House of the Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa and The Victory of Samothrace the Musée du Louvre, located opposite the sumptuous Jardin des Tuileries, is a symbol of Paris and France. With more than 8 million visitors from all over the world every year, it is the most visited museum in the world, but it still has a long way to go its share of fascinating secrets. To visit the Louvre, it’s best to prepare in advance and arrive with all the information you need.
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What to expect during a visit
From the moment he enters, he surprises his guests with his emblematic glass pyramid. Discover the treasures it has to offer and let yourself be seduced by the architecture of this royal palace, guardian of the history of art and civilization.
Its exhibitions
With its permanent exhibitions, the Louvre allows you to admire world-renowned works and dates back to Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Greek antiquity. You can marvel at the Venus de Milo, the Mona Lisa, the Seated Scribe and Veronese’s Marriage at Cana. The first exhibition contained 537 paintings, today the Louvre houses almost 35,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century.
In 2023, the museum will open a tactile gallery a new concept in the field of visual arts, allowing the visually impaired to access details and information by means of reproductions of great works of art and statues. It’s also an opportunity for everyone to finally be able to touch the works of art without anyone to take them away from us!
Paris is hosting the Olympic Games this year, so its emblematic museum had to take advantage of the occasion to present an exhibition worthy of the name. “Olympism, a modern invention” traces the origins of Olympism back to the ancient world.
When to visit
As the world’s most visited museum, getting to the Louvre without a crowd of people is virtually impossible. However, certain times of the day are quieter than others. For a more leisurely visit, we recommend early mornings and weekdays.
Finding your way around the museum
The museum is organized by exhibition, located on different levels and wings of the building. With over 60,000m² of exhibits, we advise you to take along a map, either on paper(easily available at the entrance to the exhibits) or online, to avoid getting lost.
The Musée du Louvre is open daily from 9 am to 6 pm, except Tuesdays, when it is closed. With this ticket, you’ll have access to the temporary and permanent exhibitions in less than 30 minutes(and considering the crowds, that’s not too much) ! And if you’re still thirsty for art on the way out, your ticket includes admission to the Musée National Eugène Delacroix on the same day. Enter the Pyramid and discover over 35,000 treasures.
Where the Louvre is and how to get there
Located on the Place du Carrousel in the first arrondissement of Paris, opposite the Tuileries Gardens, the Louvre Museum is well served by public transport.
By metro: “Palais Royal – Musée du Louvre” station, line 1 or 7.
By bus: routes 21, 24, 27, 39, 48, 68, 69, 72, 81, 95.
What else can you do
The Louvre estate includes the Carrousel and Tuileries gardens. These two areas offer visitors a wide range of walks and activities to take a breather or a break from the hustle and bustle. Children can let off steam on the trampolines or have fun on the playground. And after solving a treasure hunt and saving the gardens, they can enjoy a hard-earned ride on the merry-go-round. For the grown-ups, you can relax on the terrace of one of the gardens’ restaurants and cafés and enjoy a drink, ice cream or grenadine after a stroll in the sunshine.
Another way to learn is to have fun! To find out more about French royalty, there’s nothing funnier than discovering the scandals! Ah yes, discover them during a guided tours with…unusual guides ! The Marquise des Potins, the Comtesse des Commères and Clément l’archiduc des Quendiraton have their tongues firmly in their pockets, and are ready to tell you all about it.
The history of the Louvre
From Fortress to Museum
In the 12th century, the Louvre was a fortress protecting Paris from attack, but Charles V turned it into his royal residence, transforming it into a real castle and thus marking the beginning of its palace function. Over the course of the reigns, it underwent numerous renovations and improvements, becoming a symbol of renaissance under François I. It officially became a museum in 1793. It will serve as a place to display the nation’s masterpieces.
The Louvre Pyramid
In 1981, President François Mitterrand launched the “Grand Louvre” project to modernize the museum. The Louvre Pyramid, now an integral part of the Palais, was designed by architect Ieoh Ming Pei and inaugurated in 1989. With its glass walls, it provides a well of light at the museum’s main entrance without obscuring the historic architecture of the building’s facades.
An impressive flight
On August 21, 1911, the Italian glassmaker Vincenzo Perrugia, who had installed the glass protecting the Mona Lisa, realized the unthinkable. After hiding in a cupboard in the palace when the museum closed, he emerged from his hiding place at around 7 a.m. to dismantle the famous glass and remove the painting, before leaving the museum as an ordinary visitor, painting under his clothes. Two years later, he was denounced when he tried to sell the painting in Florence. Her motive: to bring Leonardo Da Vinci ‘s famous painting back home to Italy.
The Louvre Museum, which has protected its collections is so large that it would take 100 days to visit it in its entire ty. And spending just 30 seconds in each room. But the good news is that you can return several times and still be amazed. And if you’ve fallen in love with this museum, you can now redecorate your home or wardrobe with their webshop !