Musée d’Orsay is home to some of the most famous impressionist art collections of the world and is also regarded as one among the best museums in the dream destination of many – Paris. There are many peculiarities for this museum that makes it incredibly busy and popular, some of which are mentioned in this post.
Though most of the tourists visit almost all of the museums in Paris, most of them find Musée d’Orsay more fascinating than other museums because of the actual art which is on display – the museum has a large collection of Impressionist art. But, most of all, it all comes down to the personal preference of a viewer to a great extent too.
The collection in the museum has a lot of masterpieces of works by many famous artists like Degas, Monet, Seurat, Renoir along with some key members from the early Impressionist movement, which includes the pieces that are on display at the Impressionist exhibition too.
It can be said that the entire top of the museum can be regarded as a never-ending Impressionist exhibition, though it needs a little bit of hologram Tupac technology to bring artists to life which would allow them to showcase their works to the general public.
But such promotions are not regarded necessary as the museum already has more than three million visitors every year without any such promotions. The major reason why people visit the museum is the Impressionist collection of the museum houses.
There are a lot of pieces that are loved by most of the travelers and it mostly includes paintings of Etretat and Monet. Apart from the personal preferences of visitors, the building brings so much to the table.
The building of the museum was the Gare d’Orsay Station originally and it was constructed within two years for the Exposition Universelle in 1900. The building was designed by three of the most famous architects – Victor Laloux, Lucien Magne, and ÉmileBénard. It served as the terminus for the Southwestern railways of France until the year 1939 and was then renovated to become a mall center during the time of World War II.
Before the building became a museum in the year 1986, it played many roles like being a film set, a temporary hotel, and an auction house. After that, it outlived of demolishment and was then granted a permanent reprieve.
Even though many renovations were made to the building for the accommodation of many art galleries in it, the building still looks like a train station. The Beaux-Arts style makes the building itself a major attraction.
One of the other important things that have to be noticed about the museum is the arrangement of the galleries inside it. When compared to the other museums like the Louvre which has a claustrophobic nature on its galleries with a lot of paintings not given enough space for full appreciation, Musée d’Orsay offers a better presentation.
The layout of the museum itself is appreciated very much and the arrangement of the individual rooms is what most tourists find appreciable about the building. Though this factor can also be a matter of perspective, it is often pointed out by many travelers who take Orsay Museum Tours.
Tips for Orsay Museum Tours
One of the most important tips for any person to plan on to go Orsay Museum Tours is to get the pass for the Paris Museum way before you visit. It is also recommended to read the pass review on their official website which can get travelers more ideas about visiting the attraction.
For travelers who do not opt to buy the pass for the museum in advance, it is always better to arrive early at the museum as it can help them to avoid the long queues which can mostly be very overwhelming. It is also recommended to arrive early at the spot even if a person has a Museum pass to not get fatigued from art museums. Wednesday and Fridays are the most recommended days to visit the museum as it opens late on these days.
As an alternative good option is to visit the museum is on Thursdays. It recommended avoiding visiting it on Tuesdays as it is on Tuesdays both the famous Louvre and Pompidou remain closed. This makes more tourists visit the Musée d’Orsay on Tuesdays.
After arriving at the museum, it is mostly suggested for travelers to rent an audio guide as it can be a great help to explore the museum. Visitors can pay for this at the audio desk directly, and payment using cash is the best option as it can avoid a lot of fuzz. Payment for the audio guide can also be done using credit cards at the ticket desk, but visitors would most probably need to wait in lines for this.
Apart from just a tip, it is often a great recommendation to get an audio guide as they come up with enough information on various art pieces. It also provides a lot of general information about the early Impressionist movement.