In addition to the Paris museums most famous ones, such as the Louvre (a must-see) or the Musée d'Orsay there are other lesser-known museums in the city that you might love.
Museum of Counterfeiting
Yes, Paris has a museum dedicated to counterfeit objects. The Musée de la Contrefaçon leaves us astonished at the lengths some people go to in order to deceive us, and at how long they have been doing so. This place was created with the aim of contributing to the fight against counterfeiting and piracy, and the wide variety of objects on display — wallets, perfumes, artwork, beverages, cosmetics, food, clothing... — are exhibited alongside their imitations.
Dirección: 16, rue de la faisanderie – 75116 Paris
Maxim's, Art Nouveau Museum
This museum, dedicado al modernismo or Art Nouveau, houses a private collection of more than 500 works characteristic of the Belle Epoque. On the ground floor, the refined Maxim's restaurant operates, also offering cabaret evenings for groups. On the upper floors, Pierre Cardin, the owner of the establishment, has recreated the apartment of a celebrated courtesan — a space that is now even listed as a historic monument.
The Art Nouveau museum of Paris may feel familiar to you — Owen Wilson and Marion Cotillard travel back in time to the Belle Époque and dine together at Maxim's in the film Midnight in Paris de Woody Allen. Also in Inglourious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino a long sequence was filmed at Maxim's.
Dirección: 3, Rue Royale, Paris
Museum of Curiosity and Magic
The Musée de la Curiosité et de la Magie and the Académie de la Magie in Paris offer "a global vision of the wonderful world of illusionists from the 18th century to the present day." This private museum, located right in the heart of Paris, is housed in none other than the space once used as the wine cellar of the mansion belonging to the Marquis de Sade.
The venue displays objects used in magic shows, including trick mirrors, magic boxes, optical illusions, posters, and photographs. Magic shows are also performed on site.
Dirección: 11, rue Saint-Paul 75004 – Paris
Fairground Arts Museum
This must be one of the museos más curiosos y especiales de París and in the world. The Musée des Arts Forains is dedicated to preserving and displaying to the public the collection that Jean-Paul Favand assembled over 35 years, comprising curiosities, fairground pieces, and theatrical objects.
Mechanical attractions such as carousels and light-and-motion sculptures are part of this magical world, which you can explore through a guided tour that must be booked in advance. Here is a video of this incredible place.
Dirección: 53 Avenue des Terroirs de France 75012 Paris
Paris Museum of Fashion
The Museo Galliera or Musée de la Mode de la Ville de Paris pays well-deserved tribute to the history of Parisian fashion from the 18th century to the present day.
The most popular pieces ever displayed here are two dresses that belonged to Marie Antoinette, and the one worn by Audrey Hepburn in the film Breakfast at Tiffany's. We say "ever displayed" because due to the fragility of the collection's pieces, there are no permanent exhibitions, and between exhibition dates the museum is closed to the public.
This Parisian museum is a true paradise for fashion lovers, and the palace that houses it is truly beautiful.
Dirección: 10 avenue Pierre 1er de Serbie, Paris
Paris Sewer Museum
This slightly eerie experience, journeying through the mundo subterráneo de París, has undergone several transformations since its inauguration at the Universal Exhibition of 1867.
In its early days, fascinated tourists were transported through this hidden metropolis in a small wagon pulled by a locomotive, and later in small boats that floated through the sewer canals.
Today visitors can explore a specific section of the Parisian sewer system on foot via walkways built for that purpose. "… Paris has another Paris beneath it, a Paris of sewers, with its own streets, its crossroads, its squares…" So wrote Victor Hugo in 1862 in his novel Les Misérables about this mysterious hidden world beneath the French capital.
Dirección: Pont de l'Alma, Place de la Résistance, Paris, 7
