The lighting of the Olympic flame will take place on Tuesday 16 April at the Archaeological Site of Olympia (Greece), inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1989. The flame will then reach Marseille (France) on 8 May before continuing its journey through a number of French regions. This relay, organized by Paris 2024, will pay tribute to cultural and natural heritage, passing through some thirty sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List:
12 May - Arles, Roman and Romanesque monuments
A site of exceptional architectural heritage ranging from Roman antiquity (arenas, ancient theatre) to Provençal Romanesque art of the 11th and 12th centuries (Saint-Trophime), including the second Roman golden age in the 4th century (Alyscamps necropolis).
16 May - Historic Fortified City of Carcassonne
A remarkable example of a fortified medieval city with a defensive system surrounding the castle and dependencies, built mainly during the 13th century.
18 May - St. Marie Cathedral in Auch, part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
Four routes to Santiago de Compostela originating from Paris, Vézelay, Le Puy and Arles were used by countless pilgrims in the Middle Ages. These paths are lined with pilgrimage churches and sanctuaries, hospitals, bridges and wayside crosses.
19 May - Gavarnie Cirque, Pyrenees, part of Pyrénées - Mont Perdu
Mountain landscape located between France and Spain, centred around the Mont Perdu peak, a limestone massif reaching an altitude 3,352m. The site includes two of Europe's largest and deepest canyons.
22 May - Saint-Front Cathedral in Périgueux, part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
Four routes to Santiago de Compostela originating from Paris, Vézelay, Le Puy and Arles were used by countless pilgrims in the Middle Ages. These paths are lined with pilgrimage churches and sanctuaries, hospitals, bridges and wayside crosses.
23 May - Bordeaux and surrounding area
- Jurisdiction of Saint-Emilion: an exceptional landscape, entirely devoted to winegrowing, with many historic monuments in the towns and villages.
- Bordeaux, Port of the Moon: the city's urban planning and architecture from the early 18th century onwards make it an outstanding example of classical and neoclassical trends, conferring upon it a remarkable urban and architectural unity and coherence.
31 May - Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay
Often referred to as "the Wonder of the West", this Gothic Benedictine abbey dedicated to the archangel Saint-Michel was built upon a rocky islet surrounded by vast sandbanks, between Normandy and Brittany.
12 June - Pitons, cirques and ramparts of Reunion Island
Dominated by two volcanic peaks, the site's spectacular landscape features escarpments, gorges and wooded valleys. It provides a natural habitat for a wide variety of plants with a high degree of endemism.
17 June - Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique
All the forest types and plant diversity endemic to the Lesser Antilles are represented on this site, within forest continuums ranging from the seashore to the volcanic summits.
18 June - Nice, Winter Resort Town of the Riviera
Nice reflects the development of a city devoted to winter tourism, making the most of its mild climate and its coastal situation, between sea and mountains. The eclectic urban planning and architectural styles of its districts contribute to Nice's reputation as a cosmopolitan winter resort.
19 June - Roman Theatre and its Surroundings and the "Triumphal Arch" of Orange
With its 103 m-long front wall, this is one of the best-preserved of the great Roman theatres. Built at the beginning of the reign of Augustus, the Roman triumphal arch of Orange is one of the most beautiful and interesting of the Augustan era.
21 June - Vichy, part of The Great Spa Towns of Europe
Vichy bears witness to the international European spa culture that developed from the early 18th century to the 1930s, leading to the emergence of major international resorts that influenced urban typology around ensembles of spa buildings such as baths, pump rooms, spring halls, colonnades and galleries.
25 June - Besançon Citadel, part of the Fortifications of Vauban
The Fortifications of Vauban consist of 12 groups of fortified buildings and sites along the western, northern and eastern borders of France. They represent the finest examples of the work of Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban (1633-1707), a military engineer of King Louis XIV.
26 June - Strasbourg, Grande-Île and Neustadt
The Grande-Île and the Neustadt form an urban ensemble that is characteristic of Rhineland Europe, with a structure that centres on the cathedral, a major masterpiece of Gothic art. Perspectives created around the cathedral give rise to a unified urban space and shape a distinctive landscape organized around the rivers and canals.
30 June - Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Rémi and Palace of Tau, Reims
These three buildings form an exceptional architectural ensemble. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame is a masterpiece of Gothic art. The Palace of Tau preserves the memory of the coronation ceremony, while the former royal Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Rémi boasts majestic 18th-century architecture.
30 June - Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars
In north-east France, on chalky land, the Champagne hillsides form a remarkable agro-industrial landscape of vineyards and cellars. This is where the benchmark method of producing sparkling wine, thanks to a secondary fermentation in the bottle, was developed from its beginnings in the 17th century to its industrialization in the 19th century.
2 July - Belfries of Belgium and France
Twenty-three belfries in northern France and the Gembloux belfry in Belgium were listed in 2005, as an extension to the 32 Belgian belfries listed in 1999 under the name Belfries of Flanders and Wallonia. Built between the 11th and 17th centuries, they illustrate the Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architectural styles.
3 July - Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin
The Nord-Pas de Calais region offers a remarkable landscape shaped by three centuries (18th to 20th centuries) of coal mining with pits, slag heaps, railway stations, corons and miners' villages.
4 July - Amiens Cathedral
The Amiens Cathedral is one of the largest churches in France, and one of the finest examples of 13th century Gothic architecture.
5 July - Le Havre, the city rebuilt by Auguste Perret
Reconstructed after the Second World War according to the plans drawn by Auguste Perret, the city of Le Havre is a remarkable example of post-war architecture and urban planning, based on the unity of methodology and the use of concrete.
7 July - Chartres Cathedral
Notre-Dame de Chartres cathedral is one of the most authentic and accomplished works of early 13th century religious architecture. Its stained-glass windows, monumental statuary and painted decor make it one of the most impressive and best-preserved examples of Gothic art.
8 and 10 July - The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes
The Loire Valley is an exceptional cultural landscape, comprising historic towns and villages, great architectural monuments - many famous châteaux - and farmland.
11 July - Vézelay, Church and Hill
The basilica of St Mary Magdalene, a 12th-century monastic church, is a masterpiece of Burgundian Romanesque architecture, with its sculpted capitals and portal.
12 July - The Climats, terroirs of Burgundy
Climats are precisely delimited vineyard parcels on the slopes of the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune south of the city Dijon. They differ from one another due to specific natural conditions (geology and exposure, vine types).
20 July - Palace and Park of Fontainebleau
Used by the kings of France since the 12th century, the hunting residence of Fontainebleau, located in the heart of a vast forest in the Île-de-France region, was transformed, enlarged and embellished in the 16th century by King François I, who wanted to make a "new Rome" of it. The château remained a royal or imperial residence until the end of the Second Empire.
20 July - Provins, Town of Medieval Fairs
This fortified medieval town is located in the heart of the ancient region of the Counts of Champagne. It bears witness to the early development of international trading fairs and the wool industry. The historic fortified town is an exceptional and authentic example of a medieval Champagne fair town.
23 July - Palace and Park of Versailles
The primary residence and seat of power for the French monarchy from Louis XIV to Louis XVI, the palace and grounds of Versailles, built and embellished by several generations of architects, sculptors, painters, ornamentalists and landscapers, were for over a century the model of what a royal residence should be.
26 July - Paris, Banks of the Seine
For the first time in the history of the modern Olympic Games, the opening ceremony will take place in the heart of a UNESCO World Heritage site. This celebration will be an opportunity to showcase a cultural heritage of oustanding universal value, recognized by the entire international community. The site includes all the architectural masterpieces along the Seine, such as the famous Pont-Neuf and Alexandre III bridges, and emblematic buildings and sites such as the Île Saint Louis, Île de la Cité and the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, the Hôtel de Ville, the Louvre Museum, the Hôtel des Invalides and its esplanade, the Place de la Concorde and the Eiffel Tower.
About UNESCO
With 194 Member States, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization contributes to peace and security by leading multilateral cooperation on education, science, culture, communication and information. Headquartered in Paris, UNESCO has offices in 54 countries and employs over 2300 people. UNESCO oversees more than 2000 World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves and Global Geoparks; networks of Creative, Learning, Inclusive and Sustainable Cities; and over 13 000 associated schools, university chairs, training and research institutions. Its Director-General is Audrey Azoulay.
"Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed" - UNESCO Constitution, 1945.
