The National Museum of Asian Arts
Free for children under 26 years old
Please note: some rooms will be closed to the public due to work in 2024 (consult the official website for details)
Free for children under 26 years old
Please note: some rooms will be closed to the public due to work in 2024 (consult the official website for details)
- We like : discovering all the riches of Asia with the family
- Where: at the Guimet Museum – Place Iéna, Paris 16th
- Age: from 5 years old
- Free : under 26 years old and 1st Sunday of the month
- Open : every day (except Tuesday)
- Closed: Tuesdays, May 1, December 25and January 1
- Opening hours : from 10am to 6pm
- Note : the ticket allows access to the permanent collections, temporary exhibitions, as well as the Hotel Heidelbach
The National Museum of Asian Arts
Located on Place Iéna, the Guimet Museum is a real encounter with all Asian civilizations.
From prehistoric times to the present day, from Afghanistan to Japan, the museum presents more than 15,000 objects to the public.
It offers many activities (workshops, storytelling tours, readings) free or paid, for adults and children.
By taking your ticket you will also have access to the Hotel Heidelbach which hides a wonderful garden of 450 m2 of Japanese greenery. Little known, it is ideal when it is hot in the heart of Paris.
The Guimet Museum, a journey to Asia
- Between unusual and colourfulencounters, the exhibition unfolds over 4 floors with some of the most complete collections in the world outside Asia
- As soon as you enter the 1st rooms, huge sculptures of Buddha and Shiva surprise the children and invite us to travel through the Khmer Empire in Southeast Asia
- From one country to another, shimmering objects and textiles take us through Vietnam and Cambodia. Thailand, Indonesia, Laos and Burma are also part of this extraordinary journey
- Through simple explanations, one learns to recognize the deities and understand the messages of their postures. It’s a lot of fun!
- On the upper floors, you enter the Chinese collections, some of whichdate back 7000 years.
- The tour continues in India with very rare paintings that tell the legend of Buddha
- Then we discover the art of Korea, where about a thousand objects are presented: masks, screens or statues…
- The journey ends in the Land of the Rising Sun, with Japanese art
- To continue this journey in China and Japan, at number 19 Avenue d’Iéna, your ticket gives you access to the Heidelbach Hotel dedicated to Chinese and Japanese imperial furniture
- All you have to do is cross the wonderful garden of this hotel built in 1903 to enter an authentic Tea House and follow the tea ceremony. An amazing experience!
Family activities (children and teenagers)
2023-2024 Season
Visits for young audiences
- From 6 years old – “Magical Journey to the Land of Dragons” to discover the surprises and magic of ancient China and tame dragons
- From 7 to 14 years old – “Magical journey to the land of the elephant god Ganesh” (narrated tour) – Brahma the creator, multitasking Shiva , Vishnu and his avatars, Ganesh with the head of an elephant… A whole world of fantastic creatures to tame.
Family workshops
- Workshops:
- From 4 years old: “Workshop: from arts to Yoga” – To explore the museum’s collections and become aware of your body, by associating the works with playful and relaxing yoga postures! Saturday 27 January at 2pm
- For the very young – under 6 years old – “Musical awakening Chong Chong Fei” – in front of the museum’s works to listen to the sounds of Asia and, from surprise to surprise, discover nursery rhymes from China, India or Vietnam. Duration: 1 hour – Sundays 17 and 21 December at 11 am –
- From 7 years old – “Open books, three fireflies between the pages!” Children’s books to read and discover with a mischievous reader to travel to Asia between images and words. Sundays 17 and 21 December at 3 pm and 4 pm – duration 1 hour
- For children from 6 to 12 years old: “Family storytelling trail: Perfumed sleeves and other woven stories from Japan” – Saturday 3 February at 3 pm – Duration 1 hour
- From 7 to 12 years old – “Workshop: Manga expression – To your pencils!” All the graphic tricks of mangaka, this workshop weaves a link between the traditional and popular art of Japan. Parents cannot accompany children to this workshop – Wednesday 31 January at 2.30 pm
Stay tuned! Many other activities will be to be discovered depending on the news of the museum, you will have to consult the museum’s program regularly
The history of the Guimet Museum…
- The history of the Guimet Museum dates back to the end of the19th century. In 1879, Émile Guimet (1836-1918) industrialist and great traveller founded in Lyon, a museum where it features pieces he collected from Greece, Egypt, India, China, and Japan.
- Nearly 10 years later, he decided to place his collection in the16th arrondissement of Paris in a building that he had built.
- In 1927, the State managed the museum and decided to make it an establishment exclusively focused on Asian arts
- In 1996, extensive renovation work was undertaken with a focus on natural light. In 2001 the museum was able to welcome visitors again, and expand its programming to include contemporary Asian artists.
- Visiting the museum in summer is also an opportunity to discover a breathtaking view of Paris and the Eiffel Tower by taking a tour of the panoramic terrace on the 4th floor.
- Along with the Hotel Heidelbach, which houses the Buddhist pantheon, the Musée d’Ennery is the third site linked to the Guimet Museum. It also preserves a collection of Chinese and Japanese art objects that the Ennery couple built up at the end of the19th century.
- Not far from the Place Iena, the Palais de Chaillot, Place du Trocadéro, is one ofthe must-see places in Paris where the Musée de l’Homme and the Musée national de La Marine are located
The exhibitions …
- “At the Court of Prince Genji, 1000 Years of Japanese Imagination” – until March 25, 2024
- “Asian medicine, the art of balance” – May 18 – September 18, 2023
- “Afghanistan, Shadows and Legends” October 26, 2022 to February 6, 2023.
- “Images and men, Bamiyan 20 years later” – February 21 – June 21, 2021
