Musée Carnavalet Museum

Address: 23 Rue de Sévigné, 75003 Paris, France

Website: https://www.carnavalet.paris.fr

Hours: Tue-Sun 10am-6pm, closed Mondays (check website for updates)

Admission: Free (permanent collections); temporary/special exhibitions may be ticketed

Musée Carnavalet is Paris’s museum of the city’s history, housed in two adjoining historic mansions in the Le Marais quarter and presenting artefacts, artworks and period interiors that trace Paris from antiquity to modern times. The institution uses the preserved salons and courtyards of the two hôtels particuliers to display civic history and decorative arts.

Collections include paintings, sculptures, historical objects, urban models and furniture that document major events, personalities and urban development in Paris. The museum underwent an extensive restoration and reinstallation project and reopened in 2021 with expanded galleries and renewed visitor facilities.

Located in the 3rd arrondissement, the museum is a short walk from Place des Vosges and other Le Marais sites, and is commonly visited alongside neighbouring cultural attractions and walking routes through the historic district.

• Focus and reopening: The museum is dedicated to the history of Paris and occupies historic private mansions in the Le Marais district; it reopened to the public after a major renovation in 2021.

What to See#

• Hôtel Carnavalet and Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau: Hôtel Carnavalet and the adjacent Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau, the two historic mansions that contain the museum’s rooms and period interiors.
• Permanent galleries: Permanent displays and rooms presenting Parisian history from antiquity to the present, including civic artifacts, decorative arts and urban models.

Musée Carnavalet is in Le Marais (Paris city center). The quickest public transit is Paris Métro Line 1 to Saint‑Paul (Le Marais) or Line 1/11 to Hôtel de Ville; the museum is a short walk from either station.

• Go in a weekday morning to enjoy the Hôtel Carnavalet's period rooms and courtyards before Marais foot traffic builds up.
• Enter from rue de Sévigné to reach the main museum courtyards quickly and then work through the chronological galleries-this layout helps you see the reconstructed interiors many visitors miss.
• Combine the visit with a short walk around the surrounding Marais streets (Place des Vosges nearby) to spread out crowds and experience complementary historic sites.