Source: CNN
“The city of Paris has announced a lottery with a twist: Instead of a cash prize, entrants can instead win the chance to be buried in one of the French capital’s most celebrated cemeteries. The unusual plan aims to restore tombs that have fallen into disrepair, while also giving Paris residents a rare opportunity to secure one of the sought-after plots, the city hall said in a statement published Friday. … winners of the lottery will be granted the opportunity to buy and restore one of 30 tombs …. 10 plots up for grabs in Père-Lachaise cemetery, which counts ‘The Doors’ frontman Jim Morrison, playwright Oscar Wilde and singer Édith Piaf among its illustrious residents. There are also 10 plots in Montparnasse cemetery, home to writers Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Susan Sontag, as well as 10 more in Montmartre cemetery, where painter Edgar Degas, author Émile Zola and dancer Vaslav Nijinsky are all buried.” (11/05/25)
https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/travel/paris-cemetery-lottery-scli-intl