My husband and I will be in Paris on the 5th, 6th, and 7th of November. We have plans (and tickets) to visit the Musée d’Orsay, the Opera Garnier, the Grande Palais, and Notre Dame Cathedral. If some, or all of these places are closed due to the demonstrations, what are some alternate places and activities that we might consider? We love art, beautiful buildings, bookstores, etc., and can navigate the metro.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Jane
Demonstrations in Paris rarely cause full-day site closures. When closures or disruptions occur, they are typically localized around major protest routes (like Place de la République, Bastille, Nation, or the Champs-Élysées/Opéra axis) or involve temporary Metro station bypasses.
But if you'd like some alternative places, voilà...
Musée Marmottan Monet (16th Arrondissement): Set in a former hunting lodge near the Bois de Boulogne, housing the world's largest collection of Claude Monet's works (including Impression, Sunrise).
Access: Metro Line 9 (La Muette).
Petit Palais (8th Arrondissement): Directly across the street from the Grand Palais. If the Grand Palais is closed or entry is delayed, step into the Petit Palais fine arts museum. The building features a stunning glass-domed garden cafe, and admission to the permanent collection is completely free.
Musée Jacquemart-André (8th Arrondissement): A 19th-century private mansion showcasing an exceptional collection of Italian Renaissance and French masters, preserved as a lived-in aristocratic residence.
Musée de l’Orangerie (1st Arrondissement): Located at the edge of the Tuileries Garden, famous for Monet's custom-built Water Lilies (Nymphéas) oval rooms.
All the places you mention are very far from the potential routes of the upcoming demonstrations.
The only impact November 5th might have is a strike at a location you wish to visit, which immediately rules out Notre-Dame anyway.
Except both the Orsay and the Grand Palais pre-emptively closed just this past Saturday, October 24th. So while such an occurrence might be “rare” and “away from protest routes,” there is also an extremely recent example (the day before yesterday!) of exactly this happening (also when far from the protest route), plus November 5 is a planned general strike day, so OP is posing a totally logical question.
I don’t know for sure what the answer is, but it’s unnecessary to dismiss their question out of hand as they try to anticipate what the effect of the very real — and quite different — current situation might be on their visit.
Alexander’s suggestion of the Marmottan is excellent.
I hesitate to recommend anything that is a train trip from Paris like Fontainebleau until we know more abouti participation rates from workers in local transportation and rail.
This is definitely something to keep an eye on over the next 10 days or so.
I agree with Kim that it's too soon to be able to assume this will be like previous years. Much was closed on the 24th after the unprecedented events of the 17th and the museum robberies that have taken place over the last year.
Next week is when we should take a look at this question again. Will there be pre-emptive closures or will only a section of the City be affected? For the moment we can't predict but as soon as people know, they'll post. Usually, Kim is up-to-date on info.
Thank you all for the thoughtful replies to my question. I will wait to see how things go and have Alexander’s helpful suggestions in case I need them.
Jane
I heard things will calm down because the rioters refuse to protest more than 32 hours a week.
