Is the Paris Museum Pass Worth it?: Review & Tips

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If you’re heading to Paris and plan to visit the major attractions, consider getting the Paris Museum Pass, which lets you visit up to 60 attractions at a discounted cost, to help save money.

As tempting as it can be to try to visit all the attractions in Paris, the cost and time to do so adds up.

To find out if the Paris Museum Pass is worth it for you, keep reading for my comprehensive review and tips.

An introduction to the Paris Museum Pass

The Paris Museum Pass provides entry to museums and attractions in and around the city.

It is available for 2, 4, or 6 consecutive days of entry.

For some Paris attractions, you can also skip the line or get free priority access or entry, which is sometimes shorter than the regular line. 

Not all attractions include the skip-the-line perk, such as the Palace of Versailles, where you’ll be stuck in line forever unless you get there before it opens. 

Not that I’m still salty about waiting in that line or anything.

What attractions does the Paris Museum Pass include?

The pass includes entrance to more than 60 museums and monuments in Paris and the surrounding area.

Entrance to the following attractions is included:

1. Arc de Triomphe: Open every day, with the exception of holidays.
2. The Army Museum (includes Tomb of Napoleon) / Musée de l’Armée: Open every day, with the exception of holidays.
3. Centre Pompidou National Museum of Modern Art / Centre Pompidou – Musée National d’Art Moderne: Closed on Tuesdays and holidays.
4. Louvre Museum / Musée du Louvre: Closed on Tuesdays and holidays.
5. Musée de l’Orangerie: Closed on Tuesdays and holidays.
6. Musée d’Orsay: Closed on Mondays and holidays.
7. Palace of Fontainebleau / Château de Fontainebleau: Closed on Tuesdays and holidays.
8. Palace of Versailles and Trianon / Château de Versailles et Trianon: Closed on Mondays and holidays. Gardens open every day, with the exception of holidays.
9. Picasso Museum / Musée Picasso: Closed on Mondays and holidays.
10. Rodin Museum / Musée Rodin: Closed on Mondays and holidays.
11. Sainte-Chapelle: Open every day, with the exception of holidays.
12. Tours of Notre Dame Cathedral / Tours de Cathédrale Notre-Dame: Closed due to severe damage from a fire.

Visit the Paris Convention & Visitors’ Bureau website to see a full list of attractions that are included.

What attractions does the Paris Museum Pass NOT include?

Unfortunately, the Paris Museum Pass does not include entry to the Eiffel Tower or Catacombs.

In addition, it does not offer a discount or skip-the-line access to either of these attractions. You’ll need to purchase tickets for these 2 separately.

How to use the Paris Museum Pass

The pass activates the first time it is used at an attraction. If you have a physical pass, the date will be written on it. If you have an e-ticket, the first time your ticket is scanned, the date information is essentially stored.

So if you don’t have an itinerary in mind before you buy it, you can wait until the day you want to start using it to activate it.

For example, let’s say you’re visiting from April 4-11. You have a 2 day pass and start using it on April 6. It would then be valid for use between April 6-8.

TIP: Yes, the pass is checked for your name and start date, so forget about trying to share amongst friends or trying to use it after expires.

How much does the Paris Museum Pass cost?

All prices above are valid as of January 2022 and do not include taxes or other fees, such as shipping and delivery.

When I visited in 2016, the 4 day pass was €62. Between all of the attractions I visited, separate entry fees totaled €75, so using it resulted in saving €13.

While prices of the pass have increased since the last time I visited, entry fees have increased as well, so the savings is still there!

While that’s not a huge amount of money, it’s enough for a tasty treat or an inexpensive meal! 

NOTE: In the end, I got the pass for free with points from my Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

Where to buy the Paris Museum Pass

The Paris Museum Pass is available for purchase online, as well as at airports, tourism offices, and a variety of popular tourist spots and stores in Paris. 

Buy online

If you buy the pass online, you will receive an e-ticket in the format of a PDF file. You can then print it out OR store it on your phone. The e-ticket has a barcode that can be scanned at each attraction.

You can purchase it on Viator, one of my favorite tour booking sites:

1. 2-Day Pass
2. 4-Day Pass
3. 6-Day Pass

This option was so much better than running around the city to pick it up or worrying about it getting lost in the mail.

When I purchased the pass, I chose to have it delivered to my hotel, as e-tickets weren’t available at the time. It was magically waiting for me at the concierge desk when I checked in. So easy!

Buy in person

If you’d prefer a physical pass, there are a number of locations where you can purchase the pass in person.

First up, you can pick up a pass after arriving at Charles de Gaulle or Orly airports. Here’s where to get them:

Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport

NOTE: All options at CDG are closed on Sundays.

1. Terminal 2A/2C, from 7:30 AM to 2:30 PM
2. Terminal 2B/2D Arrivals Level in the Luggage Room, from 7:15 AM to 8:45 PM
3. Terminal 2E Arrivals Level, Gate 7, from 7:15 AM to 8:45 PM
4. Terminal 2F Arrivals Level, Gate 11, from 7:15 AM to 8:45 PM

Orly Airport

NOTE: All options at Orly are closed on Sundays.

1. Terminal 1, Arrivals Level, Gate A, from 7:15 AM to 8:30 PM
2. Terminal 3, Arrivals Level, opposite the baggage claim, from 7:15 AM to 8:30 PM

Gare du Nord railway station

Lastly, you can purchase the PMP at the Gare du Nord railway station near lanes 7-9, international arrivals at the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau from 9 AM to 5 PM. This option is also closed on Sundays and public holidays.

The Gare Montparnasse and Gare Saint-Lazare stations have also sold the PMP in the pass, but these options were no long available when this post was last updated.

Buy at tourist spots and shops

Other options for purchasing once you get to France include select ticket kiosks and souvenir shops across the city, as well as some of the attractions that the pass includes entrance to. 

A few of the attractions that sell the Paris Museum Pass include:

1. Arc de Triomphe
2. Disneyland Paris
3. Musée D’Orsay
4. Musée du Louvre
5. Palace of Versailles

What is the difference between the Paris Pass and the Paris Museum Pass?

These 2 passes are very similar, but there are a few notable differences.

The Paris Pass includes access to a variety of attractions, such as a hop-on/hop-off bus tour and a cruise on the Seine river, in addition to dozens of museums. 

It also includes a Paris Visite Travelcard for use on the Metro public transportation system. A public transport card does not come with the Paris Museum Pass.

However, you can get around the city easily and affordably using the tips in my guide about the Paris Metro.

Basically, the Paris Pass is an amped-up version of the Paris Museum Pass.

But, sometimes more isn’t always better. 

For some, the Paris Pass might include more than what’s needed or possible to do in a single trip, making it a waste of money.

Tips for using the Paris Museum Pass

So you’ve decided to get the Paris Museum Pass. Here are some important tips!

Some included attractions have free entry days

Many museums in the city offer free entry on the 1st Sunday of each month, as well as 1-2 evenings per month.

In addition to the monthly free admission days, entry to museums in Paris is free for the following people:

1. People under the age of 18 years
2. European Union residents under the age of 26 years
3. Disabled people and a companion

So if you fall into any of these categories or are visiting during free entry, be sure to factor that into your cost to ensure you’ll still be saving money if you purchase the pass.

Blackout dates & capacity

Technically, there aren’t any direct blackout dates. However, the attractions have the right to deny entry, even if you have a tourist card or city pass that permits entry.

This typically only happens if the attraction reaches capacity or if there is a special event that is closed to the public or requires a separate entry fee. 

Some attractions are not open everyday, too.

For example, state-owned museums across France are not open on Tuesdays. In Paris, city-owned museums are not open on Mondays.

Overall, if you’re planning to visit an attraction on specific date and/or time, call ahead of time or visit their website to ensure they are open.

Most attractions require reservations

When I got my pass, reservations were not required anywhere. However, this has since changed.

These days most attractions require visitors to reserve an entry time slot. This often applies to all visitors, not just those with the Paris Museum Pass.

This trend started in 2019 when the Louvre starting requiring PMP holders to reserve an entrance time slot and later expanding that policy to all visitors.

After 2020, more attractions hopped on board this trend to help with crowd management. Some require reservations, while others have it as an option.

A few of the popular attractions that require a reservation are:

1. Château de Versailles
2. Musée du Louvre
3. Musée de l’Orangerie
4. Sainte-Chapelle

For a full list, please check the PMP reservations list to see which attractions require a reservation to enter.

Is the Paris Museum Pass worth it?

Yes, the Paris Museum Pass is worth it for most visitors. 

Not only will it help you save money, but it can also save you time via skip-the-line or VIP access to attractions.

Once you know you’ll be visiting Paris, make a list of all the places you’d like to go and compare it to the pass to see if it will save you money.

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About the author

Meg Frost is a Boston-based travel blogger that helps people embrace technology to make vacation planning and traveling wicked easy, affordable, and fun.

She holds an M.A. in Journalism from Northeastern University and B.S. in Communication & American Studies from University of Miami.

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This post was originally published February 11, 2017. It was last updated January 16, 2023.