Eiffel Tower

Go at 5PM. I took a last minute trip to Paris with my grand daughter last summer (I'm an airline employee, so last minute is the way we 'roll), and we noticed that the lines were very short at 5PM. People go back to their hotels at this time of day, and others want to go up at night. We were thrilled! There's no need to go to the top! The view from the second level is fabulous. If you want to see the Eiffel tower lit up, after going up in the tower, head over to the Invalides/Rue Cler neighborhood, enjoy a dinner, and return to the Champ du Mars Park or Trocadero Park (sp, sorry don't speak French) (off rue de Bourdonnaise) and sit on a bench in the park and watch it light up at 10PM. Amazing!!!! If you want a great (free) view of the Eiffel Tower by day go to the Architectural Museum address: 1 Plalais de Chaillot metro stop Trocadero on line 6) , and go directly to the café. You don't even have to pay admission to the museum. There's an outside seating area and the views of the Eiffel are the BEST in the city. Insider info given to me by my former Parisian exchange student! Hugs and blessings to him! (He said this is the best kept secret in Paris, but I guess it's out now!)

I was in Paris in July, had NO time to plan, get reservations, etc., and we did it all! Don't worry. We bought two day tickets on the Red Hop on Hop Off bus (recommended by our hotel) and it (RED Bus) saved us lots of $$ on taxis, and we didn't need to ride the metro. Personally, I'd rather go slower and be above ground than go faster below ground, especially since I'm now 62 years old and travelling with a 12 year old girl! The Red Bus goes the entire length and depth of Paris, including Montmartre.

The Sacre Cour at the top of Montmartre has a fabulous view of Paris from above, it's free also! If you have a free evening, have dinner up there, and walk to the Church, and see Paris light up! It's also amazing by boat on the Siene.

Thanks for such a detailed reply and so many suggestions of ways to see Paris, especially lighting up at night. Love the idea of enjoying the view (even if from just the 2nd level) and then getting dinner and watching the Tower light up at 10. I see there is a link on the Eiffel Tower website for a tour of the "bunker" room and lifts, that goes on up to the 2nd level. Any feedback on that tour? My 19 year old son is studying engineering so thought that might be interesting...

judith. First off. you are going when it will be busy.. and I don't think it will matter one tiny bit what time you go.. so these are your options.

Buy a tour that has skip the line .. on the offical website they have a link to the "Behind the Scenes" tour of Eiffel.. it is apparently very good and only a few euros more then general admission.

Or.. take the stairs. The stair line is at a seperate pilar ( foot of tower) then the elevator line. You want the "Sud pilar"( south foot)

Even in middle of summer the line will be shorter then elevator line and it will also move alot faster. Its doable for any healthy person.. I have done it and I am not sporty.
The stairs only go to the second level ( which to me is more then good enough for great views) but if you insist on wishing to go to top you can line up on the second level for tickets to the top.

other option.., go to tower 45 minutes ahead of opening time.. still a wait but less then other times.

Hi Judith, this is the website for one of the Behind the Scenes tours - Get Your Guide www.getyourguide.com. I took the $30 tour last year and enjoyed it. I am planning to do it again with another friend. Have a great time in Paris!

Thanks, everyone, for your feedback. We are all in good shape so climbing the stairs would not bother us. If we take that route (and this may be a dumb question!), do we still need to buy tickets? Or are tickets just for taking the lift? And I see there are only a few tickets left for the bunker/lift tour, so still considering that option.

judith.. yes you will still buy a ticket.. there.. you cannot buy them in advance.. but as I said, line is always shorter and moves faster.. and bonus is ticket is cheaper. You can always take the elevators down too.. I found going down actually harder on knees ( the next day) then going up!

Went up using the behind the scene tours had a great time!

Hi everyone-thanks for all your suggestions and help. I ended up buying tickets for the Behind the Scenes Tour, which really sounds like fun and based on some of you who have done it, well worth it.

“Behind the scenes tour of Eiffel” good. i buy tickets and enjoy!
So we were in Paris in April, just before the summer vacations started. While it wasn't crazy crowded then, the meandering line before the Eiffel was not too encouraging. We opted for the Behind the scene (Theatrical) tour, where our guide took us to the piston rooms, bunkers and skip the line entry to the lifts. The tour was informative, and ended on the 2nd level of the eiffel, from where you can purchase the 6 euro ticket to the summit, if you didn't have a combined ticket in the first place. The top gets windy, and it rained while we were up there, but I wouldn't miss going up to the summit, so we did. It was a wonderful view, a heady experience. Lifts all the way makes it very easy for people, but of course there are many who choose to climb. Very romantic and nice tour to eiffel tower !

Hi Judith:

Last time I was in Paris with my husband, we were discouraged by the never ending queues, couldn't find tickets online, so we decided to go for dinner there. The food was very good, but pricey. Some friends went for the lunch + queue jump option offered on divento.com (less expensive), since they were travelling on a budget. Bear in mind these meal options only grant access to the first floor, but it's better than nothing!