"The Luncheon on the Grass" by Édouard Manet, Photo © Musée d'Orsay / Camille Gharbi
The Musée d’Orsay is one of the most visited museums in the world. It hosts a huge collection of French art dating from 1848 to 1914, mostly paintings, sculptures, furniture and photography. It houses the largest collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist masterpieces in the world, by painters including Claude Monet, Édouard Manet, Degas, Cézanne, Renoir, Gaugin, Van Gogh and Seurat.
To see the most famous works of the Musée d’Orsay it takes about 3 hours. If you want to visit the whole museum, you need a whole day.
If possible avoid Tuesday and Sunday, the most crowded days. If you really have to go one of these days, we recommend that you go there at lunchtime, around noon.
How to best experience Musée d’Orsay?
Discover tickets, tours, and activities for Musée d’Orsay through these providers:
What is the Musée d’Orsay?
Originally it was a railway station, the Gare d’Orsay. It was built in an eclectic style at the end of the nineteenth century.
When was the Musée d’Orsay built?
The buiding was designed by the architects Lucien Magne, Émile Bénard and Victor Laloux starting in 1898 and the works were finished just to years later for the station to be ready for the 1900 Universal Exposition. In 1961 it was decided to demolish it but then it was classified as a national monument. In 1977 it was decided to convert the railway station into a museum, which would open years later, in 1986. Visitors can still appreciate the charming railway station building as it was when it was opened in 1900.
Who built the Musée d’Orsay?
The transformation of the station into a museum was the work of a team of three young architects (Pierre Colboc, Renaud Bardon and Jean-Paul Philippon) of the ACT Architecture. The construction work was carried out by Bouygues. In 1981, the Italian architect Gae Aulenti was chosen to design the interior including the internal arrangement, decoration, furniture and fittings of the museum.
General informations
Useful information for your visit to the Musée d’Orsay.
Location
The museum is located opposite the Louvre Museum, on the left bank of the Seine river. The address is: 1 rue de la Légion d’Honneur.
Opening hours
To visit the Musée d’Orsay the times are as follows:
- Tuesday – Sunday: 9:30 am – 6 pm (Thursdays until 9:45 pm)
Closed: Monday, May 1st and December 25th.
How to get to the Musée d’Orsay
To reach the Musée d’Orsay:
Metro: Solferino, line 12.
Buses: 24, 63, 68, 69, 73, 83, 84 and 94.
RER: Musée d´Orsay, line C.
Attractions nearby
- Jardin des Tuileries (389 m)
- Musée de l’Orangerie (506 m)
- Musée des Arts Décoratifs (601 m)
- Place de la Concorde (708 m)
- Louvre Museum (726 m)