Coverage · France
Chartres
Chartres is defined by its cathedral, one of the finest examples of Gothic architecture in Europe, built between 1194 and 1260 and still housing the Veil of the Virgin that drew pilgrims for centuries. Beyond that skyline landmark, the city layers medieval gateways, a half-timbered fish-market house, terraced bishop's gardens, and a cemetery worker's home encrusted with 4 million mosaic fragments over the Eure valley.
26+ researched places in the app
Places researched in this city
A selection of the 26 places we've researched in this city. The full set is in the Parroo app.
-
Chartres Cathedral
Built in an astonishing 66 years, the cathedral preserves 176 stained-glass windows covering 2,600 square metres, including the famed Chartres blue, alongside a floor labyrinth and the relic of the Virgin's veil that made this city a major medieval pilgrimage site.
-
International Stained Glass Centre
France's largest Renaissance stained-glass collection is housed in a 13th-century Gothic wine cellar, the Cellier de Loëns, originally built as a tithe barn where the Church collected agricultural taxes, now drawing around 42,000 visitors a year.
-
Museum of Fine Arts of Chartres
The former episcopal palace hosted King Henri IV on the day of his coronation in February 1594, and its rooms now hold over 50,000 objects, including works by Rigaud and Fragonard, set against architecture spanning three centuries from the 15th to the 18th.
-
Saint Peter's Church
Founded in the 7th century by Queen Balthild, wife of Clovis II, this church survived Viking raids in 858 and 911 and was rebuilt to produce a high Gothic choir with flying buttresses and 13th-century stained glass that rival the cathedral's own windows.
-
House of Salmon
The carved wooden salmon on the facade marks the building's historic link to the fish market below, but look closely and you will also spot 'la truie qui file', a pig spinning thread, one of several cryptic carvings decorating this late 15th-century half-timbered merchant's house.
-
Picassiette House
Between 1938 and 1962, cemetery worker Raymond Isidore covered his entire home, chapel, and garden with roughly 4 million pieces of broken crockery, creating a mosaic world that the French Ministry of Culture designated Remarkable Contemporary Architecture in 2017.
-
Saint Nicholas Hill
In the Middle Ages this 155-step stairway was known as 'rue Cligne-putain', a name that points to a rather different nightlife than the scenic river views it offers today, connecting the old river port to the upper town via a route that water carriers used daily.
Good to know
- How many places does Parroo cover in Chartres?
- 26 researched places, from the Chartres Cathedral and the International Stained Glass Centre to lesser-known spots like the Picassiette House. Each one has a short summary, a full article, and a ~3-minute audio story.
- Is there an audio guide?
- Yes. Every place has a ~3-minute audio story, written from the perspective of a guide standing next to you and produced with premium narration, not the article read aloud.
- Which languages is Chartres available in?
- German, English, and French. Pick whichever you'd rather read or listen in.
- Do I need to book anything or be online?
- No booking, no signup. It's a self-guided walk you start whenever you like. You do need a connection for now to stream the audio and load articles; offline support is something we're still building.
Open this city in Parroo
Get the full articles, audio stories, and map for this city in the Parroo app. One payment per geography. Yours to keep.
Nearby cities
Updated: 2026-05-29