Eiffel Tower Tickets: Prices, Summit & 2nd Floor, Opening Hours and How to Get There

The on-site ticket queue at the base of the Eiffel Tower, seen from above — in high season it can mean 1.5 to 3 hours of waiting. A timed, skip-the-line ticket lets you walk straight past it.

The Eiffel Tower — la tour Eiffel — is a 324-metre iron lattice tower rising from the Champ-de-Mars on the Left Bank of Paris. Built by Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, it was meant to be temporary and ended up becoming the symbol of France. It now welcomes more than six million visitors a year, which makes it the most-visited paid monument in the world — and it is exactly that popularity that makes a little planning worthwhile.

The good news is that the system is simple once you understand it. There are really just two decisions: how high you want to go (the 2nd floor or all the way to the summit) and how you want to get up (by lift or on foot up the stairs). Everything else — price, queue, how long you stay — follows from those two choices.

Eating at the Eiffel Tower

You don’t have to come down to eat. The tower’s 1st-floor restaurant, Madame Brasserie, lets you turn the visit into a proper occasion — and because it comes with priority lift access, you skip the standard ticket queue entirely on your way up. It’s a popular choice for a special lunch with the city spread out below the windows, or for travellers who would rather sit down to a meal than shuffle through the crowds for views alone.

Madame Brasserie on the 1st floor of the Eiffel Tower — a sit-down meal with panoramic windows over Paris, with priority lift access included. Book lunch at the Eiffel Tower here. (AI-generated image.)

Summit or 2nd floor — which ticket should you buy?

This is the choice that shapes your whole visit. The summit sits at 276 metres and is a categorically different experience: a true 360° panorama, Gustave Eiffel’s restored office with its wax figures, the beacon you see sweeping across Paris at night, and a small champagne bar. If it is your first visit and you have the time, most people never regret going all the way up.

The 2nd floor, at 115 metres, is the practical sweet spot. You are closer to the city, so you can actually pick out the monuments below — many visitors quietly think the view from here is better than from the very top. It is cheaper, the flow is smoother, and it is the right call if anyone in your group is tired, short on time, or not keen on crowds.

From the summit at 276 metres you get a true 360° panorama of Paris — the highest accessible public viewpoint in the city. Book summit access by elevator here.

Eiffel Tower ticket prices in 2026

There are two very different ways to buy, and it pays to understand the difference before you book. The official ticket-office prices below — set each year by SETE, the company that runs the tower — are the bare entry fees you pay if you queue at the box office on the day. They look cheap, but they come with the catch that everyone discovers on arrival: the on-site ticket line regularly runs 1.5 to 3 hours in season, and summit tickets are often sold out by the time you reach the window.

Official box-office prices (queue on the day)

Children under 4 enter free but still need a (free) ticket for lift-capacity reasons. EU residents under 26 and visitors with a disability (plus one companion) are entitled to reduced or free entry — bring valid ID or proof. Prices are indicative of 2026 official rates and may be adjusted slightly; always confirm the exact amount at checkout.

Guided, skip-the-line tours (1–2 hours, no box-office queue)

The second way — and the one most short-stay visitors actually choose — is a guided, skip-the-line tour of 1 to 2 hours. These are not bare entry tickets: a host meets you, walks you past the ticket-office line to a dedicated entrance, and takes you up the tower while sharing its history. You pay a little more than the box-office fee, but you trade away the single biggest frustration of the visit — the queue — and your time slot is guaranteed. The two headline options:

These guided-tour prices include the skip-the-line service and host, which is why they sit above the bare box-office fees in the table above. Live prices and availability are shown at checkout.

Lift or stairs?

Taking the stairs to the 2nd floor is the cheapest official ticket and, for energetic visitors, genuinely enjoyable — it is 674 steps up the open iron framework, with the platforms appearing as you climb. From the 2nd floor you can still buy or hold a lift ticket up to the summit. The catch: it is a real climb, stair access can close earlier in the day or in bad weather, and it is not the right choice if anyone in the group will hate it.

The lift is the easy, all-weather option and the only way up for prams, reduced-mobility visitors, and anyone who would rather save their legs. Lifts run from the ground to the 2nd floor, where you change cars for the dedicated summit lift.

The four ticket types at a glance

Opening hours and closed days

The Eiffel Tower is open every day of the year — there are no regular closure days. Hours are seasonal:

• Mid-June to early September (peak summer): daily 09:00 to 00:45, last summit ascent around 23:00.
• Rest of the year: daily 09:30 to 23:00 (lift) or 18:30 (stairs), last entry roughly 22:30.

The summit can close at short notice in high winds or bad weather, and stair access closes earlier than the lift. If the summit is your priority, check the live status on the official site or the Eiffel Tower app on the day of your visit.

The 2nd floor sits at 115 metres and is where many visitors say the city views are actually best — close enough to recognise the monuments below.

Skip the line: what timed tickets actually do

It helps to be clear about what “skip-the-line” means here. A timed online ticket lets you bypass the ticket-office queue and walk straight to your assigned pillar entrance within your time window. What it does not do is remove the security screening — every visitor passes through a metal detector and bag check, similar to an airport, so plan an extra 5 to 10 minutes for that regardless of which ticket you hold.

One detail that trips people up: your ticket specifies which of the four pillars (North, South, East or West) to use. Read it before you leave your hotel — arriving at the wrong pillar and walking around the base eats directly into your timed slot. Aim to be at the correct entrance about 15 minutes before your window opens.

How to get to the Eiffel Tower

The address is Champ de Mars, 5 Avenue Anatole France, 75007 Paris. By public transport you have several good options:

• Metro line 6 to Bir-Hakeim — about a 5-minute walk to the base of the tower, the closest station.
• Metro line 9 to Trocadéro — across the river, and the best spot for the postcard photo of the whole tower before you walk down to it.
• RER C to Champ de Mars–Tour Eiffel — drops you on the Left Bank side, a short walk from the southern pillars.

A standard single Paris metro/RER ticket covers the journey. If you are coming from elsewhere in the city, Trocadéro is worth the small detour for the view as you arrive.

Best time to visit

For the smallest crowds, aim for the first slot at opening or a late-evening slot after 21:00. Sunset is the single most popular time — the views and photos are spectacular, but the summit lift queue and the deck itself are at their busiest, so book that slot well ahead. Weekdays are quieter than weekends, and the shoulder months (spring and autumn) are far more comfortable than mid-summer.

However high you go, give yourself at least 2 to 3 hours for the visit — more if you want to linger on the summit, eat, or watch the sparkling lights. Bring a jacket: it is noticeably colder and windier at the top than at ground level, even on a warm day.

Make a full day of it: the Louvre nearby

The Eiffel Tower pairs naturally with the other great Paris landmark on the Right Bank. If you are building a Paris itinerary, it is well worth reserving a timed Louvre Museum ticket on a separate day or for the morning — the Louvre also runs on timed entry and its summit-equivalent (the Mona Lisa hall) gets just as busy. Our full Louvre tickets and prices guide covers fast-track entry, opening hours and how to reach it, the same way this page does for the Eiffel Tower.

After dark the tower sparkles for five minutes at the top of every hour — free to watch from the Champ-de-Mars or Trocadéro.

Practical tips for a smooth visit

• Travel light. Large bags and suitcases are not allowed, and smaller bags speed up the security check.
• Have your ticket ready on your phone. It is a timed QR e-ticket, scanned at several checkpoints.
• Bring ID for everyone on the booking, plus proof for any reduced or free rate (youth, EU under-26, disability).
• Don’t count on upgrading inside. The level you buy is fixed — if you want the summit, choose it at purchase.
• Dress for the top. It is open-air and windy up high; a light jacket makes the summit far more enjoyable.

Frequently asked questions