Unofficial visitor guide · Paris
Musée du Louvre · Google Maps
Official audio guide · English Yes · 9 languages · €6
The Louvre is closed on Tuesdays and open until 9 pm on Wednesdays and Fridays; on other days it opens 9 am to 6 pm, with last entry an hour before closing. Book a time slot on its official ticket site, and start in the Sully or Richelieu wing: the museum says they are much quieter than Denon, home of the Mona Lisa. Labels are in French and usually English, and here is how to hear them in your own language.
Independent guide by the makers of Tales of Museums. Not affiliated with the Louvre Museum.
Checked on 28 October 2026 from the sources linked above. Museums change their guides and rules; confirm on the official Louvre website before you go.
Checked on 28 October 2026 from the sources linked above. Museums change their guides and rules; confirm on the official Louvre website before you go.
Swipe for the works and stories worth knowing before you go.
Leonardo painted her on a thin poplar panel, not canvas. On 21 August 1911 she vanished from the Louvre and was missing for over two years. The thief, Vincenzo Peruggia, was a glazier who had worked at the museum; she came back when he offered her to an Italian art dealer, who called the authorities.
louvre.fr: From the Mona Lisa to the Wedding Feast at Cana · louvre.fr: Mona Lisa (INV 779)
The goddess has lost her head and arms, but her right hand survives. An Austrian team found the thumb and part of the ring finger in 1875; 75 years later, archaeologist Jean Charbonneaux found the palm and the rest of that finger. The 27 cm hand, palm up in a sign of victory, is in a small case on the landing.
Each guardian bull from the palace of Sargon II, an 8th-century BC Assyrian king, was cut from a single alabaster block of about 28 tonnes. From the front it stands still; from the side all its legs are walking. To make both views work, the sculptor gave it five legs, so count them.
She was carved from separate blocks of Parian marble, and the join between torso and legs is hidden in the drapery at her hips. A mounting hole at the left shoulder shows her arms were made separately and fixed on. Restoring the missing arms was once proposed, then abandoned.
During conservation from May 2025 to April 2026, imaging showed that Delacroix first painted a dead soldier trampled by a horse in the foreground, then hid him behind banners. The Louvre says this explains the horse's sudden head turn and terrified stare straight at you. The painting is back in the Red Rooms.
Veronese painted this 6-metre-high, almost 10-metre-wide feast for a Venetian monastery refectory. Napoleon's troops shipped it to Paris in 1798; in 1815, when most seized paintings went back to Italy, moving it was judged too risky, so Venice took a Le Brun in exchange. Even so, it was evacuated in 1870 and 1939.
Géricault began it with no commission, painting a recent wreck: some 150 people drifted for 13 days on a raft and only 15 survived. He took eight months, meeting survivors, building scale models and visiting morgues. The Louvre adds that the captain owed his post to connections and had not sailed for twenty years.
louvre.fr: Think big! · louvre.fr: The Louvre's masterpieces trail (PDF)
On 2 April 1810 the gallery became a chapel for Napoleon's wedding to Marie-Louise: as a divorced man he could not marry in a church, so the paintings came off the walls. On Félix Duban's ceiling, industry appears as a then-new invention, the steam engine. And carré means right-angled here: the room is rectangular.
Carved for Pope Julius II's tomb, which was never finished, they were given by Michelangelo to the exiled Roberto Strozzi, then passed to François I, Anne de Montmorency and Cardinal Richelieu before the Revolution seized them. Walk round the Dying Slave to find a monkey carved behind his left knee.
louvre.fr: Three centuries of Italian sculpture · louvre.fr: The Louvre's masterpieces trail (PDF)
Jean Goujon carved the four stone women holding up the musicians' gallery in 1550, when this was a royal ballroom. Here in 1572 Queen Margot married the future Henri IV; days later, on 24 August, Protestant nobles who had come to the wedding were killed in the Louvre in the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre.
louvre.fr: At the heart of the Renaissance palace · louvre.fr: The Louvre's masterpieces trail (PDF)
Tales of Museums reads the label in front of you aloud in your language: any label you can photograph, not only the highlights. The Louvre's free Wi-Fi covers the galleries, so you can usually use it without mobile data.
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No, the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. Open 9:00 to 18:00 on Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, and 9:00 to 21:00 on Wednesday and Friday. Closed on Tuesdays, and on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December. Last entry is one hour before closing. On other public holidays it is open, unless they fall on a Tuesday. louvre.fr: hours & admission
Book a time slot on the Louvre's official ticket site: the museum recommends it for everyone, including free visitors, and says only a booking guarantees entry. Some tickets are sold at the Louvre's cash desks on the day, subject to availability, and there is no waiting list; sold-out slots are marked as sold out when you book. A booked slot can't be changed, and if you arrive outside it you queue at the Pyramid like visitors without a ticket. Ticket holders use the green priority queue at the Pyramid; the Carrousel entrance is open to all visitors, and the Porte des Lions only to ticket holders (closed Tuesdays, last entry 5 pm). contact.louvre.fr: do I need to book? · louvre.fr: FAQ, tickets and prices · contact.louvre.fr: arriving outside your slot · louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions
Book a slot, and skip Tuesday, when the Louvre is closed. The museum says the Sully and Richelieu wings are much quieter than Denon, home of the Mona Lisa; for a visit of only an hour or two it suggests Denon. On Wednesdays and Fridays the Louvre stays open until 9 pm, but the level-2 rooms open only at 10:30 am on those days, and the French and Northern European paintings of 1600 to 1850 on level 2 are closed during the late openings. louvre.fr: FAQ, while visiting · louvre.fr: list of available galleries · louvre.fr: hours and admission
Several areas are closed for renovation, among them the Islamic Art and Roman Antiquities galleries in the Denon wing and the Galerie Campana in the Sully wing, and rooms 600 to 604 close from 2 November to 6 December 2026. The Louvre publishes the rooms open each week on its list of available galleries, with a plan for each period: check it the day before you go. louvre.fr: list of available galleries
The Louvre's own guided tours last 1 hour 30 minutes on average: "Welcome to the Louvre" takes in the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace and other masterpieces, "Another Louvre" visits lesser-known treasures away from the crowds, and "Louvre family" is for ages 6 and up, each for €12, or €9 reduced, on top of admission. On your own, the free visitor trails are designed around the time you have: The Louvre's Masterpieces takes about 1 hour 30 minutes and Secret Treasures of the Richelieu Wing about 1 hour. louvre.fr: Welcome to the Louvre (guided tour) · louvre.fr: Another Louvre (guided tour) · louvre.fr: Louvre family (guided tour) · louvre.fr: visitor trails
Yes: entry is free for under-18s, for EEA citizens and residents aged 18 to 25, for disabled visitors and one companion, and for everyone on the first Friday of the month after 6 pm (except July and August) and on 14 July. Everyone else pays €22 (EEA citizens and residents) or €32. louvre.fr: hours and admission
Mostly yes: the American Friends of the Louvre funded French and English labels for the works on display and explanatory panels in French, English and Spanish. A few older labels may still be in French only. American Friends of the Louvre
The official guide is in nine languages: French, English, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, for €6. For other languages, or for labels the guide does not cover, an app that reads the label itself can help. louvre.fr
Yes, for personal use in the permanent collections, without flash. Photos may be forbidden in temporary exhibitions; check the signs in each room. louvre.fr: museum rules
In Room 711, the Salle des États, Denon wing, level 1, behind protective glass since 2005. Veronese's The Wedding Feast at Cana hangs on the opposite wall. louvre.fr
No. The Louvre has over 400 rooms and 35,000 works. For one or two hours it suggests the Denon wing: the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace and The Raft of the Medusa. For a whole day, it suggests the Sully and Richelieu wings, which are much quieter. Some rooms close for renovation; the museum lists open galleries before your visit. The Louvre's own visitor trails include The Louvre's Masterpieces (about 1 hour 30 minutes) and Secret Treasures of the Richelieu Wing (about 1 hour). louvre.fr: FAQ · louvre.fr: visitor trails
Take line 1 or 7 to Palais-Royal / Musée du Louvre, or line 14 to Pyramides. The main entrance for individual visitors is the glass Pyramid. louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions
Yes. A lift inside the Pyramid's central tube is reserved for wheelchair users, disabled visitors and visitors with prams, and the Help Desk under the Pyramid lends wheelchairs and folding chairs free in exchange for ID. Disabled visitors and their companion enter free and skip the queue. louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions · louvre.fr: visitors with physical disabilities
Children enter the Louvre free. Prams are allowed, and you can borrow a pushchair or a front baby carrier (back carriers are not allowed) free of charge under the Pyramid; most toilets have changing tables. The Studio on the ground floor of the Richelieu wing has a baby space with a bottle warmer and nursing chair, plus board games, a reading nook and free 20-minute workshops with no booking, in French only, for anyone with a museum ticket. louvre.fr: FAQ, children and families · louvre.fr: Visit as a family · louvre.fr: amenities
The Louvre lists nine cafés and counters in the palace, from La Boulangerie du Louvre and Les Comptoirs du Louvre for a quick bite to sit-down cafés such as Le Café Mollien, Café Richelieu and Café Pyramide, and five more in the gardens. Your ticket is valid all day, but every exit is final and re-entry is not allowed. louvre.fr: Restaurants & cafés · louvre.fr: FAQ, while visiting
Yes. The Louvre lists the Galerie d'Apollon (Apollo Gallery), on level 1 of the Denon wing, as open in its schedule of open rooms. louvre.fr: list of available galleries
From Charles de Gaulle airport, take the RER B into Paris and change at Châtelet to metro line 1 towards La Défense; the second stop, Palais Royal–Musée du Louvre, gives direct access to the Louvre through an underground gallery. Gare du Nord is also on the RER B, so from there ride to Châtelet and make the same change. For the airport leg, the Paris Region <> Airports ticket costs €14. iledefrance-mobilites.fr: getting to the Paris region airports · transilien.com: Metro line 1 · iledefrance-mobilites.fr: how to get to the Louvre · iledefrance-mobilites.fr: Paris Region <> Airports ticket · louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions
Yes, as long as it is no bigger than 55 × 35 × 20 cm: suitcases and larger bags are not allowed anywhere in the Louvre, including the welcome area, and every visitor goes through a security check at the entrance. The cloakroom is free self-service lockers for smaller items, beneath the Pyramid and at the Porte des Lions, and everything must be collected the same day (the Porte des Lions lockers are open until 3 pm). Umbrellas that do not fit in your bag go in the self-service umbrella stands in the cloakroom. louvre.fr: museum rules (maximum size of bag allowed) · louvre.fr: visitor amenities (cloakroom) · louvre.fr: FAQ while visiting (Can I bring a suitcase to the museum?) · louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions
At the Louvre, use the Pyramid if you want the main entrance: it has a green priority queue for ticket holders, an orange queue for visitors without tickets and a blue priority queue for disabled visitors. The Carrousel entrance, at 99 rue de Rivoli, is open to all visitors. The Porte des Lions, on the Quai François Mitterrand, is for ticket holders only and closes at 6 pm, with last entry at 5 pm. The Passage Richelieu is for groups and members. louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions · louvre.fr: FAQ, tickets and prices
For 2 to 3 hours at the Louvre, stay in the Denon wing, which the museum suggests for a short visit. Start with the Winged Victory of Samothrace (room 703), then the Botticelli frescoes (706), the Salon Carré (708), the Grande Galerie (710), the Mona Lisa in the Salle des États (711) and the Salle Mollien (700), all on level 1. Finish on level 0 with Michelangelo's Slaves (room 403). The museum's own trail takes about 1 hour 30 minutes, so with time in the Mona Lisa room and a break, 2 to 3 hours is enough. Rooms close and reopen by week, so check the list of open galleries first. louvre.fr: The Louvre's Masterpieces trail (PDF) · louvre.fr: FAQ, while visiting · louvre.fr: list of available galleries
The Louvre does not run a single queue: the Pyramid has a green priority queue for visitors with a booked ticket and an orange one for visitors without tickets. The museum recommends booking a time slot for everyone, including free visitors, and announced in January 2023 that it would keep attendance capped at 30,000 people a day, a limit in place since June 2022. The Mona Lisa room is open daily, but your time there may be limited when it is busy. It welcomed 9 million visitors in 2025. louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions · louvre.fr: FAQ, tickets and prices · louvre.fr: FAQ, while visiting · AFAR magazine (2023) · Entrevue.fr (2026)
Buy Louvre tickets on the museum's official ticket site, ticket.louvre.fr, or at the Louvre's cash desks on the day, subject to availability. The Louvre warns of a rise in mirror sites, which copy the official site. It also tells visitors not to buy tickets that claim to let you jump the queue, and never to buy tickets from illicit street vendors: with such tickets you may be refused entry. To be sure of entry on the day you choose, the museum says to book online. louvre.fr: hours and admission (ticket prices) · louvre.fr: FAQ, tickets and prices
Yes, the Louvre is included: holders of a 2, 4 or 6-day Paris Museum Pass enter free on showing the pass or the digital pass. Still book a time slot. On the Louvre's official ticket site you can book a free time slot with your Paris Museum Pass, and the museum recommends a time-slot booking for all visitors, including those who enter free. At the Pyramid, visitors with a ticket or a Paris Museum Pass use the green priority queue. louvre.fr (French): horaires et tarifs, free admission list · Louvre help centre: what can I book online? · louvre.fr: hours and admission (ticket prices) · louvre.fr: map, entrances and directions
This route takes about 3 hours: the Louvre's own Richelieu wing trail, then the Denon wing. From the hall under the Pyramid, go to the Cour Puget (room 105, level -1) for French sculptures. On level 0, see Mesopotamia: the Ebih-Il statue (room 234), the Code of Hammurabi (room 227) and the Cour Khorsabad (room 229). On level 1, see the Napoleon III Apartments (rooms 535 to 545). Finish in the Denon wing with David's Coronation of Napoleon (room 702) and Liberty Leading the People (room 700). The museum lists the trail on Monday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: some rooms close on Wednesdays or Thursdays. louvre.fr: Secret Treasures of the Richelieu Wing trail · louvre.fr: Richelieu trail, Code of Hammurabi · louvre.fr: Richelieu trail, a Second Empire gala · louvre.fr: Think big! The Red Rooms
Tales of Museums is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Louvre Museum. Translations, narration and the extra facts use AI and can contain mistakes, so for anything important, check the museum's official information and the linked sources. Please follow the museum's photography rules.