Louvre raising prices for Americans and other foreigners

Thanks Mardee. This was part of my decision on buying the Amis du Louvre pass last month. I figured it would carry thru to my visit next year, lol.

Very interesting, Mardee. Thanks for the update.

Interesting, and WOW. I suppose they get enough visitors it doesn't matter if some folks chose not to pay it. I just looked, the Orsay is 16 euro. National Gallery in London is free.

As a non taxpayer in Europe, I have no problem with this. Even with free museums I donate an equivalent amount to an entrance fee.

They need more bathrooms and I have read that's part of their renovation plan. One bathroom that has a door that doesn't really lock in some areas is really inadequate (my daughter and I took turns standing outside of the door telling other people it was occupied).
I'm also a friend of the Louvre. It helps them acquire new art and that's always exciting.

I know this won’t be a popular view, but I personally kind of agree with these decisions. Most of these institutions are maintained using taxpayer dollars and they’re expensive to maintain. Charging visitors more kind of levels the field a little.

And of course, if some people choose not to go because now it’s going to cost them that much money just to look at Mona I don’t think any of us should consider that a great loss

Another aspect of the renovation is building a specific area for the Mona Lisa. I have not seen plans, but hope they build an area away from the other galleries and with its own entrance and traffic flow. That alone would make the galleries currently near the work so much more bearable. They could also take a hint from the Rijksmuseum, build a gallery that is sort of the "greatest hits", satisfying 90% of the crowds, leaving the rest of the museum to the more leisurely visitors.

I know this won’t be a popular view, but I personally kind of agree with these decisions.

Carol, I think most people would agree with you; at least those here on the forum. I certainly do. We all recognize that these places cost money to keep up and I would rather pay more money than have them dissipate over the years. EEA citizens pay taxes to support institutions like this, but those outside that area don't. So I think it's fine to charge foreign visitors extra.

Thanks Mardee. This was part of my decision on buying the Amis du Louvre pass last month. I figured it would carry thru to my visit next year, lol.

Pam, smart thinking!

Seems reasonable. When I think of how certain museums I've visited in recent years were only €15 (The Prado), €20 (The Vatican Museums), I'm still amazed they were that cheap. It could've been double that and still a bargain.

I do seem to be in the minority. It just seems like a lot relative to prices of other museums. However, it is the LOUVRE! I guess I'm my father's daughter. I'm just always shocked at prices these days. Dad would always say, "I'd never pay $50 for shoes" Or whatever the the price was that day.

This is common in many other locations. For example in Istanbul non-residents pay much more to visit major tourist attractions. This was done in part to provide locals lower cost access to cultural sites but also to generate revenue due to their currency situation. In other places, tourists pay more for transportation or to even access a city during busy times of year (e.g. Venice). Some of these changes the price is intended to reduce crowds and stress on fragile locations. Whether or not one agrees with the approach, it is the cost of travel. If the price is too high for your personal taste, there are plenty of other options to fill time.

The Louvre made a large price change all at once which makes it rather noticeable. And BTW according to other news sources, Versailles, Chambord, the Opéra Garnier, the Conciergerie, and the Arc de Triomphe may adopt similar price increases for non residents.

I prefer what London and Washington, D.C. do with free museums to encourage more people to attend and promote arts and culture.

It is a fair price until revenue begins going down. The best solution would be Free for French and everyone else pays, but the EU does not permit that.

I don’t mind paying more.
Museum costs are a trivial amount of our vacation costs.

Tourist destinations love Americans because they spend a lot of money.

The British Museum should really move to being paid entry. It’s struggling for funds which is crazy when you think how popular it is. People would be happy to pay.

It's from a time when Museums were jewels to educate the public. And the idea was that shouldn't be limited by what people could pay.

A time long past.

Related, but slightly OT, staff at Tate are on strike because of low pay. It's been an ongoing problem for many years. Tate's been in a particularly bad way since the pandemic, but these issues go back further.

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/nov/27/tate-staff-week-strike-pay-food-banks

If anyone's in London before the 2nd, you can support Tate staff by not crossing their picket line. The strike by PCS members can be supported in other ways detailed here - https://www.pcs.org.uk/news-events/news/support-pcs-tate-strikers

The below explains the EU’s equal protection for these things. Makes sense to me:

An EU country cannot offer free admission to cultural sites or public
services (like universities) solely to its own citizens while charging
citizens of other EU countries.

Under EU law, discrimination on the grounds of nationality is strictly
prohibited within the scope of the EU Treaties, particularly
concerning the free movement of persons and services. The core
principle is that all EU citizens must be treated the same as the host
country's nationals in a situation governed by EU law.

Key implications of this principle:

Equal Treatment: If a public museum, art gallery, or university in one
EU country offers free admission or tuition to its own citizens, it
must extend the same free access to all other EU citizens under the
same conditions.

Access to Services: The freedom to provide and receive services
(including tourism and education) means that recipients of those
services must be able to enjoy them under the same conditions as
nationals.

Non-EU Citizens: This rule of equal treatment applies to EU citizens.
Non-EU citizens (sometimes referred to as third-country nationals) can
generally be charged different fees or be subject to different
conditions, although some countries may choose to offer them free
access as well (e.g., Germany offering free university tuition to all
international students at one time).

A landmark European Court of Justice (CJEU) case confirmed that
differential pricing for state-owned museums based purely on
nationality is illegal for EU citizens.

Happy travels!

The British Museum should really move to being paid entry. It’s struggling for funds which is crazy when you think how popular it is. People would be happy to pay.

Helen, I agree. I would certainly be willing to pay. And it might keep some of the horrendous crowds and lines down.

The equal treatment rule is one of the costs of EU membership. No longer locals go for free.

We have an "experiment" going on here where tours in Magyar are one price and all other languages are another price. I dont expect it to last.

As the law indicates, this isn't about English or Americans. Its that a government is using 20% of the tourists to make it more affordable for the 10% who are French citizens... which they cant do without making it more affordable for all EU citizens. Its why non EU here in Budapest often pay twice the rate to enter a landmark.

But, again, if they are selling out every day, they aren't charging enough.

Hi,

Registering my disappointment with this news. I've been going to Paris since 1992 and have always enjoyed paying "moderate" prices to see Fine Art at the Louvre. It's almost always been less expensive than the admission to Boston's MFA which, I believe, is privately owned. I've been to Paris 9 times over the years and can't see myself paying $37 US to get in, especially when one considers the crowds. If the museum and its collection are owned by "the State," then I think the State should keep the prices affordable to all, regardless of the visitor's nationality.

Whether this is due entirely to refurbishing the current condition, or paying for more security following the recent theft, I think it is exorbitant.

John, this is definitely due to the renovation and they have been talking about this for the last year. It's not merely a question of refurbishing but of actually spending a lot of time and money on making the Louvre easier to access and adding a lot more space, which they really need. For example, the Mona Lisa will have her own room which would alleviate some of the packed crowds that are currently in that area.

And with regards to charging more to visitors, the idea behind that is that visitors don't pay taxes unlike people in the EEA or EU, whose taxes in part will go towards the renovation.

I'm really hoping that the renovation will either cut down on crowds or just make them easier to control so that they are not all in one place at the same time. But either way I think something has to give and they've obviously decided that now is the time to do this. I know I will keep going because I love the art there and I'm willing to pay an extra 10 euros for the privilege .

A price increase of 10 Euro? Well, a bit steep.

I'll pay it...gladly. No problem. It has been several years (10 ?) since I was in the Louvre, yes, ie, to "roam the Louvre's hallways"

When we spend thousands of.dollars.on airfare/hotels/restaurants etc I would not hesitate to pay the new entry fee to see the Louvre.. I can't imagine not seeing this wonderful.museum to save a small.amount of money. I guess we all have different perspectives on what is important to the experience of traveling. I go by the idea that I may not pass this way again so enjoy this while I can.

Seems fair.

I pay for a public library card in a county in which I do not reside.
It gives me access to their on-line research sites and if I were an e-book reader has a larger selection than my county library has.

It used to be about $40 a year. Last year it jumped to $80. When I asked why such a huge jump, the librarian explained that they researched how much tax money they receive per resident and decided it was only fair for non-residents to pay the same.

Wonder how the Louvre came up with 45%.

THE LOUVRE IS ALREADY FREE with identifying documentation for the following:

under 26 year of age EU residents, unemployed EU residents, handicapped and their accompanying person, minimum wage earners in the EU, art students from the French national schools, artists registered with the French social regime, art/art history/architecture/design/archaeology educators, all k-12 and above educators with the education card, guides, journalists.

This policy is listed for all National Museums. It's right on the page where you buy Louvre tickets or tickets at any other of the national museums.