Louvre--guided tours?
 

Hi
I've been there many times but will be going in January with someone who's never been to Paris before. I am an avid museum goer, but she isn't. I thought that perhaps a guided tour in English, to hit the highlights, would be useful. If I don't get to see my ownquirky favorites this time, it will be okay. Have any of you done this?

Also, do any of you know what the schedule is for tours in English? I've been all over the Louvre website and can't seem to find this, I emailed but go no reply so far.
thanks

..they tours are listed on the Louvre website...I just checked

HI
did you notice what days and times, or can you point me to the correct click?
I've tried Practical Information, as well as Activities and Tours but don't see it
thank you

..Elaine..type in Louvre on yahoo.com.3 is the Louvre site with English on the side pannel. On the side pannel there are activities..go into that and there are guided tours..if you have any problem, post again.

thanks, finally got there
it wasn't easy

It's kind of amusing that all of the information on guided tours in English, is offered in French

thought I might as well provide the info, and a link for superthread

current info--Nov 2004

The basic guided tour (Visite Decouverte) of the highlights is offered, from Oct through the winter, on Sundays only at 11:30 am, other days the Louvre is open the tours are at
11,2pm, and 3:45

but check the above website navigating for current infoo

We took the Louvre guided tour in English after having been there several times and enjoyed it. The tour begins with the history of the Louvre and for me that was the best part. We have also taken guided tours in English at the Orsay. We enjoyed that somewhat less, but tours do make you really pay attention to art you might ordinarily walk by. If you go to paris frequently, taking the tours adds something. If you think the Guimet will interest her, they have a very good audiophone ( is that the right word?) tour in English.

topping this.

I will be in Paris end of Feb 05. Are the highlight tours still the same time as elaine posted in Nov 04? The webpage is in French.

Is the tour included in the ticket price or is it extra?

the tour is an additional fee, and I advise making arrangments in advance, or at least a few minutes before the tour starts

You go to the sign on the main level that says Acceuil Groupes/Tours Conferences
Tour Conference is what you want. You pay for the tour by renting a headset, because the guide speaks into an electronic microphone. You also have to leave a passport or credit card as a guarantee for the headset.

by the way, check the schedule for times of guided tours in English. We went last Monday, the first one was at 11 am, but I'm not sure the times of the other ones were as originally posted.

sorry, I hadn't read the last question properly

per Louvre website today, guided tours--Visite Decouverte (highlights) in English are daily at 11, 2, 3:45, and on Sundays they add one at 11:30, except the first Sunday of the month

Thanks so much, elaine!

Just to add to this, it's 5 euros extra as of Jan 2005.

You need to buy two tickets (general admission + tour). I bought the tour ticket when I walked in to the group reception area. You might be able to get the tour ticket as well in the general ticketing area, but I'm not sure.

It was not clear initially if I had to buy two tickets, and I was a bit concerned that I wasted some money. But you do need to buy two tickets.

Allow sufficient time for this, as the guide may not wait.

As I mentioned in my report, I enjoyed the guided tour very much. As elaine and I both found out, this covers the big three + Michelangelo's "Slaves." I found that it was especially good in the Italian school. Not much on decorative arts, antiquities, or paintings from the Northern Schools, if that's of interest.

Also duration of tour about 90 minutes, as of Jan. 2005.

Hi elaine,
Wanted to post the suggestion of using a guide that was recommended here for touring the Louvre. I was looking for a way to make a visit to the Louvre of more interest to my two young boys. We were fortunate to find an American artist listed here on Fodors that gives tours at the Louvre and other Paris museums. His name is Michael. It was so much fun to have him with us. He kept my boys interested with great stories and history about the artworks and the artists. My husband and I enjoyed the learning experience also. We had him take us to the d'Orsay museum too.
I had read about the Louvre guided tours, but needed to be more flexible with my kids. Now I'm starting to plan a visit to Florence and Rome. I hope we can find someone like Michael when we visit the museums there. If anyone has any suggestions for these cities...
You can contact Michael by email, [email protected]
Hope I'm not too late with this suggestion.
Ellie

Yes, you are referring to Michael Osman whose guide services have been often praised here.
I had tried contacting him a few times prior to my recent trip; we did not connect in a timely way.