Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower is the 330 m wrought-iron tower on the Champ de Mars in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, built by Gustave Eiffel's company for the 1889 World's Fair. Lifts and stairs take visitors to three levels, and two to three hours covers a first visit for couples, families and anyone after the view over the Seine.

The tower was the entrance arch to the Exposition Universelle of 1889, held to mark the centenary of the French Revolution. Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier, engineers in Eiffel's firm, sketched the first design in 1884, and the architect Stephen Sauvestre added the decorative arches and base. Work on the foundations began on 28 January 1887, and the tower was finished in about two years and two months, opening to the public on 15 May 1889.

Many artists and writers, led by the architect Charles Garnier and joined by Guy de Maupassant, signed a public protest against it in 1887. Eiffel's concession ran for only 20 years after the fair, but Eiffel promoted it as a platform for science, and its value as a radio antenna, used by the army from the early 1900s, saved it from demolition. It was the tallest structure in the world until the Chrysler Building in New York surpassed it in 1930.

The tower is built from 18,038 iron parts joined by some 2.5 million rivets, and it weighs about 10,100 tonnes in total. Its four legs curve inward as they rise, a shape calculated to resist wind. The iron expands in summer heat, and the top can shift by up to about 18 centimetres. It is repainted roughly every seven years, using around 60 tonnes of paint.

The first floor, at about 57 metres, has a glass floor added in a 2014 refurbishment. The second floor holds the Jules Verne restaurant and the best views across the city's roofs. The top platform, at about 276 metres, includes Gustave Eiffel's private apartment, furnished with lifelike figures of Eiffel and his guests. After dark the tower is lit with golden lights, and 20,000 bulbs sparkle for five minutes at the start of each hour.

Tickets are priced by level and by lift or stairs, and are sold on the official website with timed slots; the stairs reach only the second floor. Book ahead for summer and school holidays. The first morning slots and the hour before sunset are the best times, and the summit often closes in high wind. Expect two to three hours including security checks and lift queues.

The closest stations are Bir-Hakeim on Metro Line 6, Trocadéro on Line 9 across the river, and Champ de Mars – Tour Eiffel on RER C. Buses 30, 42, 69, 82, 86 and 87 stop nearby, and the Batobus river shuttle calls at the foot of the tower. Wheelchair users can reach the first and second floors by lift; the summit is closed to them for safety reasons. On 14 July the Bastille Day fireworks are launched from around the tower and access is restricted.