Saint-Quentin Musée des Papillons © CRTC Hauts-de-France - Ville de Saint-Quentin - Musée des Papillons

Flit around the Butterfly Museum

No need for a net to hunt butterflies, just your very own eyes to admire the hundred-year-old collection housed within l’Espace Saint-Jacques, a superb and recently-renovated Art Déco building in Saint-Quentin. As soon as you enter the museum, you are greeted with a poetic piece of ethereal art that sets the tone for this colourful adventure featuring several thousand specimens from around the world, including the largest butterfly in the world! A delight for everyone both young and old!

©Northern France, Saint-Quentin, Musée des Papillons (butterflies museum) |Hauts-de-France Tourisme / Ville de Saint-Quentin - Musée des Papillons

Pastel and velvet nature of lepidopterans

Saint-Quentin is known as the City of Pastels thanks to the famous Rococo portraitist Quentin de la Tour. And did you know that art historians often compare the powder of pastel to the velvet nature of a butterfly’s wings? Their fragility is what makes them both unique! What better way to combine the two than with a visit to the town’s Musée des Papillons (Butterfly Museum).

It was founded in 1912 as a bequest from Jules Passet who devoted his life and fortune to his passion for insects, particularly butterflies and beetles.

Northern France _ Saint-Quentin_Musée des Papillons (butterfly museum) © CRTC Hauts-de-France - Ville de Saint-Quentin - Musée des Papillons

Northern France, Saint-Quentin, Musée des Papillons (butterflies museum) © CRTC Hauts-de-France - Ville de Saint-Quentin - Musée des Papillons

The fascinating world of butterflies

Five modern rooms take you on a tour of the largest, most original and most colourful butterflies in the world, teaching you along the way how their colonies and natural hierarchy works. Some of the specimens are held in glass inclusions, almost like works of art. The metallic Blue Morpho, Silver-washed Fritillary and Apollo will be sure to catch your eye…

A fascinating museum for the whole family that promises to give you much more than just butterflies!

Local's tip

Julien Leclercq 1 Crt Hauts De France Ludovic Leleu

Walk in the Marais d'Isle in Saint-Quentin

Did you know that Europe’s only nature reserve located right in the heart of an urban area is here in Picardy? It’s an irresistible haven of peace where you can relax along the water’s edge while listening to the birds singing and inhaling the hypnotic smell of the flowers. The Marais d’Isle offers a rich and biodiverse environment for all its visitors, being half natural reserve and half park for the whole family!

Everyone can come to walk, play and unwind; and there’s even a small zoo with farm animals, alpacas and wallabies! Or why not boot up and explore the reserve with a nature guide or enjoy a boat ride on a traditional bacôve (available from spring)?

Nearby, you can enjoy a drink on the water at the “Guingette”, top up your tan on the beach by the pond or play a round of mini-golf with your friends or family. Believe me, everyone I’ve shown around has absolutely loved it!

Julien, Resident, Expert in Art Deco, Nature and Disconnecting in Saint-Quentin