Paris in March

In 4 hours you can see a lot of the Louvre. Definitely more than the 3 things you have in mind, which you could see in 1.5-2 hours, starting with Mona Lisa to avoid waiting there. Not that I recommend seeing only these 3!
Speaking of which, you should definitely aim for a slot as close to opening time as possible.

There is no tour, external or internal, that will get you through security faster at the Louvre. Book an early morning entry and plan on arriving earlier than your ticketed time to queue up for the security screening. This also applies to Sainte-Chapelle and several other venues.

With a plan you can easily visit the Louvre on your own or with the audio guide. However, the Louvre does offer several guided tours that may make your time more efficient. There is much more to the Louvre than the underwhelming Mona.

Also, if Notre Dame is on your schedule, an early morning visit will have lesser crowds than a 10 am visit.

I would go for opening time and head for the Mona Lisa first thing. You will go past the Winged Victory of Samothrace on the way there if you follow the signs to "La Joconde". You can come back to the Winged Victory to look at it closer as you will circle back around after you leave the room where Mona is located and come back down the stairwell for the Winged Victory.

The only way you get a quicker entry is if you have an Amis du Louvre pass and you go in a separate entrance with fewer people lined up for the security screening. The Security screening is what takes the time at the main entrances. DO be ready as you approach the Xray machine with you coat off, your purse/day packs zipped, etc.

If you are planning on 4 hours I do recommend you take a break for a sit-down and a coffee. IF you time it right, you can go have coffee and a croissant at the Cafe Mollien after you visit the Mona Lisa. Mona is in Room 711 (Level 1 Denon wing) and the Cafe is in the Mollien Stairwell between rooms 700 (French Paintings) and 715 (British and American Paintings). They open at 945.

https://api-www.louvre.fr/sites/default/files/2025-08/2025-09-01_Plan_Louvre_EN.pdf.pdf

https://www.louvre.fr/en/visit/restaurants-cafes

When you get to the main entrance hall (either down the escalators from the pyramid entrance or down the hall if you come in the Carrousel Entrance, look up and see the short escalators to each wing. Choose the Denon Wing and head there immediately. UP the escalator, and you will show your tickets for scanning as you enter this wing so have them ready on your phones or out if you are using paper. Follow the signs, up the circular stairs, down the corridor to the Winged Victory. Then to the right up the stairs, by the gorgeous Botticelli frescos (don't stop...come back!) and on to the Mona Lisa room.

March may not have weather pleasant enough for garden sitting but if it does the Tuileries right outside the Louvre are excellent even though famous. I love the Luxembourg Gardens particularly around the Medici fountain for sitting although last Fall when I was there it's become an Instagram location (insert eyeroll!) You may also have some kind of pocket park near your hotel. I do recommend having a plastic bag with you to sit on as sometimes the benches and chairs can sometimes be covered with bird poo. I have some old Trader Joes heavier plastic bags that I put in my purse for Paris.

I LOVE the Louvre! It can be overwhelming inside especially if you are going to the most crowded areas, which you are. DON'T feel bad if you can't make it 4 hours. Honestly I can sometimes only do 2-2.5 hours in there unless I'm in the non-busy areas.

What a wonderful time you will have!

Sheila,
These are well-known, but are musts in my opinion. The Cluny Museum (medieval art and artifacts in a spectacular building) and the Rodin Museum (especially the outdoor sculptures). Besides "The Thinker" and "The Kiss", my favorite is "The Burghers of Calais" and the door "The Gates of Hell". I confess that I go there every time I am in Paris. And if they are open at that time of year (probably not), a stroll along the left bank to check out the bouquinistes is very Parisian. I often take the one hour, inexpensive, boat ride on the Seine with Vedettes de Pont Neuf. I prefer them to the Bateaux Mouches. If you do this, get in line early enough to sit up top. Bring jackets, etc. because it will be cold on the river in March. If not visited before, go to Ste. Chapelle. And take a look at the Opera Garnier and the close by Galeries Lafayette.
Enjoy!

Seems like the consensus is to go early to the Louvre. So, that is what we will do! Thank you for the detailed recommendations...I love it!

We're also planning on the Musee D'Orsay. I'm guessing early morning is the best time for that, as well?

We're staying in the Latin Quarter, very near to the Cluny but would like to avoid another big, overwhelming museum. Is the Cluny more manageable and how much time would you allot for it? I loved visiting the Rodin museum on prior visits but we wanted to do a few things that are new to both of us.

I also just found out that more than half of our time there will coincide with Paris Fashion Week. Any recommendations on which areas to avoid to not get caught in traffic / crowds?

The Cluny is nowhere near as big as the Louvre (what is, outside of St. Petersburg?) It is broken up into smaller rooms and is easy to follow the "path" through them, beginning in early middle ages and going (mostly) chronologically. I found that it has more places to sit than in many other museums if you want to rest a bit or observe something for a longer time. It doesn't overwhelm you like some museums do. I spent about 3 hours there, but about half an hour was in the tiny cafe within it having a coffee and pastry. It took me 7 visits to Paris to get to the Cluny, and I am so happy I finally did! It is one I would repeat. Also, we walked up and got our tickets that day. We walked right in and there were no crowds. School groups often go there on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. It is suggested to go between noon and 2:00 p.m. or after 3:30 (on those days). You could see everything in 2 hours, but I poked around a lot and sat often. (It was between one knee replacement and another one.) I really, really recommend the Cluny!
By the way, we had a very nice lunch afterward at the Cafe Mucha on Blvd. St. Germain. It had excellent service, very good food, and reasonable prices. Close to the Cluny and Orsay.
Also, the Breizh Cafes are very good, with good prices, and excellent savory Breton crepes meals. I noticed what appeared to be many locals eating there on their lunch breaks (the office crowd, I think). There is one on Rue l'Odeon in your area.
As far as fashion weeks go, all I know is that prices are higher then, especially for lodging, but I have no personal experience with that, just what I read on the forum. (Luckily, we always stay with family outside of Paris, and it has been years since we needed a hotel in town.)
Yes, get as early entry as possible for the Orsay and head first to the top floor to see the best-known Impressionist paintings before the crowds, then work your way downstairs. I understand there is a nice cafe on the premises, but don't know personally.
Ooh, what fun!

Lesser knowns that I have enjoyed …

• Passages Couverts. In particular, we walked Passage Verdeau, Passage Jouffroy, Galerie Vivienne and Galerie Colbert. (2nd and 9th Arr.) That might be a nice way to spend the afternoon after you finish the Louvre, but do them in the reverse order from my list. Lots of little shops. Clothing, art, stamps, antiques, books, cafes. For us, a special added bonus was that it kept us out of the heat on a hot June day.
• Maison de Balzac. (16th Arr.) Lovely view to Seine and Eiffel Tower. Exhibits include many of the printing blocks for the illustrations to his Comedie Humaine series of novels.
• Eglise St Etienne du Mont. (5th Arr.) Near the Pantheon and also very near Rue Mouffetard. Wonderful stained glass windows from other Paris churches were transferred to the Cloister Gallery here. That happened during WW1 - to protect them from artillery fire, but the windows remained here after the war was over. Also, relics of the tomb of St. Genevieve are in a lovely side chapel. She saved Paris from Atilla the Hun in the 6th C., 1,000 years ahead of St. Joan’s efforts against the English. A walk up here fits in beautifully with a visit to the Cluny Museum, mentioned in other comments. An afternoon that includes the Cluny, a walk up to St. Etienne and then to Rue Mouffetard for dinner somewhere that strikes your fancy would be lovely.
• Musee Jacquemart-Andre Very elegant 19th C. mansion with a collection of Italian and Dutch Master paintings, tapestries, statues and ceiling frescoes. Gracious dining room for a lovely lunch (8th Arr.). LATE NOTE: they will be presenting Verdi Operas in the museum Saturday nights in March 2026. See: La Traviata or Rigoletto on the J-A website, depending which Saturday you are there.
• Musée d'art et d'histoire du Judaïsme (4th Arr)
• Other Museums - before our 2023 visit, I found that there were special exhibitions at the Petite Palais (8th Arr.) and at the Musee du Luxembourg in the Luxembourg Gardens (6th Arr.) that looked interesting. The Paris Visitors website, https://parisjetaime.com/eng/, was a good resource for me to find those, as well as to look into each neighborhood or arrondissement for other interesting places to see.

Fred, your comments make me want to jump on a plane to visit the Eglise St. Etienne. (Plus your other suggestions as well)

Here is the official website for the Louvre and its welcome tour in English. Be careful, there are a lot of tricky, fake websites ready to sell higher-priced tickets. Tickets after March 6th, with the new pricing are not yet available. I have taken many Louvre tours in French and can recommend them. The guides are Louvre employees, professional guides who work for the Louvre.

https://ticket.louvre.fr/en/theme-vision/103

Here's what the website says about the tour:

"Discover the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace and other masterpieces of the Louvre with trained guides who take you through the museum’s most impressive spaces, such as the medieval moat, giving you a fascinating insight into the history of the palace."

I'd still go at opening and also take the tour because you will learn a lot that you won't get on your own, and the guide will take you the most efficient route.

Honestly 4 hours is about the max I’d stay in the museum. My family could only do three hours before the place was overwhelming. We used Rick Steves and the Louvre website as a guide for what to see and made sure we were in line way before the museum opened and made a beeline straight to the Mona Lisa. Please note that it will be crowded after an hour and you may not get to see Rhonda up close. The Venus de Milo had a ring of visitors 6 people deep an hour after opening and all had their phones up high so it was hard to see.

We did find some lesser known art that was just as beautiful trying to get away from the crowds.

I'm definitely sold on visiting the Cluny and the Passages Couvert but also trying to be weary of not spending too much time indoors in museums. I know the Louvre can definitely overwhelming, possibly the D'Orsay also and so, I want to make sure we leave time to just wander around and just soak in the amazing architecture and beauty of Paris.

The Cluny and the Covered Passages are good to have in your “hip pocket” in case the weather is yucky! You literally will not know until the day what is going on and last year’s weather isn’t a guarantee for this year.