Musée d'Orsay Daily Entry Ticket
What an open-entry ticket buys, and what it does not
Arrive whenever you like
The ticket is valid across opening hours, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., rather than locking you into a 30-minute slot booked weeks ahead.
Skip the ticket desk
You go in through a dedicated entrance, so the queue you see on the Esplanade is not the one you join.
Get the temporary exhibition too
Access covers the permanent collection and the current show — which the guided tours do not.
Take as long as you want
No group, no guide and no end time; most visitors find two to four hours covers the museum comfortably.
Pay the lowest fare of the three
It is an admission ticket rather than a tour, and the difference is money you can spend on time instead.
Cancel free until the day before
Full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before your selected date.
The simplest way through the door, and the most affordable way in. It is an admission ticket rather than a tour: no guide, no group, no fixed meeting point. What it buys is entry through a dedicated entrance and the freedom to arrive when it suits you.
The open-entry element is the part travellers single out. Rather than committing to a 30-minute slot booked weeks ahead, the ticket is valid across opening hours, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. One reviewer with a late flight out of Paris described taking breakfast first and still getting a full visit; another arrived as the doors opened, found the crowds light, and went straight up to the Impressionist floor.
Access covers both the permanent collection and the temporary exhibition, which is worth noting — one of the guided tours explicitly excludes temporary exhibitions.
This is the right choice if you already know what you want to see, or if you would rather spend the difference on time than on commentary. If you want the collection explained, the guided options are the better buy.
A route that works if you have no plan
There is no set itinerary — that is the point of the product. A workable plan looks like this:
- Arrive. Use the dedicated entrance shown on your ticket and allow about fifteen minutes for security screening, which applies to every visitor.
- Go up first. Take the lift to the upper level and start with the Impressionists before the floor fills.
- Work down. The middle level for Art Nouveau, then the sculpture nave on the way out.
Most visitors find two to four hours covers the museum comfortably.
Who the ticket suits, and who should book something else
Book this if
- You already know what you want to see
- Your day is unpredictable and a fixed start time would not survive it
- A temporary exhibition is part of why you are coming
- You would rather read the labels yourself than listen to a guide
- You are coming back a second time and just need to get in
Book something else if
- You want the collection explained rather than shown
- Standing in front of a Manet with no context sounds like a wasted ticket
- You would like someone to pick the thirty works that matter
The guided skip-the-line tour is the better fit.
What the fare covers
Included
- Museum admission
- Entry through a dedicated entrance
- Access to the permanent collection
- Access to the temporary exhibition
- Open entry across opening hours, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Not included
- Guide
- Audio guide (available to buy at the museum)
- Transport
- Food
Which entrance, and when to turn up
The entrance you want faces the Esplanade Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, not the quay along the Seine — that is the mistake most people make on the way in. The museum is in the 7th arrondissement, opposite the Tuileries; Solférino on metro line 12 and Musée d'Orsay on the RER C both leave you a few minutes' walk away.
Because the ticket is open, the useful question is not where but when. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. and the first hour is the calmest of the day; Thursday runs to 9:45 p.m. and the last two hours are calmer still. Whichever you pick, allow about fifteen minutes for screening. Our accessibility guide covers step-free routes and free loan equipment.
Know before you go
- Open entry is not instant entry. Security screening applies to every visitor; allow about fifteen minutes whenever you arrive.
- No audio guide is included. One can be bought at the museum, or read the highlights before you go and save the fee.
- Go up first, then work down. The Impressionist floor fills from late morning; starting at the top is the single best move you can make.
- Entry is free for some visitors anyway. Under-18s, EU residents under 26 and a disabled visitor with one companion — see visiting.
- Thursday evening is the quiet slot. The museum runs to 9:45 p.m. and the last two hours are the emptiest the Impressionist rooms get.
- Sketching is fine, tripods are not. Pencil and paper are welcome; stands, selfie sticks and flash are not.
What travellers said about the ticket
Feedback from travellers who booked this tour, in their own words.
Walked into the Musée d'Orsay with no queue and no questions asked. The whole thing was about as stress-free as entry to a major museum gets.
Jane H. · August 2026 · solo traveller
The open entry time on this Musée d'Orsay ticket was what made it work. With a late flight out of Paris we could take breakfast first and still get a full visit in at our own pace. Allow two to three hours.
Yelena B. · August 2026 · couple
Tickets arrived quickly and there was no fixed entry time to work around. We got there as the museum opened, found the crowds still light, and went straight up to the fifth floor for the art.
Peter F. · August 2026 · couple
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