Musée Carnavalet in Paris
Europe Free Admission

Musée Carnavalet

Paris · France · Founded 1880

The museum of the city of Paris, in two adjoining Marais mansions with free admission to the permanent collection.

About Musée Carnavalet

Founded by Baron Haussmann in 1880, the Musée Carnavalet occupies the Renaissance Hôtel Carnavalet and the seventeenth-century Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau. It reopened in 2021 after a major refurbishment.

The collection traces Paris from prehistory to today through paintings, models, signs, and reconstructed period rooms — including Marcel Proust's bedroom.

Collections & Highlights

Marcel Proust's bedroom
Bal du Moulin de la Galette signage
Models of medieval Paris
French Revolution gallery

Frequently Asked Questions

A small ask before you go

You've just explored one of humanity's greatest collections of beauty. Art has the power to move us, inspire us, and change how we see the world. But millions of people will never see beauty like this — not because the art isn't there, but because they can't see at all.

Preventable blindness, caused by conditions like cataracts and trachoma, affects people of all ages across the world's poorest communities. A small gift — for the cost of a museum ticket — can provide a simple surgery to restore someone's sight and transform their life.