Planning Paris.. trying to decide to do the Louve during the day or at night as they are open on friday nightswe will have three days there to tour as our other two days are dedicated to the French Open so one AM we will be coming from London so that AM is out .. we have two other AM's as the catacombs I have been told is impt to get there at 9AM that is one morning gone.. we also really want to go the the museum orsay which is open on Thursday nights but not sure if nights at these museums are worse crowd wise than days also we might find ourselves too tired by the end of the day to do a museum.. anyway my question
Better to do the louve in the AM or PM and the same with Museum orsay.. we may have to make a choice between the two and if so we would do orsay as we love the impressionists! any advice on this appreciated
Posted by
OP
Staten Island, New York
217 posts
Is that true for both of them?
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5792 posts
On one of my recent trips, I visited the Orsay in the evening. The line to enter was definitely much shorter than the line I saw during the day. I did not have a museum pass and I don't think I spent more than 10 minutes in the line. I did not notice any galleries that were closed. If you can, I'd take advantage of the evening hours.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15768 posts
My experience at the Louvre on a Friday night (early June also) - it was nearly empty. All the highlights were accessible and there wasn't even a crowd at the Mona Lisa. And just down the street, in front of the Hotel de Ville there was a huge screen set up to watch the tennis - grab a snack and a drink and have a short rest and enjoy the fun.
Posted by
OP
Staten Island, New York
217 posts
Glad to help on the chip and pin card. Someone shared it with me so pass it on:) Great to know that there is a big outdoor screen for the tennis.. we will only be at the event two days but want to see more of it and it might be a good thing to do for lunch and a picnic... thanks!
Posted by
Provo, UT
175 posts
Plus, if you go to the Louvre in the evening, you get to see the Louvre lit up at night, which is, in my opinion, stunning! I have brought back several photos I took of the Louvre brightly lit and it's so beautiful. It looks magical. Yes, of course you could go on a walk past the Louvre later one night, but you never know if you'll be able to make time, etc. Oh, and the Musee d'Orsay is lovely. If you pick that over the Louvre, I don't think you'll be disappointed, unless you'll be upset you miss some of the Renaissance biggies. There's also a nice "sculpture garden" in the Louvre that's fun to spend time in...I've spent hours there catching up on journaling. But, in answer to your question, if you can only do one and your preference is impressionists, go to the Musee d'Orsay. When I took my husband to Paris, we actually ended up making it to both, but I had planned on going only to the Musee d'Orsay. I think it can be more enjoyable than the Louvre in many ways. Have fun!
Posted by
NYC
12 posts
I went to the Louve at night and didn't even have to wait in line for tickets! But that was in October.
Posted by
Texan in CA
4412 posts
We always go at least twice, day and night! It's a completely different experience at night. Be aware that most museums will close up to 30 minutes earlier than posted hours; guards at the Louvre will start herding people out, so plan accordingly! In the past, I've read the Louvre website for info on what rooms will be closed on which nights; be sure to see those closed rooms during the day.