Louvre Museum

Once a royal palace, the Louvre now holds one of the greatest art collections on earth, from Egyptian antiquities to French paintings. The glass pyramid by the architect I. M. Pei, opened in 1989, is the main entrance to galleries stretching along the Seine.

A first visit usually focuses on the stars: Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory of Samothrace, followed by the gilded Napoleon III apartments. A guided tour helps you find them without walking for miles.

The museum is closed on Tuesdays and busiest at mid-morning. We book a timed entry, early or on one of its late-opening evenings, and suggest a walk afterwards through the Tuileries Garden to Place de la Concorde.