Moderately interesting museum for the average person (ie me) but my husband the engineer really…read moreseemed to enjoy looking at all the gadgets, old machines, etc. Not crowded.

We have been to Paris a few times, so we try to visit museums off the beaten path. This time we…read morevisited the "arts and crafts" museum, which is actually a science and technology museum. It is amazing! The history of things we take for granted is wild and the displays are so engaging. We spent about two hours and it was an amazing morning.

Features contemporary art and permanent collection is free to the public. There are also paid…read moreexhibits but you'll just appreciate what they have downstairs. Their outside space has skateboarders and overlooks the Seine. Nice bookstore too.

"It was okay" is how I would reply, if asked about my visit (09/27/2023) to the Musee d' Art…read moreModerne while in Paris for the 1st time. I have to say, having a lukewarm experience was disappointing & so unexpected. I must have hyped up the Musee d' Art Moderne in my head before visiting because I was so sure that because it was a PARIS museum that it was going to "wow" me from beginning to end because surely, all Paris museums were supposed to have that wow factor. On a positive note, at least I can now share a few helpful tidbits w/ others so hopefully, you'll have a wow experience! :) Helpful tidbits: - - - research exhibits beforehand: During my visit the majority of the exhibits on display didn't "wow" me so I would recommend doing a little research beforehand to see if the exhibits being shown when you go are something that would peak your interest (I didn't do this & wish I would have) - - - budget friendly thing to do! It is free to visit this Paris museum so a great location to use the restroom and/or take a break from all your Paris sightseeing - - - security screening & free coat/bag check Hope, this info helps! Rebecca visiting from Austin, Texas (United States)

This is actually one of B's favorite museum other than the Louvre. It is crazy here. I would call…read morethis place a dumping ground for bones. Not just dino bones. There are whales and other animals. It is interesting what you get to see. The animals' remains/skeletons are fascinating here. I feel like at the beginning of time, It was a very well laid out museum but they got more and more items for display that they have no place to put it. They end up putting a lot of things in the center of the museum leaving only two narrow isle for walking. The middle section is blocked off and can be seen only far away. This museum has two floors. The second floor is just as interesting as the first. The second floor is less of a dumping ground. Even the things they have in the cabinet or behind the glass are fascinating. There is so much things to see inside this museum that you do need minimum 2 hours. I feel like there is so much to see that I don't know what am I suppose to look at first. The most interesting item on display here is the whale skeleton. It is so big that there is no way you will miss it.

The Yelp pages on this group of museums is conflated and confusing. The Jardin des Plantes is the…read morelarge park expanse, which is free to wander through, and there are several separate admission museums of natural history. This review is for the Grande Galerie d'Evolution. It would be expensive and take more than a day to properly see all of the museums of natural history--so they ought to have their own Yelp entries. The building has four stories of taxidermy animals (this doesn't correspond to reviews that include photos of skeletons--a separate building that is not air conditioned). The taxidermy is in itself a historical collection of old specimens back when killing and stuffing animals was the only way to show animals from far-off lands to European people. It is creepy yet fascinating, and kids will be terrified and mesmerized. Honestly, it is better than the zoo found in the Jardin des Plantes since the living situation of those animals is lacking in modern updates for humanely keeping captive animals. Here, the animals have all been long dead, and in some cases extinct or nearly so. The building is gorgeous. The sky light goes from dawn to evening to full-on thunder and lightning to rainbow. It has saved us on a rainy day, and it has saved us on a day with 90+ degree heat. Plan about 2+ hours and don't leave without seeing the simulated rainstorm.

We went to the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace, or Air and Space Museum, at the recommendation of a…read morefriend who works for Delta Airlines and spends a lot of her time among planes. We have two young boys and this seemed like a perfect family outing when we were in Paris earlier this month. Our experience was slightly tainted by an uncharacteristic tantrum from our six-year-old, but the museum was otherwise wonderful. It was maybe a mistake to schedule this visit for our first morning in Paris, when everyone was tired and out of sorts. The museum, located on the grounds of an airport long closed to commercial aviation, is a bit of a hike from Paris. We got a much later start than intended, took the train out to Porte de la Chapelle and suffered a hot half-hour wait for the first bus that would take us to the museum. Enough to make even a reasonable adult feel irritable. The museum was pretty amazing, though, well worth visiting, especially with kids who love airplanes. It wasn't busy at all on a Thursday in July. No wait and no advance reservation required. We spent over two hours exploring and would've stayed longer if we didn't have to get back to Paris. There were definitely a couple exhibit halls we rushed through for time, and others we missed altogether. The Concorde hall, with two retired Concorde jets, was the highlight for us adults, but I think the boys loved everything. Our three-year-old is obsessed with "airplanes with propellers" and both kids enjoyed all the old airplanes and the hall full of helicopters. The tarmac was awesome and featured several planes in their full glory. We got to go inside a Boeing 747, a plane we've read about several times in one of the boys' favorite picture books. The space stuff was cool, too, and we would've spent more time looking at it if we hadn't had to get going. In retrospect, we should have skipped the gift shop, where our older kid had his meltdown because I wanted to buy him the die-cast Concorde jet instead of the generic made-in-China airplane I recognized from a toy store back home. It was a nice shop, though, with a lot of attractive plane models and other memorabilia that must appeal to adult enthusiasts. If you're child-free with limited time in Paris, you're probably not making it out to the Air and Space Museum. It's an excellent outing, though, for anyone who wants to walk inside a 747 and two Concorde jets.

Surprised this doesn't get more tourists! We went on weekday and it was quiet and seemed to be more…read morelocal visitors. Though to be fair, it's out of the way so hard to get to and we had to get an Uber which had little trouble making way to entrance. However, lots of interesting displays, history and planes that you can actually explore. Great place for kids to run around and push buttons, which if on holiday and you've done loads of art museums, and kids are itching for some interactive exhibits, this is the place.

I've been to some spectacular museums in France but there is truly something magical about Musee…read moredes Arts Forains. My Mom and I were supposed to go for my birthday on our last visit and had a long lunch that caused us to skip our tickets that day. I'm thankful I had no idea then what I was missing. Bestie and I returned and needed to book the French tour since English tours are limited. This has got to be one of the most special experiences. I've been a lover of carousels for as long as I can remember and this musee might as well be called La rêve because every moment of it truly felt like one. I love moments filled with synchronicities, something makes life fill in alignment when this occurs over and over and our little spring break trip and visit here held so many special moments to me. Wrapping the most incredible tour pedaling a bike on the velocipede carousel manufactured in 1897 absolutely took the cake! All of my life's favorites things were in the most beautiful collision here. I can't wait to visit again! Perfect date spot, complete with dancing.

Unbelievably cool museum. I checked back to their website multiple times to get a reservation and…read moreit was worth the trouble. My teen daughter said the last ride was the best ride she has ever been on. I won't say more: just go.

Went to the David Lynch exhibition years ago, had to wait more than an hour in the row to the…read moreentrance. But it was worth waiting, I got overwhelmed by Mr. Lynch's diverse art collection from painting to short films very carefully arranged on the whole exhibition area. There was one guy walking in a really scary looking zombie costume during the exhibition, too.

I used to think that the Museum of Modern Art in Paris right across the Palais de Tokyo was my…read morefavorite Museum but I don't think it's the case anymore... The Fondation Cartier is a little remote from the rest of Paris but it's such a quiet and perfect building to display art...it's far from old boring traditional way of shows , the curators always do a fabulous job... Anyone can go and appreciate art and learn about artists, kids , adults.. The gift shop could have a bit more stuff but it's not the end of the world... Funny enough, I love the Brooklyn museum in NY and they organize similar exhibitions...

My husband dragged me here today and I liked it. If you…read moreare traveling to Paris with a young boy 5-25, you should take them to this musee. It was fun. When you go in, there are a few things to see but as part of your entry fee, you get to watch a 15 minute magic show. It was REALLY good. The magician told me that he is one of three French magicians that have performed at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles. (that is BIG) He was amazing. Yes...it has weird hours. Yes...there isn't a lot to see. Yes...it's worth it. My hot tip would be to arrive right when they open on a Sunday at 2PM. Walk around for a bit and then watch the show. You can plan on spending one hour or so here.

Rather charming little museum; price is indeed a bit high. Probably best for kids or for people…read morepassionate about magic, especially if one is interested in automatons. There are not a lot of automaton museums; this is certainly not as good as the one in Lausanne, though it's impressive to see three rooms of them, even if not all of them work and they are poorly labeled, if at all. Several vitrines include historical pieces, some very simple (heads turn; simple 2D metal arms move). There are a couple that are small wood pieces or even a few made of what is obviously paper with instructions printed on it. A small explanatory sign discusses fairground games. I got the impression perhaps the owners got some automatons thrown in while they were assembling the collection for their true passion, magic, and decided to go with it. The magic portion of the museum is much better labeled and is a combination of more fairgrounds stuff (funhouse mirrors; animal mouths one inserts one's hand into); a shop (where you can buy and learn how to perform tricks); and lots of exhibits of Victorian magic show kits. My favorite exhibits included a window of seance trickery pieces (hooks you could hide in your sleeve to rap on the table, etc.); 3D views of multiple layers of cut paper; and a small display of Georges Melies artifacts (a cane; a small devil head and false head used in his ingenious special effect films). There was quite a lot of information on Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin, about whom I knew nothing; Robert-Houdin is considered the father of modern magic and helped develop it from those fairground displays to something you could perform for the king (which he did). Houdini named himself after him, and many of Melies' early films are at the Theatre Robert-Houdin. Several displays (but not all) in both English and French; magic show is done live in French (and English if the audience needs it). Museum was obviously put together by someone who really loves magic.

This was a museum that was not on my radar at all, but when I happened to ask the front desk…read moreperson, they told us it was free so we had to go...it was great! This museum showcases French military decorated people. Considering it's such a specific theme, there was actually a ton to look at. It's interactive as well so one can listen to special audio segments throughout the museum, which was also free. Considering this is usually not a spot people think of going to, I'd definitely recommend it. It's directly across from Musee d'Orsay so it's an easy place to get to if you are already in the area.

Excellent free museum in Paris. I had low expectations from this location but my husband is…read moreinterested in military history. I was shocked at the amazing collection of "men's jewelry" from pre-1900. The medals are beautiful pieces of art. I particular enjoyed the Napoleon collection that included a beautiful embroidered robe, pearl handled guns and swords, diamond and precious stone medals, leopard skin helmet and body armor, pearl telescope, and beautiful gold plated desk writing set. The museum also featured interesting paintings and dish ware. I found it to be an unexpected education of exquisite jewelry and embroidery. Of significance, there was a beautiful set of medals from a fallen US Marine who served in Vietnam. And they were interesting videos and presentations about WWI and WWII. So it seemed like it had something for everyone.