Château de Chambord Exhibitions in 2026
Exhibition dates can move. Everything below is from the estate’s own pages on the date at the top of this page. Check the official news listing before you plan a day around one, and the Château de Chambord tours all state their own cancellation terms on the card.
A four-century banquet opening this month, a permanent display on the war years reached from the roof, and a Renaissance Madonna on loan. What is dated is dated; what is permanent says so. Any of the tickets and guided visits at Chambord gets you in.
Les Festins de Chambord, 26 September 2026 – 24 January 2027
Les Festins de Chambord is the estate’s largest exhibition since 2019, and it opens on 26 September 2026. It tells the history of the château through its tables, from the Renaissance to the late 20th century, and runs until 24 January 2027.
It is included in your château ticket, with no extra charge, and it sits in the heart of the château on the visit route. It was curated with the European Institute for the History and Cultures of Food, and it carries the patronage of the French presidency.
The four tables
Each room recreates one meal, with loans from French and international collections and silverware reproduced by 3D printing from old drawings.
| Table | When | What you see |
|---|---|---|
| François I’s supper | 1539 | The supper the king could have offered the Emperor Charles V |
| Louis XIV’s dinner | 1685 | A dinner from the king’s last stay at Chambord |
| Maurice de Saxe’s coffee room | 18th century | The marshal’s service of exotic drinks |
| A royal gala dinner | 1988 | The dinner given for the Prince and Princess of Wales |
The Christmas programme this year picks up the same theme, with a Gargantua twist, from 28 November.
Chambord, 1939–1945: the permanent display on the terraces
A permanent display tells the story of the war years, when the château was closed and became the largest store of evacuated art in France. By June 1944 it held 4,000 cubic metres of crates, among them the Mona Lisa, Liberty Leading the People and the Lady and the Unicorn.
You reach it from the roof terraces, and it is designed for every age, children included. The history page tells the rest of the story.
A Botticelli-studio Madonna, on loan
A painting of the Virgin and Child with the young St John the Baptist is on a two-year loan from the church of Saint Félix at Champigny-en-Beauce, north of Blois. It was long taken for a 19th-century copy. Restoration in 2021 and 2022 showed it to be a 16th-century original from the studio of Sandro Botticelli, painted around 1510.
It belongs to a family of three: related versions hang in the Pitti Palace in Florence and the Barber Institute in Birmingham. The commune has owned it since 1906.
The tapestries and the 4,500 objects
Beyond the dated shows, the château’s own collection runs to more than 4,500 works of art. Its tapestries are among the finest in France: large 17th-century sets bought by the State since the 1970s and hung in rotation, which is why the rooms look different from one year to the next.
Quick reference
| Exhibition | Dates | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Les Festins de Chambord | 26 September 2026 – 24 January 2027 | Included in admission |
| Chambord, 1939–1945 | Permanent | Included in admission |
| The Botticelli-studio Madonna | A two-year loan | Included in admission |
You need nothing beyond your ticket for any of them.
Where to check these figures
Every figure above comes from the Domaine national de Chambord’s own published pages, listed below. Hours and rates move, so check yours before you travel.
- Les Festins de Chambord (in French)
- Chambord, 1939-1945
- A work from Botticelli's studio
- The permanent collections
The rest of the year’s dates are on events and the horse show, the route through the rooms on what to see, and every way to visit on Château de Chambord Tours.