no alt text

Bucket list experience:

Last updated: 09 November, 2022
Expert travel writer: Anna Brooke

Housed in an impressive Baroque setting, this trio of French military museums is full of treasures.

The Musée de l’Armée, the military museum of the French army, has collections ranging from armour to World War II film footage; the Musée des Plans-Reliefs is a museum of military models; and the Musée d’Histoire Contemporaine (contemporary history museum) contains some 1.5 million artefacts from French political, social and cultural history.

Don’t miss 

Highlights include the Enigma cryptography machine, used by the Nazis during WWII, and a ‘Taxi of the Marne’, one of the red Parisian taxis used by the French to transport reinforcement troops to the front line in 1914. 

The gilded Eglise du Dome church, in the same complex, contains the imposing tomb of Napoleon I.  

Recommended itineraries by our writers that include this experience

Price from: £12
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 18+
When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

Take the metro to Invalides or La Tour Maubourg (both line 8), Saint François-Xavier or Varennes (both line 13). If you’re driving, there is a (paid) underground car park accessible via Esplanade des Invalides.  

Digital guides are available for a small extra fee, with two different itineraries – one focusing on the museum’s essential exhibits, the other on the current temporary exhibition. A wide range of guided tours are also available for individuals or groups.  

When to do it

The museum is open all year round, seven days a week. It opens until late on Tuesdays. 

Our writer’s picks of the best places to stay near this experience, closest first

Hotel du Champ de Mars

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Bargain prices and boutique style at this family-run hotel near the Eiffel Tower. One of city’s most popular affordable hotels.

Official star rating:

Le Meurice

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Seriously grand but pleasingly unstuffy, the queen of Paris’ palace hotels has a regal setting overlooking the Jardin des Tuileries.

Official star rating:

Hotel Le Pradey

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

In a perfect Louvre-adjacent location, this witty, original boutique hotel pays homage to Parisian style.

Official star rating:

Shangri-La Paris

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Experience a truly imperial lifestyle in the former residence of Prince Roland Bonaparte (Napoleon’s great nephew), with unbeatable views of the Eiffel Tower.

Official star rating:

Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Paris

Ile-de-France, France

Crammed with iconic buildings, world-class art and a culinary scene steeped in history, Paris is one of the world’s great capitals, overflowing with style, romance, and art de vivre. 

Website >
Overview >

Our writer’s recommendations of other bucket list experiences our writer says you must do in this destination, closest first

Orsay Museum

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

A gloriously-converted Belle Epoque train station that is now a temple to Impressionist art dating from 1848 to 1914. The exceptional collection includes works by Monet, Manet, Degas, Cezanne, Gauguin and Van Gogh.

Best for ages: 13+ | £14

Quai Branly Museum

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Fascinating primal art and indigenous artefacts from all over the globe, theatrically presented in Jean Nouvel’s striking modern building. 

Best for ages: 13+ | £10

Other worthwhile experiences near this experience if you have time or interest..

internal view showing extraordinary stained glass windows
Experience

Sainte-Chapelle

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Paris’ most exquisite Gothic monument was built by Louis IX in 1248 to house his collection of Passion relics, including Christ’s Crown of Thorns (now at Notre-Dame Cathedral). It has one of the most extensive 13th-century stained-glass collections anywhere in the world.

Best for ages: 18+ | Free

Website >
Overview >
The front view of Stohrer on a street in Paris. The exterior of the shop is painted in navy with a dark blue parasol
Experience

Stohrer

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

The birthplace of the rum baba in the 18th century, the city’s oldest patisserie still wows with its gateaux (cake) today.

Best for ages: 4+ | Free

Website >
Overview >
view of undeground cellar with two pillars and a wall of skulls
Experience

Paris Catacombs

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

These eerie bone-lined passages, set in a former quarry 20m underground, contain the remains of several million Parisians. The residents – including many victims of the notorious guillotine – were buried here when existing cemeteries overflowed during the French Revolution.

Best for ages: 13+ | £23

Website >
Overview >