Visiting the Louvre After the Heist: What Has Changed and What Has Not

On October 19, 2025, a team of thieves disguised as construction workers stole eight pieces of the French Crown Jewels from the Louvre’s Galerie d’Apollon in under eight minutes. The total value of the stolen pieces was estimated at around 88 million euros. The museum closed for one day. By week’s end, two suspects had been arrested. As of early 2026, five people face charges, but the jewels have not been recovered.

The heist triggered a sweeping response. The Louvre director resigned in February 2026. President Macron announced a 580-million-euro renovation programme, with more than 90 million earmarked for security infrastructure. Workers installed bars over the Galerie d’Apollon window that was used to enter the building. One hundred new cameras now monitor the perimeter. Nine rooms in the Campana Gallery (Greek ceramics) were closed after structural surveys identified weakness in supporting beams.

The museum is open. The crowds are back. But the Galerie d’Apollon, home to the remaining Crown Jewels including the 140-carat Regent diamond, has been closed for security reassessment since the theft. Check the Louvre website before your visit if the Apollo Gallery is a specific priority.

Tickets and Entry in 2026

From January 14, 2026, ticket prices changed significantly for non-European visitors. Visitors from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) now pay 32 euros per person (28 euros as part of a guided group). EEA residents continue to pay 22 euros. Children under 18 enter free. EU residents under 26 also enter free with a valid EU identity document.

Book online at ticket.louvre.fr. Booking gives you a timed-entry slot (a 30-minute arrival window) and lets you go directly to the timed-entry lane, bypassing the general queue, which in peak season (April to October) can save 60 to 90 minutes. Walk-up tickets exist but are genuinely not recommended in summer.

Free admission applies to all visitors on the first Friday of each month after 6 pm, except during July and August. Also free on July 14 (Bastille Day).

Opening hours: 9 am to 6 pm, closed Tuesdays. Late opening on Wednesdays and Fridays until 9:45 pm (last entry an hour before closing). The late-night slots are the insider tip that most guides bury: crowds thin dramatically after 6 pm, the lighting is warmer, and you can stand in front of the Mona Lisa without a wall of phones between you and it.

What to See

The Louvre holds approximately 550,000 objects across eight departments. You cannot see all of it. The museum is about 60,000 square metres; a visitor who spent 30 seconds on each object and walked at a brisk pace would need something in the range of 4.5 months. The selection problem is real and deserves to be taken seriously before you arrive.

The Mona Lisa (Salle des Etats, 1st floor, Denon wing): smaller than almost every visitor expects, now behind thick protective glass, and usually surrounded by a standing crowd pressing phones and selfie sticks toward the painting. The room also contains Paolo Veronese’s “The Wedding at Cana,” an enormous canvas covering the entire opposite wall that almost nobody looks at because everyone is facing the Mona Lisa. Stand in front of the Veronese. It rewards the attention more than queueing toward da Vinci.

Venus de Milo (Ground floor, Sully wing, Salle 16): the second-century BC Greek statue is large, well-lit, and has enough space around it that you can actually walk in a full circle. It was found on the island of Milos in 1820 and purchased by the French ambassador to the Ottoman court for 6,000 francs. The arms were already missing when it was unearthed.

Winged Victory of Samothrace (top of the Daru staircase, Denon wing): the two-metre-tall headless goddess, dating from around 190 BC, stands on an actual ship’s prow of grey marble. It is one of the most kinetic objects in the museum; the sense of forward motion and wind-caught drapery is more striking in person than in any photograph.

The Richelieu wing (northern section): consistently less crowded than Denon. This is where you find Vermeer’s “The Lacemaker,” the French sculpture courtyards (great for breaking up gallery fatigue), and the large Rubens canvases of Marie de Medici. Budget time here deliberately.

Egyptian Antiquities (ground floor and 1st floor, Sully wing): the Louvre’s Egyptian collection is the third largest in the world and excellent. The Seated Scribe, carved around 2400 BC with inlaid rock crystal eyes, remains unnerving at close range.

Practical Visiting Strategy

The Louvre is in the 1st arrondissement, served by the Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre metro stop (lines 1 and 7). There is also a direct entrance from the Carrousel du Louvre underground shopping mall, which avoids the pyramid entirely and is useful in rain or when the pyramid entrance is at peak capacity.

The single most effective thing you can do is go on a Wednesday or Friday evening. Arrive around 5:30 pm, enter through the Richelieu wing (less congested), and work backwards from there. By 7 pm, the Denon wing crowds will have thinned to a fraction of the daytime numbers.

If you have three hours: Winged Victory, Venus de Milo, one Egyptian gallery, and the Vermeer in Richelieu. Skip the Mona Lisa or go very late.

If you have a full day: add the Richelieu sculpture courtyards, the Northern European paintings (Rembrandt, Hals), and the decorative arts galleries on the first floor of Richelieu.

Eating Near the Louvre

Inside the museum, there are several cafes and a restaurant, none of which are remarkable for food but are convenient for a midday break without losing your spot.

For a proper meal nearby, Le Comptoir du Relais (6th arrondissement, a short metro or taxi ride) is a well-regarded bistro serving classic French food. Lunch service can be a long wait; dinner is more manageable. Prices are mid-range.

Along the Palais Royal arcades (a five-minute walk north of the pyramid), there are a handful of small cafes and wine bars that are quieter and cheaper than the immediate museum neighbourhood.

The 1st arrondissement is expensive. Lunch near the pyramid will cost more than it should. Take the metro one stop toward the Marais (3rd/4th arrondissement) for better value and better options.

Where to Stay

Hotels directly adjacent to the Louvre fall in the luxury bracket. For more options at lower prices, stay in the Marais (3rd/4th), which is two metro stops away and has a dense concentration of hotels across price points, good restaurants, and the Centre Pompidou nearby.

The Hotel du Petit Moulin in the Marais is a converted 17th-century bakery with individually designed rooms and a neighbourhood feel. Mid-upper range.

Budget travellers have good options around the Bastille and Oberkampf areas, both well-connected by metro.

The Renovation Question

With a major renovation programme now underway, some areas of the Louvre will be closed or disrupted for the next several years. The Louvre website maintains a current list of closed galleries. Check it when you book; the situation will change. The museum has also been in intermittent discussion about opening a satellite location in Oman, though that project is separate from the Paris institution and does not affect a current Paris visit.

One thing that has not changed: arriving at the Winged Victory with no particular agenda, at 8 pm on a Wednesday when the light through the skylights is going gold, is still one of the better experiences available in Paris.