Eiffel Tower Guided Tours

Posted by Carolyn B. on 04/22/16 01:53 PM

I'm tempted to buy tickets for a guided tour as seen on the Eiffel Tower official site. It looks like they have two. One (the love story aviator) got good reviews but the other one (Behind the Scenes) was questionable. The main reason why I want to book a tour is to avoid the lines. I have heard that even if you buy an advanced ticket, there are still long lines to go through and that if you book a guided tour, there are little/no lines. Is this true?

The love story show with the aviator sounds kind of hokey (I won't have any children) but is a possibility.

Any insights?

Posted by Donna 🌎

Ohio

04/22/16 03:12 PM

2137 posts

Hi Carolyn,

I used Get Your Guide tours (https://www.getyourguide.com/eiffel-tower-l2600/) on two occasions to do the Eiffel Tower and it worked out well. There are several options - I did the one with the short tour (it was about an hour), and a skip the lines ticket to the second level. Once on the second floor, I stood in a very short line (2 min) to purchase a ticket to the third floor/summit level.

Aside from those two times when I was traveling with other people who wanted to do the tour, I purchased advance tickets online at the official Eiffel Tower site. I showed up a few minutes early and went right through to the elevator - no line. Maybe I was just lucky, but that was my experience.

I love the Eiffel Tower and have been to the summit 5 or 6 times. My trips have been either in May or September/October so maybe that makes a difference. Not sure what type of lines you might encounter in the summer months.

Enjoy your trip to Paris!

Posted by imperatricedeux

Beaverton OR

04/22/16 04:39 PM

26 posts

Hi Carolyn,
We used Fat Tire tours but be aware that the Skip the Line Eiffel Tower Tour only gets you to the 2nd level. If you want to go to the top, you are on your own and have to wait in line with everyone else. It took us about 2 hours on a Sunday afternoon. I know- bad time to go but what a view!
Bonne Chance!

Posted by janettravels44

Chicago

04/22/16 05:48 PM

8075 posts

Advanced tickets get you in when they say they do.

Posted by Carolyn B. OP

04/24/16 12:48 AM

28 posts

Thanks everyone! Just another note to those buying tickets online: when I went to buy my tickets, I had to buy them separately because some people want to go to the summit and others don't. After I purchased my first group of tickets, the system wouldn't let me buy more. Only 1 transaction every 12 hours is allowed!