Musée Picasso Paris

What makes it special

The museum was created from two donations of Picasso's work to the French state. Among its holdings are Still Life with Chair Caning, Woman in the Garden and La Flûte de Pan.

Picasso also collected other painters, and the museum holds works by them too. Its collection includes paintings by Le Nain, Corot, Vuillard, Cézanne, Gauguin and Matisse, with works by Braque and Degas: the pictures Picasso chose to live with. Seeing them here shows you what Picasso admired as well as what he made.

The house is the other half of the visit. The Hôtel Salé is a late seventeenth-century private mansion, and its sculpted staircase is the first thing you climb.

Visiting

Bring only a small bag. Suitcases and bulky baggage are not allowed inside, and anything smaller goes in the free cloakroom one level down, by the stairs to the right of the lobby.

Book a timed slot online and arrive for your hour, because walk-up visitors can be held back when it is busy. Once through the lobby, the staircase carries you up into the mansion's rooms.

Plan to see the permanent collection and the temporary exhibitions in one visit. Arrive well before last admission if you want both, since the house rewards a slow walk as much as the art does.

Guided or on your own

The audio guide is enough for a first visit; reserve it online when you book your ticket. Guided tours can be booked online or at the museum ticket office. Groups must book at least two days ahead.

Tips

Afterwards, stay in the Marais rather than heading straight back across the city. Walk to rue des Rosiers for falafel at lunch, then browse the vintage shops along rue Vieille-du-Temple. Both streets are a short walk from the museum's door on rue de Thorigny.