Questions about the Louvre and seeing the Mona Lisa

Ray, last October I got into the Pass line at the Pyramid around 08:15, 45 min. before they opened. I was about the 5th person in line. By time it opened I believe there was about 50 in the Pass line and 100 in the regular, need to purchase a ticket line. Security was quick, looked through my satchel and off I went. Since I had the Museum Pass I headed straight to the Mona Lisa, following the signs that say Mona Lisa, passed Winged Victory and when I got to Mona, there was only about 10 of us in the room. Got my pics, enjoyed a close view, along the railing, then looked at the remainder of the works in the room. Here is a link to the Louvre's interactive map,http://www.louvre.fr/en/plan

Enjoy your trip.

Well, if you can follow the advice posted by others, do so by all means. Especially buy a museum pass, which allows you to avoid the ticket line at the Louvre and other participating museums. Monday is a terrible day to visit the Louvre and it happens to be the day I visited recently. Most Parisian museums are closed on either Monday or Tuesday. Musee d'Orsay, the major museum closest to the Louvre is closed on Monday. the Louvre will be crowded on Monday. The Orsay will be crowded on Tuesday. The best day to visit almost any museum in Paris is the day when it has evening hours that allow one more time to enjoy the works therein.
Otherwise, the Mona Lisa will be a crowd experience that is not worth the effort. Due to my experience I would call seeing the Mona Lisa at the Louvre to be the most overrated tourist experience in Paris. If Monday is your only chance to visit the Louvre, consider parts of the museum just as worthy as the Mona Lisa and sadly ignored by the crowds. I am referring to the art of the Islamic World in the Denon wing, and the French and Northern European Rennaissance in the Richelieu wing, as well as the Near Eastern and Egyptian antiquities in the Sully wing. They are amongst many quiet treasures that make a visit to the Louvre worth while.

Ray,

I've been at the Louvre and viewing the Mona Lisa on a Monday, so would definitely agree that going early would be prudent, before the crowds accumulate. By mid-afternoon, the place was a zoo!

Regarding your questions......

1. I'd suggest arriving right at opening time. If you arrive later in the day, THIS is the scene you could be faced with!
2. Entering through the shopping mall, one floor down from ground level would be best. Most people seem to use the pyramid entrance, so that would be a good one to avoid.
3. The DaVinci paintings are in the Italian part of the Denon wing, as I recall. You can see the layout on the Louvre website.

One other point to mention. I've been told by Guides that the area around the Mona Lisa is a "prime hunting ground" for pickpockets, so be vigilant. Everyone is so focused on the painting, they're not paying attention to other things. Last time I was there, I got into "the scrum" in front of the painting on a very busy day, and noticed some "probing" but they didn't get anything as I had my valuables well secured.

Thanks for the replies. Monday isn't my only day, and may rethink that. I have a museum pass good for Mon-Thurs. Frankly, to me, no DaVinci, no matter how packed, crowded, etc. is EVER overrated..... again (IMHO) the greatest artist and probably the smartest guy who ever lived..... but that is the value I place on him and respect other people's opinions. I am always cautious of pickpockets and have had several personal "incidents".... so I am reasonably prepared but thanks for the warning. Will take everyone's advice into consideration and appreciate your comments.

The Louve is open late on Wednesdays and Fridays. I think until 9pm. I understand that is also a less crowded time to go.

I've seen the Mona lisa 3 times. Twice during April school vacation and the end of Sept on a Monday last year. Each time it was a zoo but definitely not enough to make me walk out. We were able to work our way to the front each time, it wasn't horrible.

Ray,

As I recall, the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays so you'll need to visit on Mon./Wed./Thur.

Ray, I saw the Mona Lisa for the first time two years ago. There were crowds, and until then I shared the assumption that it would be overrated, so I almost didn't even stop. But a space opened in the crowd and I was standing in front of her. The painting is luminous, nothing like the thousands of reproductions everywhere. I kind of fell in love. If you love Leonardo (I am an unrepentant Michelangelo stalker), you will love this experience, just leave time to wait out some of the crowds.

The thing about great art is that it doesn't matter how many people are around, it's just the artist, the work, and you.

Thanks again for the replies. Am seriously considering changing to Wed. Agree with the comments about art (although as I said everyone is different and I can appreciate a range of opinions.) The fastest 15 minutes (or was it 10?) of my travels was seeing the Last Supper. Visited the Hermitage twice to see the DaVinci's there. Admittedly, he/his work just astounds me.

Hi Ray, I'm a big fan of Da Vinci too. Take the time to see the Mona Lisa, it's worth it. If you ever have the opportunity, take a day trip to Amboise, France to see the chateau (Clos Luce) where he spent the last three years of his life. I've been there twice and thought it was fascinating.

A couple of minutes was not a deal breaker for me, considering it is probably the most famous painting in the world. Join the scrum and eventually you will work your up to the front for an on obstructed but still squished view.

Yes, you would love Amboise. My husband and I stumbled upon da Vinci's grave on the grounds at the castle there 19 years ago during a 5-week backpacking trip after college. We were so shocked and it was one of the highlights of our trip because it was so unexpected. We visited the museum at Clos Luce afterwards.

Sounds like a good place for a Da Vinci fan to visit. Thanks for the tip.

The best time I ever had with La Joconde (Mona Lisa) was in 2012 when the museum was closing for the day on a Thursday. They were asking people to leave and I made sure I took an extra length of time to stand with Mona. It was worth it.

A quick thank you to the people who responded. I have returned from my trip and did get to see the Mona Lisa and several other LdaV paintings. A couple of things: 1) I was waaaayyyy too jet lagged to get up early to get to the Louvre, so I had to stand in line a bit but no big problem. 2) I found the crowd in the front of the M.L. an experience in itself. I loved it in the sense that it was the "tourist way of going." I fought my way to the very front, took 12 or so shots and stood there for about a minute before I elbowed my way out. 3) interesting how so many people ignore the other Leonardo paintings on the way into the room to the the M.L. I was virtually alone in front of them.... maybe 1 or 2 other people. 4) If I were to get up early I would go the the Aphrodite of Milos (Venus de Milo) before the M.L. The reason is that the M.L. has a wall as a background. As a photographer, I found it extremely difficult to get a clean shot of the Aphrodite because of the crowds all around the statue. Anyway, the Louvre was a wonderful experience for a museum lover. I didn't get to see much, but stayed there a little over 6 hours before I got exhausted. My trip in general was wonderful.

Ray -- glad you did it!

Does anyone know what museums, etc. the Paris Museum Pass covers?

Not seeing the most famous painting in the world while being so close in Paris would have left me distraught. It was worth the effort every time I have seen her. Glad you made it happen.

Prepare to be underwhelmed http://bit.ly/1Ix7hQg

The PMP list is on the official site at http://en.parismuseumpass.com/rub-by-name-5.htm. Note that this page does not include the Musee Picasso, although the Musee Picasso's own website states that they accept the PMP and people here have recently reported that it was accepted there.

BG and Terry,

Thanks. As someone who is a real Leonardo fan it was absolutely amazing. Truly one of the highlights of my trip. Adding a couple of additional Leonardo paintings to my "collection" (art works of his I have seen in person) was just icing on the cake!

Clester6, yes....many people know what museums are covered by the pass. Please see the responses to the other thread you posted about this.

Ray... As a fan of Leonardo... do you have the book How To Think like Leonardo DaVinci?

A number of years ago (pre digital photography) I was on a trip in Italy. Somewhat obsessed with Leonardo at the time I was doing some of the exercises from the book for fun. One day I was driving aimlessly around the countryside and happened upon the town of Vinci quite by accident... spent a few hours exploring where he grew up and had a wonderful time. A few days later I was taking some images (I am a photographer) of some mountains and hills with my film camera. After I got home I looked quickly and did not see anything too interesting, but a couple of months later when I went through them again there was an image of mountains and trees and in the bottom 1/4 of the photo there was an image that looked like Mona. I kept trying to have an explanation for it... maybe I had double exposed this roll of film? But, there was only one image that was like this and it was in the middle of the roll. Wish I knew how to put a link to a photo... but she, or something, is quite evident in my image!

Anyone who is underwhelmed by Mona clearly does not see her as we do!!!

Have not seen that book but will look into it. I became fascinated as a young teen and that has never abated. Celebrate his birthday every year. I agree, to a fan the Mona Lisa, Lady with the Ermine etc. etc. are magical experiences. I think I will try to visit his grave in France in the near future. Thanks for sharing with me.

We did this last week. Just dive into the crowd and move up to the front. Everyone is cool, in a good mood and they will get their selfie and move on. We got front and center shots for a minute and even went back later. This museum, more than any other in the world has the least interested art audience. Seriously, 50% the the people in there are only there because their friends or family are forcing them.

Everyone: stay out of the Louvre and the D'orsay if you don't care about art. Gazing at Monet's work last week while being bumped, shoved and ignored was a major buzz-kill.

Thanks for the thought and I will look into the book....however I have returned from my trip. It was a blast and I enjoyed the crowd at the Mona Lisa as a unique kind of experience.