Arc de Triomphe: tickets, terrace and opening hours

The terrace: Paris in 360 degrees

From the terrace you see the whole city. The Eiffel Tower, the Sacré-Cœur on Montmartre, La Défense, the golden dome of the Invalides, the dome of the Panthéon, the towers of Notre-Dame in the distance, the Montparnasse Tower and the Centre Pompidou are all in view. A digital device at the orientation tables explains more than 20 monuments. The twelve avenues that start from the square spread out like the points of a star.

The Arc stands on the historic axis that runs from the Arc du Carrousel, by the Louvre, to the Grande Arche of La Défense. On the way up, there is a mezzanine with a small museum room, screens and a cast and a model of the monument.

The steps: what to expect

There are 284 steps in the historic staircases inside the piers: 240 in a spiral up to the mezzanine, renovated in 2022, and about 40 more to the terrace. At the moment the lift is out of service, so the stairs are the only way up. The climb can be tiring, so take your time and stop at the mezzanine if you need to.

Wheelchair users cannot reach the terrace while the lift is out of service. Visitors with reduced mobility can reach the foot of the monument from a drop-off point on the avenue de la Grande-Armée side, by taxi or private car.

Sculptures, names and the arch itself

The Arc is about 50 metres high and its four piers carry great sculpted groups. One group is La Marseillaise by François Rude, the Departure of the Volunteers of 1792, made between 1833 and 1836. The others are the Triumph of 1810 by Jean-Pierre Cortot and the Resistance of 1814 by Antoine Etex. The shields of the attic carry the names of 30 battles, and the piers carry the names of 660 generals.

The Unknown Soldier and the Flame

Under the vault is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, buried on 28 January 1921 after his body arrived on 11 November 1920. Entry to the tomb is free. The Flame of Remembrance was first lit on 11 November 1923 by André Maginot and has never gone out. Every evening at 6:30pm the association La Flamme sous l'Arc de Triomphe rekindles it.

How the Arc was built

Napoleon signed the decree on 18 February 1806, and the first stone was laid on 15 August 1806, his birthday. The architects Chalgrin and Raymond chose a single arch, inspired by the Arch of Titus and the Arch of Constantine. For his entry into Paris with Marie-Louise of Austria on 2 April 1810, a full-size model of painted canvas was built. Chalgrin died in 1811 and the piers were only about a dozen metres high. Work resumed in 1823, and it was finished by Guillaume Abel Blouet and inaugurated in July 1836.

Since then the Arc has seen the funeral procession of Napoleon's ashes in 1840, the lying in state of Victor Hugo in 1885 and the Victory parade of 1919. In 2021 it was wrapped in fabric by Christo and Jeanne-Claude.