As we had previously booked tickets to the top of the Eiffel Tower for May 11, I received an email today, which I cut and pasted below. It looks like they may be offering a refund. Dear Madam, Sir, You have used our Online ticketing service to book a visit to the Eiffel tower. We inform you that due to a technical incident, we are now operating with one single lift instead of two lifts to the 2nd floor. This situation will presumably last until the end of May. Therefore, depending on the affluence, your access to the Tower may be severely delayed. Considering the circumstances, if you wish to abandon the idea of visiting the Eiffel Tower, please let us know: we advise you to e-mail us and to forward to us the e-mail confirming your purchase. If you are a school group, a tour operator, an association, a professional, or a group of at least 20 persons, please send your e-mail to [email protected] For all other customers, please send your e-mail to [email protected] For any further information or request for assistance, please do not reply to this message, but instead, send us your message at one of the two e-mail addresses above. Replies to this message will not be answered. We do apologize for the inconvenience caused as a result of this situation. Best regards, The Customer Service SOCIETE D'EXPLOITATION DE LA TOUR EIFFEL SETE
5, AVENUE ANATOLE FRANCE 75007 PARIS
Thank you for posting, Gary. So sorry this happened to you. by posting you have helped others. I am planning a trip in June and was wondering what the plan for the elevator was. I hope they meet their schedule.
Thank you for this information. We will be in Paris in May! I guess we better get to the tower really early!!
But if you just walk up the stairs to the first level you can still take the elevator from there on up to the top. That's my understanding of the current elevator issues. The elevators that are out of service carry passengers from the ground to the 1st viewing level. Different elevators exist for the next trek all the way to the top.
After receiving the email, my friend and I discussed whether or not to cancel and get a refund, but we decided to go ahead and give it a try. Since our reservation on May 11 is almost a month away, maybe the lift will be repaired and everything will be back to normal. Also, since our reservation is for the first lift of the day (9 am), we'll have an early breakfast and try to arrive at the tower half an hour early, and see how the lines look. If they're stretching all the way to the Notre Dame Cathedral we'll give the tickets away to a more intrepid couple. My friend has some trouble climbing stairs, so taking that route to the first level isn't an option, and frankly I'm not too crazy about the idea, either. :>)