Which museums should you visit in Paris in two days?
Day 1: Orsay and the Orangerie
Start with Orsay in the morning, half a day, with the timed ticket and audio guide. It’s the overview—Manet, Degas, Renoir, dozens of Monets—and the former station itself. Then cross the Seine to the Tuileries Garden and the Orangerie, spending 1 to 1 ½ hours in front of the eight panels of the Water Lilies, with a timeslot ticket booked for mid-afternoon. This day can’t be a Monday, as Orsay is closed, nor a Tuesday, when the Orangerie is.
Day 2: The Marmottan, then the Louvre or the park
In the morning, the Musée Marmottan Monet at opening, 10 a.m., no reservation needed, for 1 ½ to 2 hours. It’s the only one of the three Monet museums where you’ll have peace and quiet, and the one with the most works, including Impression, soleil levant. The itinerary is on what to see at the Marmottan. In the afternoon, two options: the Louvre, if you want to say you’ve seen it—it requires a strategy I won’t detail here, as it’s not my museum. Or stay in the 16th arrondissement: the Ranelagh Garden, the Bois de Boulogne, or the Louis Vuitton Foundation in the park, about 2 km away, which I describe on around the museum.
The three best-known museums
The Louvre, Orsay, and the Centre Pompidou. The Louvre for ancient art, Orsay for the 19th century and the Impressionists, Pompidou for modern and contemporary art—though be cautious about its renovations. If you only have two days and came for Monet, the Louvre is the one you can save for another trip. The Marmottan, however, is the museum you’ll regret missing.
Free museums
The permanent collections of the City of Paris museums are free: the Petit Palais, the Carnavalet Museum for the history of Paris, and the Paris Museum of Modern Art. National museums are free on the first Sunday of the month, but not all of them and not all year round. The Marmottan isn't free in any of these cases because it belongs to the Académie des Beaux-Arts, and the Paris Museum Pass doesn't work there either. The details are on is the museum free.
Rodin, Picasso, and the rest
The Rodin Museum and the Picasso Museum are the two I mention next, for a third day. They have nothing to do with Monet, and that’s a nice break after two days of Impressionism. I won’t say more—this site is for the Marmottan.
What works
- A coherent two-day itinerary, all by metro
- Three Monet museums, one without reservations
- Closing days that complement each other
- Free museums for extra days
Good to know
- Mondays exclude the Marmottan and Orsay, Tuesdays exclude the Orangerie
- The Museum Pass doesn’t cover the Marmottan
- The Louvre requires a full day to itself
- Giverny, 75 km away, doesn’t fit into two days in Paris without dedicating a museum visit to it
If one of your two days is a Thursday, visit the Marmottan that evening during its late opening until 9 pm, and save the day for Orsay and the Orangerie. You’ll have seen all three Monet museums in a single day, without rushing. The opening hours are on a dedicated page.
Book Orsay for the first morning
Frequently asked questions
What are the three best-known museums in Paris?
The Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay and the Centre Pompidou. For Monet, you should also add the Orangerie and the Musée Marmottan Monet. See where to see Monet in Paris.
Which museums are free in Paris?
The permanent collections of the City of Paris museums, such as the Petit Palais or Carnavalet, and national museums on the first Sunday of the month—not all of them. The Marmottan is not free. See is the museum free.
Can I visit the three Monet museums in one day?
On a Thursday, yes: Orsay in the morning, the Orangerie in the afternoon, and the Marmottan during late opening until 9 pm. See Marmottan or Orangerie.
Does the Museum Pass cover these museums?
It covers national museums, such as Orsay and the Orangerie, but not the Marmottan, which is private. See the Museum Pass.