What I Wish I’d Known Before Going to the Louvre

During my first year in Paris, I went to the Louvre Museum dozens of times. I wanted to make the most of it and even bought a membership.

Now, more than ten years into my Parisian life, I look back and realize how little of the Louvre I’d seen. It’s the largest museum in the world. Its 652,000+ square feet show off between 35,000 to 40,000 objects at a time. And that’s just a fraction of its 600,000+ piece collection!

As I began work on my Substack about weird Parisian history, I knew the Louvre was where I wanted to start. But my recent visit there reminded me of all the hassles and frustrations that come with visiting such a popular destination!

I gathered my tips together so that you can learn from my mistakes. Here’s everything I wish I’d known before going to the Louvre for the first time.

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You Don’t Need to Wait in a Long Line

The lines at the Louvre are incredibly long. The picture here shows a typical line at 10:30 am on a Monday morning—and the museum only opens at 9 am! This is the line for those already holding tickets, too. 

So what can you do to walk right in? First, you can book a group tour that reserves tickets in advance. These can even be private or semi-private toursthat focus on your interests.

The other option is to become a Friend of the Louvre. This membership costs 80€ for one person or 120€ for two people. However, the single pass lets you bring a friend for free on Friday evenings. It also gets you into the Musée Delacroix for free. You’ll get a 10% discount at Louvre stores as well.

The price drops by age: it’s 35€ for those between 26 and 29, and 15€ for under 26.

This may seem like a lot of money, but it’s worth it if you plan on returning more than three times in a year. This is even truer if you have younger people in your group. Normally, Louvre tickets cost 22€ for everyone over 18.

Becoming a Friend of the Louvre will allow you to bypass the longer lines and go straight to the fast-access sign to the right. With my membership card, it took me less than ten minutes from the metro to the museum. And that includes the security check!

People with disabilities should keep in mind that they have priority access in lines.

You Need a Plan

Did I mention how big the Louvre is? It’s 652,000+ square feet—the size of 239 average American homes [ Source]. You need a plan.

If you know what kind of works you want to see but don’t have a specific program in mind, check out this map of the Louvre’s collections.

You’ll see there are three main wings: Richelieu, Sully, and Denon. Although you can see more than one wing in a day, it would likely take you all day. Focus on one wing per visit. Part of a wing is better.

If you have specific works in mind, even better! You can search for them on the Louvre’s website. Make sure to check “Musée du Louvre” under “on display” on the left search bar to narrow your results. Then, click on an object to get its room number.

The Louvre Has Weird Hours

The Louvre has weird hours. It’s open late on Fridays, until 9:45 pm, making it a great date-night destination. Its closures are slightly less predictable. It’s always closed on Tuesdays, so don’t plan to go then.

But not everything is available all the time. I was looking for particular works by Marguerite Gérard, one of my favorite artists, during my visit. But when I went, I found the passage to the room with most of her paintings closed. The guard told me that the second floor is normally closed on Mondays, but that they’d opened some of the rooms anyway that day.

Tracking down what’s open and when, can feel impossible. But if there’s a particular work you want to see, check for it in the Louvre collections database. You can call the Louvre (phone number: +33 (0)1.40.20.53.17) to confirm, as well.

Preparation Is Everything

Before you head to the Louvre, you need to plan. First, check Google to see the most popular times to go and try to avoid those. This shows up under the destination name when you Google it:

As you can see, my timing was pretty good. I arrived around 10:30 am and left at 12:30 pm. By the time I left, the crowds had ramped up!

Beyond timing, plan your outfit and baggage carefully. The Louvre does have baggage storage (more on this below!), but it’s better to avoid the extra step if you can. Instead, I focused on the essentials:

• A cardigan in case the warm spring day turned chilly
• Good walking shoes (I love my New Balance!)
• The standard Louvre map from my last visit
• My map with notes about where I’d go and in what order
• My membership card
• A purse with a secure closure to avoid pickpockets

The Louvre Makes the Perfect Layover Destination

Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport is a major European hub. In other words, a lot of people will have layovers here. If yours is particularly long, the Louvre is a great place to spend your time!

You can take the RER B commuter train directly from the airport to the Chatelet-Les Halles stop, about a 30-minute ride. From there, it’s a short ten minutes on foot to the museum.

You can store small luggage in secured lockers on the ground floor. From there, you can explore the luxury shops at the Carrousel and the mall beneath the museum. Or, you can visit the museum itself!

There are tons of upscale brands in the shops under the Louvre in its “Carrousel.” These range from Lacoste and Sandro to Ladurée and Maxim’s.

There are plenty of amenities in this part of the museum complex. You’ll find an ATM, food, a currency exchange, and even Amazon lockers.

I recommend doing your shopping after visiting the museum if you’re combining the two activities. There’s no reason to pay for locker storage or lug your items with you through the enormous Louvre hallways!

Public Transport is the Easiest Way to Reach the Louvre

The Métro will take you into the heart of the Louvre itself (with elevator access). And, unlike in many major cities, it’s the easiest way to get to the museum.

Take Line 1 to the “Palais Royal – Musée du Louvre” station, then follow signs for exit 6 to the Carrousel. Don’t be fooled by other metro stops with the name “Louvre” in them, like “Louvre – Rivoli.” These are close to the Louvre but not nearly as convenient.

For more, check out my guide to getting around Paris.

Online Purchases Can Be Cheaper Than the Museum Gift Shop

I love museum gift shops—almost more than museums themselves! And the Louvre’s is the best I’ve ever seen. It takes up two enormous boutique spaces in the Carrousel. It has charming items from a version of Clue that takes place in the museum to gorgeous enameled jewelry.

But I don’t like to purchase things here. Instead, I like to buy online so I don’t have to lug everything back with me. First-time buyers online can also get 15% off online orders by subscribing to the newsletter.

Of course, this only makes sense for longer stays. International shipping is available, but the price is high.

Pace Yourself

The Louvre looks smaller on maps than it actually is. And it looks enormous on those maps!

In the end, I was only able to cover a small part of my itinerary in the two hours I’d allotted for the trip. I live right on Line 1 and went directly to and from the museum. How far did I walk?

That’s about 2.5 miles door-to-door! Not bad for a workout, but not always possible.

As you plan your museum visit, pick out the two or three things you would be most sorry to miss. Then, focus your trip around those. That way, if you get tired midway through, you can leave knowing that you’ve seen your favorite works of art.

You Don’t Need to Leave the Louvre to Find Amazing Restaurants

I was an art history major and worked in the art world for a few years—so, I’ve been to many museum cafés. Generally, the food is about on par with airplane meals. This isn’t the case at the Louvre!

There are 15 restaurants in the Louvre complex itself. These range from the inexpensive (Paul) to the fancy (Café Marly).

Café Marly is one of my favorite restaurants in Paris. It has the perfect range of lighter and heavier dishes. The terrace looks out over the pyramid, too, making it perfect for people-watching. And the desserts are especially delicious.

You Can Rent a Car at the Louvre

I’m not the biggest fan of renting a car in Paris, but sometimes it’s necessary. And, weirdly enough (but conveniently!), there is a Hertz location in the Louvre! I’ve used it before and the process was super easy and convenient. That is until I hit the road.

If you’re planning on leaving right from the Louvre, leave a lot of time for traffic. I mean alot of time. I’d planned on taking 30 minutes to get out of the city. But because of an event down the road from the Louvre, it took me more than two hours.

With that said, I did feel very glamorous driving out of the Louvre parking lot!

The Louvre in a Nutshell

The Louvre is by far my favorite museum in Paris because of its history, oddities, and amenities. The main thing to keep in mind is that a little planning will get you a long way. This isn’t a “bijou” museum. For example, at the Jeu de Paume or the Orangerie (both across the Tuileries Gardens), you can explore the collections in a single day.

The Louvre isn’t a destination where you can see everything in one day—or, even one lifetime. For some of us, though, it’s worth a try!