The Orleans Museum of Fine Arts
Right next to the Sainte-Croix d’Orléans cathedral, you’re entering a museum that has all the makings of a great one!
Founded during the Revolution, the Musée des Beaux-Arts d’Orléans is surely one of the richest and oldest museums in France…
It’s a little Louvre waiting to be discovered! Its collection covers artistic creation from the 15th to the 20th century. Flemish, Dutch and Italian paintings, French works from the 17th and 18th centuries, including a cabinet of pastels, sculptures, drawings and prints. In all, 1100 works are on display…
Temporary exhibitions on a national scale are also regularly on offer, as well as lecture series and workshops for children.
Musée des Beaux-Arts d’Orléans
1 Rue Fernand Rabier
45000 Orléans
Le Muséum d’Orléans pour la Biodiversité et l’Environnement (MOBE)
The Orleans Museum for Biodiversity and the Environment (MOBE) is a museum of scientific culture. With its 5 levels and 1,200 specimens and samples on display (out of 435,000), the MOBE offers a discovery of the world around us. On the 1st floor, “le Plateau” is devoted to temporary presentations and the history of the museum.
On the 2nd floor, the exhibition explores the workings of biodiversity, its links with geodiversity and its evolution, in a whole range of organisms, from moose to ferns, from humans to crows, and including micro-organisms.
On the 3rd level, immersive spaces allow visitors to discover how environments were formed and how they function, past and present. On these levels, collections, manipulations, multimedia and graphics allow everyone to find something of interest. Le 4 Tiers, on the 4th floor, is a free, participatory debate centre designed to empower citizens, develop critical thinking and combat ready-made thinking.
The tour ends with a hands-on experience with the plants in MOBE’s vertical greenhouse. Workshops, lectures and interactive formats are available to take the experience further.
Hôtel Cabu, Orleans Museum of History and Archaeology
This museum is housed in a beautiful Renaissance hotel in the heart of Orleans old town.
Visit the Hôtel Cabu for the treasure of Neuvy-en-Sullias, an exceptional collection of Gallic and Gallo-Roman bronzes.
Other highlights include objects and works evoking the history of Joan of Arc and Orleans, medieval statues, local and regional crafts, and the port of Orleans.
Hôtel Cabu, Museum of History and Archaeology
21 Rue Sainte-Catherine
45000 Orléans
Joan of Arc House
Joan of Arc, the heroine of Orleans, also has her own house !
The timber-framed house in the Place de Gaulle is a reconstruction of the home of Jacques Boucher, treasurer general to the Duke of Orleans, who welcomed Joan of Arc during the siege of Orleans in 1429.
The Joan of Arc House offers a tour in French and English, based around a multimedia room and a research and documentation centre.
Joan of Arc House
3 Place du Général de Gaulle
45000 Orléans
The Frac Centre-Val de Loire
Go there as much for the quality of its collection and major events as for the building’s dynamic architecture.
The Frac Centre-Val de Loire is housed in the former Subsistances militaires in Orléans. They are extended by three glass and steel outgrowths called “Turbulences“, designed by the Jakob + MacFarlane agency. At night, this contemporary extension is dressed in a “skin of light” designed by the artist duo Electronic Shadow.
In terms of its collection, the Frac brings together contemporary art and experimental architecture from the 1950s to the present day. The internationally acclaimed collection comprises some 600 works, 800 architectural models, 15,000 drawings and architects’ fonds.
On the programme, discover the Frac’s temporary exhibitions, the Orléans Architecture Biennial and take part in workshops and family visits, Flash visits and guided tours.
Frac Centre-Val de Loire
88 rue du Colombier
45000 Orléans
Cercil, Vel d’Hiv Children’s Memorial Museum
When you enter the Cercil – Vel d’Hiv Children’s Memorial Museum, you are entering a place of remembrance.
This unique site offers a tour focusing on the internment camps in the Loiret during the Second World War, with thousands of documents, photographs, archives, newsreels from the period and audio and video testimonies.
It provides an insight into the role of the Pithiviers and Beaune-la-Rolande camps, where over 16,000 Jews were interned, and the Jargeau camp, where nomads were interned.
Cercil’s programme includes temporary exhibitions, lectures, stories and testimonies on the issues of war and genocide.
Cercil – Musée Mémorial des enfants du Vel d’Hiv
45 rue du Bourdon Blanc
45000 Orléans
Musée Campanaire Bollée
The Musée Campanaire Bollée in Saint-Jean-de-Braye, part of Orleans Metropole, invites you to discover the craft of bell making!
For 8 generations, the Bollée foundry has been creating the bells for the most beautiful cathedrals. In fact, more than 60 cathedrals in France and around the world ring out the chimes from its workshops.
Find out more about the job of Maître Saintier, take part in a guided tour of the bell foundry and visit its museum, where you can see how a bell is made from start to finish.
Musée campanaire Bollée
156 rue du Faubourg Bourgogne
45800 Saint-Jean-de-Braye
Orleans museums in your CityPass
On a weekend in Orleans, choose CityPass to visit the museums !
As well as access to all the museums, the CityPass Orléans Métropole offers you :
- a free guided tour (or audio tour) of the town of your choice
- a free river trip on the Loire (subject to seasonality)
- a free tour of Orléans on the little tourist train (subject to seasonality)
- vouchers and discounts for all kinds of activities
- a digital guide that goes everywhere with you
- and much more besides…