We will visiting the Louvre on Oct 18th. Wondering if we should order tickets early or wait till we actually get there to purchase since this is not their peak vacation period (I still expect a crowd since it is Paris!). For those that did order early, any recommended sites or better served just ordering from the Louvre website?
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Chicago
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I have visited the Louvre a couple of dozen times and the longest wait I ever had at the Carrousel entrance was 30 minutes and that was on a national holiday and it was raining so the local crowds were bigger that day.
The advantage of getting a timed ticket ahead on line is you can use a designated security line at the Pyramid which is sometimes shorter but we had such tickets this May for the Vermeer exhibit and walked into the Carrousel entrance for security with zero line and so we did that. I would not bother getting tickets ahead but would just get through security (that is where the lines are) and then get tickets from the machines in the ticket room off the lobby. Last time we did that there were maybe 15 people ahead of us at the Carrousel security line and no lines for the ticket machines. The tickets are not actually checked until you enter one of the three wings and you have in and out privileges all day, so you could go in the morning for a couple of hours and then leave for lunch and a walk and a break and then return for the afternoon or on Weds or Fridays into the evening.
If you do get them get them from the Louvre site and not some middleman and certainly not somewhere you have to collect them. Any kids in the group 17 or under will be free. Friday nights anyone 25 or under is free.