Doors Open Days (also known as Open House or Open Days in some communities) provide free access to buildings not normally open to the public. The first Doors Open Day took place in France in 1984, and the concept has spread to other places in Europe (see

European Heritage Days European Heritage Days (EHD) is a joint action of the Council of Europe and the European Commission involving all 50 signatory states of the European Cultural Convention under the motto, ''Europe: a common heritage''. The annual programme offers o ...

), North America,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and elsewhere. Doors Open Days promotes architecture and heritage sites to a wider audience within and beyond the country's borders. It is an opportunity to discover hidden architectural gems and to see behind doors that are rarely open to the public for free. Open Doors Days trace their origin to the 1990 Door Open Day held as part of Glasgow's year as European City of Culture.

Heritage Open Days in England

Heritage Open Days Heritage Open Days (also known as HODs) is an annual celebration of England's architecture and culture that allows visitors free access to historical landmarks that are either not usually open to the public, would normally charge an entrance fee, ...

established in 1994 celebrate English architecture and culture allowing visitors free access to historical landmarks that are either not usually open to the public, or would normally charge an entrance fee.

List of Doors Open events in England

Open House London Open House London is an annual festival celebrating the architecture and urban landscape of London. It is staged by the charity Open City which campaigns to make London a more accessible, equitable and open city. During the Open House festival, ...

Doors open days in Scotland

Doors Open Days is organised by the

Scottish Civic Trust Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

. Alongside Scottish Archaeology Month, the open days form

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

's contribution to

. This joint initiative between the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...

and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

aims to give people a greater understanding of each other through sharing and exploring cultural heritage. 49 countries across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

take part annually, in September. During

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

's year as European City of Culture in 1990, organisers ran an Open Doors event, an event credited with popularizing the Doors Open concept and spreading it to other countries. Its popularity encouraged other areas to take part the following year and were coordinated by the

. Doors Open Days now take place throughout Scotland thanks to a dedicated team of area coordinators. These coordinators work for a mixture of organisations: local councils, civic trusts,

heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today ** Cultural heritage is created by humans ** Natural heritage is not * Heritage language Biology * Heredity, biological inheritance of physical c ...

organisations and archaeological trusts.

is one of the few participating countries where events take place every weekend in September, with different areas choosing their own dates. More than 900

buildings A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory (although there's also portable buildings). Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and funct ...

now take part. In 2008, over 225,000 visits were made generating £2 million for the Scottish economy. It is estimated that 5,000 or more

volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

s give their time to run activities and open doors for members of the public. Doors Open Days was supported in 2009 by Homecoming Scotland 2009, a year-long initiative that marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns. It was funded by the Scottish Government and part financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund. Its aim was to engage Scots at home, as well as motivate people of Scottish descent and those who simply love Scotland, to take part in an inspirational celebration of Scottish culture and heritage.

Open house in Australia

Open House events are organised in Australia in partnership with Open House Worldwide. The first Open House event took place in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in 2008. This was followed by

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 2010, and

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

in 2012.

Canada

Doors Open Canada Doors Open Canada is a national program by Heritage Canada, based on the Doors Open Days concept. It aims to expose architecture and heritage through the exploration of hidden historical, architectural and cultural gems. Buildings that are normall ...

began in 2000.

List of Doors Open events in Canada

* Doors Open Newfoundland and Labrador *

Doors Open Ottawa Doors Open Ottawa is an annual event held in the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, that gives the public access to many of the city's unique and historically significant buildings. Among the buildings included are government offices, museums, radio ...

Doors Open Toronto Doors Open Toronto is an annual event when approximately 150 buildings of architectural, historic, cultural, and social significance to the city of Toronto open their doors to the public for this free citywide event. Doors Open Toronto was devel ...

Doors Open Saskatoon Doors Open Saskatoon is a biannual event held in the City of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, that gives the public access to many of the city's unique or historically significant buildings. Admission is free of charge. The one day even occurs ever ...

United States

List of Doors Open events in the U.S.

* Doors Open Baltimore, first weekend in October * Doors Open Buffalo *

Open House Chicago Open House Chicago (OHC) is a free weekend festival held annually in Chicago that allows participants to visit dozens of buildings that are not typically open to the public. The next festival will be held on 16–17 October 2021 because 2020 was sc ...

Open House New York Open House New York (OHNY) is a cultural nonprofit organization that holds annual Doors Open Days. It was founded in 2001 in New York City. Organization Open House New York (OHNY) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that hosts educational pro ...

* Doors Open Milwaukee * Doors Open Minneapolis *

Doors Open Pittsburgh DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that presents historical and architectural tours that go behind-the-scenes inside iconic buildings and new spaces. The tours encourage everyone to #BNebbyand include ...

, first weekend in October * Doors Open Rhode Island

Notes

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External links

Open House Worldwide
Events in Scotland Recurring events established in 1984 Cultural events Tourist attractions Architecture festivals Architectural conservation