The Louvre
The Louvre is the most visited museum and arguably the most renowned museum in the world
There are few museums anywhere in the world that have attracted more attention than the Louvre. The world's most visited museum, the Louvre is home to in excess of 35000 pieces of art dating from the earliest times to the 19th century and displayed in an exhibition space covering an amazing 650,000 square feet. Some famous pieces of art include The Madonna and Leonardo da Vinci’s Saint Anne, however there are literally thousands more works of art and historical pieces for visitors to view.
The Louvre has a lengthy and interesting history. During the 12th century, Paris was Europe's largest city. To protect the capital from the Anglo Norman threat king, Philippe Auguste, who was reigning at that time, decided to build a garrison to reinforce its western defences on the shores of the River Seine. The large fortress comprised of a moat, a huge tower at the centre of the structure plus other towers encompassed narrow gates at the wall on south and east sides. The solid building had two inner buildings butt against the exterior walls on the south and west sides. This magnificant structure lost its ability to be Paris' defence fortress as the city grew far beyond the original wall by the mid 14th century. Other defences were developed under King Charles V which enclosed the Louvre within the expanding city. In 1364 he commissioned his architect, Raymon du Temple, to transform the ancient garrison into a splendid royal mansion.
Each section of the Louvre has its story to tell and bears the mark of a different influential personality. The Louvre was turned into a museum in 1791 and first opened its doors as such in 1793. The first pieces on display were works of art that were donated or loaned by families that could afford to do so. Since then, the Louvre has simply grown in splendour and has had many galleries added and renovations done to turn it into the amazing museum that it is today.
The Louvre, as with most famous museums, offers floor plans, audio guides and guide books to visitors. It also features a number of cafes, media centres and even a bookstore for those that wish to bring a little of the Louvre home with them. The Tuileries Gardens offer a number of activities for the restless little ones who may not enjoy taking in the art of the Louvre as much as their parents. Instead, they can be amused with boat rides and trampolines and other play area activities in the gardens.
Nearby attractions: Jardin des Tuileries and Museum of Decorative Arts
Facts For Your Visit
Fee: Save time and skip the queueThe Louvre Hours:
Opening hours may differ on holidays
- Monday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Tuesday: Closed
- Wednesday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Thursday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Friday: 9:00 AM – 9:45 PM
- Saturday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Sunday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Address: 75001 Paris, France
Phone: 01 40 20 53 17
Official Website: The Louvre
The Louvre Reviews
Rated
out of 5 It was beautiful I spent a little under half a day there and I really enjoyed myself. The entire museum was beautiful but my favorite part was definitely the fine art upstairs. You can get free tickets on the website (if you meet certain requirements) but be sure to get them early whether the same day or a couple of days before if you’re going during the busy season.
natasha Rode-Christoffersen - 3 weeks ago
Stunning!
Starting from the outside - the building itself is a sight to see. It is totally understandable why it used to be an imperial palace. Great location for beautiful pictures of Paris. The molding and the statues on the building are impressive.
Moving on to the inside - the building is just as impressive. The ceilings are a work of art itself. The corridors are very spacious and nice to walk through.
Walls and walls of art, literally every style and time period you can imagine. Statues, gold, plates, rugs, mantles, paintings, Crown Jewels and many more.
The only downside of the Louvre is that it is GIANT, so please plan your trip ahead! Otherwise you won't see everything you'd like to see because you will run out of time.
We did not see the Mona Lisa, it was too crowded. But I was not sad about that, other works of art were even more impressive than the Mona Lisa.
M Kin - 3 weeks ago
It was an amazing experience. Our guide was very knowledgeable and nice. So much history and amazing art to see. The Louvre building is incredible, it took 800 years to build. The architecture is breathtaking, I highly recommend this. Purchase a tour so you can skip the line.
Steve Seibert - a month ago
Please read below!
-Buy your tickets in advance!
-If there’s a chance of rain bring appropriate gear as you queue outside to get in.
-Ensure you have several hours free!
-Download the map, it’s a life saver
-plenty of food and drink at all price ranges available inside.
-toilets are few and far between in the main wings, and the toilets in the main entrance get VERY busy, especially the ladies.
Audio guides available and recommended. If you want to see the famous Mona Lisa get in as early as possibly and head straight there! We did and got to the front for a fantastic view of the lady herself and it really made our day!
Be warned in advance this place is HUGE. We were there for 4hrs and still didn’t manage to see everything to its fullest extent. We bee lined to all our favourites and must sees. And then enjoyed the rest of the venue and a more gentle pace.
Simply stunning , we’d love to go again one day!
Highly recommend.
RCentric Red - a month ago
Incredible. Truly a magnificent experience, its too big to even see it all, and it can get crowded to the point where you question if humanity is a plague. However, the paintings, sculptures, architecture, relics and more were amazing to experience. Very beautiful and impressive.
marcongito - a week ago
Directions
Metro / RER Line | Nearest Station | Walking Time |
---|---|---|
M1 or M7 | Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre | 3 minutes |
How to get to The Louvre by Metro / RER
By Metro: From Metro Line 1 or 7 exit at Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre Station and proceed to your right (west) along Rue de Rivoli and then cross the road to your left and proceed through the arches at Place du Corrousel. The entrance to the the Louvre is in the Glass Pyramid ahead and to your left.
The Louvre is also easily accessed from the Batobus.
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