Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

TOURISM

Louvre still world’s most popular museum

The Louvre said Thursday its new Islamic art wing helped cement its position as the world's most-visited museum with nearly 10 million visitors in 2012, over a million more than last year.

Published: 20 December 2012 17:18 CET
Louvre still world's most popular museum
The Islamic Wing of the Louvre. Photo: Mario Bellini Architects

The exact figures will be released early next year, but in the meantime the Paris museum said there was a "remarkable progression in Chinese visitors, who now figure in the top three groups (of non-French visitors) alongside Americans and Brazilians".

Next came Italians and Germans, it said in a statement that noted that its website had seen more than 11 million visitors and that its Facebook page had 800,000 followers.

The museum's new wing of Islamic art, with about 3,000 precious works from the seventh to the 19th centuries, opened to the public in September and since then has attracted 650,000 visitors.

Costing nearly 100 million euros ($131 million), it is funded by the French government and supported by endowments from Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Kuwait, Oman and Azerbaijan.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

FOOD AND DRINK

Three things to know about the new Paris cheese museum

The Musée Vivant du Fromage is due to open its doors in early June, promising a unique immersive and interactive journey into France’s ‘culinary and terroir heritage’.

Published: 15 March 2024 14:16 CET
Three things to know about the new Paris cheese museum

Paris will soon be home to a cheese museum.

The venue, on Rue Saint-Louis en l’Île, in the fourth arrondissement, will open to visitors on June 3rd, sending – no doubt – clouds of cheesy odours wafting daily down the street.

It will be at the same location as the former restaurant ‘Nos Ancêtres Les Gaulois’ (Our ancestors the Gauls), with the objective of becoming “an essential meeting place” for cheese lovers, as well as both novices and professionals within the industry.

Here are a few things to know about the new cheese museum;

It will be interactive

Fans of camembert, chèvre, brie, morbier, Roquefort and brebis, assemble! The museum promises an educational and fully interactive tour of France’s historic cheese heritage, including the science and varied tradition of cheese-making.

The first portion will give an overview of the ‘culture’ of cheese. Then, you will learn about its history, as well as how it is made and finish off with a tasting (dégustation).

READ MORE: Best Briehaviour: Your guide to French cheese etiquette

There’s a dairy and creamery

Part of the tour features a fully functional dairy, where visitors can witness cheese being produced before their very eyes. 

There are two goals for this part of the museum – to help people discover the different regions of France and their iconic cheeses, as well as to encourage young people  to consider careers in the farming and dairy industry, which is enduring something of a recruitment crisis in France.

You will also be able to purchase cheese and souvenirs at the museum’s boutique.

It can host private events

The museum can be booked for private catered events for up to 150 people in the evenings, from 7pm, with or without the services of a cheese expert, who can guide guests through tastings and demonstrations. 

READ ALSO 7 tips for buying French cheese

Tickets are advertised at €20 for adults and €10 for children. For more information and to book a visit, log on to website of the Musée Vivant du fromage. Blessed are the cheese makers!

SHOW COMMENTS