The Eiffel Tower: Managing the Visit Properly

Gustave Eiffel built the tower for the 1889 World’s Fair as a demonstration of what could be done with iron. It was supposed to be temporary. Parisians loathed it at first. Then the radio antenna at the top proved militarily useful in World War I, and it stayed. Today it is the most visited paid monument in the world at roughly 7 million visitors per year.

The tower is 324 metres tall including the current antenna (taller than the original 300 metres). It weighs 10,100 tonnes of iron. It is repainted every seven years, a process that takes 18 months and uses 60 tonnes of paint in three shades - slightly darker at the top to compensate for perspective.

Tickets and the Queue Problem

The queue at the base on a summer weekend, without a pre-booked ticket, runs 2-3 hours. This is genuinely avoidable.

Book at tour-eiffel.fr for a specific time slot. Prices vary by floor and access method:

• Summit by lift: €31 adults, €15.50 children (4-11)
• Second floor by lift: €19 adults, €9.50 children
• Second floor by stairs: €11 adults, €5.50 children

The stairs are consistently the better experience. You walk up 328 steps to the first floor and another 340 to the second. The ironwork is visible from the inside in a way it isn’t from the ground. The queue for stairs moves much faster than for the lifts. You are also not locked into a timed slot with the same urgency.

The third level (summit) is accessed by a separate lift from the second floor. The view from the second floor is already spectacular; the summit adds another 120 metres but the enclosed observation area is very small and crowded.

Best time to book: first thing in the morning (09:00) or just before the last entry in the evening. Summer evenings have the softest light, which is why they’re popular; a 21:00 slot in June or July lets you see Paris in the long northern European dusk.

Viewing the Tower from Outside

The best views are from Trocadero (north across the Seine): the wide plaza and fountains give you the full tower height and most photographs are taken from here. The Champ de Mars lawn directly south of the tower is where locals sit in the evening for the light show - every hour after dark, the tower sparkles for five minutes.

Pont d’Iena between the tower and Trocadero has good mid-angle views.

The tower looks different from different parts of the city. From Montmartre (the Sacre-Coeur steps), from Rue de l’Universite, from the top of Montparnasse tower - each gives a distinct perspective on scale and position within the city.

Near the Tower

Champ de Mars: 33 hectares of garden running south from the tower to the Ecole Militaire. The lawn is public and used for picnics. No charge, no barriers.

Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac (37 Quai Branly, 5 minutes walk east): one of the best museums in Paris that most international tourists skip entirely. Covers African, Oceanian, Asian, and American indigenous art and culture. The building by Jean Nouvel, raised on stilts with a 800 square metre vertical garden on the façade, is itself notable. Less crowded than the Louvre, more focused. Admission €14.

Les Invalides (15 minutes walk east): Napoleon’s tomb and the Musée de l’Armée. The tomb under the gold dome is more dramatic in person than most people expect. The military museum covering French military history from medieval to WWII is one of the better of its type in Europe.

Eating Nearby

Skip the restaurants immediately adjacent to the tower. Walk 5-10 minutes in any direction.

Au Bon Accueil (14 Rue de Monttessuy): two-Michelin-star-neighbourhood (not starred itself, but calibre is close), excellent service, around €40-60 for a set lunch, popular with French diners from the 7th arrondissement. Book ahead.

Café du Marché (38 Rue Cler): the pedestrian market street Rue Cler is one of the better streets in the 7th for authentic Paris daily life. This café does a solid steak-frites and a set lunch that is good value for the area.

Le P’tit Troquet (28 Rue de l’Exposition): a tiny neighbourhood bistro, cheap for the arrondissement, traditional menu. Good for dinner before an evening tower visit.

Where to Stay

The 7th arrondissement is expensive and central. A few sensible options:

Hôtel de Londres Eiffel (1 Rue Augereau): reliable mid-range, some rooms with tower views, around €140-200 per night.

Hôtel Duquesne Eiffel (23 Avenue Duquesne): good value for the 7th, €120-170, 10-minute walk to the tower.

For something cheaper: the 15th arrondissement directly south of the tower has budget hotels within walking distance and is largely a residential area used by Parisians.