The considered guideParis
Two museums. No ticket required.
Two free permanent collections for an afternoon in Paris: choose city history in the Marais or art and a garden pause near the Champs-Élysées.
Joseph Jutras / Wikimedia Commons, 2015. Resized and compressed; display crops vary. · CC0 1.0: License ; Source
A good museum afternoon can be small. Choose one place, look carefully, and leave yourself time to wander afterwards. These are two different starting points, not a race across the city.
This selection concerns individual visits to permanent collections. Special exhibitions, guided activities, group visits and café purchases can carry separate charges. Opening hours and addresses below link back to each museum’s record, so they remain current when the practical details are updated. We checked the museums’ published visitor information on 20 September 2026; check their official notices before travelling.
Musée Carnavalet: Histoire de Paris
Choose Carnavalet when you want the city itself to be the subject. Keep the visit focused on a few rooms, then take your curiosity back into the Marais.
Petit Palais
Choose the Petit Palais for an art-led afternoon with space for a garden pause. Plan around the permanent collection’s hours; late exhibition openings follow a different timetable.