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Your Detailed Guide to the Louvre Entrances

The magnificent Louvre Museum is an iconic attraction in the city of Paris. It is one of the largest museums in the world and boasts of nearly half a million works of art, including Leonardo Da Vinci's masterpiece Mona Lisa. The museum is a magnet for tourists, art connoisseurs, and history lovers alike, so much so that the Louvre is visited by nearly 10 million people every year. The result of this is that the attraction is crowded with visitors all day, throughout the year, which is why you need to know about all Louvre entrances before you visit.

Louvre Museum Entrances

There are four Louvre entrances, and here's everything you need to know about each one of them to help you decide which one you need to take for a quick entry.

Louvre Entrances

The Four Louvre Entrances

louvre entrances

1.  I.M. Pei Pyramid Entrance

This is the main Louvre entrance. This entrance is to be used by visitors with tickets, those with a Paris Museum Pass, membership card, and even visitors without tickets. Disabled visitors and staff members who receive priority access can also enter from this entrance.

How to Reach: Get down at Palais Royal Musée du Louvre Metro station and walk directly to the entrance. You can also take buses 21, 69, 72, N11, or N24 to get down at Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre bus stop and walk to the entrance. 

Entrance Timings: The museum is open every day, except for Tuesdays, from 9 am to 6 pm.

Average Wait Time: Advanced booking can help you skip the line and enter the museum in 10 minutes. Without early reservations, it might take over an hour based on how crowded the venue will be on the date of your visit.

louvre entrances

2. Carrousel du Louvre Entrance

This entrance is called “the mall entrance to the Louvre”. The Carrousel entrance can be used by all, disabled visitors, groups, visitors with membership cards, and visitors with tickets.

How to Reach: You can gain entry directly from the Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre Metro Line 1 and 7. You can also enter from 99 Rue de Rivoli after getting down at Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre bus stop and taking two sets of escalators underground.

Entrance Timings: The museum entrance is open every day, except for Tuesdays, from 9 am to 6 pm.

Average Wait Time: It can take up to 30 minutes to gain entry into the museum through this entrance.

louvre museum entrance

3. Passage Richelieu Entrance

The Passage Richelieu entrance is reserved for those travelling as a group and visitors with membership cards (Amis du Louvre, Louvre Pro, Ministère de la Culture, Pass Education, ICOM).

How to Reach: Get down at Palais Royal Musée du Louvre Metro station and walk to the entrance on Rue de Rivoli. You can also take buses 21, 69, 72, N11, or N24 to get down at Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre bus stop and walk to the entrance.

Entrance Timings: The museum entrance is every day, except for Tuesdays, from 9 am to 6 pm. It closes daily after 5:30 pm.

Average Wait Time: The average wait time will be between 10-15 minutes. 

louvre museum paris entrance

4. Porte des Lions Entrance

This entrance is located in the internal part of the Louvres and attracts an average amount of visitors. However, there are no lockers at this entrance and you will be refused entry if you have a large bag or helmet. Only visitors who have made prior reservations can enter from Porte des Lions.
How to Reach: Get down at Palais Royal Musée du Louvre Metro station and walk to the entrance on Place du Carrousel. You can also take buses 21, 69, 72, N11, or N24 to get down at Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre bus stop and walk to the entrance.   

Entrance Timings: The Portes de Lions entrance remains closed every Friday and Tuesday, when the museum is closed.

Average wait time: It can take up to 30 minutes to gain access to the museum.

Queue at I.M. Pei Pyramid Museum Entrance

Once you get to the Pyramid entrance of the museum, you’ll notice four lines.

  • Queue 1: This line is reserved for visitors without tickets
  • Queue 2: This queue is for visitors with a ticket or Paris Museum Pass 
  • Queue 3: This queue is reserved for visitors with membership cards (Amis du Louvre, Louvre Pro, Ministère de la Pass Education, ICOM, etc.).
  • Queue 4: This line is for visitors who receive priority access (disabled visitors and staff members).

The tube lift of the Pyramid entrance is reserved for:

  • Disabled visitors
  • Visitors with wheelchairs
  • Visitors with prams 



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All Your Questions About Louvre Entrances Answered

How many Louvre entrances are there in total?

There are four Louvre entrances: I. M. Pei Pyramid, Carrousel du Louvre, Passage Richelieu, and Porte des Lions.

Are all the Louvre entrances open currently?

As of now, only three entrances are open to the public: The I. M. Pei Pyramid, Carrousel du Louvre, and the Passage Richelieu (Porte de Richelieu). The Porte des Lions entrance has been closed temporarily since 2019.

Which is the best entrance to Louvre for visitors with tickets?

If you have tickets, enter via the I. M. Pei Pyramid, Carrousel du Louvre entrance of Louvre.

Which Louvre entrance to use if I don't have entry tickets?

Visitors without tickets can use the I. M. Pei Pyramid entrance.

Which Louvre entrance should visitors with disability use?

The I. M. Pei Pyramid, Carrousel du Louvre entrance of Louvre are the best options for visitors with disability.

Which Louvre entrance should I use if I am traveling to Louvre as a group?

Carrousel du Louvre, and the Passage Richelieu (Porte de Richelieu) are reserved for visitors traveling as a group.

I have a Louvre membership card. Which entrance should I use to enter the musuem?

Visitors with membership cards (Amis du Louvre, Louvre Pro, Ministère de la Culture, Pass Education, ICOM) should enter the Louvre via the Passage Richelieu (Porte de Richelieu) entrance.

Which Louvre entrance should I use if I have the ticket to an event in the auditorium of Louvre?

If you have ticket to an event at the auditorium of Louvre, enter via the Richelieu entrance.

How can I avoid waiting in the lines for a long time?

Book your ticket in advance and choose skip-the-line entry tickets so you can skip the line and head to your experience!

What are the Louvre Museum timings?

Louvre Museum is open between 9 am - 6 pm, Monday to Wednesday. It is closed on Tuesdays. Please note that the last time of entry into the museum is 5:30 pm, half an hour before closing.