A visit to the Maison de Victor Hugo is included in most guided tours of the Marais district and on literary tours of Paris. The museum focuses on his life before, during, and after his self-imposed exile from 1860s Napoleonic France. Visitors can tour the rooms—sumptuously decorated by Hugo himself, who had an interest in interior decor—in which he wrote and lived from 1832 to 1848, including the bed he passed away in from pneumonia.
The Maison de Victor Hugo contains manuscripts and correspondence belonging to Hugo and even some first editions of his work. Temporary exhibitions pertain to the author’s life, and an immense library is open to the public by appointment.