Arc de Triomphe: Visiting Guide, Climbing Tips & History

The arc de triomphe is the second-most-visited monument in Paris (after the Eiffel Tower) and offers a remarkable advantage many tourists miss — the rooftop terrace looks back down the Champs-Élysées to the Louvre AND captures the Eiffel Tower in side profile from the perfect distance for landscape photographs. Standing 50 metres tall at the center of Place Charles de Gaulle, the arch crowns the western end of the historic axis that begins at the Louvre Pyramid and runs all the way to La Défense — an eight-kilometre perfectly straight line of monuments that took Paris three centuries to assemble. Most visitors photograph the arch from below and leave. This guide covers tickets and the safe access tunnel, the climbing details (284 steps, no elevator past floor 1), the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier ceremony, sunset strategy, the 12-avenue star, and what to do about the daily 6:30pm flame relighting ritual that almost no tourists witness. By the time you finish reading you will know exactly when to arrive, which entrance to use, what the rooftop view actually contains, and why the climb is one of the best returns on physical effort in the city. For wider context, see our Paris attractions pillar.

Arc de Triomphe at a Glance: Key 2026 Stats

Before diving into the details, here are the essential numbers and facts that frame every decision about visiting. The Arc de Triomphe is bigger than most photographs suggest, older than the Eiffel Tower by half a century, and operates on a ticketed-entry system that has tightened considerably since 2024. Use the bullets below as a quick reference; each topic is expanded in its own section further down.

• Dimensions: 50 metres tall, 45 metres wide, 22 metres deep — the largest triumphal arch in the world until the North Korean Arch of Triumph (1982) edged it out by a few metres.
• Commissioned: 1806 by Napoleon Bonaparte to commemorate his Austerlitz victory of December 1805.
• Completed: 1836 under King Louis-Philippe — 30 years of construction spanning two Empires and two monarchies.
• Annual visitors: approximately 1.5 million climb to the rooftop terrace each year; many millions more pass beneath it.
• Tickets in 2026: €16 adult; €12 youth EU 18-25; FREE for under-18s worldwide; FREE for EU residents aged 18-25.
• Climb: 284 steps via spiral staircase to the rooftop; an elevator serves the first floor only.
• Location: center of Place Charles de Gaulle, historically named Place de l’Étoile (“the Star”) for the 12 avenues that radiate outward from it.
• Tomb of the Unknown Soldier: installed November 11, 1920; eternal flame lit November 11, 1923 and burning continuously since.
• Daily flame ceremony: 6:30pm every evening of the year, free to attend at street level.
• Time needed: 60-90 minutes for the full visit including the climb and rooftop.

How to Get to the Arc de Triomphe Safely

The single most important practical instruction in this entire guide is this: do not cross the roundabout traffic at street level. The 12 avenues converge into one of Europe’s busiest and fastest traffic circles. Cars enter from any direction at any speed, lane markings inside the circle are largely advisory, and pedestrians are not permitted inside the roundabout under any circumstances. Tourists who try to dart across between gaps in traffic are reliably struck several times each year. The police will turn you back if they see you attempt it.

The correct approach is the pedestrian tunnel. Two underground passages run beneath the roundabout: one connects Avenue de la Grande Armée (west side) to the arch, the other connects Avenue des Champs-Élysées (east side) to the arch. Both deposit you at the base of the monument on a circular paved plaza. The tunnel entrance sits immediately outside the Metro station and is signposted in multiple languages. There is no charge to enter the plaza or to view the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at ground level; only the rooftop climb requires a ticket.

By Metro, the only sensible stop is Charles de Gaulle-Étoile, served by Lines 1, 2, 6 and RER A. The station has multiple exits but the one labelled “Arc de Triomphe” emerges directly at the tunnel entrance — you will not need to cross a single road. If you are walking up the Champs-Élysées from Place de la Concorde, stay on the right-hand pavement, cross Avenue Foch using the standard pedestrian signals, and look for the staircase down to the underground passage just before you reach the roundabout.

For accessibility, an elevator runs from tunnel level up to the ground floor (where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier sits) and onward to the first observation level, which contains the small museum and the bookshop. Past the first floor, however, the only route to the rooftop is the 284-step spiral staircase — there is no elevator to the summit. Wheelchair access to the first floor is free, and an attendant will assist with the elevator on request at the ground-level ticket office.

Tickets in 2026: Every Option

Ticketing changed materially in 2024 when the operator (Centre des Monuments Nationaux) introduced mandatory timed-entry slots, and the prices held steady for 2026. Knowing the categories below will save you both money and queue time.

Ticket type	Price 2026	Notes
Adult standard	€16	Includes rooftop access
Youth EU 18-25	€12	EU residency required, ID checked
Under 18 worldwide	FREE	Photo ID with date of birth required
EU resident 18-25	FREE	Passport or residence card required
First Sunday of month	FREE	November to March only
July 14 (Bastille Day)	FREE	Long queues; arrive at 10am opening
Audio guide rental	€4	45 minutes, 8 languages
Paris Museum Pass 2-day	€70	Arc included; covers 50+ sites
Paris Museum Pass 4-day	€85	Best value for multi-day stays
Paris Museum Pass 6-day	€105	Best for 5+ monument visits

Opening hours run 10am to 10:30pm in summer (April through September) and 10am to 10:30pm in winter (October through March), with last admission 45 minutes before closing. The 10:30pm last-hour slot in summer is the single best ticket of the year — you arrive in late golden hour, watch the sun set from the rooftop, and stay long enough to see the Eiffel Tower’s hourly sparkle at 9pm or 10pm with the Champs-Élysées lit up below you.

Where to buy: the official site is arc-de-triomphe.fr, which has handled timed entry since 2024. Slots are released roughly 90 days in advance. If you prefer a third party, Get Your Guide and Tiqets resell the same ticket with a small markup (around €20-25 total) in exchange for a more polished checkout flow and pre-selected time slots — useful in peak summer. Tickets are also sold at the ground-floor ticket office (cash and card), but expect a 30-90 minute queue between June and August. Skip the bundled bus-tour tickets sold by street touts on the Champs-Élysées: they cost twice the official price and save no time at all.

The Paris Museum Pass is the single best ticket strategy if you plan to visit three or more major monuments in the same trip. It includes the Arc, Louvre, Versailles, Sainte-Chapelle, the Conciergerie, Musée d’Orsay and roughly fifty other sites — see our Louvre museum guide and Versailles guide for how to combine it. Even with the Pass, you still need to reserve a timed entry slot online for the Arc; the Pass replaces the ticket fee, not the reservation.

The Climb: 284 Steps and What to Expect

The Arc de Triomphe is structured as four vertical levels, and the journey between them is part of the visit’s charm. From the tunnel, an elevator or short staircase brings you to the ground level, where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier sits beneath the central vault. From there, the climb begins. The 50-metre vertical ascent runs through a tight stone spiral staircase wound inside one of the pillars — the same staircase the workers used in the 1830s. There is no elevator past the first floor.

The total step count is 284 steps from ground to rooftop terrace, and the climb takes most visitors 8-15 minutes depending on fitness. The staircase is one-way upward to the first floor, so once you commit there is no easy turnaround through the descending crowd. Rest stops are built in at each level. The first floor (also reached by elevator) houses a small museum with rotating exhibits on the arch’s construction and military history, a bookshop with English and French titles, and a small café serving coffee, pastries and bottled drinks. There are also restrooms on this level — the only ones in the monument apart from the ground floor.

From the first floor a second spiral takes you up through the attic museum — a quieter exhibition space displaying historic photographs and architectural plans — and finally onto the rooftop terrace. The transition out onto the roof is one of the great theatrical reveals in Paris: you climb the last few steps inside a stone shaft and emerge into open sky with the whole city spread around you 50 metres below. Plan to spend at least 20 minutes on the terrace; many visitors stay an hour.

The climb is not suitable for visitors with severe knee or hip problems, severe vertigo, or very young children (under 5 typically struggle on the high steps). The stone staircase is narrow, lit but dim, and there is no chair lift. In winter bring a light layer: the summit is fully exposed and the wind cuts hard even on still days at street level. Visitors with mobility needs can still enjoy the first-floor view, which sits above the surrounding traffic and gives a partial panorama of the Champs-Élysées.

The Rooftop View: What You’ll See

The rooftop terrace is the reason most visitors climb, and the view rewards every step. The terrace is roughly 30 metres by 20 metres — large enough that you can walk a full lap and orient yourself by the four cardinal directions marked on signage at each corner. The defining feature visible below is the 12-avenue star pattern: avenues fan out in perfect symmetry, a piece of urban planning ordered by Baron Haussmann in 1854 that remains the single best example of radial street design in any major city.

Looking east-southeast, the Champs-Élysées drops away in a straight tree-lined run for two kilometres to Place de la Concorde, where you can pick out the pink granite Luxor obelisk. Beyond Concorde, the Tuileries Gardens, the Louvre Pyramid and the Louvre’s own facade complete the foreground of what is known as the Grande Axe historique — the historical axis. Turn 180 degrees and look west, and the axis continues another 4 kilometres beyond the arch to the glass-and-steel Grande Arche of La Défense, a deliberate modern mirror of the Arc completed in 1989. The full axis from Louvre to La Défense runs 8 kilometres in a perfectly straight line.

To the southwest, the Eiffel Tower rises in dramatic side profile. This is the single photographic key to the Arc rooftop: this is the only view in central Paris where you see the Eiffel Tower full-side from elevation. The Eiffel Tower’s own observation decks face the city and do not include the tower itself in the frame — so if you want a single landscape photograph that combines the Champs-Élysées, the Place de la Concorde, the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower in one composition, the Arc de Triomphe roof is the only place to take it. See our Paris photo spots guide for the broader strategy.

Other landmarks visible: Sacré-Coeur Basilica stands out to the north on the Montmartre hill (read our Sacré-Coeur Montmartre guide for that visit). To the south the dark slab of Tour Montparnasse dominates the skyline. Notre-Dame de Paris is harder to spot but visible to the south-southeast on a clear day, as is the gold dome of Les Invalides where Napoleon’s tomb lies. For photography, arrive 60 minutes before sunset so the sun is behind your camera looking east down the Champs-Élysées.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier & Daily Flame Ceremony

Beneath the central vault of the arch, set flush into the stone floor, lies the Tomb of the French Unknown Soldier. The remains are those of an unidentified French infantryman disinterred from one of the battlefields of Verdun and entombed here on November 11, 1920 — the second anniversary of the WWI armistice. The choice of an unidentified soldier was deliberate: he stands for every French serviceman whose body was never named or returned, and through that anonymity for every soldier from every conflict whose family received no body to mourn.

Above the tomb burns La Flamme du Souvenir — the Eternal Flame — first lit on November 11, 1923. The flame has burned continuously since that day, never extinguished except for a single brief incident in 1998 when a protester smothered it; it was rekindled within minutes. The flame is maintained by the Comité de la Flamme sous l’Arc de Triomphe, a coalition of veterans’ associations who staff the site in shifts twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year. They are the reason the flame has never gone out.

The daily 6:30pm relighting ceremony is the most overlooked free experience in central Paris. Every evening of the year — rain, snow, or blistering August heat — a small ritual takes place at the tomb. Delegates from one of the veterans’ associations arrive in formal dress, the flame is symbolically ravivated using a long ceremonial sword, a bugler plays, the tricolor is raised, and on some days brief speeches are read. The whole ceremony lasts 15-20 minutes and is open to the public at no charge — you simply walk up through the pedestrian tunnel and stand respectfully behind the rope barrier. Almost no tourists witness it; on most evenings the audience is fewer than fifty people.

Two larger annual ceremonies expand the daily ritual. On November 11 (Armistice Day), the President of France presides over a major commemoration with veterans, the public attends in large numbers, and the rooftop is closed for security. On July 14 (Bastille Day), the military parade that runs down the Champs-Élysées ends at the arch with a formal salute. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier here is the most visible memorial in the cenotaph tradition that spread worldwide — London’s Cenotaph (1920) and Washington’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington (1921) both followed the Paris model. Etiquette: silence near the tomb, no flash photography, and never stand on or touch the flame surround.

Sculptures & Reliefs on the Arc

The arch is far more than a giant block of carved stone — it is one of the great open-air sculpture galleries in France. Four major high-relief sculptures occupy the lower pillars, one facing each of the cardinal directions, and together they tell the story of the French armies between 1792 and 1815. The most famous is La Marseillaise (also called “The Departure of the Volunteers of 1792”) by François Rude, on the east face of the right-hand pillar as you stand on the Champs-Élysées side. The winged figure of Liberty soars above the volunteer soldiers below her, mouth open in a battle cry — it is the single most reproduced sculpture in 19th-century France and has appeared on stamps, coins, and the French national anthem’s sheet music.

The other three major reliefs are The Triumph of 1810 by Jean-Pierre Cortot (commemorating the Treaty of Schönbrunn), Resistance of 1814 and Peace of 1815 by Antoine Étex (commemorating the French resistance to and eventual settlement of the wars of the Sixth Coalition). Together they wrap the arch in a chronological story from revolutionary fervor to imperial peace, all readable from street level if you walk a slow lap of the base.

Above the reliefs, the arch carries more than thirty smaller bas-relief panels along the attic and friezes, depicting individual battles, allegorical figures, and victory processions. Inside the vault on the walls are inscribed the names of 660 military generals of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars — if a name is underlined, that general died in battle. Above them, 158 battle names are carved across the upper attic in stone capitals. Time your visit to walk the full perimeter once before climbing — you will spot details from the rooftop that you would otherwise miss.

A more recent addition to the arch’s artistic history was the Christo and Jeanne-Claude wrap project, completed in September 2021 after Christo’s death in 2020. For 16 days the entire arch was wrapped in 25,000 square metres of silvery-blue recyclable polypropylene fabric and 3,000 metres of red rope — a posthumous realization of a project the artists had first sketched in 1961. The wrap was free to view and drew six million visitors. Photographs of the wrapped arch are now displayed in the first-floor museum.

History of the Arc de Triomphe

The arch is older than almost every other landmark on the central Paris skyline. Its construction history spans 30 years, three governments and two royal restorations, and reading the timeline below will explain why the architectural style is more austere than ornamental — the design outlasted the regime that commissioned it.

• 1806: Napoleon Bonaparte commissions the arch to commemorate his Austerlitz victory of 1805. Architect Jean-François Thérèse Chalgrin designs it in the Roman triumphal arch tradition, deliberately echoing the Arch of Titus in Rome but at twice the scale.
• August 15, 1806: Foundations laid on Napoleon’s 37th birthday.
• 1810: Napoleon’s wedding procession to Marie-Louise of Austria passes under a temporary wood-and-plaster mock-up. The real arch is barely above ground level.
• 1814-1815: Construction halts during Napoleon’s fall, the Hundred Days, and Waterloo. The site sits as an open foundation for nearly a decade.
• 1823: King Louis XVIII resumes construction, reframing the arch as a tribute to French armies in general rather than to Napoleon specifically.
• 1836: Completion under King Louis-Philippe. Thirty years after the foundations were dug, the arch is finished.
• 1840: Napoleon’s remains, repatriated from Saint Helena, pass under the arch en route to their final tomb at Les Invalides.
• 1885: Victor Hugo’s body lies in state under the arch overnight, attended by millions, before burial in the Panthéon (see our Panthéon Paris guide).
• 1919: The Victory Parade following the Armistice passes through the arch.
• 1920: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier installed on November 11.
• 1923: Eternal Flame lit on November 11.
• 1940: German occupation troops march through the arch on June 14.
• 1944: Free French forces under General Leclerc march through during the Liberation of Paris on August 26.
• 1989: Bicentennial of the French Revolution celebrated with major public spectacle.
• 2021: Christo and Jeanne-Claude posthumous wrap project, 16 days, free public art.

Best Times to Visit (Sunrise to Sunset Comparison)

When you visit shapes the experience more than almost any other choice. The arch is open from 10am to 10:30pm year-round and the rooftop changes character profoundly across the day. Use the breakdown below to pick a slot that matches your priorities.

• 10am opening: shortest queue, soft eastern light hitting the Champs-Élysées facade. Best for first-time visitors and families with children.
• Midday (12-3pm): brutally crowded, harsh overhead light, terrace packed. Avoid if you can.
• 5-6pm (90 minutes before sunset): golden hour begins; rooftop becomes magical. The most popular and most photographed slot of the day.
• 6:30pm flame ceremony: free at ground level, no ticket required; happens every evening of the year.
• Last entry summer (around 9:45pm): arrive in late golden hour, watch sunset from rooftop, stay until the Eiffel Tower’s 10pm sparkle with the Champs-Élysées fully lit. Best evening summer ticket in Paris.
• Winter sunset (around 4:50pm): golden hour comes early; combine with a Champs-Élysées Christmas market walk (see things to do in Paris at night).
• November 11: Armistice Day; major 11am ceremony with the President; rooftop access restricted.
• July 14: Bastille Day; free entry but heavy crowds and military parade endpoint; arrive at 10am opening or skip entirely.

What’s Around the Arc de Triomphe

The arch sits at the meeting point of three of the most distinctive neighborhoods in western Paris — the chic 8th arrondissement to the east, the residential 16th to the west, and the embassy-rich 17th to the north. A short walk in any direction opens up shopping, dining and additional attractions.

• Champs-Élysées: 2 km tree-lined avenue running east to Place de la Concorde — flagship stores, cafés, cinemas. See our Paris shopping guide.
• Avenue Montaigne (south of the arch): the luxury fashion corridor. Dior, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Valentino all have flagship stores along its 600 metres.
• Avenue Foch (west): the widest avenue in Paris at 120 metres curb to curb. Quiet, residential, lined with embassies and grand 19th-century apartment blocks.
• Place Charles de Gaulle (Place de l’Étoile): the 12-avenue roundabout itself. Photograph from the rooftop, never cross at street level.
• Galeries Lafayette Champs-Élysées: a smaller branch of the famous department store, focused on accessories and beauty.
• Le Drugstore Publicis: the late-night dining institution directly across from the arch, open until 2am with a brasserie, bookshop and pharmacy.
• Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris: 15 minutes’ walk south, free permanent collection.
• Palais de Tokyo: contemporary art adjacent to the Musée d’Art Moderne, with rotating exhibitions and an excellent café.
• Trocadéro: 10 minutes’ walk via Avenue Kléber to the southern side — the postcard Eiffel Tower view (see Eiffel Tower guide).

Practical Tips & Etiquette

A short checklist of behavior, equipment and timing that will smooth the visit. Most of these come from common-sense observation but a few (flash photography on the tomb, in particular) catch tourists out every day.

• Use the pedestrian tunnel, never the street crossing.
• Bring a light layer for the rooftop — it is windy year-round, even on still days at street level.
• No flash photography on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier; the flame is a memorial, not a backdrop.
• Maintain silence near the tomb. Talking is permitted on the rooftop.
• Photography is allowed everywhere on the rooftop terrace; tripods are tolerated outside peak hours.
• Restrooms are on the first floor and at ground level.
• Audio guide rental (€4) is available in 8 languages including English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin, Japanese and Portuguese.
• Buy tickets ahead in summer to skip the 60-90 minute queue at the ground-floor office.
• Wheelchair access reaches the ground floor and first floor only; there is no rooftop elevator.
• Avoid Place Charles de Gaulle traffic at any cost — pedestrians are not permitted in the roundabout.
• Time needed: 60-90 minutes for a full visit including the climb, rooftop, museum and Tomb.

FAQ

How much does it cost to climb the Arc de Triomphe in 2026?

The standard adult ticket is €16 in 2026, with reduced rates of €12 for EU residents aged 18-25 and free entry for under-18s worldwide and EU residents aged 18-25. The Paris Museum Pass (from €70) includes the Arc and is the best value if you plan to visit three or more major monuments on the same trip. Audio guide rental is an extra €4. There is no charge to visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the 6:30pm flame ceremony at ground level — only the rooftop climb is ticketed.

Is the Arc de Triomphe free for anyone?

Yes — admission is free for under-18s worldwide, free for EU residents aged 18-25 with proof of residency, free on the first Sunday of every month from November through March, and free on July 14 (Bastille Day). The ground-floor Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is free for everyone every day of the year; only the rooftop climb requires a paid ticket for adult non-EU visitors.

How many steps to climb the Arc de Triomphe?

There are 284 steps from ground level to the rooftop terrace, via a tight spiral staircase. An elevator serves the first floor (about a third of the way up), but past the first floor the only route to the summit is the stairs. Most visitors take 8-15 minutes to climb depending on fitness and how many rest stops they take on the way.

Is the Arc de Triomphe worth visiting?

Yes — for two reasons in particular. First, it is the only viewing platform in central Paris from which you can photograph the Eiffel Tower in full side profile against a recognisable city backdrop. Second, the rooftop sits at the meeting point of the 8-kilometre Grande Axe historique running from the Louvre to La Défense, so you see the whole spine of Paris in a single sweep. The 284-step climb is one of the best returns on physical effort the city offers, and the 6:30pm flame ceremony at ground level is a free, deeply moving 15-minute ritual that almost no tourists witness.

Can you walk to the Arc de Triomphe from street level?

Yes — but only via the pedestrian tunnel, not across the roundabout. Two underground passages run beneath Place Charles de Gaulle, connecting the Avenue de la Grande Armée (west) and the Avenue des Champs-Élysées (east) to the base of the arch. The tunnel entrance is immediately outside the Metro station Charles de Gaulle-Étoile (Lines 1, 2, 6 and RER A). Crossing the roundabout traffic at street level is forbidden and dangerous; pedestrians are not permitted inside the traffic circle under any circumstances.

What time does the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier flame ceremony happen?

The Eternal Flame is ravivated every evening at 6:30pm, year-round, regardless of weather. The ceremony is conducted by delegates from a different veterans’ association each night, lasts 15-20 minutes, and is free to attend — simply walk up through the pedestrian tunnel and stand behind the rope barrier near the tomb. Twice a year the ceremony is expanded: November 11 (Armistice Day) and July 14 (Bastille Day) both feature larger commemorations with the President of France and the military.

Can you see the Eiffel Tower from the Arc de Triomphe?

Yes — and this is the single best reason to climb. The Eiffel Tower is visible to the southwest of the arch in dramatic side profile, about 2 kilometres away. The Arc rooftop is the only public viewing platform in central Paris from which the Eiffel Tower appears in landscape composition with the surrounding city. The Eiffel Tower’s own observation decks look outward across Paris and do not include the tower itself in the frame, so for the postcard Eiffel-plus-Paris photo, the Arc rooftop is the place to take it. Arrive 60 minutes before sunset for the best light.

Is the Arc de Triomphe wheelchair accessible?

Partially. An elevator runs from the tunnel level to the ground floor (Tomb of the Unknown Soldier) and onward to the first observation level, both of which are step-free. Wheelchair access is free of charge and attendant assistance is available on request at the ground-floor ticket office. However, there is no elevator past the first floor, so the rooftop terrace (50 metres up via the 284-step spiral staircase) is not wheelchair accessible. Visitors with mobility needs can still enjoy the first-floor view, which sits above the surrounding traffic.

Plan the Rest of Your Paris Visit

The Arc de Triomphe pairs naturally with the other major monuments at the western end of the central axis — see our Eiffel Tower guide for the obvious next stop, and our Louvre museum guide for the eastern end of the axis. For more sites on the Île de la Cité, consult the Notre-Dame Paris guide, the Sainte-Chapelle and Conciergerie guide, and the Paris catacombs guide. Families travelling with children should also see our Disneyland Paris guide. For broader trip planning, browse things to do in Paris, our curated Paris walking tours, and the master Paris attractions pillar.