Every museum in Paris is good: that’s a given. But some are truly great. To complete your Paris honeymoon experience, carve out time to explore these five awesome museums, which are among the most famous in the world.
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Louvre Museum
Louvre Museum, Rue de Rivoli, Paris, France
The Louvre is the most famous museum in the world, and the building itself is an historic monument (opened 1793), so you pretty much have to go there at least once. Our advice: go more than once, but don’t stay too long on any one visit. It’s easy to get overwhelmed and exhausted here: the place is massive and so crowded with brilliant art it will gave you the vapors. We’re not even talking about the most famous pieces displayed here: Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People, and the Great Sphinx of Tanis, among others. These are all worth a look, of course, but expect them to be crowded (especially the Mona Lisa). Pick three or four galleries, give them your full attention for an hour or so, then leave and get yourself a drink or some lunch. Repeat three or four times over the course of your visit. We say go either Wednesday or Friday when the museum closes at 10 PM (a lot later than normal hours), which not many tourists know about.
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Musée de l’Armée (the Army Museum)
Musée de l 'Armee, Rue de Grenelle, Paris, France
Look, we get that everyone is different and has different interests, but let’s face facts. Most guys think weapons and uniforms are cool, and this is a whole museum dedicated to weapons and uniforms, along with other artifacts of war. The Musée de l’Armée houses a huge collection of real weapons, guns, and uniforms used during centuries of French wars and military history. When we say “centuries,” we mean it. There are medieval armor, cannons, and 16th-century swords inside. And if that wasn’t enough for you already, Napoleon Bonaparte is buried here too.
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Musée D’Orsay
Musée d'Orsay, Rue de la Légion d'Honneur, Paris, France
Originally constructed as a train station at the turn of the 20th century, the Musée D’Orsay is one of the finest examples of Beaux-Arts architecture you’ll ever encounter. Aesthetically, it’s a stunner you could stare at all day, but what’s inside is obviously the “crème de la crème” as well. Musée D’Orsay is dedicated to impressionist, post-impressionist, and art nouveau pieces, with works by artists like Manet, Monet, Renoir, and Degas. If you buy tickets online, you get access to a separate entrance with a shorter wait time. Do this on a Thursday night, and you’re golden (it’s open until 10 PM on Thursdays).
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Louis Vuitton Foundation
Louis Vuitton Foundation
You might think that the official Louis Vuitton Museum is only for fashionistas and stuck-up Parisiens. Well you’re partly right, but it’s for everyone else too. This $140 million-dollar masterpiece in the 16th arrondissement was designed by legendary architect Frank Gehry, and his design makes for one of the coolest designed museums ever. It’s already a new Paris landmark. Inside, there’s edgy, contemporary art, cool exhibitions, and, of course, Louis Vuitton related stuff.
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Musée Picasso
Musée Picasso, Rue de Thorigny, Paris, France
Here’s an artsy dude you know well. While it may seem weird that there’s a huge museum dedicated to the work of a Spanish artist in France, don’t question it. Most of Pablo Picasso’s most famous works are inside this Marais mansion, and Picasso fans will find endless chambers full of his artwork and sculpture. (Picasso famously said “Give me a museum and I’ll fill it,” so his dream came true.)
