Museums

Beyond country is full of museums. The region is rich in history and art and numerous other fascinating subjects. The larger towns and cities of Beyond, such as Aix-en-Provence, Avignon, Cannes, Marseille, and Nice have so many museums that you'll need the guides made especially for them.

A complete list of the Beyond museums is beyond the scope of Beyond. We will (and do) list what we consider the more interesting or out-of-the-ordinary museums, those that fit the spirit of Beyond. We will also add the more classical museums for selected towns and villages following requests from our readers (you).

You should find these museums listed with the village where they are located. This "museum" page is intended as an index to those village pages with the museums, along with a few that don't yet have a village page.

Museum Cards

Carte Musées Côte d'Azur
Museum cards allow prepaid entry into the museums of the Côte d'Azur. These cards can be purchased any time during the year, and become active the first time they are used. They're accepted in 58 museums and monuments, roughly between Cannes and the Italian border, including Antibes, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Nice, Blausasc, Eze, Le Cannet, La Trinité, Levens, Mougins, Saorge, Vallauris and the Vallée des Merveilles. A card is for one named person only, and good for an unlimited number of visits during its time period. The cards are available from museums, monuments and Offices de Tourismes.

For 3 consecutive days - about 15 €.

For 7 consecutive days - about 25 €.

Carte-Pass Musées de Nice
This card allow prepaid entry into the museums of the Nice. The card is valid for 7 days, from the date of purchase.

For 7 immediate days - about 10 €.

Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Museum Cards
In many museums of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence you can get a reduction card at the first museum you visit. The card has boxes to be stamped at the succeeding museums you visit, and give you various reductions at those museums. We've used this card (2006) at the Fayience Museum in Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, the Geological Museum at Digne-les-Bains and the Museum of Prehistory in Quinson.

For more information, contact the Intermusée: Tel: (33) 493 52 33 25.

List

These towns and villages have one or more museums. The most unusual have been specified here, otherwise they are usually local history or archeology museums.

Aix-en-Provence (13) - Many!

Antibes (06) - Picasso, Archeology, History

Avignon (84)

Barrème (04)

Baux-de-Provence (13) - Cathedral d'Images

Beuil (06)

Bonnieux (84) - Bread Museum

Cannes (06) - Archeology, Ethnology

Castellane (04) - Art et Traditions Populaires

Coustellet (84) - Lavender Museum

Cavaillon (84)

Digne-les-Bains (84) - Geoparc de Haute-Provence

Eze (06)

Entrevaux (04) - Motorcycle Museum; with old motorcycles (all working), located inside the fortified, medieval town.

Fontaine-de-Vaucluse (84)

Forcalquier (04)

Gordes (84) - Glass Making, Olive-Oil Mill

Grasse (06) - Perfume, others

Joucas (84) - Oil mill

Levens (06)

Mane (04)

Marseille (13) Many!

Mazan (84)

Nice (06) Many!

Oppéde (84)

Quinson (04) - Prehistory Verdon Museum

Roquebrune-sur-Argens (83)

Roure (06)

St. Paul (06)

St. Rémy (13)

Sault (84)

Valbonne (06)

Vence (06)

Verdon Museum of Prehistory (Quinson, 04)

Museums Info

Barcelonnette (04) (map)

Musée de la Vallée

tel: (33) 492 81 27 15

Open: Wed, Thur, Sat; School holidays: daily

Breil-sur-Roya (06)

Ecomusée du Haut Pays

Open: mid June-mid Sept: Wed-Mon;

Open: Easter-mid June and mid Sept-end Oct: Sat-Sun

Crillon-le-Brave (84)

Musée de la Musique Mecanique (Mechanical Music)

tel: (33) 490 65 61 59; fax: (33) 490 12 82 28

Open: Summer: daily; Winter: Sundays; Hours: 15h-19h

Cabrières d'Avignon (84)

Musée de la Lavande

tel: (33) 490 76 91 23

Renoir Museum

Chemin des Collettes

Open: 10h-12h; 14h-18h through Sept. 10h-12h; 14h-17h from 1 Oct.

Closed: Tue

The Renoir museum is located about 1000 m northeast of the town center, out the ave. Renoir and then onto the Chemin des Collettes.

Castellane - 04120

Maison des Sirènes et Siréniens

Place Marcel-Sauvaire

Tel: (33) 0492 83 19 23; Fax: (33) 0492 83 19 27

Open: 9-12h, 14-18h
May-Sept: 7 days; Oct-Apr: closed weekends and holidays

Email: sirenes@club-internet.fr

The House of Mermaids and Sirenians, and the Valley of Fossil sirens is about the myth of mermaids, with many "supporting" fossils.

Digne-les-Bains (04) (map)

Musée Municipal

Prehistoric and Gallo-Roman archeology; paleonthology, entomology

tel: (33) 492 31 45 29; fax: (33) 492 32 38 64

Open: July-Aug: daily; Sept-June: Tue-Sun

Musée d'Art Religieux (Religious Art)

tel: (33) 492 31 34 61 (Archives Départmentales)

Open: July-Sept

Musée Géologie - Promenade

Parc Saint-Benoit

Tel: (33) 0492 36 70 70; Fax: (33) 0492 36 70 71

Open all year: Apr-Oct: 7 days, 9h-18h
Nov-Mar: 9-12h, 14-17h30 (16h30 Fri) closed weekends and holidays

Email: resgeol@calvanet.fr

A geological walk museum, by the Reserve Geologique de Haute-Provence. Three theme walks in a wooded park. The museum has 10 aquariums, regional fossils and other exhibits.

Musée de la Seconde Guerre Mondial (WW II)

tel: (33) 492 31 54 80; 92 31 28 95

Open: May-Oct: Wed, 14-18:00; Nov-Apr: 1st Wed of the month

Jardin Botanique des Cordeliers (Botanical Garden)

A garden in "squares" typical of the middle ages, with over 350 aromatic and medicinal plants

tel: (33) 492 30 81 50; fax: (33) 492 32 43 73

Open: Apr-Sept

Gonfaron (83)

Cork Museum - Eco-Musée du Liège de Gonfaron

This Cork Museum has information about the cork oak tree, and a partially reconstructed old cork factory.

Gonfaron in on the N97, 10 km northeast of Carnoules (map).

Open: all year; hours: 9-12, 14-19; closed Mondays

tel: (33) 494 78 25 65; fax: (33) 494 78 25 99

Gréoux-les-Bains (04) (map)

Musée du Santon (Santons)

tel: (33) 492 77 61 08; fax: (33) 492 77 64 59

Open: 1 Mar - Sept: daily; Sept - 4 Jan: closed Mon.

Ecomusée du Vitrail et des Métiers du Verre

A museum about glass making, covering 500 BC to the present

tel: (33) 492 74 27 85; 92 87 57 05

Open: 1 Mar - 23 Dec

Moustiers-Ste-Marie (04) (map)

Musée Historique de la Faience (Pottery)

tel: (33) 492 74 61 64; fax: (33) 492 74 62 23

Open: all year

Nice (06) (map)

 

Nice- Cimiez (06) (map) The archeological museum at Cimiez, overlooking the city of Nice, is built on an ancient Roman site, and the museum includes an outdoor walk through the restored ruins of the Roman buildings and baths.
Musée et site archeologique de Cimiez; 160 ave. des Arenes, Nice; 93 81 59 57.

Pontis (04) (Vallée de l'Ubaye)

Musée de la Vallée

tel: (33) 492 44 26 94

Open: all year

Puget-Rostang (06)

Ecomusée du Pays de la Roudoule

tel: (33) 493 05 07 38; fax: (33) 493 05 13 25

Open: May-Sept: Tue-Sun; Oct-June by rendezvous

This very interesting little museum shows the geology, history and heritage of the Roudoule region. Exhibitions include ancient agricultural tools, crafts and trades, and rebuilt building interiors. There's even a set of reproductions of Bréa.

Reillanne (04) (map)

Musée des Amis des Arts

tel: (33) 490 76 46 25; 92 76 42 46

Open: 8 July - 31 Aug

Riez (04) (map)

Musée Lapidaire (Stone work ) Gallo-Roman examples

tel: (33) 492 77 82 80; fax: (33) 492 77 79 67 (Office de Tourisme)

Open: Apr-Oct; Nov-Mar by rendezvous

Musée de l'Abeille (Bee keeping)

tel: (33) 492 77 84 15; fax: (33) 492 77 82 73

Open: all year

Musée Nature en Provence

tel: (33) 492 77 82 80; fax: (33) 492 77 79 67 (Office de Tourisme)

Open: Oct-Dec

Saint Martin-de-Brômes (04) (Verdon)

Musée Gallo-Romain

tel: (33) 492 78 02 07; 92 77 63 82

Open: 1 May - 15 Sept, Tue-Sun

Saint Paul-sur-Ubaye (04) (Vallée de l'Ubaye)

Musée de la Vallée

tel: (33) 492 84 36 23

Open: 8 July - 31 Aug; Hours: 15:00-17:00

Sisteron - 04200

Musée Terre & Temps

6 Place Général-de-Gaulle

Tel: (33) 0492 61 61 30; Fax: (33) 0492 61 61 31

Open: July-Aug: 7 days, 10-13h, 15-19h
Apr-Oct: Wed-Sun, 9h30-12h30, 14-18h
May, June, Sept: 7 days, 9h30-12h30, 14-18h

Email: musee_terre_et_temps@libertysurf.fr

The Earth and Time museum is dedicated to measuring the time of men and the time of the earth

Sospel (06) (map)

Gare SNCF - Orient-Express

Visit the Orient-Express, at the Gare de Sospel (Railway station)

Open: all year

tel: (33) 493 04 00 43; fax: (33) 493 04 04 69 (Restaurant l'Escargot d'Or)

Vachères (04) (Montagne de Lure)

Musée - Regional antiques; Fossils; Roman artifacts

tel: (33) 490 75 62 16 (Mairie)

Open: all year

Valensole (04) (map)

Musée Vivant de l'Abeille (Bee keeping)

tel: (33) 492 74 85 28

Open: Jun-Sep, Mon-Sat; Oct-May, Tue-Sat

Vallauris (06) (map)

Musée de la Poterie

Villeneuve (04) (La Durance)

Musée

tel: (33) 492 78 45 45; 92 78 44 74

Open: all year, Saturdays

Volx (04)

Ecomusée du Savon (Soap)

tel: (33) 492 70 35 21

Open: Jul-Aug, every day; Sep-June, closed Saturdays

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