Discover Magny-en-Vexin

Magny-en-Vexin offers several clearly distinct cultural and landscape themes to help you plan your trip. The Sentier du patrimoine passes the church and the pillars of the Porte de Paris; the Hôtel de Crosne and the Château des Boves each have their own architectural histories. There are also springs, the Aubette stream, and a viewpoint overlooking fields, woods, and the hamlet of Arthieul. The town’s history also extends to a railway line to Chars, inaugurated in 1871. When choosing a hotel, you can first consider whether you want to focus your trip primarily on architecture, cultural history, or landscape.

Cultural history and buildings

The Sentier du patrimoine in Magny-en-Vexin passes the church and the two pillars that the town calls the Porte de Paris. The monumental pillars replaced the Porte de Paris gate and were completed in 1778. They became symbols of the town and its lords. The route thus brings together a connection to the church and a town landmark with a specific history: the pillars recall the former gate and the town’s lords.

The Hôtel de Crosne was built in 1786 for Emmanuel Edmond Saussay. He commissioned the architect Louis Emmanuel Damesme, who was born in Magny-en-Vexin, to design it. The Hôtel de Crosne is an old, distinctive mansion and is now used by the town hall of Magny-en-Vexin. Its year of construction, commissioner, and architect give the building a distinct place in the town’s architectural history; its current use adds a present-day function to this story.

Park, water, and landscape

The Château des Boves was rebuilt in 1810. A historical description recounts an amphitheatre-like view from there over Magny-en-Vexin and its surroundings. A two-hectare park remains on the grounds; parts of the building, park, and boundary walls are protected as historic monuments. The Château therefore brings together architectural history, parkland, and a historically described view of the surroundings. The protected status applies to parts of the building, park, and walls.

The water features on the grounds of the Château des Boves are also part of its history. Springs rise there and converge to form the Aubette stream, which feeds a livestock watering trough. The description thus covers both the source of the water and its onward course and use as a watering trough. The spring, stream, and trough form a connected sequence within the grounds.

A viewpoint on the cultural trail in Magny-en-Vexin looks out over grain fields, clusters of trees, the forests of Garenne and Arthieul, and the hamlet of Arthieul at the bottom of the Aubette valley. The panorama combines open spaces and wooded areas with a named hamlet on the valley floor. To understand the landscape, the fields, trees, and location of Arthieul on the valley floor are relevant, as well as the forests.

Music and earlier town history

Magny-en-Vexin launched a cultural program at the Church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité featuring a series of classical music and gospel concerts. The initiative adds a musical dimension to the architectural history of the churches and historic buildings. Classical music and gospel are the two concert genres explicitly named in this program.

The town’s earlier history also includes the Hôtel-Dieu being moved to the former monastery. Its railway history is also tied to a specific historical reference: the former railway station in Magny-en-Vexin was the first station on a twelve-kilometre railway line to Chars. The line was inaugurated on 13 August 1871.

These themes range from individual buildings and their history to the landscape and former infrastructure.

Discover more destinations: Theuville, Luzarches, Deuil-la-Barre, Maffliers, Franconville, Vigny, L'isle-Adam, Saint-Gratien

For the regional travel overview: Val-D'oise.