agoenka82

Hi guys,

Have read numerous posts on how to conquer the tower but still need some expert advise.

My wife and I will be reaching Paris on June 27th (Saturday) and can leave our hotel room (near Les Halles) around 3pm. Were planning to cover Eiffel Tower this day.

Question: If we were to que for a stairs ticket at around 3:30pm, climb till 1st level and then take individual supplement tickets to 2nd floor and to the summit, how long would it take us to get back on the ground (assuming we spend ~40-45mins at the summit).

Are the ques really long at this time for the Stairway access and for catching the elevator from the 2nd floor. Are their ques on the way down as well?

Am i better off buying a tour ticket...EUR 40 pp !!!

Cheers...

Gretchen

Think about just enjoying it from the base or the Champs des Mars if you have a limited time in Paris.
And on your first day if jet lagged, it might really be tiresome.
"Plan to cover" it--this sounds like a very packed itinerary. How long do you have? Just curious.

Lines later at night may be shorter.

kerouac

I am in the minority, but I don't think that people should buy advance tickets to the Eiffel Tower. You never know how the weather is going to be, and the advance ticket sales are just insurance for the operators that there will be plenty of people even when the weather is horrible.

The Eiffel Tower is worth the wait on a perfect day -- or not at all worth visiting if your stay is too short and you cannot get there before 9am when the line to get in is still reasonable.

Robert2533

I'm with kerouac. You need to be there early, before the crowds arrive.

Sarastro

<i>I am in the minority, but I don't think that people should buy advance tickets to the Eiffel Tower.</i>

I am not sure you are that much in the minority kerouac. I wouldn´t advise anyone to worry about pre-purchasing ET tickets. It could be rainy the day for which one has tickets, there could be a strike by ET personnel (as there was last week).

One of the advantages of visiting Paris in the off season is that it´s much easier to visit the Eiffel Tower. And the stairs is always an option for those who absolutely must climb the tower.

agoenka82

Thanks for your reply guys...

@ gretchen - 'cover' seems a wrong word..meant 'experience' ..am there for 5 days, but it does seem like a packed itinerary given its our 1st trip..jet lag is not an issue because we would have had a good sleep before leaving from hotel..

Am still not clear on 1 thing though - assuming the weather is good, can I take a trip to the top of ET and be back by evening...was actually planning to experience the sunset/twilight from the top

cheers...

janisj

>>jet lag is not an issue because we would have had a good sleep before leaving from hotel..<<

Just a bit curious about this??? What time are you arriving in Paris? Generally hotel rooms are not available until the mid afternoon at the earliest. You can drop your bags and come back later when the room is ready - but usually not get into the room and sleep.

<i>Sometimes</i> rooms are available when you arrive but you can't count on that.

Gretchen

..jet lag is not an issue because we would have had a good sleep before leaving from hotel..

This is a BIG mistake, IMO. On your first day just keep going--get some lunch, walk around, buy museum passes if you are doing that, look at things from the outside--ET, Notre Dame, etc.
Take a Seine cruise to maybe see the dusk and the lights of Paris come up, have a bit of dinner and GO TO BED. You will be up and at 'em in the morning and much better to cope.
Think about going to the roof of Galeries Lafayette to look at rooftops, etc. and let the ET top go for such a short trip.

janisj

>>This is a BIG mistake, IMO. <<

I agree w/ Gretchen -- my comment was just that you may not be able to get into your room to sleep . . . but IMO even if you could, it wouldn't be a great idea.

Now, some people do take a short nap but not a 'major sleep' and even a nap can screw up your body clock for a few days.

ssander

I also think it's a mistake to get a big sleep on arrival...assuming you are arriving in the morning.

We usually go, go, go until about 3 pm, then take a nap of about a half hour. That works for us, but everyone's body is different.

SS

kerouac

<I>was actually planning to experience the sunset/twilight from the top</I>

It is indeed delightful to see that, but if you book ahead of time on a cloudy day, it will be depressing, although of course you will see the city gradually light up if you are still there after 10pm. It is not dark enough before then.

In the good news department, it is true that far fewer people visit the tower at night than during the day.

janisj

>>reaching Paris on June 27th<<

kerouac makes a good point. Sunset on June 27 is 10PM and it won't be dark till much later.

Scootoir

We visited Paris a few years ago in October and stayed in an apartment near the Eiffel Tower. It wasn't our first trip to Paris so we did not plan to go up in the tower but on a particularly clear morning we decided to visit the tower and did not have to wait long for tickets. A few days later the top of the tower was covered by clouds.

I would take Kerouac's and Janisj's advice and visit in the evening--the view of the city at night is beautiful.