Is the Paris Museum pass worth it?

[Anonymous]

We are headed to Paris later this summer and I was looking at the museum pass. It adds up to a lot for 4 people and I don't know that we'll get the full value, especially since we'll be there on a first Sunday when the museums are free. Online reviews seem to conflict about whether it really helps in terms of bypassing lines, if it does there would be value in that. Thoughts?

[Anonymous]

How many museums do you want to see? If possible don’t go on the free Sunday. So so crowded. look up the extended hours in the louvre. One day a week (used to be Wednesday) they are open late until 9 or so and it’s a great time to go.

[Anonymous]

How long are you there for?

Are you hard-core tourists where you pack in a lot of walking and see a lot of the chapels, museums, catacombs, etc. or are you the more leisurely kind of tourist where you see 1 museum and then call it quits?

To me, by passing the line to simply buy tickets was priceless. AND we went to museums that we wouldn't have normally have gone too.

And the museums will be packed on Sundays b/c it is free.

[Anonymous]

OP here, I am assuming at least 3 museums and then up to 4 related attractions (Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower etc.) but I don't expect all 4 of us to go to all locations

[Anonymous]

Does the pass really help you bypass lines? I've read some posts that seem to imply that it doesn't.

[Anonymous]

You're spending how many thousand on flights and lodging? You'll have how many hours of time to sightsee? Divide - and it's likely that the additional cost of the pass per hour is very small. I think it saved some line time, but the biggest benefit was that we also popped in to more places for shorter visit. It might not be worth buying another ticket to go into a building for 20 minutes, but if you have the pass and are in the area, you do it and enjoy it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're spending how many thousand on flights and lodging? You'll have how many hours of time to sightsee? Divide - and it's likely that the additional cost of the pass per hour is very small. I think it saved some line time, but the biggest benefit was that we also popped in to more places for shorter visit. It might not be worth buying another ticket to go into a building for 20 minutes, but if you have the pass and are in the area, you do it and enjoy it.

My family found it worthwhile. It encouraged us to walk into buildings we otherwise would have skipped. And I think it did marginally help with lines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does the pass really help you bypass lines? I've read some posts that seem to imply that it doesn't.

Yes, it does bypass the ticketing lines- at the Louvre, for instance, that can be a very long line at the peak morning entrance times. But you will still have to go through the security lines.

It all comes down to your interest in the museums. Some people want to go to 2 or 3 and won't do any more. Some people would do more if it were free. What I liked about having the pass (this was without kids) is that I enjoy many museums, but sometimes get bored after an hour or so. What's nice about the pass is that by shortening the line time and making the additional cost zero, I went to 2 more museums than I would have if I didn't have the pass, for no extra money.

The note about going during evening hours is a very good one- the Louvre has evening hours on Wednesdays and Fridays, the Orsay on Thursdays. It is a much nicer experience at night because of the significantly smaller crowds.

[Anonymous]

A few years ago when I bought the pass Paris went on one of its frequent strikes, so most museums and attractions closed. Big waste.

[Anonymous]

You can also just buy tickets for the louvre online.

My DH ran ahead of us while we finished breakfast and got the bill. It took about 20 min for him to wait in line. We met him outside and right in we went.

Also, Eiffel Tower is pretty easy. We were there a few weeks ago and they are working on the base of the Tower. It was kind of a mess. Still we only waited 30 min in line.

The museum pass would not have saved us money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A few years ago when I bought the pass Paris went on one of its frequent strikes, so most museums and attractions closed. Big waste.

Yes. We were just in Paris and this is going in now. Catacombs inexplicably closed. Found out after we waited for 45 min before it opened.

[Anonymous]

Museums are free for kids, so you may only need to buy 2 passes. We will be in Paris late this month. For us it’s worth it, since we will be going to Versailles, Louvre, Orsay and whatever else we can pack in . Plan to buy at train station when we reach Paris

[Anonymous]

Btw Paris Museum pass doesn’t cover catacombs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Museums are free for kids, so you may only need to buy 2 passes. We will be in Paris late this month. For us it’s worth it, since we will be going to Versailles, Louvre, Orsay and whatever else we can pack in . Plan to buy at train station when we reach Paris

This -- kids are free, everywhere.

[Anonymous]

We always get the pass because it saves a lot of time queueing. We often walk straight into the museum or only have a short wait compared to the much longer wait for the non pass holders.

I’ve sat down several times and compared the cost of the pass over buying the tickets to the museums (we like museums) and we really don’t save money but we don’t lose money either. But the time savings is worth it. Except at places like Versailles where it didn’t seem to make a difference. But at the big Parisian museums it certainly did.

And it did encourage us to go to smaller museums off the beaten path, which we now find more charming than the big museums as we’ve already seen them multiple times.

FYI my feelings on Versailles is mixed. The last time we went the line to get inside was so long and it was so crowded inside as well that I didn’t enjoy it. Fountainbleau is also included in the pass (I think) and we found it more relaxed, easygoing, intimate and charming.