--- title: "Musée de la Vie Bourguignonne, Dijon: Free Entry, Highlights" description: "Daily life in Burgundy, 18th to 20th century: costumes and a street of old shops in a convent cloister. Free, closed Tuesdays. Driver from Beaune." url: https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/musee-vie-bourguignonne lang: en updated: 2026-10-02 generated: 2026-10-08 image: https://www.cote-privee.com/og/things-to-do/musee-vie-bourguignonne.png --- # Museum of Burgundian Life (Musée de la Vie bourguignonne Perrin de Puycousin) > Museum of Burgundian Life: Everyday life in old Burgundy, with costumes and a street of Dijon shops, in a convent cloister. Museum of Burgundian Life is in Dijon (Côte-d'Or), 43 min by road (47 km) from Beaune. Allow 1 to 2 hours · UNESCO World Heritage · Private driver from Beaune: €120 one way for the whole car, up to 4 guests. This free museum tells the story of daily life in Burgundy and Dijon from the 18th to the 20th century. It occupies the cloister of a 17th-century convent of Cistercian nuns. Rural interiors, regional costumes and a street of reconstructed Dijon shops make the past easy to picture. ## Key facts - Type: Museums - Location: 35 km north-east of Beaune · Côte-d'Or - Coordinates: 47.3174, 5.0380 - 43 min from Beaune - Allow 1 to 2 hours - UNESCO World Heritage - Where: [Dijon · Côte-d'Or](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/dijon) - Official website: [musees.dijon.fr](https://musees.dijon.fr/) - From Beaune: ≈ 43 min · 47 km - €120 one way from Beaune with a [private driver](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver) - Or add it to our [full-day wine tour, €560](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day). ## Getting there - [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver): 43 min by road (47 km), €120 one way for the whole car. Coming by train or plane? [Transfers from stations and airports](https://www.cote-privee.com/transfers) Estimates per vehicle for up to 4 guests, tolls included. Your price is confirmed when you book. ## History The collections began with Maurice Perrin de Puycousin, born in Tournus in 1856. Inspired by Frédéric Mistral's museum in Arles, he collected furniture, costumes, headdresses and household objects between 1880 and 1920. He gave his collection to the city of Dijon in 1935, and a first museum opened on rue des Forges in 1938. Perrin de Puycousin died in 1949, and that museum closed in 1970. Cistercian nuns from Tart settled in Dijon in the 1620s and built a monastery here. The cloister dates from 1679 to 1681 and the domed church of Sainte-Anne from 1699 to 1708. After the Revolution the buildings became an orphanage, then housed hospital services until 1983. In 1985 the cloister became the home of the Musée de la Vie bourguignonne. ## What you will see On the ground floor, scenes recreate rural Burgundy in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with furniture, tools and costumes shown as they were used. Upstairs, a street of old Dijon shops has been rebuilt, including a pharmacy, a grocery and a butcher's. Other rooms cover local industries, among them mustard, and the crafts of stone, earth and wood, with portraits of Burgundy people by noted photographers. ## Planning your visit Entry is free. The museum is closed on Tuesdays and on some public holidays, and it has a lift. It shares its site with the Musée d'Art sacré, in the domed church next door, so you can easily see both. In a heatwave the museum may open for the morning only. Check the official website for opening times. ## Did you know? The nuns who built this convent came from Tart, in Burgundy, where the very first Cistercian abbey for women was founded in 1125. ## Around Museum of Burgundian Life What to combine with Museum of Burgundian Life on the same day, nearest first. ### Villages - [Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/dijon) (1 km away): Burgundy's historic capital, city of the Valois dukes and northern gateway to the Route des Grands Crus. - [Marsannay-la-Côte](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/marsannay-la-cote) (6 km away): Gateway to the Côte de Nuits and Burgundy's only village appellation making red, white and rosé. - [Fixin](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/fixin) (9 km away): A quiet wine village with Napoleon in the woods, a Romanesque church in the vines and firm reds. ### Châteaux - [Château de Montmusard](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-montmusard) (2 km away): The surviving wing of a daring neoclassical pleasure house designed by Charles De Wailly. - [Château de Fontaine-lès-Dijon (Maison natale de saint Bernard)](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-fontaine-les-dijon), 4 km away: The hilltop birthplace of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, overlooking Dijon. - [Château de Marsannay](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-marsannay) (7 km away): A modern wine château at the northern gateway to the Côte de Nuits. ### Things to do - [Dijon Museum of Sacred Art (Musée d’Art sacré de Dijon)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/musee-art-sacre-dijon), 1 km away: Treasures from the churches of Côte-d'Or, shown in the domed church of the Bernardine nuns. - [Palais de justice de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/palais-de-justice-parlement-de-bourgogne-dijon) (1 km away): The 16th-century home of the Parliament of Burgundy, now the court of appeal, with a gilded chamber and a great vaulted hall. - [Saint-Philibert Church, Dijon (Église Saint-Philibert)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/eglise-saint-philibert), 1 km away: Dijon's only Romanesque church, once the winegrowers' parish, now closed for a long restoration. ### Restaurants - [Loiseau des Ducs](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/loiseau-des-ducs-dijon) (1 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): The Loiseau signature in Dijon, served beneath the vaults of a sixteenth-century mansion - [William Frachot](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/william-frachot-dijon) (1 km away · 2 MICHELIN stars): Dijon's two-star table, reinventing Burgundy's classics inside the Hostellerie du Chapeau Rouge - [Origine](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/origine-dijon) (1 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): A Lameloise-trained Japanese chef cooking Burgundy's seasons on place Wilson ### Events - **Saturday, 10 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Show les papilles](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/show-les-papilles-dijon): Dijon's free festival of taste at the Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Sunday, 11 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Marathon des Grands Crus](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/marathon-des-grands-crus): A marathon on the closed Route des Grands Crus, from Dijon to the Clos de Vougeot and back. (Sport · Dijon) - **Friday 23 – Sunday 25 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Salon des Vignerons Indépendants de Bourgogne et du Jura](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/salon-vignerons-independants-dijon): Some sixty independent growers from Burgundy and the Jura pour and sell their wines in Dijon. (Wine festival · Dijon) - **Saturday 31 October – Wednesday 11 November 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Foire internationale et gastronomique de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/foire-gastronomique-dijon): Burgundy's great food fair, held every autumn in Dijon since 1921. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Usually from the last Saturday of November to the first Sunday of January.** · [Les Fééries de Noël de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/feeries-de-noel-dijon): Chalets, vin chaud, an ice rink and a big wheel across the heart of Dijon. (Christmas · Dijon) - **Usually from late November to early December.** · [Les Nuits d’Orient et d’ailleurs](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/nuits-d-orient-et-d-ailleurs-dijon): Dijon's winter festival of music, dance and art from the Orient and beyond. (Culture · Dijon) - **Each year on the weekend after the Saint-Vincent Tournante, usually a Saturday in late January or early February.** · [Saint-Vincent de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/saint-vincent-de-dijon): Dijon honours the patron saint of winegrowers with a parade and a tasting village. (Tradition · Dijon) - **Usually a weekend in early June.** · [Grand Prix de l’Âge d’Or](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/grand-prix-age-d-or-dijon-prenois): France's oldest historic motor racing meeting, on the hills just outside Dijon. (Sport · Prenois) - **Every Sunday from late June to late September.** · [Le Brunch des Halles](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/brunch-des-halles-dijon): Summer Sunday brunches cooked by local chefs under Dijon's iron market hall. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Every two years, in even-numbered years; recent editions were held in early July. The next is expected in 2028.** · [Les Fêtes de la Vigne de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/fetes-de-la-vigne-dijon): Dijon's international folk festival, born in 1946 and held every two years. (Culture · Dijon) - **Friday 27 – Sunday 29 August 2027 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Golden Coast Festival](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/golden-coast-festival-dijon): Three days of French and international rap in a park on the edge of Dijon. (Music · Dijon) - **Usually a Sunday in mid September.** · [Vélotour Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/velotour-dijon): A playful bike ride through Dijon that opens places normally closed to cyclists. (Sport · Dijon) - **Usually the third weekend of September, during the European Heritage Days.** · [Fête de la Pressée](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/fete-de-la-pressee-chenove): The dukes' giant wine presses come back to life in Chenôve's old village. (Tradition · Chenôve) - **Usually the last days of September and the first days of October.** · [Tribu Festival](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/tribu-festival-dijon): Dijon's festival of world music, jazz and adventurous sounds, at the turn of October. (Music · Dijon) ## Questions about Museum of Burgundian Life ### How far is Museum of Burgundian Life from Beaune? Museum of Burgundian Life is about 43 min from Beaune by road (47 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €120 for the whole car, up to 4 guests. ### How long does a visit to Museum of Burgundian Life take? For the visit, allow 1 to 2 hours. ### When is Museum of Burgundian Life open? Opening days and times change during the year, so check the official website (musees.dijon.fr) before you go. Your driver can plan the day around them. ### Is Museum of Burgundian Life a UNESCO World Heritage site? Yes. Museum of Burgundian Life is part of a site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. ### Can a private driver take us to Museum of Burgundian Life? Yes. Your driver collects you in Beaune or at your hotel in an electric Polestar 2 (up to 4 guests), waits while you visit and plans the rest of the day with you. The driver speaks English, French, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic. → [Full-day wine tour, €560](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day) ## Book - [Book a driver here](https://www.cote-privee.com/book?service=driver&place=sight:viebourguignonne): €120 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests ## Sources - - - - - --- Canonical page: