Nothing fairly screams ‘visiting Paris’ like a traditional museum. The capital metropolis is filled with points of interest and actions, whether or not you need to cruise the Seine or go to the reveals within the Eiffel Tower. The town is famed for its arts – internet hosting museums showcasing Asian arts, indigenous artwork, post-impressionist artwork, and ornamental arts. And Paris is a agency favourite for historical past lovers, with a wealth of World Conflict II historical past and even tales of Napoleon Bonaparte and the ugly French Revolution. That’s all with out contemplating landmarks with their very own museum part, just like the Arc de Triomphe and reveals throughout the Eiffel Tower.
Most individuals go to Paris for an extended weekend. When you’ve got even simply 2 to 3 days in Paris, these Paris museums needs to be on the prime of your itinerary. The very best half is, relying on the place you keep in Paris, you’ll be able to stroll to those museums or catch a fast Metro journey. The very best museums in Paris are ready for you, straightforward to entry and filled with fascinating collections.
Greatest Paris Museums: 20 Superb Museums in Paris
On this information, we’ll introduce you to probably the most unimaginable Paris museums. Get able to see all the things from a Paul Guillaume assortment to wax museum reveals and the jewel of the Louvre itself – the enduring Mona Lisa. The prospect to go to a museum in Paris just isn’t one thing to move up on. After studying this information, you’ll be well-equipped to type a museum itinerary of a lifetime.
Get the Paris Museum Cross – Select from 2,4 or 6 days with entry to greater than 60 of the highest monuments and museums in Paris, together with the Louvre and Versailles, and go to the Centre Pompidou.
1. Musée d’Orsay
Musée d’Orsay is nothing in need of inventive magic. The grand museum is ready in a former railway station, with humongous glass ceilings and one of the vital well-known clocks on the planet. You possibly can head on to the highest ground to look out from behind the glass clock face – admiring the Paris cityscape beneath. After all, folks don’t simply go to Musée d’Orsay for its structure, regardless of this being an enormous draw. It’s also one of the vital revered Paris museums. Musée d’Orsay has an unlimited everlasting assortment of nineteenth to Twentieth-century European artwork.
Musée d’Orsay hosts artwork spanning from the years 1848 to 1914. Visitors can admire art work by huge names akin to Van Gogh, Monet, and Rodin. Briefly, it’s a assortment of all the best names within the artwork world. You may as well view particular items, like The Starry Evening and Van Gogh’s iconic self-portrait. We simply needed to embrace it. Musée d’Orsay is phenomenal, from its distinctive setting to its beneficial reveals. Included within the Paris Museum Cross.
Deal with: Esplanade Valery Giscard d’Estaing, 75007, Paris, France Opening Occasions: 9:30 am till 6 pm Tuesday to Sunday, staying open till 9:45 pm on Thursdays. Closed Mondays. Admission Price: $15 by way of the official web site.
2. Musée des Arts Décoratifs
Who doesn’t get blown away by ornamental arts? Musée des Arts Décoratifs is certainly one of Paris’s most imposing-looking, palatial museum buildings – which is saying one thing. And inside, it hosts over 6,000 totally different objects in a group of high fashion. Musée des Arts Décoratifs sits simply exterior the Louvre, overlooking Jardins des Tuileries. It’s an accessible museum to mix with a go to to the Louvre or Musée de l’Orangerie.
Inside, there’s all the things from jewellery, lighting, effective furnishings, crystals, and mannequins. This Paris museum is someplace to go to if you happen to admire the effective issues in life. Its reveals are elegant, with a critical wow issue. Anybody enthusiastic about historical past, style, and artwork will respect this museum. Look ahead to the Iris Van Herpen exhibit, which is a agency favourite.
Deal with: 107 Rue de Rivoli, 75001, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: 11 am till 6 pm from Tuesday to Sunday. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
3. Musée de l’Orangerie
Musée de l’Orangerie is one other Paris favourite. This museum homes a world-renowned Twentieth-century European artwork assortment, most well-known for its Monet water lily murals. Assume chunky framed work and a mix of everlasting and short-term exhibitions. Whereas this museum is just small in comparison with another artwork museums in Paris, its compact measurement makes it straightforward for guests. It additionally experiences fewer crowds than its neighboring Louvre Museum.
The very best factor to see contained in the Musée de l’Orangerie is the Monet water lily murals assortment. This can be a bucket-list-worthy piece for any artwork fanatic. The piece stretches round an unlimited curved wall – a sole exhibit in a plain white room that’s mentioned to evoke the sensation of an oasis in the course of Paris. Musée de l’Orangerie is the place to go to when you have a ardour for the humanities.
Deal with: Jardin des Tuileries, 75001, Paris, France Opening Occasions: Open 9 am till 6 pm Wednesday till Monday, staying open till 9 pm on Fridays. Closed Tuesdays. Admission Price: $12 per individual by way of the official web site.
4. Grand Palais
The Grand Palais could also be closed for renovations till later in 2024, however this artwork nouveau corridor simply had to be talked about on this information. The construction was created in 1900, and its daring, columned exterior and greenhouse-like ceiling are a much-loved sight in Paris. The Grand Palais famously hosts a quickfire rotation of short-term exhibitions, from Gertrude Stein and Pablo Picasso to an exposition on Prosper Merimee. In case you just like the sound of an ever-evolving and shifting arts middle, the Grand Palais needs to be on the prime of your must-visit.
You by no means fairly know what you’ll anticipate, which is half of the attract. Take a look at the official web site and see what reveals coincide along with your journey. We’ll excitedly await its extremely anticipated 2024 reopening.
Deal with: 3 Avenue du Basic Eisenhower, 75008, Paris, France Opening Occasions: Quickly closed, reopening later in 2024. Admission Price: N/A – varies relying on the exhibit.
5. Musée Nationwide d’Artwork Moderne
Technically, this museum is the Centre Pompidou. The Musée Nationwide d’Artwork Moderne – a nationwide fashionable artwork museum – is ready throughout the bowels of Paris’ famed Centre Pompidou. It covers the Twentieth to Twenty first-century historical past of contemporary and up to date European artwork, together with avant-garde and impressionist artwork. You’ll discover a mixture of totally different up to date artists. Musée Nationwide d’Artwork Moderne covers a number of the newest artwork historical past in comparison with different Paris museums.
Musée Nationwide d’Artwork Moderne is ready throughout two flooring within the Centre Pompidou, 4th and fifth. The 4th stage has up to date artwork from the Sixties onwards whereas the fifth ground has fashionable artwork from 1905 to 1965. Be certain to see Xavier Veilhan’s Le Rhinoceros and Donald Judd’s Stack, which resemble a seemingly floating Jenga-like pile of squares within the minimalism part.
This huge advanced additionally homes a large library and music middle within the Middle Pompidou. The constructing is finest recognized for its exterior, although, with a dramatic exterior staircase jutting up its wall. The design makes it seem like the Centre Pompidou is continually below scaffolding, with a community of criss-crossing metallic bars. The Centre Pompidou is a modernist-looking constructing, and its structure makes it an attraction in its personal proper. You possibly can simply snap footage totally free from the skin earlier than visiting the Nationwide Museum of Fashionable Artwork. It’s included within the Paris Museum Cross.
Deal with: Place Georges-Pompidou, 75004, Paris, France Opening Occasions: 11 am till 9 pm from Monday till Sunday, opening till 11 pm on Thursdays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site. It’s included within the Paris Museum Cross.
6. Rodin Museum
Rodin Museum is a straightforward decide when planning a Paris itinerary. This Paris museum has a particular area of interest – sculptures inside an excellent 18th-century mansion. It’s the world’s greatest assortment of Rodin’s sculptures, all laid out throughout a serene, manicured backyard and ethereal halls throughout the mansion. The museum options some unimaginable sculptured scenes. There’s one thing simply additional participating about sculptures. And if you happen to aren’t normally an artwork fanatic, the additional immersive high quality behind 3D reveals may win you over.
In case you might solely see one exhibit within the Rodin Museum, make it The Thinker. This sculpture is Rodin’s most iconic work. Reap the benefits of admiring items by different artists, too, because the Rodin Museum affords just a few reveals from different artists akin to Van Gogh. Consider it because the cherry on prime.
Deal with: 77 Rue de Varenne, 75007, Paris, France Opening Occasions: Open 10 am till 6:30 pm from Tuesday till Sunday, closed Mondays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
7. Louis Vuitton Basis
This futuristic fashionable artwork museum is among the most bizarre-looking Parisian museums. The glass domes seem like a Parisian model of the Sydney Opera Home. However if you happen to love fashionable and up to date artwork, it is among the finest museums to go to.
You’ll need to spend some time snapping footage of the Louis Vuitton Basis’s eccentric exterior. If you end, although, there’s a wonderful inside ready space with a mix of a short lived and everlasting assortment. The gorgeous portrait Women and Gents by Andy Warhol and a naturalistic piece displaying a brown leaf ensnared inside a tree referred to as Acacia e Foglie di Zucca. The museum in Paris has tons of thought-provoking reveals to admire.
Deal with: 8 Avenue du Mahatma Gandhi Bois de Boulogne, 75116, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: 11 am till 8 pm Wednesday till Monday, closed Tuesdays. Admission Price: $20 per individual by way of the official web site, with reductions for below 26s, college students, and artists.
8. Petit Palais
Petit Palais is one other good museum across the Jardins des Tuileries. The grand constructing has an imposing entrance with nice columns and a palatial high quality. As an artwork museum, it has loads of well-known masterpieces on show, together with works by Gustav Courbet and Giovanni Boldini. Be certain to take a look at the rotation of short-term exhibitions within the museum’s West Wing, which included works by Ilya Repine up to now.
Nonetheless, whereas all of that is very spectacular, one factor significantly units Petit Palais apart as an artwork museum in Paris. It’s completely free to enter. You possibly can add this artwork museum to your listing of the most effective free issues to do in Paris, and it’s a straightforward option to spend a few hours entertained with high-caliber art work.
Deal with: Avenue Winston Churchill, 75008, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: 10 am till 6 pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. 10 am till 10 pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Closed on Mondays. Admission Price: Free.
9. Musée Nationwide Picasso-Paris
Musée Nationwide Picasso-Paris is ready in an awe-inspiring Seventeenth-century constructing and hosts one of many world’s largest collections of Picasso works. And if that sentence didn’t promote you, we don’t know what’s going to. Pablo Picasso is well one of the vital well-respected artists of all time. A global celebrity, Picasso was a number one artist of the Twentieth century and co-founded the Cubist motion.
Inside, you’ll be able to view items by Picasso and by different artists like Sophie Calle to have a good time Picasso’s life and achievements. Don’t miss the blue-painted rooms marking Picasso’s unimaginable Blue Interval. The museum’s assortment is a wonderful ode to the late artist, with an autobiographical museum format.
Deal with: 5 Rue de Thorigny, 75003, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 10:30 am to six pm from Tuesday till Sunday. Closed on Mondays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
10. Musée du Quai Branly
If indigenous artwork is extra up your avenue, that is the artwork museum in Paris for you. This artwork museum was based by Jean Nouvel, and it boldly celebrates up to date artwork and tradition from communities throughout Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. Quai Branly Museum in Paris addresses art work by analyzing historic, non secular, social, and cultural influences. And it supplies an interesting platform for indigenous tradition and artists in Paris’s coronary heart.
We’d advocate a go to if you happen to’d favor to push apart classics like Claude Monet and embrace a extra worldwide artwork assortment. The museum is conveniently positioned proper on the foot of the Eiffel Tower, making it a straightforward addition to your itinerary. And the sheer quantity of fascinating reveals and items makes it effectively value a go to.
Deal with: 37 Quai Jacques Chirac, 75007, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 10:30 am till 7 pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Open 10:30 am till 10 pm on Thursdays and closed on Mondays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
11. Musée Nissim de Camondo
Musée Nissim de Camondo is a homely museum showcasing residential finery like 18th-century French furnishings and ornamental artwork furnishings. The Bella Epoque museum is ready in a chic mansion on the outskirts of Parc Monceau, and it’s a extremely photogenic place to spend a day. This gorgeous museum in Paris has luxurious and movie-set-style surroundings at each flip. If you wish to really feel like you might be stepping again to expertise the final word 18th-century wealth, that is the spot for it.
Get able to channel your inside Marie Antoinette. There’s all the things from elegantly laden white material dinner tables to a grand sweeping staircase to make a dramatic entrance. Don’t miss out on getting the audio information, which brings the attractive set to life with tales and background historical past.
Deal with: 63 Rue de Monceau, 75008, Paris, France Opening Occasions: Open 10 am till 5:30 pm from Wednesdays to Sundays. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Admission Price: $12 per individual by way of the official web site.
12. Louvre Museum
Who hasn’t considered visiting the Louvre with regards to the most effective Parisian museums? The Louvre is probably the most visited museum in Paris and most recognized for its grand glass pyramid. The previous palace was constructed on town’s outskirts to permit royals time to flee any nasty riots. Nonetheless, it’s now one of the vital acknowledged artwork museums worldwide. There’s all the things from Leonardo da Vinci’s art work to Roman sculptures. Plus, it’s the largest museum on Earth by sq. meter exhibition house.
Out of all of the reveals within the Louvre, you have to catch a glimpse of the Mona Lisa. This is among the most well-known portraits of all time. Regardless of many guests commenting on how small it’s in actuality, it’s simply a bucket listing piece of art work to see in individual. The Louvre additionally opens at night time on choose evenings, one of many finest issues to do in Paris at night time. May you see the Mona Lisa exterior the standard hours?
Deal with: Louvre Museum, 75001, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 10 am till 6 pm from Wednesday to Monday, staying open later (till 9:45 pm) on Fridays and shutting on Tuesdays. Admission Price: $17 per individual by way of the official web site.
13. Musée du Luxembourg
Keen about Twentieth-century portray and feminine artists? Musée du Luxembourg is the Paris museum finest suited to you. The museum is fantastically positioned within the Jardin du Luxembourg. It opts out of the traditional everlasting exhibition fashion of museum operating, as a substitute usually providing two annual exhibitions. For 2024, this might be Gertrude Stein and Pablo Picasso and Match – an exhibition analyzing the way forward for the connection between design and sport. That is, after all, impressed by the Olympics.
For Musée du Luxembourg, we’d extremely counsel checking forward to see if the exhibition pursuits you. If not, we’d nonetheless advocate visiting the beautiful Jardin du Luxembourg, the place you’ll be able to admire the museum’s exterior totally free whereas having fun with walks amongst flowerbeds.
Deal with: 12 Rue de Vaugirard, 75006, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Opens 10:30 am till 7 pm from Tuesday till Sunday, and 10:30 am till 10 pm on Mondays. Admission Price: $15
14. Musée Carnavalet
Musée Carnavalet is one other certainly one of Paris’ gems. Why? This museum is constructed into two neighboring Parisian mansions, offering a dramatically elegant setting. Guests take pleasure in an interesting mixture of artwork and historical past reveals from the sixteenth and Seventeenth centuries. This consists of Marcel Proust’s bed room, historic work, and tales from the French Revolution. Don’t miss the manicured backyard, which has a hedge maze.
The Carnavalet Museum is a wonderful place to go to in Paris. The mansion setting provides the museum the sensation of exploring a personal assortment. And furthermore, it’s really free to go to – making it the most effective free issues to do in Paris.
Deal with: 23 Rue de Sevigne, 75003, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 10 am till 6 pm from Tuesday till Sunday. Closed Mondays. Admission Price: Free
15. Musée de l’Homme
An anthropology museum may not be the primary place you’d anticipate to go to in Paris. Nonetheless, if you happen to take pleasure in human historical past, it’s simply one of many main Paris museums. The museum was established in 1937, and its identify roughly interprets because the ‘Museum of Humanity.’ It’s a mixture of pure historical past reveals and storytelling concerning the people who inhabited Europe. There’s a everlasting assortment and rotating short-term exhibitions, like Lekha Singh – Girls Carry The World and Picasso and Prehistory.
We’d counsel checking forward to see what reveals coincide along with your journey to Paris. Hold your eye out for the Incan mummy, too, which is labeled because the ‘film chachapoya.’ The Museum of Humanity is well one of the vital stunning and diverse Parisian museums, so we simply had so as to add it to this information. Nothing else covers such various human historical past prefer it within the French capital.
Deal with: 17 Place du Trocadero et du 11 Novembre, 75116, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 11 am till 7 pm from Wednesday to Monday. Closed on Tuesdays. Admission Price: $15 per individual, however free for college students.
16. Musée Marmottan Monet
Musée Marmottan Monet is exclusive as a result of it’s the world’s largest assortment of Claude Monet works. Claude Monet is among the most main impressionist artists of all time. He’s particularly revered for his backyard and panorama works, the place he completely combines capturing temper and nature. This artwork museum is – nearly completely – devoted to Claude Monet. You possibly can stroll by spacious exhibition rooms, admiring heavy gold framed work, together with a few of Monet’s famed water lily scenes.
Musée de Orangerie is best if you wish to see the huge show of the Claude Monet water lilies. Nonetheless, Musée Marmottan Monet affords far more selection when it comes to Monet’s works. If you’re an artwork fanatic, you’ll get a extra in-depth have a look at Monet and his work at Musée Marmottan Monet.
Deal with: 2 Rue Louis Boilly, 75016, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open from 10 am till 6 pm from Tuesday to Sunday. Open later (till 9pm) on Thursdays and closed on Mondays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
17. Musée Grevin
Are you prepared for one of the vital enjoyable Paris museums? This museum’s assortment is sort of completely wax figures, depicting a mix of French historic figures and fashionable celebrities. Musée Grevin is like Madame Tussauds however upscale Paris fashion. The figures are set in a dramatically luxurious setting, with checkered flooring and excessive vaulted ceilings coated in gold. You wander by the grandeur – making the presence of celebrities and historic figures much more plausible.
The wax figures embrace folks like Lionel Messi (together with his palms up in celebration), Marilyn Monroe, and even that squirrel off of Ice Age, who spends the entire time chasing a nut. The vary of figures and characters makes Musée Grevin interesting to all ages.
This is among the most family-friendly Paris museums, which is value a point out. We’d extremely advocate it when visiting Paris with younger youngsters. And it is a wonderful compromise for these eager to lighten the temper after historic points of interest in Paris.
Deal with: 10 Bd Montmartre, 75009, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 10 am till 6 pm from Monday till Friday and 9:30 am till 7 pm on the weekend. Admission Price: $19 per individual by way of the official web site.
18. Musée de Cluny
Musée de Cluny is among the most uncommon Paris museums. This museum is the Nationwide Museum of the Center Ages – displaying all the things from historical past to medieval artwork. The spectacular assortment consists of tapestries, crafts, and extra. It’s a fascinating perception into the medieval interval. And if you’re captivated with early historical past, it’s half historical past and half artwork museum. Briefly, the Nationwide Museum of the Center Ages is a must-visit.
Of all of the museum reveals, be sure to see the Woman and the Unicorn tapestry room. Nothing fairly summarises the medieval interval like a superb outdated tapestry. This room within the artwork museum comprises six stunning tapestries in complete, all saved in low lighting to stop harm. It’s a magical expertise with an actual sense of environment. To be transported again to the Center Ages, the Woman and the Unicorn room is by far our favourite.
Deal with: 28 Rue du Sommerard, 75005, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 9:30 am till 6:15 pm, Tuesday till Sunday. Closed Mondays. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
19. Eiffel Tower
If pure historical past and artwork aren’t your factor, head to the attractive Eiffel Tower. Nothing compares to this big construction. And over the centuries, the tower has develop into synonymous with Paris. If you wish to expertise Paris, head to this world-famous tower. You possibly can catch the elevator up the constructing, stopping to see the reveals within the higher tiers earlier than admiring the views over Paris.
The reveals within the tower inform the story of the event of Paris’ cityscape. It additionally tells of Gustave Eiffel’s mission in constructing the tower, which is an fascinating backstory for anybody scaling this construction. Historic reveals, tales, and nice views – what extra might you need? It doesn’t get a lot better than standing on the highest tiers of Paris’ fantastic landmark tower.
Deal with: Champ de Mars, 5 Avenue, Anatole France, 75007, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: Open 9:30 am till 10:45 pm from Monday till Sunday. Admission Price: $15 per individual by way of the official web site.
20. Catacombs of Paris
Whereas not a conventional museum, we simply needed to embrace the Catacombs of Paris on this information. These hallowed tunnels run for miles below Paris, and a small part is open for tourism. You head underground by way of a steep flight of stairs, getting into a number of exhibit rooms explaining the historical past of the catacombs. From there, you enter the tunnels, famously lined by an ornate combination of skulls and bones. The catacombs are dimly lit by yellow-tinged lighting, and the entire scene is ridiculously atmospheric.
If you would like a Paris museum with a ‘chunk,’ the Catacombs of Paris affords an enormous chunk of cultural historical past. It’s supreme for somebody after a museum expertise exterior of admiring conventional art work. Be certain to snap just a few footage of this gruesome-looking labyrinth.
Deal with: 1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy, 75014, Paris, France. Opening Occasions: 9:45 am till 8:30 pm from Tuesday till Sunday. Closed Mondays. Admission Price: $28 per individual by way of the official web site.
In case you plan to see numerous museums in Paris, the Paris Museum Cross is a superb choice. It affords skip-the-line entry to greater than 60 museums. You possibly can select from 2, 4 or 6 days. See extra particulars right here.
Greatest Museums in Paris: FAQs
As you’ll be able to see, the Paris museums are tremendous distinctive. Whether or not you’re keen on up to date artwork or need to admire stained glass home windows and ornate structure, the French capital has a museum to get your coronary heart fluttering. Paris additionally has a number of the most stunning museum buildings, internet hosting reveals all over the place, from a former railway station to an ex-palace.
Earlier than you head off, although, keep in mind to take a look at these frequent FAQs. This can be a nice part to condense the knowledge we’ve simply given you.
What museums are a must-see in Paris?
The Louvre, Musée de l’Orangerie, and Musée d’Orsay are all must-visits in Paris. This well-known trio is the traditional choice of artwork museums, with a superb assortment of everlasting and short-term exhibitions. You must also cease by the enduring Eiffel Tower with historic reveals on its higher flooring.
Is the Picasso Museum Paris value it?
Completely, the Picasso Museum is a wonderful ode to Pablo Picasso and his iconic works. Any artwork fanatic ought to prioritize a go to.
What museum in France do vacationers go to most?
The Louvre is well France’s most well-known museum. The glass-shaped pyramid is a postcard picture of Paris, and the Louvre homes the well-known Mona Lisa portrait – which means it attracts tens of millions of vacationers yearly.
What are the three musees in Paris?
The highest three most visited museums in Paris are the Louvre Museum, Musée d’Orsay, and Pompidou.
Feeling impressed? Paris is town of inspiration with regards to museums and sightseeing. Location-wise, lots of the museums are positioned across the Eiffel Tower. You possibly can wander alongside the River Seine, strolling the famed stretch between Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower. From right here, you’ll be able to entry the Musée de l’Homme, Musée du Quai Branly, Petit Palaias, Musée de l’Orangerie, Louvre Museum, and quite a few style museums like La Galerie Dior. If you’re caught for time, take a look at our final one-day itinerary and prioritize this part of Paris. The excessive focus of museums on this space of Paris means you’ll be able to simply mix a pair in someday.
You will have the alternative state of affairs. Do you may have greater than three days in Paris? Then, use your time properly by heading out of town middle for a day. We’ve received a complete information on the most effective day journeys in Paris. Develop your information exterior the confines of an inner-city museum, and stability your keep by venturing out on a day journey.
Paris is an unimaginable metropolis. In terms of reveals and tales, Paris takes preservation exceptionally critically. We hope you may have a beautiful time experiencing the most effective museums in Paris.