Suja, thanks for the detail report.

"Sainte Chapelle

Queuing: Long and slow moving queue to get past the security, no cover. I stood for 1hr 15 mins. Very short queue for the tickets."

So does the museum pass work here but you need to stand in line for security? Also the renovation isn't done yet? I thought it had been completed already.

@AGM : Yes, that's what I meant. There is first a security check for bags and the queue for that is very long. I have no idea where everybody disappeared once inside, for there was no queue for the tickets for those who dont have a museum pass. And yes, the museum pass works. And yes, the renovation is in progress. About a third of the windows were boarded up from inside. On the outside there was interesting information about how the renovation was being done - each piece of glass is removed, cleaned and re-leaded to make the window again. I can imagine it would take a long time.

The people "disappear" because most of them are actually going to the law courts, not the Sainte Chapelle (except on the weekend, of course). The security is for the law courts, not for the Sainte Chapelle, but since it is in the complex, you have to go through security anyway.

@kerouac: The people who worked there had a separate line. Though they contributed to the slowness of the queue, their line never had more than 2 or 3 people waiting. I think it was just that the rate of flow in bottleneck-2 was much greater than the rate of flow in bottleneck-1. Not that I know much about queueing and traffic flow theory..

A nasty surprise.... we arrived and found out they were closing at 6 pm tonight which was supposed to be their late night. I had doubled checked my guidebooks to make sure it would be open; I should have checked their website but it may not have been mentioned there either. It had to do with the fete de music? Anyway, we managed to see as much as we could in an hour and a half. As a pleasant surprise though, it seems the fete de music is throughout Paris and the town is ROCKING tonight. There are bands playing on every other corner in the major areas of Paris we went through.... le Marais and the Bastille area.

ncounty - nice!

did you manage to get in and see something before 6pm?

nice info! Regarding subways, I find that even within the subways, getting to the correct platform can mean 5+ min walking, sometimes even more. Also, I had luggage with me when I arrived and found myself having to lug the bags up and down the stairs several time at some subway stops. Not easy!

I will add that last year at Versailles we went straight to the gardens and rented a golf cart and toured them that way. I can't remember the price but it was well worth for my sweet mother to be able to see all of the grounds.

Yes, suja, the people who work there have a separate line -- lawyers and judges and bailiffs. The majority of the visitors are facing those people in the courts, not sitting with them.

I did get to see quite a bit, annhig. I had been there several times before but it was my SO's first time and he loves impressionist art. We did the entire 5th floor and split up so he could cover more territory aggressively and my son and I did a more leisurely tour playing name the artist from across the room. We got a good feel for Fantin-Latour this time (in addition to Monet, Degas, Renoir, Gauguin, Rousseau, Van Gogh, Manet etc).... still working in Signac and Sisley and Pisarro; and the women, Morrisot and Cassatt.

Suja, thanks for such detailed information on so many museums. Merci!

Suja--You get an A+. I like your title, your subtitles, your warnings, your report organization, and your excellent notes.

I shall bookmark this thread and just send any forum museum pass questions right here.

We don't get museum passes anymore, but during the years we bought them, we always came out ahead in money and in time. I have tried to be clear to forum visitors, though, that the pass is ONLY worth it if one knows that museums are a top sight-seeing priority. If that IS one's priority, then it makes pounding the pavements and halls much less draining.

Your post informs that sensibility quite well.

Thank you for evaluating your transport usage so well, too.

It frustrates me to explain so many times that just because I think a museum pass might be worthwhile, that does not automatically mean I am recommending a transport pass as well.

I used to work out the math for all combinations (Mobilus, Visite, Orange/Navigo, Carnet, etc)so get the best bang for our buck. Now, I no longer bother to see our arrival day will make the Navigo our best bet--carnets are just so hassle free, especially since we can share them with the entire traveling party.

I'd like to comment on one of your points:

You said you went to some museums only because you got the pass. That is so true. Our first time at the Picasso museum was a "well, we have this pass" moment--and the Picasso then became one of our favorites.

At the same time, having the pass means you can say to yourself, "I HATE this place. Let's leave" or "I can't do this right now--let's come back tomorrow" because you don't have a one-museum monetary investment.

Very interesting and useful.

You have highlighted one of my major complaints about museums, especially those that have been built or renovated recently: lack of seating in the galleries. What are they thinking?

A friend with whom I went to college was the director of a museum in the US, and he gave me a tour a couple years ago. I pointed out the lack of seating and he pointed me to benches in the corridors. He was surprised by my desire to sit on a bench and look at the art at the same time. Older museums seem to be better about this.

In the Orangerie, there is an elevator. And there is some seating on the lower level as well.

With the aches and pains you describe, buses are your friends. Yes, they can be slow, but most of the time you are sitting, resting, and enjoying the scenery. And after a tiring museum visit, I find it a wonderful luxury to get in a taxi and be whisked home in a fraction of the time it would take on public transportation.

@ncounty - too bad about the early closure! But then you got to enjoy the fête de la musique which is a lot of fun

@mmyk72 - knowing I couldnt lift my bags up and down those stairs, so I took a metro to the nearest station with an escalator and took a taxi from there. On the way back I took a taxi all the way. In future I am thinking of finding hotels within short distance from metros with escalators.

@kerouac - Oh I am such a fool! I never thought of the people going to law courts!! Of course you are right :)

@latedaytraveler - You are welcome :)

@AlessandraZoe - Thank you for the A+ hehehe :) True about the museum pass allowing you to explore outside your primary area of interest. I think the 6 day pass was a good deal, if it had been only 2 days I would have been madly rushing about with my FOMO problem (Fear Of Missing Out) but with 6 days, I didnt mind spending 2 whole days in the Louvre and a day and a half at the Orsay. There was still enough time to explore other places.

@Nikki - I intend to send a nice email to Musée d'Orsay asking them WHAT they were thinking having only 2 or 3 places to sit in each gallery.. I wonder where I can find a nice, very light, foldable stool with a canvas/nylon seat which I can lug around with me in museums. Would the trouble of lugging it be worth it?

Canes with seats:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss...th%2Caps%2C175

@Nikki : Oh Thanks! Looks perfect - I didn't know of their existence before. Will check it out.

Thank you so much for the detailed info. It was very timely, as we will be in Paris for 2 weeks and I am just now trying to figure out the museum pass and Navigo versus carnet situation. I have not been there since 1978 and I do not remember huge lines for anything back then, so this will be very different.

@susncrg : Glad that my effort in writing it all up comes of some use :) I think July is always more crowded than June, so be prepared for the hordes. If you are lucky enough to be an early riser and can make it to the museums at opening time, the lines may be shorter - not that I ever managed! Enjoy :)

Oh I forgot to say - If anyone is visiting the Sainte Chapelle, make sure you dont have any sharp objects in your bag. The fellow in front of me had his nice & shiny Swiss Army knife confiscated (not to be returned).

Brilliant!

Entering Ste Chapelle is one of those things where I believe our French friends are being penny wise and pound foolish (or sous wise and franc foolish?).

At a euro or two a pop, how long would it take to fund and staff separate security equipment for the Chapelle? As it is, many no doubt see the lines and say the hell with it, and they lose entry fees they might collect. Surely graduates of the grandes ecoles could figure this out pretty easily.