Spend a Night at the Musée d'Orsay
And watch the Paris Olympics from the balcony!
Imagine being able to sleep among the finest Impressionist works of Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, and Van Gogh. All by yourself. In a train station. And then step outside on the balcony to watch the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
When I first saw the abandoned train station, I was only 21, and it was 1979. As I explain in my new book Paris for Life, …I was walking along the Seine with my friend Heidi when a building with a large clock across the street caught my eye. It was a train station I had never seen before, although there didn’t seem to be any passengers—or trains for that matter.
Heidi explained. “That’s Gare d’Orsay. It was built for the Paris-Orleans train route around 1900, with fully electric tracks. Many people feel that it’s the most beautiful station in Paris. It has a gilt clock towering over the main hall. I wish you could see it!”
“Could we go there now?” I asked.
“No. Unfortunately, the station is too small for today’s trains and has been closed for years now. There’s talk of turning it into a museum, but that would be quite an undertaking.”
And what an undertaking it was. But in 1986, it was finally turned into a museum.
Entering the Musée d’Orsay gives me the feeling of being in the majestic train station, with a high glass panel ceiling, arched windows, and an old gold clock hanging on the glass wall. Now, instead of trains, it holds the largest collection of Impressionist and Postimpressionist art in the world. Monet, Manet, Renoir, Cézanne, and Van Gogh are among the masters represented there.
Full of natural light, the repurposed Gare d’Orsay still gives us the opportunity for a voyage. But instead of cold steel rails, we travel via the eyes of the greatest artists to distant lands and forgotten times.
And the Musée d’Orsay has teamed up with Airbnb to offer one couple the opportunity to sleep in the museum for one night only (July 26, 2024) under the iconic clock. The guests will get a guided tour of the private area in the museum before retiring to their specially crafted room overlooking the Seine.
Click here to take a look at the Airbnb link and see the details!