29 Fantastic Places in Paris You Won’t Believe Are FREE to Visit

Paris has a reputation for being expensive, but some of the best things to see and do in the city don’t cost anything at all.

And I’m not just talking about wandering the streets or sitting in a park. You can explore excellent museums, step inside beautiful churches, visit landmarks and historic buildings, and even take in some of the best views over Paris without spending a cent.

Of course, there are also parks, gardens, walks, and other public spaces that are absolutely worth making time for, even if it’s no surprise that they’re free.

These are 29 of my favorite free things to do in Paris, split across three categories.

Museums & Cultural Highlights

Paris has quite a few excellent museums and cultural sites that are completely free to visit. Some are surprisingly substantial, with impressive art collections, historic interiors, and artifacts through centuries of French history.

1. Petit Palais

A grand building from the 1900 World’s Fair that now houses a fine arts museum. Inside you’ll find sculpture galleries, paintings, and decorative arts, plus a small inner garden and café that feel like a hidden spot near the Champs Élysées.

2. Carnavalet Museum

A museum devoted entirely to the story of Paris, set in a historic Marais mansion. Exhibits range from old shop signs to maps, models, furniture, and Revolution-era paintings, so you see how the city has changed over the centuries.

3. Musée de la Vie Romantique

A small museum in the former home of painter Ary Scheffer near Montmartre. The permanent collection is free to visit, with period rooms, paintings, furniture, and memorabilia connected to George Sand and the Romantic movement, plus a pretty courtyard and garden outside.

4. Musée d’Art Moderne (Palais de Tokyo)

An incredible overlooked free museum in Paris, with a huge collection of 20th and 21st-century art. The permanent collection includes works by Picasso, Delaunay, Modigliani, and many others, along with enormous murals like Raoul Dufy’s The Electricity Fairy.

5. Victor Hugo House

An apartment on Place des Vosges where Victor Hugo lived for 16 years, now turned into a small museum. Period furniture, artwork, artifacts, and manuscripts give you a sense of his life and the world behind works like Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

6. National Archives

Housed in the beautiful Hôtel de Soubise in the Marais, the National Archives museum combines French history with some seriously impressive interiors. You can walk through ornate Rococo rooms while seeing historic documents and exhibits drawn from the National Archives collections. What’s on exhibit rotates, but I’ve seen documents like the Tennis Court Oath or Marie Antoinette’s last letter.

7. Assemblée Nationale / Palais Bourbon

The free 90-minute guided tour of the Assemblée Nationale takes you through the working seat of France’s lower house of Parliament, which meets inside the historic Palais Bourbon. You’ll see the chamber where deputies meet, the grand salons, and the spectacular library decorated by Eugène Delacroix. Tours must be reserved in advance.

8. Rotonde d’Antin at the Grand Palais

You need a ticket for the exhibitions at the Grand Palais, but the impressive Rotonde d’Antin, a grand circular space decorated with mosaics, sculptures, and beautiful gilded details, is open to anyone. You can walk right in without a ticket or reservation.

9. Oval Reading Room of the Richelieu Library

The Richelieu site of the National Library has a stunning oval reading room with a glass ceiling and towering bookshelves. When it’s open to visitors, you can quietly walk the perimeter and take in the architecture and small exhibits.

10. Mazarin Library

Located inside the Institut de France, the Bibliothèque Mazarine is the oldest public library in France. Its beautiful reading room is lined with dark wood bookcases, old books, busts, and gilded chandeliers, and visitors are allowed to quietly walk through.

Looking for More Free Museums in Paris?

The museums above are some of my favorites to include on a general Paris itinerary, but they’re far from the only museums you can visit for free. Paris has a surprisingly long list of museums with free permanent collections, including art, history, architecture, and more.

I’ve put together a complete guide to the best free museums in Paris if you want more options.

Landmarks, Churches, and Historic Sites

Some of Paris’s most famous landmarks are completely free to enter, along with dozens of beautiful churches and a handful of historic sites that are well worth seeking out.

11. Notre Dame

Notre Dame is easily one of the city’s most impressive landmarks. The cathedral reopened in December 2024 after five years of restoration, and the cleaned stone, restored chapels, stained glass, and soaring Gothic interior are incredible to see up close.

12. Sacré Cœur Basilica

Sitting on the highest point in the city, Sacré-Cœur’s stark white domes stand out against the skyline. Inside is covered in colorful mosaics, and once you step back outside, you get one of the best free views in Paris.

13. Saint-Etienne-du-Mont

Just behind the Panthéon, Saint-Étienne-du-Mont is one of the most unusual churches in Paris. Its biggest highlight is the elaborate 16th-century rood screen, the only surviving example in a Paris church, with two delicate spiral staircases curving up on either side. The church also contains the shrine of Sainte Geneviève, the patron saint of Paris.

14. Saint-Sulpice

A grand church with tall columns, a beautiful Chapel to the Virgin, and a huge organ that fills the space during services. There’s also the gnomon, an 18th-century astronomical device once used to track the sun’s position and determine the date of Easter.

15. Saint Louis-Saint Paul

This beautiful Baroque church in the Marais was built for the Jesuits in the 17th century, with a design inspired in part by the Church of the Gesù in Rome. Inside, massive columns, gilded details, sculptures, and a huge dome make it one of the most ornate church interiors in Paris.

16. Arènes de Lutèce

A Roman amphitheater tucked into the Latin Quarter, almost 2,000 years old. Today it’s a quiet spot where locals play pétanque or sit on the stone steps, but you can still see the outlines of the old arena and terraces.

17. Père Lachaise Cemetery

A peaceful, tree-filled cemetery with cobbled lanes winding between ornate tombs. It’s also the resting place of famous figures like Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, and Oscar Wilde, which adds interesting stops to your stroll.

18. Porte Saint Denis & Saint Martin

These two triumphal arches on the Right Bank once marked the northern entrance to Paris. Built in the 1670s for Louis XIV, they’re covered in carvings and inscriptions, and give you a sense of how grand the old city gates used to be.

Most Paris Churches Are Free to Visit

You don’t have to limit yourself to the churches on this list. Most churches in Paris (with the main exception of Sainte-Chapelle) are free to enter, and I regularly pop into interesting churches I pass while exploring the city.

A few others worth mentioning include Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Saint-Eustache, and La Madeleine.

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Parks, Views, and Beautiful Places

Paris is filled with beautiful public spaces that are completely free to enjoy. Its parks and gardens are an obvious choice (and absolutely should not be skipped), but there are also historic passageways, interesting architecture, and some fantastic viewpoints you can visit without paying a cent.

19. Jardin du Luxembourg

One of Paris’s classic parks, with tree-lined promenades, a big central basin for toy sailboats, and plenty of green chairs. You can wander shaded paths, admire sculptures, and relax near the Medici Fountain in the middle of Saint-Germain.

20. Jardin des Tuileries

A long, formal garden between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde. You get trimmed hedges, fountains, statues, and big basins ringed with green chairs, plus great views toward Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe.

21. Jardin des Plantes

Paris’s main botanical garden, with long flower beds, themed gardens, rose gardens, and tree-lined paths leading up to the Natural History Museum. The gardens themselves are free to explore, although the museums, zoo, and greenhouse are paid attractions.

22. Place des Vosges

A perfectly symmetrical square surrounded by 17th-century townhouses with red brick and stone trim. The arcades are lined with cafés and small galleries, and the central green space is one of the prettiest spots in the Marais.

23. Walk Along the Seine

For me, walking the Seine is an absolute must in Paris. Paths run just below street level, so you’re right by the water as you pass bridges, islands, and landmarks. I particularly love the section between Île Saint-Louis and Place de la Concorde.

24. Coulée Verte

An elevated path built on an old railway line in the 12th arrondissement. You walk past gardens, archways, and small overlooks above the streets, while enjoying a quiet, green perspective on everyday life in Paris.

25. Covered Passages

These 19th-century arcades are part shopping gallery, part time capsule. Glass roofs, tiled floors, and old shopfronts make passageways like Galerie Vivienne and Passage des Panoramas especially fun to wander, especially on a rainy day or when you want something calmer.

26. Buren Columns

Set in the courtyard of the Palais Royal just behind the Louvre, these black-and-white striped columns are a modern and playful addition to the historic setting. It’s interactive too – kids jump between them, and people sit on them and take pictures with them.

27. Galeries Lafayette

This famous department store is worth a stop for its architecture alone. The Art Nouveau stained-glass dome tops the central atrium, and you can walk around each balcony level to see it from different angles.

Then head up to the rooftop terrace for one of the best free viewpoints in Paris.

28. Printemps

Just next door to Galeries Lafayette, Printemps is another grand department store with beautiful interiors and a great (free) rooftop terrace.

29. Arab World Institute Rooftop

The museum at the Arab World Institute requires a ticket, but you can head up to its panoramic rooftop terrace completely free. The terrace overlooks the Seine and Île de la Cité, with an especially good view toward Notre Dame and the Marais neighborhood across the river.

Looking for More Outdoor Places to Explore?

These are just a few of the many, many excellent free outdoor spaces in Paris. If you want more ideas, I have a complete guide to the best parks and gardens in Paris, plus my favorite walking streets in Paris.

And if you’re looking specifically for a great view, check out my guide to the best rooftop views in Paris. Several viewpoints around the city are free, while others require a ticket.

Planning the Rest of Your Time in Paris?

If you’re figuring out what else to see and where to spend your time, these guides can help:

• Montmartre Guide – What to see and do in one of Paris’s most distinctive neighborhoods
• Le Marais Guide – Historic sights, museums, streets, shops, and places to eat
• Latin Quarter Guide – A guide to exploring one of the oldest parts of Paris
• Where to Stay in Paris – A neighborhood-by-neighborhood breakdown to help you choose a base
• Ultimate List of Things to Do in Paris – Nearly 100 sights and experiences, from must-sees to hidden gems

If you want everything in one place, my Paris travel guide page pulls together neighborhood guides, attraction and museum guides, foodie recommendations, and travel tips in one hub.