One museum in Paris

What do your kids like? Have you been to an art museum before? Did they feel drawn towards one particular type of art? That could really influence your pick(s). My first recommendation is the Rodin museum gardens. My kids (ages 7, 9 & 11) have been there twice and have talked about going back. It's small, doesn't take much time, but has a lot of neat sculptures and beautiful gardens. It's outdoors, and not as "stuffy" as a regular museum. Heck, they probably won't even realize they're in a museum. My second recommendation (without knowing what your kids like) is the Louvre. Because it has much more than just art. Napolean's Apartments are way cool, as are the Egyptian mummies and the room with all the hieroglyphics on it. My kids also love the "basement" part with the moat from the medieval castle that once stood on the grounds. Those three items are definitely kid-friendly. Beyond that, I'd recommend going to the Louvre's website and looking at the different "Thematic Trails" that they offer. You download a .pdf and print them off ahead of time. It's an efficient way to do a self-guided tour. On a side note - I do NOT recommend the audio guides for kids at the Louvre. They are a multi-media guide with videos and audio and we had to re-boot them several times. The kids version is different than the adults, and they can't get the audio for regular artwork. There's this "activity" (I use that term loosely) for them to follow a trail in the Ancient Egypt part and my kids got frustrated. I took over the navigation and still had problems following it, and couldn't figure out how to skip ahead when we were getting anxious to just get to the end. Not worth the $$!! There's so much to do in Paris with kids that its easy to mix the museums and churches in with the other stuff available.

I have taken, on different trips, a 10 year old and an 11 year old to the Louvre. Here's the trick: choose a small portion. When you first enter the Louvre, go straight to the Mona Lisa, "La Joconde", explain about her eyes following you. From the Mona Lisa, head straight to the Egyptian Antiquities. Make sure that you also find the little room full of animal mummies. If the girls are still good after that (a couple of hours), then maybe more of the Antiquities (ie Greek statues) can be done on your way out. Also great for kids are the catacombs - good & gruesome for that age, LOL!

The Natural History Museum down by the botanical gardens or the Museum of Man in the southern wing of the Chaillot Palace. Or the Archaeological Crypt acorss the square from Notre Dame. Even the Sewer Museum could be a winner. Kids don't need to see art, they need to see stuff.

There are also a number of very nice carousels around Paris beginning about then- at least one was inported from USA. They turn up in the most unusual spots. (there is even a permanent little one in tuileries gardens. Museums- the one thing that fascinated me was the post impressionist ("pointillism?) art where the paintings are done with tiny dots of color. I was way older than your daughters but I found it fascinating to see how the colors blended when you stepped back. there is at least one with a circus theme. (When i saw them they were at the Museum d'Tokyo- a small enough collection to do in a couple of hours).

I agree with not limiting yourself to just one museum. Just make each one fun and shorten the visits. Rodin is very small and in an old mansion. They can spend some time inside seeing the sculpture and then run around in the gardens. The Pompidou would maybe interest them for the architecture. The sewers or catacombs would be fun for any kid. Mummies at the Louvre. The Orangerie is a small Impressionist museum with room-sized "Water Lillies" by Monet and a few Renior's et. al. in the basement. Seeing several large rooms with a painting all the way around might be memorable for a kid.

If you had to limit ourselves to one museum, I'd probably pick the Louvre or the Musee d'Orsay, but it depends on your and their interests. Our 12yo son loved the Pompidou, though we adults found it a bit boring, as we don't like modern art as much as he does. Take a look at the Louvre and Musee d'Orsay websites (and those of other museums), and see which paintings or sculptures or other art strike their eye. Keep in mind that the Musee d'Orsay is currently undergoing a major renovation. All of the pieces in the main Impressionists area have been moved to the main floor of the musuem (or sent off to exhibit at other museums). It's a bit of mess, but the paintings are still wonderful. When we took our 10yo daughter to Paris last fall, we spent almost an entire day at the Louvre - but we and she already knew that she loves museums. We broke the day up by leaving the museum for lunch, then returning. In planning the trip, we decided in advance what she really wanted to see, and made sure that we visited those pieces and areas first. (That wasn't difficult, as she mainly wanted to see the Italian and French painters.) The other museums that have been mentioned are great, too - l'Orangerie, etc.

Dina's ideas are great. The sculptures at the Rodin can bring art alive for your daughters. Additionally, the Rodin has a garden cafe which is perfect for lunch. As Dina said, you can scout out the Louvre ahead of time. The website allows you to see photos of each room and its contents. The thematic trails she mentioned are excellent. Finally, you could follow up with more sculpture at the Louvre: Michelangelo's slaves, winged victory, and more.

When I was in Paris last year I went to the Quai Branley museum and there were several school groups of children of about the same age visiting then also. there are lots of totem poles, statues, masks, etc. This might be fun. Also it is pretty near the Eiffel Tower, and you must take them there. The D'Orsay is beautiful too, if they like paintings.
I agree the Egyptian rooms of the Louvre would be good also.

Hi Barbara, I have a 10 year old son who has been to Paris about a dozen times in his life. He is very artistic and his top picks are: Orangerie Museum, Tuileries gardens, Paris Six great intellectuals recently described the museum chosen and arranged by Claude Monet to showcase his "testamentary" masterpieces as "Unique in its genre". Next to the Nymphéas, "the haven of peaceful meditation", a gift to modern man with his "overworked nerves", the Orangerie offers a fabulous concentration of masterpieces from the Jean W and Paul Guillaume Collection, a highly original insight into modern art featuring Cézanne, Renoir, Picasso, Rousseau, Matisse, Derain, Modigliani, Soutine, Utrillo and Laurencin. Closed for renovation work since January 2000, completely reviewed and restructured, the museum was reopened to the public in May 2006. Start at the Musee d'Orsay - 5th floor for all the impressionists and then move them quickly to the Orangerie - across the street for the quickie tour. You'll all be happy. FYI, there's a wonderful playground in the Tuileries where the girls will get to unwind after the musuems. My advice - leave the Louvre, etc. for another time. Oh, and the best toy store in Paris - Le Bon Marche - in the 7th, in the sous-sol (or basement). My son has spent many a happy day searching for his latest favourite. Have a great time!
Diane

One thing that I think is important to note is that the Musée d'Orsay is still undergoing renovation until this fall. While I haven't been in months, the Impressionist paintings are not on display in their usual space. When we were there, they were relocated to several first floor galleries and it felt like everyone who was visiting the museum was crammed in those galleries. It was very difficult to visit with my kids, as they had a hard time seeing things, and we couldn't easily move through at the pace we wanted. My kids love impressionism, they absolutely loved the special Monet exhibit at the Grand Palais, but they didn't like the d'Orsay at all. We have said we are going to try and go back when the renovations are done, as it was my favorite museum (but even I didn't like it nearly as much under renovation).

Oh, sorry. I had forgotten that the Musee d'Orsay was undergoing a major renovation this year. I would second the above post- not to try to visit this museum during this time. I too like the above post to visit the Cluny if your girls are into to Medieval things. We visited the Cluny for the first time 2 years ago and really enjoyed it. We too went to the Luxembourg gardens for a lot of outdoor fun after the museum.

I think a little background fun before the trip will enhance their experience no matter what museum you pick. I recommend having them look at some of the great interactive art books available for kids their ages. There are some art detective/mystery books in your local bookstores, libraries and at museum gift shops in the U.S. and Canada. One favorite book for our granddaughters was Linnea in Monet's Garden and Degas and the Little Dancer. I would pick certain floors and rooms of the Musee d'Orsay for a first visit (after doing the fun homework above) for a first visit. Don't forget to stop for a snack in the beautiful "clock tea room" at a midway point on your tour. Go online and see how the museum is arranged before you go and mark some highlights--and the cafe :-) Have fun.

Not the Louvre, certainly. Orsay is logical choice for art, but maybe also or instead the Marmatton or the Rodin museum. Small elegant wonderful collections.

Perhaps your girls might like the Jacquemart Andre, not so much for the art (although it is a splendid collection), but for the opportunity to see a very elegant mansion. Nearby department store Le Printemps offers a rooftop viewing place (free) and an interesting restaurant under a stained glass dome........If they like the idea of castles and the middle ages, they might enjoy the Cluny, followed by a visit to the nearby Luxembourg Gardens.......Just thought of another idea, not a museum. Opera Garnier does some tours in English. The place is over the top baroque opulence and might really impress two young girls. We aren't into opera, but we really enjoyed our tour of the opera house.

I think they would love the Rodin gardens... beautiful, not too overwhelming and the outdoor area is wonderful for children, but I could not go to Paris and skip the most famous painting in the world... you can assume they will go back, but they might not, so why not have them learn a bit about a few artists and make those the priority. The louve does not have to be overwhelming if you don't try to see the whole place. Pick and choose, but I don't think you will regret sharing this experience with them. Take them to see the Mona Lisa! It will stay with them forever.

I think that if I were going with children that age I would try to pick a small museum. L"orangerie or the Rodin Gardens, would be excellent; the latter would be nice because your girls will enjoy the garden. I

If you must choose one museum, why not the Cluny? If they like Harry Potter have them watch and notice all over the walls of Harry's common room the Lady and the Unicorn tapestries; which can be found in the Cluny. Our 8 year old found something exciting about all the museums but in different ways. Although, we felt the l'Orangerie was great only because of the size of the Monet, other than that, the museum was too small and lost his interest very quickly (30 minutes tops). Rodin, great gardens, but again not enough stuff to keep his interest. Like Ed said, stuff not art.