We had a terrific visit to the Eiffel Tower, which we had previously visited in 2006.
The Eiffel Tower (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eiffel_Tower) is spectacular. It was completed in 1889 as the entrance to the world’s fair marking the 100th anniversary of the French revolution. At the time of its construction, it was widely considered as an eyesore. However, over the years, it has come to symbolize Paris. It is tallest structure in Paris and the most-visited paid monument in the world. Over 200,000,000 people have visited it since its opening.
It is 1,063 ft. tall, and for 41 years after its opening, it was the tallest man-made structure in the world.
Engineer Gustave Eiffel designed the tower and managed its construction. It was completed in 21 months, and under budget.
It was originally supposed to have been dismantled 20 years after its construction. However, it was allowed to stay up because it was invaluable for communications. In fact, the French used it to jam and to intercept German communications during World War I.
When the Germans defeated the French during World War II, the French cut the elevator cables so the Germans would have to walk to the top. The French claimed they could not obtain replacement cables because of the war. When Hitler visited Paris after the defeat of the French, he decided to just view the tower from the ground rather than to walk to the top. When the Allies approached Paris in 1944, Hitler ordered that the tower be demolished. Fortunately, the German commander in Paris disobeyed the order.
At the Eiffel Tower, we discovered it was even more crowded than the previous evening. The lines to purchase tickets were very long. It’s too bad that our museum pass was not valid there.
It is best to buy your Eiffel Tower tickets on line at (http://www.tour-eiffel.com/), which has an English-Language version that has lots of information about the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, I did not purchase them on-line because I was not 100% sure of that part of our itinerary.
There are three basic types of Eiffel Tower tickets, and no charge for children under 4:
Type Adults Over 24 Youths 12-24 Children 4-11 &
Handicapped
1. Elevator €13.40 €11.80 €9.30
to the top
2. Elevator €8.20 €6.60 €4.10
to 2nd Level
3. Stairs €4.70 €3.70 €3.20
to 2nd Level
(The walk up to the 2nd Level is 600 steps.)
The entrances to the Eiffel Tower are in each of four piers (piliers) at the base of the towers. These pillars are known as the North Pillar (Pilier Nord), East Pillar (Pilier Est), South Pillar (Pilier Sud), and West Pillar (Pilier Ouest). There are separate lines at different pillars for:
- individuals who want to purchase tickets to ride the elevators,
- individuals who want to purchase tickets to walk to the second level,
- individuals who have prepurchased tickets, and
- tour groups.
The tower has two nice restaurants, a champagne bar at the top, and several snack bars. (http://goparis.about.com/od/parisrestaurantreviews/a/EiffelTower_Eat.htm) and (http://www.restaurants-toureiffel.com/)
The best restaurant is Le Jules Verne on the second level. It is a Michelin one-star restaurant run by famous chef Alain Ducasse. It is expensive! Dress code is dressy. Reservations are recommended.
The other restaurant is a brasserie called Le 58 Tour Eiffel. It is on the first level. Lunch menus started at €18 and dinner menus start at €67. Dress code is somewhat dressy (avoid jeans and sneakers).
We stood in the line to purchase a ticket to ride the elevator. The line was long, but it moved reasonably fast. It rained a bit while we waited.
After purchasing our tickets about 11:00 am, we moved into a short line to take the next elevator.
The elevator took us to the second level, where there are very nice views, souvenir shops, snack bars, etc. If you want to go to the top, you have to get in line to take another elevator. We did that. The line was very long. Several people cut in line. However, they had to get out of line because they did not have tickets to the top. They apparently thought they could buy tickets by standing in our line.
The views from the top were terrific. They were greatly enhanced by the 12x optical zoom on my camera. The views I most enjoyed were:
- The Champ de Mars stretching out to Ecole Militaire
- The Trocadero/Palais de Chaillot, which was built for the 1937 International Exposition
- The Seine
- Sacre Coeur at Montmartre
- The Eglise du Dome, which holds Napoleon’s tomb
- The Arc de Triomphe
Champ de Mars, Ecole Militaire, and Montparnasse Tower
The Trocadero
Eglise du Dome
Arc de Triomphe
Sacre Coeur
After we finished at the top, we took an elevator back down to the second level. There, we walked into a souvenir shop where my grandchildren bought souvenirs.
My granddaughter purchased:
- a charm bracelet for €6
- a metal stand holding replicas of the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, and Notre Dame for €8
- a photo frame for €18
My grandson bought a medal that had five replicas of five monuments for €2.50.
Then we walked a few feet to a snack bar where we bought a light lunch. My grandson had a croque monsieur sandwich (open-face grilled ham & cheese) for €5 and a 40 cl Fanta for €3. My granddaughter and I each had a Sandwich Mixte - ham, gruyere cheese, and butter on a baguette for €6. She had a 40 cl coke for €3, and I had a 50 cl Evian water for €3.
We then went back to the bottom. By the time we left the elevator at about 2:30 pm, there were almost no lines.
There are rest rooms in the tower and behind one of the pillars at the bottom.
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