Things to do for Students in Paris

Paris has quite the pedigree when it comes to hoarding priceless art and artifacts. Little surprise then that this is where you can visit the largest museum on Earth, as well as ogling the finest collection of French Impressionist masterpieces anywhere in the world. Here are a few of our faves, including discounts and freebies for students…

• The Louvre Museum. The mighty Louvre needs little introduction: its vast collection of art includes world-famous works including the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Great Sphinx of Tanis. Little wonder it's the world’s most popular art museum, and – with a whopping eight miles of galleries – its largest. Visitors aged 18-25 from from the EU, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein get free entry with valid ID. For everyone else, the Paris Pass® is a great way of ticking off multiple Paris attractions, including the Louvre, for up to half the usual cost of admission.
• Musée d’Orsay. Home to Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterpieces galore and housed inside a beautiful Beaux-Arts railway station, Musée d’Orsay is your best pick for a broad overview of the works of (deep breath) Manet, Monet, Rodin, Renoir, van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec, Degas, Cézanne et al. Students of the arts (up to the age of 30) go free with a valid current ID indicating relevant area of study.

• The Petit Palais. Free to all, this (relatively) diminutive delight is a work of art in its own right, with ionic columns, decorative arcades and stained-glass windows bringing the architectural eye candy. There are also plenty of sculptures and paintings to ogle, including landmark pieces by Pissarro, Monet and Bartholdi.
• Musée de l’Orangerie. Tucked away in the southwest corner of the Jardin des Tuileries, this stately gallery is where it’s at for further adventures in French Impressionism, including two oval rooms that were purpose-built for displaying Monet’s must-see Water Lilies (pictured). As with the Louvre, students aged under 26 from the EEA go free.

Check out our guide to the best galleries in Paris here.

Paris has an embarrassment of iconic landmarks, and you don’t always have to dig deep to enjoy them. Here are some of the most student-friendly Paris attractions…

• The Eiffel Tower. You can admire this marvel of 19th-century engineering from a number of vantage points in Paris. But few can beat the close-ups afforded by Champs-de-Mars, the perfectly manicured park that lies immediately behind the Iron Lady. Entry is of course free. But for students who covet the full experience, there are savings to be had with the Paris Pass®, which includes a guided climb to the Eiffel Tower’s second floor.
• Sacré-Cœur Basilica. Free to enter and perfectly placed for a sightseeing stroll around historic Montmartre, this hilltop confection is essential viewing for any architecture student worthy of the name.

• Notre-Dame de Paris. The same applies to Notre-Dame, where it’s free to enter the nave, choir, and aisles, and of course to eyeball the cathedral’s glorious gothic exterior, complete with gargoyles and grotesques galore.
• Arc de Triomphe. The monumental Neoclassical arch at the western end of the Champs-Elysées serves as a fitting memorial to all the soldiers who died in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars. Admission is free for EU citizens aged 18-25. The best bet for everyone else is, once again, the Paris Pass®.

Parks, gardens, historic neighborhoods and sensational cemeteries: there are plenty more places for students to explore in Paris without putting too much of a dent in the beer fund. Here are just a few of our top picks..

• Hang out in the Latin Quarter. Follow in the footsteps of such literary luminaries as Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein and James Joyce in the storied streets of the Latin Quarter. This historic enclave is also where you’ll find the mighty Panthéon mausoleum (free to EU citizens aged 18-25), as well as leafy Luxembourg Gardens, one of central Paris’s most beautiful parks. Don’t miss free literary events and readings at the legendary Shekespeare and Company bookstore, a magical labyrinthine place straight from the pages of a Dickens novel.
• Père Lachaise Cemetery. The final resting place of Édith Piaf, Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Chopin, Molière and more is chock-full of magnificent monuments to the dearly departed and a must-do for students of all disciplines. Go it alone or take an illuminating walking tour with the Paris Pass®.

• Wander the Marais. The historic Marais neighborhood is Paris in microcosm, all cobbled lanes, manicured garden squares and must-see museums. Grab lunch from the Marché des Enfants Rouge, Paris’s oldest covered market, and make a picnic of it in people-watching mecca the Place des Vosges. Check out the extraordinary art collections in the Centre Pompidou and fine Picasso Museum, both of course free to EU citizens aged 18-25. And whatever you do, don’t miss the atmospheric Jewish district’s life-changing falafel joints.
• Parc des Buttes-Chaumont. Paris ain’t short of a fine park or two, but for something a little less touristy, Parc des Buttes-Chaumont in the 19th arrondissement is second-to-none. Jump on the Métro and emerge in the verdant surroundings of this 61-acre Eden, which comes complete with waterfalls, secret grottoes, an Eiffel-designed suspension bridge, and some of the best free views in Paris.

Students can explore a plethora of Paris attractions for one low price with the Paris Pass®. Click the buttons below to find out more and grab your pass.