The Louvre, what you need to know before visiting!
It's true that we prefer to talk about lesser-known places in Paris. But we understand that the Louvre is on many people's list of must-sees in Paris on their first visit. In fact, even Parisians like to visit this museum from time to time.
So here's a quick guide to the Louvre with opening times, best admissions, prices, visitor trails and our top tips for 2019-2020 to help you plan your visit.
Interesting facts about the Louvre
The Musée du Louvre is located in Paris 1 and opened its doors to the public on 10 August 1793.
The Louvre was built in the 12th century by King Philip Augustus II as a royal palace. Over the years, the Palace has been a symbol of the wealth, power and decadence of the French monarchy.
The king and his court left the palace in 1682 when the Château de Versailles became the main residence of the French court and government. King Louis XIV moved not only the aristocracy to Versailles, but also the main administrative body. Since then, the Louvre has been occupied on very few occasions when the King has had to attend important events in Paris.
Visitors can still see parts of the medieval Louvre, such as the walls, the moat and part of its keep.
Today, the Palais du Louvre is the largest museum in the world (460,000 works of art in total) and, according to the TEA / AECOM Museum Index, also the most visited museum on the planet (8.7 million visitors in 2015).
The works of art cover Western art from the medieval period to 1848, the formative works of the civilisations of the ancient world and works of Islamic art. The work in the Louvre dates from the 7th millennium BC to the 1850s.
What are the opening hours?
The Louvre is open every day except Tuesday.
The Louvre is open from 9am to 6pm.
On Wednesdays and Fridays, the museum also offers a night session, from 6pm to 9:45pm.
Since January 2019, there has also been a night session, from 6pm to 9:45pm, on the first Saturday of the month New!
The museum is closed on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December (public holidays).
Admission prices
Admission costs €15 when purchased on site. This is the cheapest ticket price at the Louvre, but it also means you have to queue to buy your tickets, and then there's another line for the security check.
Admission is €17 if you buy your Louvre ticket online. With the Louvre's electronic tickets, you can enter the museum in less than 30 minutes. When you buy your Louvre electronic ticket, you must choose a specific time slot.
IMPORTANT: on busy days, the Louvre will no longer be selling tickets on site; online tickets are the only option for visiting the Louvre. Given the expected high number of visitors, we strongly recommend that you book your time slot online, as this will guarantee you entry to the museum.
However, in certain cases, you can visit the museum free of charge:
Under-18s;
No admission charge for those under 26 and resident in an EU country (proof of residence may be requested);
Free admission to the Louvre on the first Saturday of the month, at night; New!
Free admission during special events, such as Museum Night (late May - early June);
No admission to the Louvre on 14 July (France's bank holidays).
PRO TIP: in addition to the Louvre collections, the price of the Louvre ticket includes access to the temporary exhibitions on the same day and access to the Musée Eugène-Delacroix for 48 hours!
Where can I buy tickets?
You can buy your tickets for your visit to the Louvre on site, online and in all FNAC France shops, located in the main arrondissements of Paris.
Free Saturday evening viewing at the Louvre: is it worth it?
Every first Saturday of the month from 6pm to 9.45pm, the Louvre offers visitors the chance to visit the museum free of charge. Is this free Saturday evening session at the Louvre worth it?
Waiting line
For the free Sunday sessions, the average waiting time to get through security is 40 minutes. But for the night session, it can be as long as 1 hour.
This is probably because the window of time to visit for free has been reduced from 9 hours to 3.5 hours, so there are more people wanting to get in at the same time.
Visiting the Louvre
Once you've arrived, you won't be able to visit the Richelieu wing. During the free Saturday evening sessions, the Richelieu wing is only accessible thanks to a (free) guided tour by the École du Louvre and other museum teams. This guided tour, subject to availability, must be booked in advance on the museum's Facebook page. Reservations generally open 10 days before the evening event.
During the night, the entire second floor is closed to the public (Northern European and French paintings).
In the end, your visit to the Louvre is limited to three floors of the Sully and Denon wings.
Choose the best day and time to visit
The best day to visit depends on the season. Generally speaking, it's a good idea to go during the week rather than at the weekend.
As the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays, Wednesday sees a greater flow of visitors. So the best days to visit are Mondays and Thursdays.
When is the best time to visit?
Arrive early in the morning, before the museum opens, or in the evening.
Buy queue-cutting tickets!
One of our top tips for visiting the Louvre is to buy queue-cutting tickets in advance. This is something you can do at home or in your hotel, without rushing.
Line-cut tickets are always a good investment as there is a special line for these tickets (with 0 or a few minutes waiting time) and you get in very quickly.