The Louvre is the largest museum in the world, with an area of over 60,000 square meters (about 650,000 square feet) and at any one time displaying over 35,000 out of the total 380,000 items owned by the museum. The Louvre is home to many famous works of art, including the Mona Lisa, the sculpture of Aphrodite and the building itself is a breathtaking example of French post-renaissance architecture. The Louvre which started as a fortress to defend Paris against Viking attacks and then was transformed into a palace of kings was officially opened as a museum during the French Revolution.
This museum is unlike any other in the world and is sure to impress and delight even the most reluctant museum visitor. We highly recommend you visit this tourist site.
What's the best way to enter the Louvre?
With over 8.5 million annual visitors, the lines to get into the Louvre can sometimes be hours long. However, you can bypass most of the crowds by taking the entrance from the Métro stop at Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre, which is accessible from both lines 1 and 7 of the Paris Métro. When you exit the station you'll find yourself in the Galerie du Carrousel which is a shopping mall. Just follow the signs to the Louvre, you'll find yourself under the famous glass pyramid where you can buy your tickets.
There are several other entry points into the Louvre including the main entrance through the glass pyramid, but the lines tend to get pretty long so we recommend the entrance above. After you are done with your visit, you can exit via the glass pyramid and enjoy the courtyard and laugh at the people who didn't read this TravelBite and are standing in line to get in!
What's the regular ticket price
Regular full price tickets are €11, but this does not include admission to the Hall Napoléon, which houses the temporary collection. You can get access to only the Hall Napoléon for €12, or access to both the main museum (regular price €11) and the Hall Napoléon (regular price €12) for €15, which is a great deal if you plan on seeing both.
The temporary collection at the Hall Napoléon changes often, so before you shell out the extra €4 find out from the Louvre website ( at www.louvre.fr) what's being currently exhibited there. Also keep in mind that unless you're spending more than a day at the Louvre, you probably won't have time to see both unless you rush through, which we don't recommend.
You don't need to buy the ticket before you visit the museum, just buy it at one of the many ticket counters or automated machines. The Louvre automated ticket machines do take cards that don't have a Chip and Pin card (almost all US credit cards do not have a Chip and Pin system).
Is admission free for any special cases?
Admission is free for all visitors on the first Sunday of each month and on July 14 (the French National Day).
(this does not include the temporary exhibitions in the Napoleon Hall). It's also free for the following cases:
Visitors under the age of 18
18-25 year-old residents of the European Economic Area (EU, Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein)
Teachers of art, art history, and the applied arts
Holders of the "Pass Education" (primary and secondary school teachers in French public schools and private schools receiving government subsidies)
Artists affiliated to the Maison des Artistes (in France) or the AIAP (Association Internationale des Arts Plastiques)
Unemployed individuals and visitors receiving benefits (proof of entitlement must be dated within the last six months)
Disabled visitors and their guest or helper
Finally, on Friday evenings from 6 p.m. to 9:45 p.m., admission to the permanent collections is free for under-26s regardless of nationality (upon presentation of ID).
What are the visiting hours for the museum?
The hours vary depending on the day, and keep in mind that the museum is closed on Tuesdays.
Monday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday: from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Wednesday and Friday: from 9 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.
July 14th and August 15th are national holidays observed by the Louvre, when the museum closes at 5.30. The Louvre is closed on January 1, May 1 and December 25.
How do I get an audio guide to the museum?
Unless you're exploring the museum with a guide, we highly recommend you rent an audio guide. This is an interactive handheld device that talks about the room you're currently in at the Louvre, and shows you a touch-screen map of the room you're in. Exhibits that have more information about them are marked on the screen, and touching each will give you another recorded segment about that particular item. Before you start on your visit make sure you familiarize yourself with the device, it can be challenging for the new user so getting someone at the rental desk to show you how it works is a good idea. The audio guide is very well done and a good complement to your visit.
The cost for renting this device (a customized Nintendo 3DS) is €5 for adults, and €3 for children under 18 years of age, Disabled visitors and French jobseekers or French people on income support. The Audio Guide is available in 7 languages: French, English, Spanish, Italian, German, Japanese, and Korean.
You can rent the guide at the museum ticket desk. There are four Audio Guide counters: one in front of the Group Reception area ("Accueil des groupes") under the Pyramid, and three at the top of the escalators leading to the museum's three main entrances (Denon, Sully, and Richelieu).
If you prefer to use your own phone for this, you can also buy the official Louvre Audio Guide app available on iPhone and Android.
What should I see at the Louvre?
Everyone has their own tastes, but what's essential is that you chart out beforehand what you plan to see, or you'll end up either lost or just miss some of the exhibits that you were looking forward to seeing. The Louvre website has a number of guided walks designed to give you an overview of the scope and richness of the museum's collections. Each trail is based on a selection of works that typify a period, an artistic movement, or a theme. They can be viewed online or printed out prior to a museum visit.
If this is your first visit, or you want to be sure to hit the most viewed exhibits, we recommend you take the Masterpieces visitor trail at available at http://www.louvre.fr/en/routes/masterpieces. This trail includes famous Exhibits such as Aphrodite (aka Venus de Milo) and the Mona Lisa along with 10 other famous items, which you can comfortably cover in about 4 hours (though the website says 1 hour 30 minutes, you should budget at least 4).
Make sure you print out this trail before you leave. It details not just how to get from the entrance to each piece, but also gives you a good overview of the Exhibit you're looking at. There are several other trails if you have a specific theme in mind.
Photography is allowed in most areas of the Louvre, but you are requested to not use camera flashes. This isn't a problem as the museum is well lit. However some temporary exhibits do not allow photography and these are marked as such.
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