--- title: "Maison Jules-Roy: How to Visit and What to See" description: "The Maison Jules-Roy is the house at the top of Vézelay where the writer Jules Roy spent the last twenty years of his life." url: https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/maison-jules-roy-vezelay lang: en updated: 2026-10-08 generated: 2026-10-08 image: https://www.cote-privee.com/og/things-to-do/maison-jules-roy-vezelay.png --- # Maison Jules-Roy > Maison Jules-Roy: the writer Jules Roy's last home in Vézelay, with his study kept as he left it and terraced gardens facing the basilica. Maison Jules-Roy is in Vézelay (Yonne), 1 h 28 by road (125 km) from Beaune. Opening hours: 3 April to 8 November: Friday to Sunday, 14:00 to 18:00 · Admission: Free entry · Allow 30 minutes to 1 hour · Private driver from Beaune: €320 one way for the whole car, up to 4 guests. The Maison Jules-Roy is the house at the top of Vézelay where the writer Jules Roy spent the last twenty years of his life. The Yonne department now runs it as a writers' house. Visitors can see his study, left as it was, and walk in terraced gardens that look out on the basilica and the valley of the Cure. ## Key facts - Type: Heritage - Where: Vézelay · Yonne - Location: 95 km north-west of Beaune · Yonne - Coordinates: 47.4659, 3.7472 - 1 h 28 from Beaune - Open 3 April to 8 November - Allow 30 minutes to 1 hour - Official website: [yonne.fr](https://www.yonne.fr/mon-quotidien/la-maison-jules-roy/) - From Beaune: ≈ 1 h 28 · 125 km - €320 one way from Beaune with a [private driver](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver) ## Getting there - [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver): 1 h 28 by road (125 km), €320 one way for the whole car. Coming by train or plane? [Transfers from stations and airports](https://www.cote-privee.com/transfers) Estimates per vehicle for up to 4 guests, tolls included. Your price is confirmed when you book. ## History Jules Roy was born in 1907 at Rovigo, in Algeria. He left the seminary in Algiers for the army, served first in the infantry and then in the air force, and flew bombing missions with the Royal Air Force in the Second World War. In 1953 he resigned as a colonel in protest at the methods used in the Indochina war, and in 1960 he was one of the first intellectuals to denounce the abuses of the Algerian war. He settled in Vézelay in 1978, at the Clos du Couvent, opposite the basilica, and kept writing there until his death on 15 June 2000. He is buried in the town's cemetery. The Yonne department bought the property in 1999, with his approval, to make it a writers' house open to all. Jules Roy left it his manuscripts, his library and his study. Run with the departmental library, the house holds the Maisons des Illustres label and each year hosts two writers for two-month residencies on the theme of the Mediterranean. It also stages exhibitions, readings and talks. ## What you will see The visit centres on Jules Roy's study, with his desk, his books and windows that frame the basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine. You can browse his works and those of other writers who lived in Vézelay, such as Georges Bataille, Max-Pol Fouchet and Romain Rolland. Outside, gardens laid out in terraces drop down the slope, with wide views over the basilica and the Cure valley. Artists' exhibitions are held in the house during the season. ## Opening hours and tickets - Opening hours: 3 April to 8 November: Friday to Sunday, 14:00 to 18:00 - Admission: Free entry - Booking: Not needed Checked on 8 October 2026 on [destinationgrandvezelay.com](https://www.destinationgrandvezelay.com/maison-jules-roy/). ## Planning your visit Allow 30 minutes to an hour. The house is in the upper part of Vézelay, near the basilica, about 1 hour 30 minutes from Beaune, and pairs well with the basilica and the Zervos museum. Entry is free. The study opens from early April to early November, on Friday to Sunday afternoons, while the gardens are open every day. The upper town is steep, so wear comfortable shoes. ## Did you know? Jules Roy's war novel La Vallée heureuse, drawn from his night bombing raids over the Ruhr, won the Prix Renaudot and earned him fifteen days of close arrest from his superiors. ## Around Maison Jules-Roy What to combine with Maison Jules-Roy on the same day, nearest first. ### Villages - [Irancy](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/irancy) (28 km away): The red wine village of the Yonne, set in a bowl of vines and cherry trees. ### Châteaux - [Château de Vault-de-Lugny](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-vault-de-lugny) (9 km away): A moated castle with a tall square keep near Avallon, now an intimate five-star hotel. - [Château de Bazoches](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-bazoches) (10 km away): The castle Vauban bought with a royal reward, and turned into a workshop for his military engineers. - [Château de Chastellux](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-chastellux) (14 km away): A towered fortress at the gateway to the Morvan, still lived in by the family of its name. ### Things to do - [Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine, Vézelay (Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/basilique-de-vezelay), 1 km away: A Romanesque masterpiece crowning a hill, where Saint Bernard preached the Second Crusade. - [Zervos Museum of Modern Art (Musée départemental d’art moderne, collection Zervos)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/musee-zervos-vezelay), 1 km away: Picasso, Calder and Miró in the Vézelay house where the writer Romain Rolland spent his last years. - [Église Notre-Dame de Saint-Père](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/eglise-notre-dame-saint-pere) (2 km away): A luminous Gothic church at the foot of Vézelay hill, with a 50-metre bell tower and a carved porch restored after Viollet-le-Duc. ### Restaurants - [Le Valucien](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/le-valucien-vault-de-lugny) (9 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): A starred table with Mauritian accents inside a moated castle near Avallon. ## Questions about Maison Jules-Roy ### How far is Maison Jules-Roy from Beaune? Maison Jules-Roy is about 1 h 28 from Beaune by road (125 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €320 for the whole car, up to 4 guests. ### How long does a visit to Maison Jules-Roy take? For the visit, allow 30 minutes to 1 hour. ### When is Maison Jules-Roy open? Opening days and times change during the year, so check the official website (yonne.fr) before you go. Your driver can plan the day around them. ### Can a private driver take us to Maison Jules-Roy? Yes. Your driver collects you in Beaune or at your hotel in an electric Polestar 2 (up to 4 guests), waits while you visit and plans the rest of the day with you. The driver speaks English, French, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic. → [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver) ## Book - [Book a driver here](https://www.cote-privee.com/book?service=driver&place=sight:julesroy): €320 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests ## Sources - - --- Canonical page: