Place de la Concorde Ferris Wheel to stay up most of 2016
 

The "Grande Roue" at Place de la Concorde will be in place from 6 November 2015 until 23 September 2016 instead of being dismantled in mid-February. It will also be bigger than before with a height of 65 meters instead of 57 meters (note that this is nothing compared to the London Eye which is 135 meters tall). The new wheel will have 48 capsules instead of 42.

The reason for the extended period in 2016 is because France is hosting the European football (soccer) championship next year, and the Grande Roue will be used to advertise it. Each capsule will be decorated with the faces of the major European football stars.

On one of the most elegant squares in Paris! My French is not good enough to find an equivalent of »London Eyesore«.

I admit that I hate it, too.

When they built "the" tower, a lot of Parisians "hated" that, too. You can look that up.

"Monstruosité" should work... as in "La culture engendre la monstruosité." (Georges Braque)

Ah makes Paris a real lived in town not a museum - but could have been better in Tuileries where such a wheel has been on and off a long time - why in the actual Place de la Concorde - easy for bus tours to drop by perhaps.

I have nothing against a temporary Ferris wheel in Paris -- I just think that the location is inappropriate in the historic center. Place de la Concorde and the Tuileries hardly need such an item to draw people to that area. In terms of making it easily accessible with a fantastic view, I think that I would choose Porte Maillot. That way it would still be in the main axis and easily accessible and would have an even better view of the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower and La Défense.

If ever they wanted to install a permanent wheel, I would suggest Porte Dorée, overlooking the zoo.

"Monstruosité should work"
Has nobody in Paris found a French answer to the English pun of eye-eyesore?

'monstruosité' is ok, but 'horreur' would probably be first choice.

Cette horreur défigure la place de la Concorde, très cher.

Eye-eyesore I don't get, so cannot translate : 'une hourreur pour les yeux ?'.

Perso, I don't mind :-) I kind of like the view from the arc de triomphe or further from La Défense when you see it from far away (you can have a glass of wine on last floor of hotel Melia and have access to a terrace overlooking Paris). Quite nice.

Really sorry to see that. That was one of my favorite spots --

s

Does anyone know the actual dates of the football championship? Could make for even more crowds than usual. Is it held in Paris?

»Eye-Eyesore I don't get, so cannot translate«
'Eyesore' as 'pain in the Eye'. The London Eye.
Someone must have found something which plays with 'Roué', don't you think?

Typo. No accent on 'roue'. Should make a nice rhyme easier.