A small, private Jules Verne museum in Quebec is drawing attention for one simple reason: nobody expects to stumble into a shrine to the father of sci-fi adventure in French-speaking Canada.
But that’s exactly the point. Built around passion more than prestige, the intimate collection shows how Verne’s world, submarines, airships, far-off islands, still travels well beyond France. And it arrives as Verne’s hometown of Nantes is gearing up for a much larger, immersive museum experience slated to open in 2028.
A surprise Verne stop in Quebec, built for fans, not institutions
The Quebec museum is described as modest and personal, the kind of place that feels less like a formal cultural institution and more like stepping into someone’s carefully curated obsession. Think display cases, collectibles, old editions, and the kind of artifacts that turn reading memories into something you can walk through.
It’s a reminder that literary fandom doesn’t always need marble floors and blockbuster budgets. Sometimes it’s powered by childhood books, years of collecting, and the urge to open the door and say: come in, look at this.
In France, one superfan turned his home into a Verne museum
That same DIY spirit is showing up back in France, too. French outlet Ouest-France recently highlighted Stéphane Chéné, a lifelong Verne reader who converted the ground floor of his house in Le Lude, about 130 miles southwest of Paris, into a mini museum.
The goal isn’t traditional museum scholarship. It’s immersion. Verne’s stories become the set design, a hands-on way to pass the obsession along to visitors without waiting for a major institution to bless it.
Nantes’ Jules Verne museum goes big on atmosphere
For a more conventional experience, Nantes, Verne’s birthplace in western France, already has a dedicated museum that leans into immersive staging. The city ties Verne’s imagination to its own identity as a historic port on the Loire River, a place that once looked outward to the wider world.
What stands out is how these approaches coexist. On one end: curated, city-backed storytelling. On the other: small private spaces in Quebec or a French living room-turned-gallery. Same raw material, novels, illustrations, the promise of adventure, different scale.
A new “City of Imaginaries” museum complex is coming to Nantes
Nantes is also planning a major expansion of its Verne footprint. Ouest-France reports that a new large Jules Verne museum will be part of a broader project called the “Cité des imaginaires,” or “City of Imaginaries,” a cultural hub designed around storytelling and creative worlds.
About 1,000 square meters, roughly 10,764 square feet, will be dedicated to Verne. And the concept is telling: the museum won’t focus on Verne the man as much as Verne the universe, treating his work as a machine for generating images, maps, models, soundscapes, and staged illusions.
The complex is expected to move into a former building known as Cap44, with an opening announced for late 2028, according to Ouest-France.
Amiens, Nantes, and now Quebec, show how Verne’s legacy spreads
Nantes isn’t the only French city keeping Verne’s name alive. Amiens, in northern France, is also cited by Ouest-France as a place with museums honoring the author, part of a wider French geography of Verne remembrance.
The Quebec museum adds a different angle. It doesn’t compete with France’s institutions; it extends the story across the Atlantic. Verne’s staying power has never depended solely on where he was born or lived. It’s built on translation, family hand-me-downs, curiosity about science, and the itch to travel, at least in your head.
Verne as an “experience,” not just a bookshelf
That shift, from preserving relics to building experiences, isn’t limited to museums. Ouest-France also points to a stage production, “Jules Verne, Le voyage extraordinaire,” as another way audiences are being invited to rediscover his work.
Stack it all together and the message is clear: people aren’t showing up just to learn facts about an author. They’re coming for a ride. And whether that ride starts in a Quebec display case or a massive new museum in Nantes, Verne’s ticket still doesn’t expire.
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