What to See in Toulouse

Overview

Districts and Tourist Areas

Old Toulouse
This is the most interesting but also the most touristy part of the Pink City, featuring Saint-Sernin, the Jacobins Convent, the Capitole, and countless narrow streets (like rue Saint-Rome) lined with historic buildings or private mansions, such as the famous Hôtel d'Assézat.

Monuments and Architectural Landmarks

Le Capitole
It’s both the city’s beautiful central square with its arcades and Toulouse’s town hall, enhanced by its garden and keep. The interior of the town hall is adorned with frescoes, sculptures, and paintings, and houses the famous Salle des Illustres with its busts of past Toulouse celebrities.

Hôtel d'Assézat
Built in the mid-16th century, this is the city’s most beautiful private mansion. It also houses the Bemberg Foundation and its paintings, sculptures, furniture, and art objects from the Renaissance to the 20th century.

Place Saint-Georges
Formerly an execution site, this square surrounded by bars, restaurants, and beautiful buildings is one of the city’s lively spots and also hosts markets.

Pont Neuf
As is often the case, this "new" bridge is the oldest in the city. It was built in 1544 and blends perfectly with the banks of the Garonne.

Alsace-Lorraine Street
This long semi-pedestrian street near the Capitol is a fairly busy shopping area.

Religious Buildings

Basilica of La Daurade
Located along the banks of the Garonne, this church—without a steeple but with a columned façade—is best appreciated visually from the opposite bank of the river. Inside, you can see a statue of the Black Virgin, which makes the building a pilgrimage site.

Basilique Saint-Sernin, Toulouse, France

Saint-Sernin Basilica
Built in the Romanesque style between the 11th and 12th centuries, this church is among the largest and most beautiful in the world in its category. It was also a major pilgrimage site on the Camino de Santiago for many years. More broadly, Saint-Sernin is one of the symbols of Toulouse.

Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Toulouse, Toulouse, France

Cathédrale Saint-Étienne
The building took nearly five centuries to complete, resulting in its "original" architectural blend spanning different eras. The interior features beautiful stained glass.

Chapelle des Carmélites
This 17th-century former convent is notable for its interior woodwork and paintings.

Jacobins Convent
A beautiful Gothic architectural complex from the 12th and 14th centuries, featuring a stunning church and its cloister. At one time, it was even considered the most beautiful Dominican church in Christian Europe.

Notre-Dame du Taur Church
On Rue du Taur, between the Capitole and Saint-Sernin, this 14th-century building is a fine example of Southern Gothic art and has served as a model for many churches in the region.

Museums

The Abattoirs
This is a modern and contemporary art museum established in 2000 in the city’s former slaughterhouses. It houses works from the second half of the 20th century.

Cité de l'Espace
Playful and educational, this science and culture centre focused on space and space exploration is almost unique in the world. With exhibits, simulators, and new technologies, you can also see life-size replicas of the Ariane-5 rocket and the Soyuz spacecraft.

EDF Bazacle Space
This still-operational hydroelectric plant (which offers tours) is also a cultural venue in the heart of Toulouse. It features a museum trail, all kinds of exhibitions, a large terrace overlooking the Garonne, and a "fish ladder.".

Water Tower Gallery
This lighthouse-like brick tower near the Pont Neuf dates from the early 19th century. Since 1974, the site has been dedicated to photography, featuring a documentation center on the subject from its origins to the present day, along with numerous acclaimed exhibitions.

Augustin Museum
The Museum of Fine Arts in Toulouse, founded in 1795, is the second oldest museum in France. Housed in a former convent, it features collections of paintings and sculptures from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century.

Musée départemental de la Résistance
The renovated building presents the history and memory of the 1940s in Toulouse and its region. Nearby, the Monument to the Glory of the Resistance combines architecture, sculpture, and audiovisual elements.

Georges Labit Museum
Housed in a neo-Moorish villa dating from 1893, this museum showcases a vast collection of objects, sculptures, and paintings primarily brought back from Asia by Georges Labit, a Toulouse-based traveller and merchant from the late 19th century.

Paul Dupuy Museum
This private mansion is dedicated to graphic and decorative arts from the Middle Ages to 1939. It features drawings, clockmaking, goldsmithing, ivories, ceramics, and wrought ironwork.

Saint-Raymond Museum
This is Toulouse’s archaeological museum, right next to the Basilica of Saint-Sernin. It primarily houses collections spanning from the Neolithic era to the year 1000.

Old Toulouse Museum
This private museum displays paintings, sculptures, various objects, and old documents evoking the city's past. Regional folk art is also featured.

Toulouse Natural History Museum
Reopened after renovations in 2008, the museum houses two and a half million specimens across 6,000 m², making it the second-largest museum in France. It’s a natural history museum rich in ornithological, zoological, mineralogical, botanical, ethnological, and prehistoric collections.

Parks and Gardens

Toulouse Botanical Garden
This large and pleasant urban park, popular with walkers, is also home to the Natural History Museum. Extending from it, the Grand Rond is another landscaped garden in the city.

Raymond VI Garden
Created in 1998 at the same time as the Abattoirs Museum, it is a pleasant two-hectare space that opens onto the Garonne River.

Daurade Quay
These quays along the Garonne in the old city centre offer a pleasant urban stroll, with a particularly nice view of the Pont Neuf and the Hôtel-Dieu on the opposite bank.

What to See in Toulouse

Overview

Districts and Tourist Areas

Monuments and Architectural Landmarks

Religious Buildings

Museums

Parks and Gardens

Additional Information

Must-see & highly recommended

Recommended

Worth a look / Other