10 Lesser-Known Museums in Paris That Are Worth Your Time

While the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay are full of unbelievable masterpieces, there are so many other fascinating places beyond Paris’s two most famous museums. These are 10 lesser known museums that are absolutely worth your time to visit.

Petit Palais

The Petit Palais is an art museum built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition. The main sculpture gallery is the showstopper, with its elegant arched passageway and striking works of art, but the rest of the museum’s paintings, sculptures, and tapestries are equally impressive. You’ll find pieces by Monet, Rembrandt, Rubens, Cézanne, and Rodin throughout. Bonus? This museum is totally free.

Rodin Museum

The Musée Rodin displaysAuguste Rodin’s sculptures inside an elegant 18th-century mansion and throughout the surrounding peaceful garden. Inside, you can find The Kiss prominently on display, while famous works like The Thinker and The Gates of Hell sit among the trees, lawns, and fountains outside.

Carnavalet Museum

The Musée Carnavalet is dedicated to the history of Paris. Its rooms are filled with paintings, furniture, maps, artifacts, and signs that follow the city’s past, from Medieval times to the French Revolution and beyond.

Gustave Moreau Museum

The Musée Gustave Moreau was once the home and studio of the 19th-century Symbolist painter. The rooms are packed with his detailed, dreamlike paintings, sketches, and personal belongings, and the ornate spiral staircase connecting the floors is a highlight on its own.

Jacquemart-André Museum

The Musée Jacquemart-André is set in a grand 19th-century mansion once owned by art collectors Édouard André and Nélie Jacquemart. The sumptuously decorated rooms showcase fine furniture, Italian Renaissance paintings, and exquisite architecture, especially this serene, glass-domed winter garden.

L’Orangerie Museum

The Musée de l’Orangerie is an incredible spot to see Monet’s Water Lilies paintings. Here, two oval rooms hold eight massive panels that nearly cover the curved walls, surrounding you with different views of his famed pond and gardens in Giverny. Monet worked with the city of Paris to design the layout, meant to symbolize eternity and create a calm, immersive experience.

Galerie Dior

The Galerie Dior explores the history of both the brand and its founder, Christian Dior, but the real highlight is the collection of dresses on display. Each themed room, an all-white gallery, a black space set against the Paris skyline, and a flower-filled room with gowns nestled into alcoves, presents the creations as true works of art.

Arts Forains Museum

The Musée des Arts Forains is a whimsical collection of vintage carnival rides, games, and fairground art housed in former wine warehouses. Guided tours take you through hand-painted carousels, mechanical music machines, and old fair stalls that you can still ride or play, making it one of Paris’s most delightfully unexpected museums.

The Conciergerie

The Conciergerie, once part of the medieval Palais de la Cité, served as a royal residence before becoming a prison during the French Revolution. Inside, you can walk through vaulted stone halls and see the cell where Marie Antoinette was held before her execution.

Hotel de la Marine

The Hôtel de la Marine sits on Place de la Concorde and was once the headquarters for France’s naval administration. Restored 18th-century rooms show how aristocrats lived at the time, complete with gilded decor and period furnishings. Exhibits also trace the building’s long history, from royal service to its modern transformation into a museum. This is one of Paris’s most sumptuous hidden gems.