Maritime Museum
Floating museum in the trawler basin (opened 1988), with a heritage fleet of nine vessels incl. the weather ship France I; three can be boarded.
Place Bernard Moitessier, 17000 La Rochelle
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Museums in La Rochelle
Historic ships afloat in the old trawler basin, a cabinet of curiosities from the 18th century, the city’s Atlantic past in the Hôtel Fleuriau and an aquarium of 12,000 sea creatures — the museums of La Rochelle, with what is open and what is closed in autumn 2026.
Good to know (October 2026): the Fine Arts Museum has been closed for renovation since 2018 — its reopening is planned for 2027. The Automata and Scale Models Museum closed for good on 5 November 2023. The municipal museums are free for under-18s and on the first Sunday of the month (except July–August).
Natural History Museum
Municipal natural history museum on rue Albert-Ier, free for under-18s.
28 rue Albert 1er, 17000 La Rochelle
New World Museum
Museum in the Hôtel Fleuriau (opened 1982) on La Rochelle's links with the Americas, including the slave trade and slavery in the Antilles.
10 rue Fleuriau, 17000 La Rochelle
La Rochelle Aquarium
Private aquarium facing the Old Port since 2001 (founded by René Coutant in 1972), with about 12,000 animals of 600 species.
Quai Louis Prunier, 17000 La Rochelle
La Rochelle Museum of Protestant History
Small museum on the history of Protestantism in La Rochelle, Aunis and Saintonge, focused on the 16th-17th-century Huguenot capital.
2 rue Saint-Michel, 17000 La Rochelle
Fine Arts Museum
Fine arts museum in the former bishop's palace (rebuilt 1769-1774), with works by Corot, Fromentin and Bouguereau; closed for renovation since 2018.
28 rue Gargoulleau, 17000 La Rochelle
Automata and Scale Models Museum
Private museum opened in 1984 with over 300 automata, sharing premises with the scale-model museum; closed on 5 November 2023, building demolished.
12-14 rue de la Désirée, 17000 La Rochelle
The museums on the map
Tickets and passes for the municipal museums
The Maritime Museum and the Natural History Museum each charge €8 (groups €6, family “tribu” ticket €10). A combined ticket for three museums costs €18 and is valid for one month; the inter-museum pass costs €30 and is valid for twelve months, and a combined ticket with the towers of the Vieux-Port costs €15.
Admission is free for under-18s, for students under 26 and for everyone on the first Sunday of the month, except in July and August. The New World Museum does not publish its prices on the pages we consulted — check its website before you go.
La Rochelle Aquarium Open every day
The aquarium grew out of René Coutant’s first closed-circuit seawater tanks: its first public exhibition opened in 1972 at Ville-en-Bois. In 2001 it moved into a building by the architect Éric Cordier on the edge of the Vieux-Port’s large yacht basin. Still owned by the Coutant group, it shows more than 12,000 marine animals of 600 species in 82 aquariums holding about 3 million litres of seawater — half of it for the shark tank.
With about 800,000 visitors a year it is the most visited site in Charente-Maritime. It also runs a care centre for stranded sea turtles (CESTM) and works with La Rochelle Université. Count on about an hour and a half for the visit.
Address Quai Louis Prunier, 17000 La Rochelle
Phone +33 5 46 34 00 00 Hours every day of the year, hours vary by period — e.g. 1–16 Oct 10:00–19:30, 17 Oct–1 Nov 9:00–20:00, 2 Nov–18 Dec 10:00–19:00; 25 Dec and 1 Jan 14:00–20:00; last entry about 1½ hours before closing
Admission adults €18.50 (reduced €16.50), 13–17 years €14.50, 3–12 years €12.50, under 3 free (prices of 28 July 2026)
aquarium-larochelle.com
La Rochelle Museum of Protestant History Summer season
This small museum on rue Saint-Michel tells the history of Protestantism in La Rochelle, Aunis and Saintonge, with a focus on the 16th and 17th centuries, when La Rochelle was the “Huguenot capital” of France.
It opens in the afternoon during the summer season only (from late June to mid-September; the tourist office gives 26 June–17 September); other visits can be arranged on request.
Address 2 rue Saint-Michel, 17000 La Rochelle
Hours summer season: Mon–Sat 14:30–18:00, Sun closed
Admission €5 (reduced €2.50, children free, groups of more than 8 €4)
Summer season (late June – mid-September)
| Monday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Tuesday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Wednesday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Thursday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Friday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Saturday | 14:30–18:00 |
| Sunday | Closed |
Fine Arts Museum Closed until 2027
The Fine Arts Museum occupies the former bishop’s palace, an early-17th-century mansion rebuilt in 1769–1774 in the neoclassical style to plans by Gilles Nassivet. It was created from works acquired from 1841 by the Société des Amis des Arts, and its collection of about 900 paintings and drawings covers European art from the 15th to the 20th century — Eustache Le Sueur, Luca Giordano, and above all the 19th century with Corot, Fromentin, Bouguereau (L’Océanide, 1904) and many views of the port of La Rochelle.
The museum has been closed for renovation since 2018. Its reopening is planned for 2027 (according to Wikipedia); the official website gives no date yet. Until then, discover the artists who painted the port on our page Painters of La Rochelle.
Address 28 rue Gargoulleau, 17000 La Rochelle
Phone +33 5 46 41 64 65 Hours closed for renovation (reopening planned for 2027)
Admission —
museedesbeauxarts.larochelle.fr
Sources: museemaritime.larochelle.fr · museum.larochelle.fr · aquarium-larochelle.com · Wikipedia (Aquarium La Rochelle) · holidays-la-rochelle.co.uk (Protestant museum) · museedesbeauxarts.larochelle.fr · Wikipedia (Musée des Beaux-Arts) · Routard (Automata Museum). Checked 14 October 2026.