Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the pillars, featuring a mighty Napoleon and excitable Lady Liberty. Pay your respects at
the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Then climb the 284 steps to the observation deck up top,
with sweeping skyline panoramas and a mesmerizing view down onto the traffic that swirls
around the arch.
Cost and Hours:
Outside and at the base—free, always viewable; steps to
rooftop—€9.50, under 18 free, free on first Sun of month Oct-March, covered by Museum
Pass; daily April-Sept 10:00-23:00, Oct-March 10:00-22:30, last entry 45 minutes before
closing;PlaceCharlesdeGaulle,useunderpasstoreacharch,Mo:CharlesdeGaulle-Etoile,
tel. 01 55 37 73 77,
www.arc-de-triomphe.monuments-nationaux.fr
.
Avoiding Lines:
Bypass the slooow ticket line with your Museum Pass (though if you
have kids, you'll need to line up to get the free tickets for children). There may be another
line (that you can't skip) at the entrance to the stairway up the arch. Lines disappear after
17:00—come for sunset.
▲
Opéra Garnier
This gleaming grand theater of the belle époque was built for Napoleon III and finished
in 1875. (For the best view, stand in front of the Opéra Métro stop.) From Avenue de
l'Opéra, once lined with Paris' most fashionable haunts, the facade suggests “all power to
the wealthy.” And a shimmering Apollo, holding his lyre high above the building, seems to
declare, “This is a temple of the highest arts.”
Cost and Hours:
€9, not covered by Museum Pass, erratic hours due to performances
and rehearsals, but generally daily 10:00-17:00, mid-July-Aug until 18:00, last entry 30
minutes before closing, 8 Rue Scribe, Mo: Opéra, RER: Auber.
Tours:
English tours of the building run during summer and off-season on weekends
and Wed, usually at 11:30 and 14:30—call to confirm schedule (€13.50, includes entry, 1.5
hours, tel. 01 40 01 17 89 or 08 25 05 44 05, press 2 for tours).
Visiting the Theater:
You'll enter around the left side of the building—as you face the
front, find the red carpet across from American Express on Rue Scribe. As you pass the bust
of the architect, Monsieur Garnier, pay your respects and check out the bronze floor plan of
the complex etched below. Notice how little space is given to seating.
The building is huge—though the auditorium itself seats only 2,000. The real show was
before and after the performance, when the elite of Paris—out to see and be seen—strutted
theirelegantstuffintheextravagantlobbies.Thinkofthegrandmarblestairwayasatheater.
As you wander the halls and gawk at the decor, imagine this place in its heyday, filled with
beautiful people. The massive foundations straddle an underground lake (inspiring the mys-
teriousworldofthe
PhantomoftheOpera
).Visitorscanpeekfromtwoboxesintotheactual
red-velvet performance hall to view Marc Chagall's colorful ceiling (1964) playfully dan-
cing around the eight-ton chandelier (guided tours take you into the performance hall; you
