Paris has an incredible variety of museums, from world-famous institutions such as the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay to small museums devoted to fashion, photography, science, architecture and the history of Paris.
Below you’ll find an extensive alphabetical guide to museums in Paris, with addresses, practical information and links to official museum websites. For popular museums and major temporary exhibitions, booking tickets in advance is often recommended. Opening hours, admission rules and temporary closures can change, so always check the museum’s official website shortly before your visit.
Buy the Paris Museum Pass for access to more than 60 museums and monuments in and around Paris.
Last updated: October 2026.
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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace
Aéroport de Paris-Le Bourget
Le Bourget
RER B to Le Bourget, then bus 152
Official website Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace
Located at Le Bourget Airport, this large air and space museum traces the history of aviation and space travel. The collection includes historic aircraft, helicopters, rockets and two Concordes. Some galleries may occasionally close for events or exhibition installations, so check the official website before traveling to Le Bourget.
Cité de l’Architecture & du Patrimoine
1 place du Trocadéro et du 11 Novembre
16th arrondissement
Metro: Trocadéro or Iéna
Official website Cité de l’Architecture & du Patrimoine
The Cité de l’Architecture is one of the world’s largest museums devoted to architecture and architectural heritage. It is located in the Palais de Chaillot, directly across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower.
The collection includes monumental casts of French architecture from the Middle Ages onward, reproductions of murals and stained glass, architectural models and displays devoted to modern and contemporary architecture.
Musée des Archives nationales
60 rue des Francs-Bourgeois
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Hôtel de Ville, Rambuteau or Arts et Métiers
Official website Archives nationales
The National Archives Museum is housed in the beautiful Hôtel de Soubise in the Marais. Admission to the museum and its permanent displays is free.
The collection includes important documents from French history, while the building itself is worth visiting for its lavish 18th-century interiors. One of the highlights is the oval Salon de la Princesse with its Rococo decoration.
Musée de l’Armée – Invalides
129 rue de Grenelle
7th arrondissement
Metro: La Tour-Maubourg or Invalides
Official website Musée de l’Armée
The Musée de l’Armée is one of the world’s major museums of military history, with extensive collections of armor, weapons, uniforms and objects connected with French history.
The same museum complex also includes the Dôme des Invalides, where you’ll find the monumental tomb of Napoleon I, as well as the Musée de l’Ordre de la Libération and Musée des Plans-Reliefs.
Book your Les Invalides and Napoleon’s Tomb tickets.
Pavillon de l’Arsenal
21 boulevard Morland
4th arrondissement
Metro: Sully-Morland or Bastille
Official website Pavillon de l’Arsenal
The Pavillon de l’Arsenal focuses on the architecture and urban development of Paris, from the origins of the city to plans for its future.
Exhibitions use historical documents, architectural models, maps, films and digital presentations to explain how Paris has changed over the centuries. Admission to the permanent exhibition is free.
Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaïsme
71 rue du Temple
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Hôtel de Ville or Rambuteau
Official website Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaïsme
The museum is housed in the 17th-century Hôtel de Saint-Aignan in the Marais and explores Jewish history, religion, culture and art in France and Europe.
Its collections include religious objects, manuscripts, works of art and historical material connected with Sephardic and Ashkenazi communities, the Jewish diaspora, antisemitism, Zionism and the Holocaust.
Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris
11 avenue du Président Wilson
16th arrondissement
Metro: Alma-Marceau or Iéna
Official website Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris
The Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris occupies one wing of the Palais de Tokyo and has an extensive collection of 20th- and 21st-century art.
Highlights include La Danse de Paris by Henri Matisse and Raoul Dufy’s monumental La Fée Electricité. Admission to the permanent collection is free; temporary exhibitions require a ticket.
Musée des Arts Décoratifs
107-111 rue de Rivoli
1st arrondissement
Metro: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre, Tuileries or Pyramides
Official website Musée des Arts Décoratifs
Located in the western wing of the Louvre complex, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs – often referred to as MAD – covers decorative arts from the Middle Ages to the present day.
The enormous collection includes furniture, fashion, jewelry, ceramics, glass, wallpaper, graphic design and toys. Reconstructed period rooms are among the highlights.
Musée des Arts Forains
53 avenue des Terroirs de France
12th arrondissement
Metro: Cour Saint-Émilion
Official website Musée des Arts Forains
This wonderfully unusual museum is devoted to historic fairgrounds and entertainment. Its collection includes vintage carousels, fairground rides, mechanical musical instruments and games.
Unlike in the past, individual visitors can now visit on scheduled guided tours. Advance booking is required. Most tours are in French, although English information is available and English-language tours are sometimes scheduled.
Musée des Arts et Métiers
60 rue Réaumur
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Arts-et-Métiers or Réaumur-Sébastopol
Official website Musée des Arts et Métiers
A fascinating museum about inventions, science and technology. More than 2,000 objects are displayed across seven main themes: scientific instruments, materials, energy, mechanics, construction, communication and transportation.
Highlights include Foucault’s pendulum, Pascal’s calculating machine, early automobiles, scientific instruments and historic aircraft.
The nearby Arts-et-Métiers metro station is worth seeing as well: its copper interior was designed by Belgian comic-book artist François Schuiten.
Musée de l’AP-HP
Hôpital Bicêtre, Bâtiment Mathieu-Jaboulay
78 avenue du Général Leclerc
Le Kremlin-Bicêtre
Official website Musée de l’AP-HP
There is currently no permanent museum space open to regular visitors.
The museum of Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris preserves around 13,000 works and objects relating to the history of hospitals and healthcare in Paris. It organizes temporary exhibitions and cultural activities at AP-HP hospitals and other venues.
Maison de Balzac
47 rue Raynouard
16th arrondissement
Metro: Passy or La Muette
Official website Maison de Balzac
This was the home of French writer Honoré de Balzac from 1840 to 1847. The museum includes his study, manuscripts, paintings and personal possessions.
Balzac lived here under the name “M. de Breugnol,” partly to avoid his creditors. He even had access to a second exit through the garden onto rue Berton.
Musée Bourdelle
18 rue Antoine Bourdelle
15th arrondissement
Metro: Montparnasse-Bienvenüe or Falguière
Official website Musée Bourdelle
The former home, studios and garden of sculptor Antoine Bourdelle contain hundreds of sculptures in marble, bronze and plaster, as well as photographs and studies.
Bourdelle was a student and assistant of Rodin. Some of his monumental sculptures are displayed in the museum’s peaceful gardens.
Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection
2 rue de Viarmes
1st arrondissement
Metro: Louvre-Rivoli, Les Halles or Châtelet
Official website Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection
The Bourse de Commerce has been one of Paris’s major contemporary art museums since 2021. It presents changing exhibitions and installations from the extensive Pinault Collection.
The building itself is also worth seeing. Japanese architect Tadao Ando transformed the historic former commodities exchange by inserting a striking concrete cylinder beneath the building’s monumental dome.
Atelier Brancusi
Place Georges Pompidou
4th arrondissement
Atelier Brancusi is currently not open as a separate visitor attraction. The Centre Pompidou building in Beaubourg closed in September 2025 for a major renovation and is expected to remain closed until 2030.
The studio is a reconstruction of sculptor Constantin Brancusi’s workspace and contains sculptures, furniture, tools and other objects from his original studio.
Musée Carnavalet – Histoire de Paris
23 rue de Sévigné
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul or Chemin Vert
Official website Musée Carnavalet
If you want to understand Paris, this is one of the best museums to visit. Musée Carnavalet tells the story of the city from prehistoric times to the present day.
The museum occupies two historic mansions in the Marais and contains paintings, furniture, signs, photographs, models and reconstructed interiors. The permanent collection is free.
Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain
2 place du Palais-Royal
1st arrondissement
Metro: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre
Official website Fondation Cartier
New location since October 2025. Fondation Cartier moved from boulevard Raspail to a spectacular new home directly opposite the Louvre.
The historic building was redesigned by architect Jean Nouvel and contains flexible exhibition platforms for contemporary art, performances and cultural events.
Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson
79 rue des Archives
3rd arrondissement
Official website Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson
The Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson is devoted to photography and preserves the work and archives of Henri Cartier-Bresson and Martine Franck.
Temporary exhibitions feature both their work and photography by other artists. Note that the Fondation moved from its former Montparnasse address to the Marais several years ago.
Les Catacombes de Paris
1 avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy
Place Denfert-Rochereau
14th arrondissement
Metro/RER: Denfert-Rochereau
Official website Paris Catacombs
Around 20 meters below the streets of Paris lies an ossuary containing the remains of several million Parisians. The bones were transferred here after overcrowded cemeteries in Paris were closed from the late 18th century onward.
The visitor route is approximately 1.5 kilometers long and includes more than 100 steps down and more than 100 steps back up. The temperature underground remains around 14°C / 57°F.
Booking online in advance is strongly recommended.
Book your Paris Catacombs tickets here.
Le Centquatre – 104 Paris
5 rue Curial
19th arrondissement
Metro: Riquet, Stalingrad or Marx Dormoy
Le Centquatre is not a traditional museum but a huge center for contemporary art, culture and performance in a converted 19th-century municipal funeral-services building.
The program includes exhibitions, dance, theater, concerts, workshops, festivals and installations. Artists also work in studios throughout the complex.
Musée Cernuschi
7 avenue Vélasquez
8th arrondissement
Metro: Villiers or Monceau
Official website Musée Cernuschi
Located beside Parc Monceau, Musée Cernuschi is one of Paris’s major museums of Asian art.
Its collection is particularly strong in Chinese art and archaeology, with works ranging from ancient China to modern times. The monumental Japanese Buddha is one of the museum’s most recognizable pieces.
Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature
62 rue des Archives
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Hôtel de Ville or Rambuteau
Official website Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature
This unusual museum explores the relationship between humans, hunting, animals and nature through art and historic objects.
The displays combine paintings, sculptures, weapons, taxidermy and contemporary art in two historic mansions in the Marais.
Musée Gourmand du Chocolat – Choco-Story
28 boulevard Bonne Nouvelle
10th arrondissement
Metro: Bonne Nouvelle or Strasbourg-Saint-Denis
Official website Choco-Story Paris
A museum devoted to thousands of years of chocolate history, from cacao in ancient Central America to modern chocolate production.
You’ll learn how chocolate is made, see demonstrations and, unsurprisingly, get opportunities to taste it.
La Cinémathèque française – Musée Méliès
51 rue de Bercy
12th arrondissement
Metro: Bercy
Official website La Cinémathèque française
The Cinémathèque française is one of the world’s major institutions devoted to film history. Its permanent museum is now known as the Musée Méliès.
The museum explores the history of cinema and the work of pioneering filmmaker Georges Méliès through cameras, costumes, props, drawings, films and optical devices. The building was designed by Frank Gehry.
Musée Cognacq-Jay
8 rue Elzévir
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul or Chemin Vert
Official website Musée Cognacq-Jay
This charming museum in the Marais contains the 18th-century art collection of Ernest Cognacq and Marie-Louise Jay, founders of the La Samaritaine department store.
Paintings, furniture, sculpture, porcelain and decorative arts are displayed in the Hôtel Donon, a beautiful historic mansion.
Musée de la Contrefaçon
16 rue de la Faisanderie
16th arrondissement
Metro: Porte Dauphine
Official website Musée de la Contrefaçon
A small and unusual museum devoted to counterfeiting. Genuine products are displayed alongside copies to explain how counterfeit goods are made and how they can be identified.
You may need to ring the bell to enter, so don’t assume the museum is closed if the door isn’t open.
Fondation Le Corbusier – Maison La Roche
10 square du Docteur Blanche
16th arrondissement
Metro: Jasmin or Michel-Ange Auteuil
Official website Fondation Le Corbusier
Maison La Roche was designed by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret in the 1920s and is one of the most important early examples of Le Corbusier’s modernist architecture.
The house is part of the group of Le Corbusier buildings recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Online booking is required.
Crypte Archéologique de l’Île de la Cité
7 parvis Notre-Dame
4th arrondissement
Metro: Cité or Saint-Michel
Official website Archaeological Crypt
Beneath the square in front of Notre-Dame Cathedral you can see archaeological remains that reveal how this part of Paris developed over almost 2,000 years.
The remains include traces of Roman Paris, medieval buildings and later structures from the Île de la Cité.
Musée Curie
1 rue Pierre et Marie Curie
5th arrondissement
Metro: Place Monge
The Musée Curie is located in the former laboratory where Marie Curie worked until her death in 1934.
Displays focus on Marie and Pierre Curie, the discovery of polonium and radium, the development of radioactivity research and the work of Irène and Frédéric Joliot-Curie.
Dalí Paris
11 rue Poulbot
18th arrondissement
Metro: Abbesses or Anvers
Located in Montmartre, Dalí Paris is devoted to the work of Salvador Dalí, particularly his sculptures, engravings, illustrations and later work.
Palais de la Découverte
17 avenue du Général Eisenhower
8th arrondissement
Metro: Champs-Élysées-Clemenceau or Franklin D. Roosevelt
Official website Palais de la Découverte
The Palais de la Découverte has not yet fully reopened.
After a six-year renovation, parts of the site in the Grand Palais are already accessible, including the Palais des enfants and selected science activities. The complete reopening of the renovated Palais de la Découverte is scheduled for March 2027.
Check the official website carefully when planning your visit.
Musée National Eugène-Delacroix
6 rue de Furstemberg
6th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Germain-des-Prés or Mabillon
Official website Musée Delacroix
This intimate museum occupies the final home and studio of painter Eugène Delacroix, who lived here until his death in 1863.
The collection includes paintings, drawings, watercolors, letters and personal objects. Don’t miss the small garden behind the studio.
Musée des Égouts de Paris
Esplanade Habib Bourguiba, Pont de l’Alma
7th arrondissement
Metro: Alma-Marceau
RER C: Pont de l’Alma
Official website Musée des Égouts de Paris
One of Paris’s more unusual museums takes you underground into part of the city’s real sewer system.
The renovated museum explains how Paris’s sewer network was created, how wastewater is managed and what the work of sewer employees involves.
Maison Européenne de la Photographie
5-7 rue de Fourcy
4th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul or Pont Marie
Official website Maison Européenne de la Photographie
Known as the MEP, this major photography center in the Marais focuses on contemporary photography and visual culture.
There is no conventional permanent display: the program revolves around changing exhibitions, so check what is on before visiting.
Musée du Parfum Fragonard
9 rue Scribe
9th arrondissement
Metro: Opéra, Madeleine or Havre-Caumartin
Official website Musée du Parfum Fragonard
Located close to the Palais Garnier, Fragonard’s perfume museum explains the history and production of perfume.
Displays include antique perfume bottles, distillation equipment and information about the work of perfumers. Admission to the museum is free; workshops need to be booked separately.
Musée du Fumeur
7 rue Pache
11th arrondissement
Metro: Voltaire
Official website Musée du Fumeur
A small museum exploring the cultural history of smoking through art, books, photographs, pipes and other objects from around the world.
Palais Galliera – Musée de la Mode de Paris
10 avenue Pierre Ier de Serbie
16th arrondissement
Metro: Iéna or Alma-Marceau
Official website Palais Galliera
Palais Galliera is the City of Paris fashion museum. Its collections cover centuries of clothing, accessories, photography and fashion history.
Because textiles are sensitive to light, much of the collection is presented through changing exhibitions rather than as one continuously displayed permanent collection. Always check what is currently on view.
Historial Charles de Gaulle
129 rue de Grenelle
Inside the Musée de l’Armée
7th arrondissement
Official website Historial Charles de Gaulle
This multimedia museum within the Musée de l’Armée is devoted to General Charles de Gaulle.
Film, archive recordings, photographs and audiovisual installations tell the story of his life, the Free French movement during World War II, the Liberation of France and the creation of the Fifth Republic.
Galerie des Gobelins – Mobilier national
42 avenue des Gobelins
13th arrondissement
Metro: Les Gobelins
Official website Mobilier national
The Galerie des Gobelins is part of the historic Gobelins complex, famous for tapestry production.
Temporary exhibitions focus on decorative arts, design, furniture, tapestries and the exceptional craftsmanship of the French national manufactures.
Grand Palais
3 avenue du Général Eisenhower
8th arrondissement
Metro: Champs-Élysées-Clemenceau or Franklin D. Roosevelt
Built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition, the Grand Palais is one of Paris’s great exhibition venues.
After an enormous four-year restoration, the monument fully reopened in 2025. It now hosts major art exhibitions, cultural events, immersive projects and events connected with the neighboring Palais de la Découverte.
Its huge glass-and-steel Nave is one of the most spectacular interiors in Paris.
Musée Grévin
10 boulevard Montmartre
9th arrondissement
Metro: Grands Boulevards
Paris’s famous wax museum opened in 1882 and combines historic interiors with wax figures of French and international celebrities, athletes, political figures and fictional characters.
Don’t miss the beautiful Hall of Mirrors, which predates the museum’s wax displays.
Book your Musée Grévin tickets.
Musée Guimet – Musée National des Arts Asiatiques
6 place d’Iéna
16th arrondissement
Metro: Iéna or Boissière
Musée Guimet houses one of Europe’s most important collections of Asian art, with works from India, Southeast Asia, China, Korea, Japan, the Himalayas and Central Asia.
The museum was founded by industrialist and traveler Émile Guimet in the 19th century.
Musée Jean-Jacques Henner
43 avenue de Villiers
17th arrondissement
Metro: Malesherbes, Monceau or Wagram
Official website Musée Jean-Jacques Henner
This atmospheric museum occupies a 19th-century mansion and is devoted to French painter Jean-Jacques Henner (1829-1905).
You’ll find paintings, drawings, sketches, photographs and personal objects in beautifully restored interiors.
Musée en Herbe
23 rue de l’Arbre-Sec
1st arrondissement
Metro: Louvre-Rivoli or Pont Neuf
Official website Musée en Herbe
A playful art museum designed especially with children and families in mind.
Temporary exhibitions introduce well-known artists, art movements and popular culture through interactive displays and activities. Despite the child-friendly approach, adults can enjoy it too.
Musée National de l’Histoire de l’Immigration
Palais de la Porte Dorée
293 avenue Daumesnil
12th arrondissement
Metro: Porte Dorée
Official website Musée National de l’Histoire de l’Immigration
The museum tells the history of immigration to France from the 19th century to the present day.
It is housed in the impressive Art Deco Palais de la Porte Dorée, built in 1931. The building also contains the Tropical Aquarium, which requires separate admission.
Grande Galerie de l’Évolution
Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle
36 rue Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire
5th arrondissement
Metro: Gare d’Austerlitz, Censier-Daubenton or Jussieu
Official website Grande Galerie de l’Évolution
One of the most impressive parts of Paris’s Natural History Museum, the Grande Galerie de l’Évolution presents thousands of animals and specimens in dramatic surroundings.
The displays focus on biodiversity, evolution and the relationship between humans and the natural world.
The Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle consists of several museums and galleries, each with its own opening arrangements, so check the specific venue before visiting.
Musée de l’Homme
17 place du Trocadéro
Palais de Chaillot
16th arrondissement
Metro: Trocadéro
Official website Musée de l’Homme
Musée de l’Homme explores what it means to be human from biological, cultural and anthropological perspectives.
Its modern permanent exhibition combines fossils, objects, science and interactive displays to look at human evolution, diversity and the future of our species.
Maison de Victor Hugo
6 place des Vosges
4th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul, Bastille or Chemin Vert
Official website Maison de Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo lived in this apartment on Place des Vosges from 1832 to 1848.
The museum contains manuscripts, drawings, furniture, portraits and personal belongings connected with the author of Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.
Musée de l’Illusion
98 rue Saint-Denis
1st arrondissement
Metro: Étienne Marcel or Châtelet-Les Halles
Official website Museum of Illusions Paris
An interactive attraction filled with optical illusions, holograms, distorted rooms and visual puzzles.
It’s particularly popular with families, teenagers and anyone who enjoys taking unusual photos.
Book tickets for the Museum of Illusions.
Musée Jacquemart-André
158 boulevard Haussmann
8th arrondissement
Metro: Miromesnil or Saint-Philippe du Roule
Official website Musée Jacquemart-André
One of Paris’s most beautiful private-house museums, Musée Jacquemart-André contains the collection assembled by Édouard André and Nélie Jacquemart.
The sumptuous 19th-century mansion is filled with paintings, sculpture, furniture and decorative arts, including works by Rembrandt, Botticelli and Uccello.
Jeu de Paume
1 place de la Concorde
Jardin des Tuileries
1st arrondissement
Metro: Concorde
Jeu de Paume is one of Paris’s leading venues for photography, film, video and contemporary image-based art.
The building once housed France’s Impressionist collection before those works moved to the Musée d’Orsay in 1986. Today its program consists of temporary exhibitions.
Musée Départemental Albert-Kahn
10-14 rue du Port
Boulogne-Billancourt
Metro line 10: Boulogne-Pont de Saint-Cloud
Official website Musée Albert-Kahn
Just outside central Paris, this museum is devoted to banker, philanthropist and idealist Albert Kahn.
His remarkable Archives de la Planète project sent photographers around the world in the early 20th century to document people and cultures using early color photography and film.
The museum is surrounded by beautiful gardens inspired by different landscapes, including Japanese, English and French gardens.
Musée de la Libération de Paris – Musée du Général Leclerc – Musée Jean Moulin
4 avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy
Place Denfert-Rochereau
14th arrondissement
Metro: Denfert-Rochereau
Official website Musée de la Libération de Paris
This museum is no longer located above Gare Montparnasse.
Since 2019 it has been located at Place Denfert-Rochereau, opposite the Paris Catacombs. The museum tells the story of the Occupation, French Resistance and Liberation of Paris through the lives of Philippe Leclerc and Jean Moulin.
A particularly interesting part of the visit is Colonel Rol-Tanguy’s underground command post, used during the Liberation of Paris in August 1944.
Admission to the permanent collection is free.
Musée de la Légion d’honneur et des ordres de chevalerie
2 rue de la Légion d’honneur
7th arrondissement
Metro: Solférino or Musée d’Orsay
Official website Musée de la Légion d’honneur
Located beside the Musée d’Orsay, this museum is devoted to French and international decorations, medals and orders of chivalry.
It also explains the history of the Légion d’honneur, France’s highest order of merit.
Musée du Louvre
Cour Napoléon
1st arrondissement
Metro: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre
Official website Musée du Louvre
The Louvre is one of the largest and most famous museums in the world. Its collections span thousands of years and include Egyptian antiquities, Greek and Roman art, Islamic art, sculpture, decorative arts and European painting.
Of course, the most famous work is Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, but the museum is so vast that it’s worth deciding in advance which departments you most want to see.
The Louvre is normally closed on Tuesdays and stays open later on Wednesdays and Fridays. Admission is free for all visitors on the first Friday evening of the month, except in July and August, and on July 14. Conditions can change, so always check the official site.
Booking a timed entry in advance is highly recommended.
Buy the Paris Museum Pass for access to more than 60 museums and monuments in and around Paris.
Musée du Luxembourg
19 rue de Vaugirard
6th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Sulpice or Odéon
Official website Musée du Luxembourg
Located beside the Jardin du Luxembourg, this museum has no permanent collection on display and is entirely devoted to temporary exhibitions.
Because exhibitions change regularly, the museum can sometimes close briefly between shows. Check the current program before visiting.
Musée de la Magie
11 rue Saint-Paul
4th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul, Bastille or Sully-Morland
Official website Musée de la Magie
A small museum devoted to magic, illusion and conjuring.
The collection includes historic magic props, optical devices, secret boxes and mechanical illusions. Magic demonstrations are part of the experience.
Musée Maillol
61 rue de Grenelle
7th arrondissement
Metro: Rue du Bac
Official website Musée Maillol
The museum was founded by Dina Vierny, model and muse of sculptor Aristide Maillol.
The permanent collection includes sculptures, paintings and drawings by Maillol, while major temporary exhibitions bring work by other artists to the museum.
Musée National de la Marine
17 place du Trocadéro
Palais de Chaillot
16th arrondissement
Metro: Trocadéro
Official website Musée National de la Marine
After a major multi-year renovation, the Musée National de la Marine reopened in the Palais de Chaillot in 2023.
The beautifully redesigned museum explores France’s relationship with the sea through ship models, paintings, maritime objects and interactive presentations.
Musée Marmottan Monet
2 rue Louis-Boilly
16th arrondissement
Metro: La Muette
Official website Musée Marmottan Monet
Musée Marmottan Monet houses the world’s largest collection of works by Claude Monet.
Its most famous painting is Impression, soleil levant (Impression, Sunrise), the work that gave Impressionism its name. You’ll also find paintings by artists including Berthe Morisot, Renoir, Degas and Manet.
Musée de Minéralogie – Mines Paris PSL
60 boulevard Saint-Michel
6th arrondissement
Metro/RER: Luxembourg
Official website Musée de Minéralogie
A specialist museum with an impressive collection of minerals, crystals, gemstones and meteorites.
The museum is housed at Mines Paris – PSL in the historic Hôtel de Vendôme beside the Jardin du Luxembourg.
Institut du Monde Arabe
1 rue des Fossés-Saint-Bernard
5th arrondissement
Metro: Jussieu or Cardinal Lemoine
Official website Institut du Monde Arabe
Designed by Jean Nouvel, the Institut du Monde Arabe is both a museum and cultural center devoted to the history, art and cultures of the Arab world.
The south façade is famous for its geometric metal screens inspired by traditional mashrabiya patterns.
Head up to the rooftop terrace for an excellent view over the Seine, Île Saint-Louis and Notre-Dame.
Monnaie de Paris – Musée du 11 Conti
11 quai de Conti
6th arrondissement
Metro: Odéon or Pont Neuf
Official website Monnaie de Paris
One of the oldest institutions in France, the Monnaie de Paris has produced coins for centuries.
The museum at 11 Conti explores coin-making, metalwork, craftsmanship and the history of money through objects, demonstrations and interactive displays.
Musée de Montmartre
12-14 rue Cortot
18th arrondissement
Metro: Lamarck-Caulaincourt or Abbesses
Official website Musée de Montmartre
Located in one of the oldest buildings in Montmartre, this museum tells the story of the neighborhood’s artists, cabarets and bohemian past.
Artists including Renoir, Suzanne Valadon and Maurice Utrillo once lived or worked here.
The Renoir Gardens are a lovely part of the visit, with views toward Montmartre’s small vineyard.
Book tickets for Musée de Montmartre and the Renoir Gardens.
Musée Gustave Moreau
14 rue de la Rochefoucauld
9th arrondissement
Metro: Trinité or Saint-Georges
Official website Musée Gustave Moreau
Symbolist painter Gustave Moreau transformed his family home into a museum during his lifetime.
The upper floors contain spectacular studios filled from floor to ceiling with paintings and drawings. The beautiful spiral staircase is almost as photogenic as the collection itself.
Musée de Cluny – Musée National du Moyen Âge
28 rue du Sommerard / 6 place Paul Painlevé
5th arrondissement
Metro: Cluny-La Sorbonne, Saint-Michel or Odéon
Official website Musée de Cluny
The national museum of medieval art combines the Gothic Hôtel de Cluny with the remains of ancient Roman baths.
Its most famous works are the magnificent Lady and the Unicorn tapestries. The museum reopened after a major renovation in 2022.
Musée de la Musique
221 avenue Jean Jaurès
19th arrondissement
Metro: Porte de Pantin
Official website Musée de la Musique
Part of the Philharmonie de Paris complex, this museum presents hundreds of musical instruments from different periods and cultures.
Audio stations allow visitors to hear many of the instruments while exploring the collection.
Musée Nissim de Camondo
63 rue de Monceau
8th arrondissement
Metro: Villiers or Monceau
Official website Musée Nissim de Camondo
A beautiful mansion beside Parc Monceau filled with an exceptional collection of 18th-century French furniture and decorative arts.
Moïse de Camondo built the house to display his collection and later donated it to the French state in memory of his son Nissim, who died during World War I.
Don’t miss the original kitchens and servants’ quarters downstairs.
Musée de l’Orangerie
Jardin des Tuileries
1st arrondissement
Metro: Concorde
Official website Musée de l’Orangerie
Musée de l’Orangerie is best known for Claude Monet’s eight monumental Water Lilies panels, displayed in two oval rooms that were designed specifically for them.
Downstairs you’ll find the Jean Walter and Paul Guillaume Collection with works by Cézanne, Matisse, Modigliani, Picasso, Renoir, Utrillo and others.
Advance reservations are a good idea, especially during major exhibitions.
Book your Musée de l’Orangerie tickets.
Musée d’Orsay
1 rue de la Légion d’Honneur
7th arrondissement
Metro: Solférino
RER C: Musée d’Orsay
Official website Musée d’Orsay
The Musée d’Orsay is housed in a magnificent former railway station built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition.
Its collection covers the period from 1848 to 1914 and is particularly famous for Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. You’ll find major works by Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cézanne, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Manet and many others.
Don’t forget to look at the huge station clocks – one of them offers a wonderful view across Paris toward Montmartre.
See Musée d’Orsay tickets and tours.
Musée Pasteur
25 rue du Docteur Roux
15th arrondissement
Official website Musée Pasteur
The Musée Pasteur is currently closed to the public for restoration and renovation work. The Institut Pasteur expects it to remain closed until November 2028.
The museum occupies the apartment where scientist Louis Pasteur spent the final seven years of his life. Its collection preserves his furniture, personal belongings and scientific instruments.
Petit Palais – Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris
Avenue Winston Churchill
8th arrondissement
Metro: Champs-Élysées-Clemenceau
Built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition, the Petit Palais is both an art museum and an architectural highlight.
The permanent collection ranges from antiquity to the early 20th century and includes paintings, sculpture, decorative arts and Art Nouveau objects.
Admission to the permanent collection is free. The inner courtyard and café are also worth a visit.
Musée Édith Piaf
5 rue Crespin du Gast
11th arrondissement
Metro: Ménilmontant
The tiny Musée Édith Piaf is dedicated to the life of one of France’s most famous singers.
The collection includes photographs, letters, posters, records, clothing and personal memorabilia. It is located in a private apartment and visits are generally by appointment, so check the latest arrangements before going.
Musée National Picasso-Paris
5 rue de Thorigny
3rd arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul or Saint-Sébastien-Froissart
Official website Musée Picasso Paris
Housed in the magnificent 17th-century Hôtel Salé in the Marais, this museum holds one of the world’s most important collections of works by Pablo Picasso.
Paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, ceramics and archive material show the enormous range of his career. The collection also includes works by artists Picasso admired and collected himself.
Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris
5 avenue Marceau
16th arrondissement
Metro: Alma-Marceau
Official website Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris
The museum occupies the historic fashion house where Yves Saint Laurent worked for almost 30 years.
Exhibitions explore his designs, sketches, creative process and the history of the couture house. His former studio is one of the highlights of the visit.
Centre Pompidou
Place Georges Pompidou
4th arrondissement
Official website Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou building in Beaubourg is closed for a major renovation.
The iconic building closed in September 2025 and is currently scheduled to remain closed until 2030.
The Centre Pompidou’s collection and cultural program continue during the closure through its Constellation program, with exhibitions, performances, films and events at partner venues in Paris, elsewhere in France and internationally.
Musée de La Poste
34 boulevard de Vaugirard
15th arrondissement
Metro: Montparnasse-Bienvenüe or Pasteur
Official website Musée de La Poste
This modern museum explores the history of the French postal service and communication.
The collection includes mail coaches, uniforms, mailboxes, postal art, stamps and objects that explain how letters and parcels have traveled through France over the centuries.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
37 quai Branly
7th arrondissement
Metro: Alma-Marceau, Bir-Hakeim or Iéna
Official website Musée du Quai Branly
Opened in 2006, Musée du Quai Branly presents art and cultural objects from Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas.
The striking building was designed by Jean Nouvel and is surrounded by a large landscaped garden designed by Gilles Clément.
The museum is only a short walk from the Eiffel Tower.
Musée Rodin
77 rue de Varenne
7th arrondissement
Metro: Varenne
Musée Rodin occupies the elegant Hôtel Biron, where Auguste Rodin once lived and worked.
Inside you’ll see works including The Kiss, while the beautiful sculpture garden contains famous pieces such as The Thinker, The Burghers of Calais and The Gates of Hell.
The combination of art, historic interiors and garden makes this one of the most enjoyable smaller museums in Paris.
Halle Saint-Pierre
2 rue Ronsard
18th arrondissement
Metro: Anvers or Abbesses
Official website Halle Saint-Pierre
At the foot of Montmartre, Halle Saint-Pierre specializes in outsider art, folk art, Art Brut and other unconventional forms of contemporary art.
The atmospheric former market hall also contains a café and bookshop.
Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
30 avenue Corentin-Cariou
19th arrondissement
Metro: Porte de la Villette
Official website Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
This enormous interactive science museum in Parc de la Villette is particularly good for families and curious children.
Permanent and temporary exhibitions cover subjects including space, mathematics, technology, the human body, climate and transportation.
The complex also includes a planetarium and special areas for children. Because some activities require separate reservations or tickets, it’s worth planning your visit in advance.
Sèvres – Manufacture et Musée Nationaux
2 place de la Manufacture
Sèvres
Metro: Pont de Sèvres
Tram T2: Musée de Sèvres
Official website Sèvres – Manufacture et Musée Nationaux
Just outside Paris, this national ceramics museum traces the history of ceramics from around the world.
The collection is particularly famous for Sèvres porcelain. The site also includes the historic Manufacture de Sèvres, which continues to produce exceptional porcelain today.
Mémorial de la Shoah
17 rue Geoffroy l’Asnier
4th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Paul, Hôtel de Ville or Pont Marie
Official website Mémorial de la Shoah
The Mémorial de la Shoah is one of Europe’s most important institutions devoted to the history of the Holocaust and the persecution of Jews during World War II.
The site includes a permanent exhibition, temporary exhibitions, archives, a documentation center, the Wall of Names and the crypt containing ashes from concentration camps and the Warsaw Ghetto.
Admission is free.
Palais de Tokyo
13 avenue du Président Wilson
16th arrondissement
Metro: Iéna or Alma-Marceau
Official website Palais de Tokyo
Palais de Tokyo is one of the largest centers for contemporary art in Europe.
Rather than maintaining a permanent collection, it presents changing exhibitions, installations and performances by contemporary artists.
The museum is usually open into the evening and has especially late hours on Thursdays, making it a useful option after other museums have closed.
Musée de la Vie Romantique
16 rue Chaptal
9th arrondissement
Metro: Saint-Georges or Pigalle
Official website Musée de la Vie Romantique
The Musée de la Vie Romantique occupies the former home and studios of painter Ary Scheffer in the Nouvelle Athènes neighborhood.
Scheffer hosted writers, musicians and artists here, including figures connected with the Romantic movement. The collection includes paintings, furniture and objects relating to Scheffer and writer George Sand.
After a 17-month renovation, the museum reopened on February 14, 2026. The permanent collection is free.
The garden and Rose Bakery tea room make this an especially pleasant small museum to visit.
Le M. Musée du Vin
5 square Charles Dickens
16th arrondissement
Metro: Passy
Official website Le M. Musée du Vin
Hidden in vaulted cellars in Passy, this museum explores the history and culture of wine in France.
The collection contains more than 2,000 objects relating to vineyards, winemaking and wine drinking. The complex also offers wine-tasting courses, a restaurant and regular jazz evenings.
Fondation Louis Vuitton
8 avenue du Mahatma Gandhi
Bois de Boulogne
16th arrondissement
Metro: Les Sablons
Official website Fondation Louis Vuitton
Fondation Louis Vuitton is one of Paris’s most spectacular contemporary art venues.
The extraordinary glass building was designed by architect Frank Gehry and opened in 2014 in the Bois de Boulogne.
The Fondation stages major temporary exhibitions alongside works from its contemporary art collection. Even if the exhibition isn’t your main reason for visiting, the architecture and rooftop terraces are worth seeing.
From Les Sablons metro station, allow around 15 minutes to walk to the Fondation. A shuttle service also operates from central Paris; check the official website for current departure points and prices.
Musée Zadkine
100 bis rue d’Assas
6th arrondissement
Metro: Vavin or Notre-Dame-des-Champs
Official website Musée Zadkine
A lovely small museum in the former home and studio of sculptor Ossip Zadkine.
The collection includes sculptures, drawings, gouaches and photographs tracing his development from early primitivist and Cubist work toward abstraction.
The leafy sculpture garden is one of the highlights and makes this a peaceful stop close to the Jardin du Luxembourg.
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