Eiffel Tower 101

With over 7 million people visiting each year, the Eiffel Tower is the most paid-for monument in the world. It is a symbol of strength and beauty that lights up the Parisian skyline. It had always been my dream to someday stand before it and a few years ago I jumped on a plane to make my dream come true. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed. As my husband and I walked toward the monument and I could see the top of it start to poke out from behind the trees I couldn’t contain my excitement. I was literally skipping towards it, squeezing my husbands hand as hard as I could in exhilaration. Little did I know all my excitement in that moment was the sole reason why my (now) husband decided that it was here that he would propose to me. The Eiffel Tower will always have a special place in my heart thanks to him. I hope you also get to have your ‘moment’ with the Eiffel Tower, looking out over the beautiful city of love, Paris.

The Basics

Address:
Champ de Mars, 5 Avenue Anatole France, 75007 Paris, France

Metro Stops:
Champ des Mars / Eiffel Tower – RER
Ecole Militaire – Line 8
Bir-Hakeim – Line 6
For Views of the Tower – Trocadero – Line 6 & 9

Official Webpage:
https://www.toureiffel.paris/en

Tickets

Get your tickets online here – You can buy tickets up to 60 days in advance (Lift Access Only). Those that buy tickets online can go to the “Visitors With Tickets” lines which are usually shorter. Your tickets must be printed on a letter-sized page or you can display the barcode on your phone. Make sure to show up on time for your reservation because if you’re more than 30 minutes late they might cancel your ticket!

Ticket with access lift – Second Floor
– Adult 16.30 Euros
– Youth 8.10 Euros
– Child 4.0 Euros

Ticket with access stairs – Second Floor
– Adult 10.20 Euros
– Youth 5.10 Euros
– Child 2.50

Ticket with access lift – The Top
– Adult 25.50 Euros
– Youth 12.70 Euros
– Child 6.40

Ticket with access stairs 2nd Floor + lift to the Top
– Adult 19.40 Euros
– Youth 9.70 Euros
– Child 4.90 Euros

– Any child under 4 gets free entry

Hours

June 21st – September 2nd
9:00-0:45
Last Entry at Midnight
Last lift to the Summit at 11:00pm

All Other Dates / Rest of the Year
Lift Access 9:30-23:45
Last Entry at 11:00pm
Last lift to the Summit at 10:30pm
Stairs Access 9:30-18:30
Last Entry at 6:00pm

Lights

The Eiffel Tower lights up it’s 20,000 lights every hour from sunset to 1am (or 2am in the summer) and will sparkle for 5 minutes.

The Levels of the Eiffel Tower

The Esplanade

• North Pillar – a bust of Gustave Eiffel
• West Pillar – Information Desk & Gift Shop
• East Pillar – Convenience Store
• Buffets

The First Level

• The Transparent Floor
• A projection show about the Eiffel Tower
• A display of the Eiffel Tower’s history
• The Ferrie Pavillion
• A piece of the staircase that used to lead all the way up to Gustave Eiffel’s private apartment
• The Tour 58 Eiffel Restaurant
• The Fierre Pavilion Buffet
• The Fierre wing souvenir shop

The Second Floor

• The Jules Verne Restaurant
• Macaroon Bar & Buffet
• Chaillot Gift Shop
• Seine Gift Shop

The Third Floor / Summit

• Gustave Eiffel’s Private Apartment / Office
• Panoramic Maps
• A 1889 model of the top of the Tower
• Champagne Bar

The Champagne Bar – Summit

Open from 10:15am – 10:15pm daily

Glass of white champagne
Classic glass (10cl): € 13
Glow glass (10cl): € 18

Glass of G.H.Mumm rosé champagne
Classic glass (10cl): € 17
Glow glass (10cl): € 22

Restaurants & Bars In The Eiffel Tower

• The 58 Tour Eiffel
• The Jules Verne (Private Access via the South Pillar)
• Buffets
• Macaroon Bar
• Champagne Bar

Things To Do Around The Eiffel Tower

• Champ de Mars (Park)
• La Trocadero
• Seine River / River Cruise
• Hotel des Invalids & The Tomb of Napolean I
• Rodin Museum
• Carousel at Trocadero
• Carousel at the base of the Eiffel Tower

History

• The Eiffel Tower was selected from among 107 projects in preparation for the World Fair of 1889 being held in Paris that year and was originally designed to be the grand entrance.
• Gustave Eiffel was the engineer responsible for design of the Eiffel Tower along with 50 other engineers and designers, and also worked on the structure for the Statue of Liberty. 
• There were between 150-300 workers at the Tower, and it was built in only 2 years, 2 months, and 5 days.
• The Eiffel Tower was actually protested against by writers, artists, and more as they said it was “useless and monstrous” and that the city of Paris was “making itself irreparably ugly and bringing dishonour.” After which Eiffel responded, ” there is an attraction in the colossal, and a singular delight to which ordinary theories of art are scarcely applicable” (excerpts from the “Protest against the Tower of Monsieur Eiffel”, 1887).
• At the time, the Eiffel Tower was the tallest structure in the world. When it first opened the lifts were not working yet, but almost 30,000 people climbed the stairs to the top anyways. Airplanes were not around yet, so this was the first time Parisians were getting a birds-eye-view of their beautiful city.
• Gustave had a private apartment on the third level of the Tower. He would host guests of his own choosing from time to time. Today you can peer into the room and see some of his original furnishings along with mannequins of Gustave Eiffel and Thomas Edison.
• The Tower was originally going to be taken down after just 20 years, however Gustave Eiffel had the forethought to know that the scientific uses of the Tower could save it. Vast amounts of scientific experiments in the fields of astronomy, physics, meteorology, and more helped save it, but the Tower’s aid in wireless transmissions was what ultimately allowed the Tower to stay due to its military applications.
• Today there are over 30 replicas of the Eiffel Tower, the largest one being in Las Vegas, Nevada.