Visiting the Musée d’Orsay means seeing, in a former railway station, the largest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings. The ticket costs €16 online and €14 at the museum; the museum is closed on Mondays and has a late opening on Thursdays until 9:45 pm. It is free for everyone on the first Sunday of the month, with a mandatory booked time slot. Walking along the Seine toward the Eiffel Tower, the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac offers a different approach, focused on non-European arts.
Here are the hours and prices recorded on the official website on 15 October 2026, a table for combining Orsay and the Louvre on the same day, and our route tips. The rest of your stay can be planned with our guide to visiting Paris.
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Key facts: Musée d’Orsay
- Hours: 9:30 am – 6 pm Tuesday to Sunday; late opening on Thursday until 9:45 pm; last admission to the museum at 5 pm (9 pm on Thursday)
- Standard price: €16 online, €14 on site; Thursday late opening (from 6 pm) €12 online, €10 on site
- Booking: recommended (timed tickets); mandatory on the 1st Sunday of the month, the free day
- Closing: every Monday, 1 May and 25 December
- Time needed: not published by the museum; we suggest 2 to 3 hours (see route)
- Information checked on 15 October 2026 on musee-orsay.fr (official website). Prices and hours may change: check before you go.
Musée d’Orsay tickets: official or resellers?
The official ticket office is billetterie.musee-orsay.fr. Like the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay warns against fraud: beware of « skip-the-line » offers, mirror sites and unauthorized street sellers, which risk a refusal of entry. The ticket gives access to the permanent collections and the temporary exhibitions (subject to capacity), for a single entry: any exit is final.
| Ticket (recorded on 15 October 2026) | Online | At the museum |
|---|---|---|
| Full rate | €16 | €14 |
| Reduced rate | Sold on site | €11 |
| Late opening (Thursday from 6 pm) | €12 | €10 |
| « Enfant & Cie » family ticket (up to 2 EU adults with an under-18) | €13 | €11 |
| Under 18; EEA residents under 26 | Free | Free |
Official free admissions: all visitors on the 1st Sunday of the month (time slot mandatory), visitors with disabilities and one companion, under-18s, 18–25-year-olds who are EU or EEA nationals (or long-term EU residents; US and UK visitors do not qualify), holders of the French Pass Éducation, job seekers. A particularity to know: the ticket is slightly cheaper at the ticket desk than online, but the timed online ticket gets you in through the dedicated entrance 1. To continue with sculpture, the Musée Rodin and its garden is also in the 7th arrondissement.
Opening hours and closing days
| Day | Hours | Last admission |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Closed | — |
| Tuesday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 5 pm |
| Wednesday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 5 pm |
| Thursday | 9:30 am – 9:45 pm | 9 pm |
| Friday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 5 pm |
| Saturday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 5 pm |
| Sunday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 5 pm |
The museum is renovating its reception areas from 10 March 2026 to summer 2028; it remains open and access has changed: entrance 1 (Quai) with a timed ticket, entrance 2 (Parvis) for priority visitors, people with reduced mobility and visitors without a ticket (checked on 18 October 2026 on musee-orsay.fr).
Best time to visit Orsay
The museum does not publish attendance figures by day or month; we do not invent any. What the official rules say: the Thursday late opening is the cheapest (€12 online) and the longest; the 1st Sunday of the month is free but requires a booked slot, so expect slots to go quickly. To combine with the Louvre, Thursday works well: Louvre in the morning (9 am – 6 pm), Orsay in the afternoon and evening.
| Day | Orsay | Louvre | Suggested combination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Closed | Open | Louvre only |
| Tuesday | Open | Closed | Orsay only |
| Wednesday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 9 am – 9 pm | Orsay in the morning, Louvre at the late opening |
| Thursday | 9:30 am – 9:45 pm | 9 am – 6 pm | Louvre in the morning, Orsay at the late opening |
| Friday | 9:30 am – 6 pm | 9 am – 9 pm | Orsay in the morning, Louvre at the late opening |
What to see and how long to allow
The museum gives no official visit duration. For a first visit, allow 2 to 3 hours:
- The nave (ground floor): 19th-century sculptures beneath the glass roof of the former station;
- The Impressionism gallery (5th floor): Monet, Renoir, Degas, Manet… with the view over the Seine through the clock;
- Post-Impressionism: Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne, Seurat;
- A break at the Café Campana, at the exit of the Impressionism gallery;
- The temporary exhibitions included in the ticket, depending on available places.
A bit of history to get your bearings: the building is the former Orsay railway station, built for the 1900 World’s Fair, converted into a museum and opened to the public in 1986. The collections mostly cover the period 1848–1914: painting, sculpture, decorative arts, photography. The great nave corresponds to the former platform hall, which explains why the visit is organized in side terraces on either side.
Planning a Thursday late opening: buy the late-opening ticket (valid for visits from 6 pm), enter before 9 pm, the last admission, and start with the 5th floor, where the Impressionists are, before the rooms begin to clear at 9:15 pm. If you also want the temporary exhibitions, last admission to them is set at the same time. Monet’s Water Lilies, meanwhile, can be seen at the Musée de l’Orangerie, on the other side of the Seine.
Audio guides (about 300 artwork commentaries) and guided tours « Masterpieces of the Musée d’Orsay » are offered; the adult guided tour costs €26 including admission (official prices).
Getting to the Musée d’Orsay
- Address: esplanade Valéry-Giscard-d’Estaing, 75007 Paris;
- Metro 12: Solférino; RER C: Musée d’Orsay;
- Bus: 63, 68, 69, 73, 83, 84, 87, 94; Vélib’ bike-share station no. 7007;
- Entrances: entrance 1 (quay) for timed tickets and the Paris Museum Pass with a time-slot voucher; entrance 2 (forecourt) for priority visitors, non-timed tickets and visitors without a ticket.
Accessibility
The museum has elevators, a cloakroom, equipment loans and parking spaces reserved for people with disabilities. Visitors with disabilities holding a French invalidity or « priority » card (with a companion) and pregnant women are among the priority visitors, via entrance 2. The full visitor rules can be downloaded from the official website.
Services, cafés and restaurant in the museum
The museum has a cloakroom, equipment loans, elevators, restrooms, a baby area and water fountains. Free Wi-Fi (network « Musee_Orsay_Public ») is available. The visitor map can be downloaded from musee-orsay.fr in French, English and Spanish, as well as Japanese, Chinese and Korean.
- The restaurant: inside the museum, in a period setting;
- The Café Campana: on the 5th floor, at the exit of the Impressionism gallery;
- La Terrasse: at the exit of the Impressionism gallery, open in the summer season, with a view over Paris;
- The Café de la Gare: under the nave, in the heart of the museum.
Works and booking: the museum reports major renovation works and invites visitors to check access conditions before the visit. The museum’s website does not make booking mandatory for individual visitors: it is « strongly recommended », and visitors without a ticket enter through entrance 2 (Parvis). A time slot is mandatory for Paris Museum Pass holders and for groups (checked on 18 October 2026 on musee-orsay.fr, works planned until summer 2028).
Common mistakes to avoid
- Coming on a Monday: the museum is closed;
- Showing up on the 1st Sunday without a slot: booking is mandatory that day;
- Arriving after 5 pm (except Thursday): that is the last admission time;
- Choosing the wrong entrance: timed tickets at entrance 1, no ticket at entrance 2;
- Stepping out mid-visit: any exit is final.
What to see nearby
The Louvre is just opposite, on the Right Bank, via the Passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor and the Tuileries garden. The Eiffel Tower is two RER C stops away (Champ de Mars – Tour Eiffel), and the Palace of Versailles is at the Versailles Château Rive Gauche terminus. Our Paris guide gives the month-by-month weather.
Frequently asked questions
How much is admission to the Musée d’Orsay?
On 15 October 2026, €16 online and €14 at the museum at the full rate; €12 online for the Thursday late opening from 6 pm, according to musee-orsay.fr.
Which day is the Musée d’Orsay closed?
Monday, as well as 1 May and 25 December.
Is the Musée d’Orsay free on the first Sunday of the month?
Yes, for everyone, but booking a visit time slot is mandatory that day.
How late is the Musée d’Orsay open on Thursdays?
Until 9:45 pm, with last admission at 9 pm.
Can you visit the Louvre and Orsay on the same day?
Yes, ideally on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday thanks to the late openings: the Louvre closes on Tuesday, Orsay on Monday.
Where can you eat at the Musée d’Orsay?
The museum has a restaurant, the Café Campana on the 5th floor (exit of the Impressionism gallery), the Café de la Gare under the nave and, in summer, La Terrasse, according to musee-orsay.fr.
Our sources
- musee-orsay.fr: Visit pages (hours, access, entrances) and Prices (prices, free admissions, fraud alert) — consulted on 15 October 2026
- musee-orsay.fr: « Works at the Musée d’Orsay » page (access, booking), consulted on 18 October 2026
- louvre.fr: Hours & prices — consulted on 15 October 2026 (cross-table)
- musee-orsay.fr, « Visit » page (services, dining, visitor map, entrances, works) — consulted on 16 October 2026; ticket.parisjetaime.com (Paris Tourist Office), Musée d’Orsay page — consulted on 16 October 2026
- Our methodology
Updated November 2026.