carrée of Nîmes (Occitania)
  51. Vézelay, Church and Hill (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)
  52. Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique (Martinique)

As you can see, eight of these forty-nine sites listed as World Heritage in France are part of more than one region or territory. The remaining forty-four are distributed as follows:

World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire

1. Chartres Cathedral (1979)

The Chartres Cathedral was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1979, the first year in which the country had nominations approved. Of the four sites listed as World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire, this is the only one situated in the Chartres commune, and in the Eure-et-Loir department.

The best things to do in Chartres include:

  • Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres
  • Centre International du Vitrail de Chartres
  • Chapelle Saint-Piat
  • Compa – Conservatoire de l’Agriculture
  • Église Saint-Pierre de Chartres
  • Les Fresques de Bel Air
  • L’Odyssée
  • Maison Picassiette
  • Musée des Beaux-Arts de Chartres
  • Parc des Bords de l’Eure

2. Bourges Cathedral (1992)

The Bourges Cathedral was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1992, the eighth year in which the country had nominations approved. Of the four sites listed as World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire, this is the only one situated in the Bourges commune, in the Cher department.

The best things to do in Bourges include:

  • Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Bourges
  • Jardin de l’Archevêché (Jardin de l’Hôtel de Ville)
  • Jardins des Prés Fichaux
  • Les Marais de Bourges
  • Musée des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
  • Musée du Berry (Hôtel Cujas)
  • Musée Estève (Hôtel des Echevins)
  • Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Bourges
  • Palais Jacques-Cœur
  • Plan d’Eau du Val d’Auron

3. Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France (1998)

The Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998, the twelfth year in which the country had nominations approved. Of the four sites listed as World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire, this is the only one located in ten different regions:

  1. Auvergne-Rhône-Alps
  2. Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
  3. Centre-Val de Loire
  4. Grand Est
  5. Hauts-de-France
  6. Île-de-France
  7. Normandy
  8. Nouvelle-Aquitaine
  9. Occitania
  10. Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

There are two examples of this multi-regional inscription that integrate the Centre-Val de Loire: the Cathédrale de Bourges, in the Cher department; and the Basilique Saint-Étienne, in the Indre department.

4. The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes (2000)

The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000, the fourteenth year in which the country had nominations approved. Of the four sites listed as World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire, this is the only one situated in two different regions: Centre-Val de Loire and Pays de la Loire.

The best things to do in the Loire Valley (in French, Val de Loire) include:

  • Château d’Amboise
  • Château d’Azay-le-Rideau
  • Château de Beauregard
  • Château de Blois
  • Château de Chambord
  • Château de Chanteloup
  • Château de Châteaudun
  • Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire
  • Château de Chenonceau
  • Château de Cheverny
  • Château de Gien
  • Château de Langeais
  • Château de Loches
  • Château de Meillant
  • Château de Plessis-lèz-Tours
  • Château de Richelieu
  • Château de Sully-sur-Loire
  • Château de Tours
  • Château de Valençay
  • Château de Villandry
  • Château du Clos Lucé
  • Château d’Ussé
  • Château-Gaillard
  • Forteresse Royale de Chinon
  • Palais Jacques-Cœur

Map of the World Heritage in Centre-Val de Loire

Share this blog post on your social media!

This blog post uses stock photographs (Getty Images)

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Scroll to Top