First Sunday of the month: free exhibitions to see in Paris on October 4, 2026
The first Sunday in October sees free admission to national museums, and for once, the fall exhibitions are already on display. Our selection for Sunday, October 4, 2026: exhibitions first, collections second.
Monet, Painting Time, Musée de l'Orangerie
For the centenary of Monet's death, the Orangerie has taken the Water Lilies down from their pedestal and placed them alongside two exhibitions that opened this week: the gray surfaces of Vija Celmins and a contemporary counterpoint. All of this is included in the free Sunday admission, provided you can secure a time slot: they become available online on Friday, October 2, at 11:00 a.m.
Orangerie Museum, Paris 1st arrondissement
From September 30, 2026 to January 25, 2027 - Free admission on October 4 with reservation
Knowledge in Trompe-l'œil, Korea, Guimet Museum
Painted shelves so precise that you reach out to touch the books: chaekgeori, these screens made by Korean scholars in the 18th and 19th centuries, are the subject of the most surprising exhibition of the fall season at the Guimet Museum, and one of the few that doesn't require reservations on free Sundays. You enter within the capacity limit, you leave wondering if you can see properly.
Guimet Museum, Paris 16th arrondissement
From September 16, 2026 to January 4, 2027 - Free on October 4
First Nations, Quai Branly Museum
Opening this week, the exhibition dedicated to the arts of the peoples of the American Northwest—masks, poles, and ornaments from the Pacific coast—is the major new addition to the Quai Branly Museum, where free admission on Sundays also grants access to the first photographs of Tahiti and the Feathers of Paradise exhibition. A free time slot can be reserved online.
Musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac, Paris 7th arrondissement
From September 29, 2026 to January 17, 2027 - Free on October 4
Delacroix, Horses and Other Animals, Musée Delacroix
In the studio on Place de Furstenberg, the museum has brought together the horses, lions, and tigers that Delacroix constantly drew, from the Jardin des Plantes to Morocco. It's a small exhibition, you can see it in twenty minutes, and that's precisely what makes it the ideal outing for a free Sunday with no queues.
National Eugène-Delacroix Museum, Paris 6th arrondissement
From September 12, 2026 to April 18, 2027 - Free on October 4
Talisman, Ali Banisadr, Gustave Moreau Museum
For the first time, a living artist hangs his canvases amidst Moreau's visions, in a house frozen in time since 1903. Ali Banisadr's swirling crowds respond to the Salomes without imitating them. Free admission on Sundays includes access to the studios; entry to the exhibition gallery must be confirmed at the reception desk.
National Gustave Moreau Museum, Paris 9th arrondissement
From September 9 to December 7, 2026 - Free on October 4
The Inseparables, Season 2, Museum of Hunting and Nature
Students from the Duperré School have hidden their objects throughout the museum's rooms, among the trophies and paintings, and you have to find them. Last week for this treasure hunt in one of the Marais's most unusual hotels, free this Sunday.
Museum of Hunting and Nature, Paris 3rd arrondissement
From September 10 to October 8, 2026 - Free on October 4
Marcel Duchamp Prize 2026, Museum of Modern Art, Paris
It's not free because it's Sunday, it's free all the time: the Museum of Modern Art is installing the four nominees for the prize at the heart of its collections. Each artist has created a project specifically for the occasion, before the verdict on October 22. A bonus for today, just steps from the Seine.
Museum of Modern Art of Paris, Paris 16th arrondissement
From October 2, 2026 to February 7, 2027 - Free admission
The 160th anniversary of the Carnavalet Museum
Two days of celebration and free admission to the oldest museum in Paris, with tarot readings, a queer Paris tour, and drag bingo on Sunday. And the collections, free all year round, remain the best history lesson in the city, from medieval signs to Proust's bedroom.
Carnavalet Museum, Paris 3rd arrondissement
October 3 and 4, 2026 - Free admission
Bartholdi, Maurice Denis and Monet, Musée d'Orsay
The free ticket on the first Sunday grants access to the collections and all the day's exhibitions: Bartholdi and his Liberty Enlightening the World, the Maurice Denis exhibition opened this week, and the Monet section of the Impressionist gallery. One condition: a time slot, and those for October 4 are sold out. They become available on Friday the 2nd at 11:00 AM, so be sure to check online.
Musée d'Orsay, Paris 7th arrondissement
Free on October 4th with reservation - Cassatt and Peduzzi open on the 6th
And also, free this Sunday
The Picasso Museum, no reservation required, with its rehung collection and the Guillermo Kuitca Chapel. The Rodin Museum, which is offering its first free Sunday of the season, including the garden and the Hôtel Biron. The Cluny Museum and its Lady and the Unicorn. The Arts et Métiers Museum, where the Science Festival is in full swing. The Henner Museum and the Monnaie de Paris (Paris Mint), for their collections.
Find all the free exhibitions permanently open in Paris and the top new exhibitions.
