The Les Invalides entry ticket
What this ticket opens, building by building
Start with the most asked-about: the Dôme, the former royal church built by Jules Hardouin-Mansart between 1677 and 1706, whose cupola was painted by Charles de La Fosse. That is where Napoleon’s tomb sits, in an open crypt cut under the cupola in 1842. We walk through it step by step on the tomb page.
Then the Army Museum itself, which is not one museum but three: the arms and armour of the 13th to 17th centuries, the Louis XIV–Napoleon III department, and the two World Wars department. The detail is on its page.
Then the Museum of Relief Maps, under the roof: Louis XIV’s scale models of fortified towns, in a nearly dark room that half of all visitors never find. See the relief-maps page.
And finally the Museum of the Order of the Liberation and the Charles de Gaulle Historial, two newer, plainer spaces that are usually empty. See the Order of the Liberation and the Historial.
Included
- The permanent collections of the Army Museum
- The Dôme, the royal church, and the tomb of Napoleon I
- The Museum of Relief Maps, under the roof
- The Museum of the Order of the Liberation
- The Charles de Gaulle Historial
- The temporary exhibitions currently running
Not included
- A guide or audio guide, which are taken separately
- The courtyard and the Saint-Louis cathedral, which are free anyway
- A cloakroom for large bags and suitcases, which are not accepted
- The Rodin Museum, a neighbour but a separate institution
Why there is no “tomb” ticket
The question comes up every day, and it rests on a reasonable intuition: you picture a standalone funerary monument with its own door and its own ticket desk. That is not how it works. The Dôme is part of the same complex as the museum, run by the same institution, and the visitor route passes from one to the other. If you are hunting for a price for the tomb alone, you are hunting for something that does not exist — and the good news is that the ticket you actually need opens far more. I write about that on the what-it-costs page.
What works
- One purchase for the entire ticketed site, tomb included
- Valid all day: you can leave and come back
- No timed slot, so no penalty for running late
- Temporary exhibitions are included
- Rated 4.6 across more than ten thousand reviews
Worth knowing
- No commentary included: the museum has to be read
- The ticket is non-refundable
- The sheer volume surprises people: allow two hours minimum
- Some spaces close on the first Monday of the month
Keep the ticket to hand after the Dôme: it is checked again at the entrance to the other spaces. Plenty of visitors bury it in a bag on the way out of the crypt and then hunt for it on the stairs up to the relief maps.
Book this ticket
Day-by-day availability is below. The other formats are compared on the bookings page and our detailed review is on the review page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Napoleon’s tomb included?
Yes, at no extra cost. The Dôme that holds it is part of the route this ticket opens: see the tomb page.
How long does the ticket stay valid?
The whole day. You can go out for lunch on the rue Saint-Dominique and come back to finish the museum in the afternoon.
Is a guide or audio guide included?
No, this is an entry ticket only. The museum is very well labelled; if you want a continuous narrative, compare on this page.
Can you bring a suitcase?
No. Large bags and luggage are not accepted and there is no left-luggage facility. Plan to drop your things elsewhere before coming.