The largest museum in the world is home to the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory of Samothrace, beneath the famous glass pyramid. Book ahead, ideally for the Friday late opening when it is quieter, and add a stroll through the Tuileries next door.
The Louvre at a glance
A royal palace before Versailles, the Louvre displays more than 35,000 works from Antiquity to the 19th century across almost 60,600 m² of exhibition space. I. M. Pei's glass pyramid, inaugurated in 1989, marks the entrance.
Don't miss
Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo (around 100 BC) and the Winged Victory of Samothrace, majestic at the top of the Daru staircase, make up the unmissable trio. The often overlooked Napoleon III Apartments display all the gilded splendour of the Second Empire.
Visiting tips
A timed online ticket is strongly recommended, especially in high season. You can't see everything in one visit, so focus on one or two wings.
Close by
The Tuileries Garden starts right outside the museum, the Palais-Royal and its arcades are a few minutes' walk away, and the Musée d'Orsay, across the Seine, continues the visit with Impressionist art.
