I am traveling to Paris Oct.11-13 and want to go to the Eiffel Tower. I've heard you need to purchase in advance to be able to get in. According to Rick's articles he advises to get a Paris Museum pass to skip the lines but says not to buy from other vendors...just get it when you arrive at the airport. Not a seasoned traveler, so I could use some help please.
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
13905 posts
I've seen comments on the Trip Advisor forum that there are currently no lines at the ET and people are walking up and buying a ticket. I'll not arrive until next week so have not checked on this myself. I'd look at the reservations page and see if there is availability over the next day or so and if there is...wait. The Museum Pass does NOT cover the Eiffel Tower admission.
**editing to add: I did just go to the ET website for ticket purchase. I see it is completely sold for Sept 25 and Oct 5 but otherwise looks very open.
https://ticket.toureiffel.paris/en#_ga=2.81341727.986434112.1631838613-397967781.1631838613
If you want to get a Paris Museum Pass, do wait until you are there. You can buy them many places including the museums themselves as well as at your local Tabac. One of the hotels I stay at has them for sale but just has the 2 day pass and I usually get the 6 day. I'd also ask what museums you are planning to visit to make the pass worth it's while.
TBH, I love Rick but the information in his guide books on ticket purchases is from 2019 and is not relevant in this time of Covid.
Here is the link to the website for purchasing tickets to the Louvre. There are ticket times available for tomorrow and for every day for the rest of the month and October. Tuesday is always blocked off as that is when it is closed. Even a ticket with the admission to a special exhibition is available. In years past, and when Rick's last guidebook was written there were days that would sell out so the advice was to get tickets ahead of time.
https://www.ticketlouvre.fr/louvre/b2c/index.cfm/calendar/eventCode/MusWeb
DO follow the forum here thru the rest of September. Quite a few of us will be there over the next few weeks and will report back on either the ease of getting in or if there are issues.
Posted by
Chicago
8035 posts
The museum pass does not give entry to the Eiffel Tower. Whether it is worth getting the pass for other museums is something you have to calculate. Right now, most museums require advance reservations so the pass has no line skipping value.
Posted by
86 posts
It’s not actually sold out. They are only offering time slots at the busiest times. We walked up last week at 10:30 and got right in. There was a small line at the ticket office. It was very nice to be there without the huge crowds.
Posted by
10 posts
I’ve never purchased a pass but…. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t take you to the summit. We’ve purchased tickets including the summit from Viator and have had great experiences. It’s pricy but I think worth it. Enjoy your time!!
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
13905 posts
Viator is a 3rd party ticket seller owned by Trip Advisor. I would only purchase thru them as a last ditch effort if no tickets were available from the official website. Sometimes the are reliable, sometimes not. It's much better to purchase directly from the original vendor. This is especially true if you are purchasing from a small tour operator as I think one of the regulars who has a walking tour business in Frankfurt said Viator charges her 20-25% (don't remember the actual number).
Here is the link to the official ET site.
Posted by
Vancouver Wa
260 posts
I thought about buying early since we are going mid October. But sounds like you can get tickets whenever. I decided to wait until we get there, cause I don’t want to buy and have it be a cloudy and overcast day where we won’t be able to see anything. We can get the cheaper tickets to by walking up the stairs!