Steampunk Festival « À toute vapeur ! » — Cité du Train

When locomotives meet Victorian imagination

The Steampunk Festival « À toute vapeur ! » was born in October 2024 from the meeting between the Cité du Train — Patrimoine SNCF, Europe's largest railway museum, and the French Steampunk association. The idea: to leverage the spectacular setting of historic steam locomotives to create an immersive event around the steampunk movement, this cultural and aesthetic trend that reimagines the 19th century with fanciful technologies based on steam, gears, and cogs. From its very first edition, the festival met with resounding success, confirmed by a second edition in March 2025 and a third scheduled for March 2026.

A museum transformed into a retro-futuristic universe

For two days, the vast exhibition halls of the Cité du Train are transformed into a retro-futuristic universe worthy of Jules Verne's novels. Visitors, many of whom come in costume, wander among the historic locomotives amidst Victorian-inspired decor. Strolling shows — stilt walkers, jugglers, street theater companies — animate the museum's aisles, while costumed characters interact with the public for total immersion in this steampunk alternate history.

Costume parades and eccentric duels

The costume parade, hosted by artisan-cosplayer Benjamin Blackflammes, is the highlight of each day. Designers, tailors, and enthusiasts showcase their most elaborate creations: frock coats with gears, mechanical corsets, top hats adorned with aviator goggles. Tea duels and umbrella duels, playful traditions of the steampunk movement, pit participants against each other in jousts as absurd as they are refined, arbitrated with unwavering seriousness.

Art, conferences, and creative workshops

The festival offers a rich cultural program. Art exhibitions feature works by renowned steampunk illustrators, such as Didier Graffet and Sam Van Olffen, alongside local painters and creators. Conferences explore the history and philosophy of steampunk, the movement's music, and the art of retro-futurism. Creative workshops, led by specialized artisans, allow visitors to make their own accessories: steampunk goggles, leather jewelry, brass objects.

A market of curiosities and a festive atmosphere

The market of curiosities brings together artisans and creators offering unique items: mechanical jewelry, customized antique books, miniature automatons, bespoke clothing, and Victorian-inspired accessories. Demonstrations of artistic fencing, races of radio-controlled tea-powered vehicles, and period games complete a program designed to delight young and old alike. All this in the exceptional setting of a museum housing the finest pieces of French railway heritage.