When will museums and monuments reopen to the public? So far, no precise date has been set, although Emmanuel Macron spoke about potential reopening by mid-May, depending on the health situation. But the scenario is being detailed.
This Tuesday April 13, 2021, Senators rule for the reopening of cultural places as soon as lockdown is lifted. Twelve recommendations have been presented to sign the return of museums, as well as of movie theaters and show venues.
The lead of priority given to cultural places has been already addressed by the government. Earlier in March, government spokesman Gabriel Attal assured "museums will be some of the first places to reopen". "I think museums will be some of the first places to reopen. I confess I struggle to explain one can go to Sephora but not to a museum", Attal explained this March 7 in an interview with Le Parisien.
"In managing such an epidemic, it must be some inconsistency when it comes to limit interactions and flow of people", the spokesman admitted, before talking about the likely health protocol for these cultural places: "Roselyne Bachelot led many concertations with professionals from each sector. For museums, limited flows are considered, probably appointments, a Covid referent in each museum to guarantee people comply with health guidelines", he detailed.
A month earlier, on BFMTV, Roselyne Bachelot said she was working on “reopening museums and monuments as soon as possible”. This reopening will only occur “when we’ll reach a decreasing trend” of the coronavirus epidemic in the country, saying that at this stage, the health conditions “are still very bad”.
Yet, the minister assured that museums and monuments will be the first cultural places to reopen when the health situation will enable it. “We are not here yet for movie theaters and show venues” she stated.
