http://www.paris-conciergerie.fr/en/
This less famous museum is very near Notre-Dame and is a quick yet meaningful site to see. It’s the famous Paris prison where Marie Antoinette was held before her beheading. The museum is housed in a building on the Île de la Cité and is also close to the Sainte-Chapelle.
Entrance to the museum is on Boulevard du Palais. If you have a Paris Pass, you just show it to the ticket taker and walk right in. The rooms are vast and cavernous, very atmospheric. There was a neat exhibit/art installation in the first room while we were there that used Paris river water. Lots of do not touch signs!
The rooms are where the unfortunate souls who were imprisoned there during the Revolution ate and spent most of their time. There is a one-way walk through the exhibits, including the actual cell where Marie Antoinette was held and the chapel where she worshipped. There is a poignant courtyard where you can almost hear the prayers whispered by past lost souls imprisoned there. Don’t miss the room on the left right before the exit that has 4 enormous fireplaces where the cooks made the food for the prisoners.
Kids will love imagining themselves in the cold stone cells. It really brings to life the final end for so many of the unfortunate souls caught up in the French Revolution.
Helpful hints:
- Cost: 9EUR/children free
- Recommended: any age
- Tour will take 30-45 minutes
- Super small gift shop at the entrance, not worth walking back to see.
- Metro: Cité
- Dining options: The Brasserie Les Deux Palais is across the street. You could also follow the Boulevard du Palais across the Pont Notre-Dame bridge to the commercial area around Rue de Rivoli.
- Nearby attractions include: Sainte-Chapelle, Pont Neuf, and Notre-Dame
Books to read:
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Adults/Young Adults:
- Marie Antoinette: The Journey
- Marie-Antoinette
- Becoming Marie Antoinette: A Novel (Book 1 of 3)
- Days of Splendor, Days of Sorrow: A Novel of Marie Antoinette (Book 2 of 3)
- Confessions of Marie Antoinette: A Novel (Book 3 of 3)
- Where the Light Falls: A Novel of the French Revolution
- Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution’s Women
Middle Grade:
- Who Was Marie Antoinette?
- The French Revolution: Terror and Triumph
- The French Revolution & Napoleonic Era for Kids through the lives of royalty, rebels, and thinkers
- In the Reign of Terror: A Story of the French Revolution
- The Lacemaker and the Princess
Picture Books:
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