Is it true that in October-March there is free admission to the Louvre on the first Sunday? We are Americans traveling there in October.
Posted by
Florida (previously California)
3990 posts
I think they got rid of the free first Sunday in the non-summer months earlier this year. Now the free times is the first Saturday of each month from 6 PM to 9:45 PM. You can check it on the Louvre's website: https://www.louvre.fr/en/free-admission-musee-du-louvre
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16547 posts
According to the website, it's free on first SATURDAYS only from 6 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. and on Bastille Day (14 July) in 2019.
https://www.louvre.fr/en/hours-admission-directions/admission
Personally, I wouldn't choose to visit at this time as the museums are PLENTY busy enough on ticketed days/hours.
Posted by
OP
14 posts
Thank you. You indicated that the Mona Lisa would be at the Louvre till mid-October. Is that right? We will be arriving 10/18/19 for about 8 days.
Posted by
Myrtle Beach, USA
12313 posts
I'd recommend not going for free admission. The museum gets too crowded and the line to get in too long to really enjoy it. As a general rule, it's true of any free admission times at any museum/art gallery in Europe.
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
14741 posts
"You indicated that the Mona Lisa would be at the Louvre till mid-October. Is that right? We will be arriving 10/18/19 for about 8 days."
It's not that the Mona Lisa will be leaving the Louvre. It has been placed in a different gallery in a different wing of the museum while they refurbish the place she normally is hung.
From the Louvre website:
"The Grand Louvre project and the Pyramid were completed 30 years ago. Since then, museum attendance has surged to unprecedented levels, with visitor numbers more than doubling. Major renovations are once again required in order to:
Improve reception of the growing number of increasingly international visitors
Bring the Louvre in line with new security, accessibility, and conservation standards
Refurbish spaces whose overall condition has deteriorated over time
Upgrade the working conditions of Louvre staff
Fourteen years after its complete refurbishment (2001–2005), the Salle des États—the Mona Lisa’s customary home and the museum’s most visited room—is currently undergoing a new round of renovations"
If you plan to visit, definitely do yourself a favor and either purchase a timed ticket or if you are going to try to use the Paris Museum Pass, get a timed entry for that.