Chatou

The Hôtel de Ville was built as a private residence in 1730.

On 31 May 1875, part of the territory of Chatou was detached and merged with a part of the territory of Le Pecq and a part of the territory of Croissy-sur-Seine to create the commune of Le Vésinet. It boasts many bourgeois mansions of every kind of architecture and owned by private individuals.

Chatou is home to Maison Fournaise on the Île des Impressionnistes, formerly a meeting place for Impressionist painters on the Seine. It was a place where Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted numerous pieces (portraits of the Fournaise family, surrounding landscapes, etc.), most notably the Déjeuner des canotiers (Luncheon of the Boating Party) in 1881. The painting is today part of the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC.

With the opening of the Paris, Saint-Germain-en-Laye railway line in 1837, Parisians went for day trips to the banks of the Seine outside the city and took part in swimming and boating there; they frequented taverns and restaurants in the area, particularly in Chatou. The joyful festive atmosphere inspired Impressionist painters such as Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Alfred Sisley, Gustave Caillebotte and especially Renoir.

On 25 August 1944, in Chatou, the Nazis shot 27 people, civilians and members of the French Resistance. This event is today known as the "Massacre des 27 Martyrs".

In 2024 the MACS MTO museum opened in Chatou, the world's first museum dedicated to Sufism.

Chatou is served by Chatou-Croissy station on Île-de-France's RER Line A.

The community has eight public preschools, five public elementary schools, and two public junior high schools. Schools include:

Elementary:

• Les Champs-Moutons
• Jules Ferry
• Victor Hugo
• Jean Rostand
• Val Fleuri

Junior high schools:

• Collège Paul Bert
• Collège Auguste Renoir

There are also the following private schools:

• École Jeanne d'Arc / Notre-Dame (preschool and primary school)
• École Perceval (preschool through senior high school)

Lycée Alain, a public senior high school/sixth form college; as well as Institut du Bon Sauveur, a private school with levels preschool through senior high/sixth form, are in nearby Le Vésinet.

Parks include:

• Parc des Impressionnistes
• Parc Auguste Renoir
• Parc de l'Europe
• Jardin du Sentier de la Côte
• Square Émile Pathé
• Square Réalier-Dumas
• Hameau Fournaise, Île des Impressionnistes

• Virginie Augustin (born 1973), comic book artist
• Éric Dumoulin (born 1965), mayor of Chatou and senator