Eiffel Tower, Paris

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In 1976 when BB visited with our grandmother, she said it was too foggy to go up, so they went on a city tour instead. Later they did go. She wrote, "It took us two hours to get to the top. Then we came down eventually. .. and ate dinner on the first level. "

In 2001, we got off the hop-on-hop-off bus at the Eiffel Tower, intending to go up and eat lunch (OK, sort of a late lunch). When we looked at the queue, we decided not to go up. The queue was huge and didn't appear to be moving. Turns out that they were hand scanning all visitors before they were allowed to go up.

When Barb's family visited in 2009 (photo 3), the lines were still too long so they didn't go up either.

Me and my travel partner really enjoyed the Effiel Tower. I recommend that you see it both during the day and at night. It's really beautiful all lit up at night.
We had some extra time so we spent a morning just sitting arounf on the grass just in front of the tower. It was fun to just sit down and relax while enjoying the view :)
We also people watched while we sat there, it's amazing the kinds of people you see :)

I could spit quotes from Wikipedia all day about the tower. It's 1063ft. high, built in 1887-1889, weights 10,000 tonnes, it is the second tallest structure in France, has close to 7million visitors a year making it the most visited monument in the world, and has 2 restaurants in it. But that will not help to explain the experience I had at the tower. So I will explain it in a way that might actually help you instead of spitting out facts. Be sure to go early in the morning to beat the crowd. Around 9am is a good time, after that the line begins to build and then your are looking at anywhere between 1-2 hours playing the waiting game. If this happens to you use the bathroom first and have something to snack on. Also beware of the gypsies that will constantly bug you while you wait. they ask for money or want you to buy misc. items from them. Once you get up to the window you can use a credit card to pay, but it is easier if you have cash (Euro).You have 2 choices when you get up to the ticket window You can take the elevator (trust me, this is the one you want) or you can climb via stairs (big mistake unless your hurting for punishment) You can buy a ticket to the top or a ticket to the very top (observation deck) yeah I know its a bit of a rip-off to pay extra to go a few more feet up. But once your up there it is def. worth it. The most beautiful view of the city in every direction. On a clear day you can see everything. You can take pictures till your little hearts content. There are metal bars all the way around the top. Just like at the Empire State Building in NY City. I'm guessing this is to keep people from jumping, or bungie jumping (which has been done by the way). Take your time once your up there, you have no time limit and for a lot of people this is a once in a lifetime experience. So take it all in and enjoy the moment. If you want eat at one of the 2 restaurants; Le Jules Vernes Restaurant or Le 58 Tour Eiffel. reserve at least 2 weeks in advance if you want to secure a table. It's well worth it.
At night the tower is a site to see. The twelve golden stars of the European flag were mounted on the base, and whole tower bathed in blue light. In addition, every hour on the hour, 20,000 flash bulbs give the tower a sparkly appearance. The whole tower lights up and is amazing to see from a distance. Its also very romantic if you have a significant other with you. I hope this helps in your decision to visit the Eiffel Tower.

You can now pre book your tickets online! Whoo hoo! You could easily avoid a two hour or more queue by now booking in advance on the official website of the Eiffel Tower!

http://ticket.toureiffel.fr/index-sete-sete-pg1-lgen.html

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Well, what more can we say about this great symbol of Paris!?!? I think it’s been written about a trillion times, but I still just wanted to add my own tip about it!

Tip #1:“Go up the Eiffel Tower when it’s twinkling!” That’s my take on it. I don’t think Gustave Eiffel, who beat 699 other contestants for that design contest in the 1889 World’s Fair, thought that the Tower would ever twinkle.

The first time I went up the Eiffel Tower was really really late at night and I did not even know it twinkled. Then I was there looking at the view when all of a sudden…twinkling lights! It was magical!

Another Tip #2: “Leave strollers before going up!”
At another time when I went up, I was with my twins and they were “jet-lagged” and sleeping on their strollers…so my wife and I just decided to leave the strollers behind at the ground level and just carry them because there was no way to navigate through the crowd with those strollers. Fortunately, the strollers were still there when we got back (they were only $15 light umbrella strollers anyway from Target, hehehe)

And Tip#3: If with someone you love, go under the tower at the very center and kiss!

If you’re alone, just go under the tower and take a picture of it from below, and make a wish that you’ll have someone with you the next time. That picture will remind you of your wish…My wish came true!

UPDATE: I was at Eiffel Tower again last Sept 2009 and I must say the line is still long. But you can bypass the line by just paying $18.25 at toureiffel.fr (available by end of 2009) - gives you more time in Paris and quicker access to the 906-foot-high observation deck.

And a warning to those who want to eat at the Le Jules Verne restaurant. It could be expensive - can easily reach almost $300 per person.

There, those are my Eiffel Tower Tips!!! Hope this helps, Norman

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Tour Eiffel is a must. I think one can't say they have been to Paris if they haven't climbed the Eiffel Tower. The tower affords a 360º view of the city. At least go up to the second level if not to the top.

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There are so many tips for Paris and of course going to the Eiffel Tower is a given. You dont go to Paris and not go to the Eiffel Tower. So much has been said already about the Eiffel Tower that...what more is there to say other than just go check it out. Expect long lines but the views from even the first floor are spectacular. If you plan to take the elevator up you should know that there will be long lines, even during the off season. You can take the stairs, there is a line but not as long.
The Eiffel Tower was the first place we stopped at while in Paris. This was the main thing for me.

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WHAT THE TOURIST AUTHORITIES DO NOT WANT YOU TO READ !

Just to put it into perspective, you can find this quote all over the internet – “The Société de la Tour Eiffel has indicated that there have been only 349 successful suicides from the tower.” Wow. What a success. I don’t think so. This structure has been plagued by death since before it was fully built! They try and tell you no one died during the construction – false. No one fell off of it. They died on the ground.

So only hundreds have died at the tower. Most of these are suicides, but there have been others.

An Austrian tailor named Franz Reichellept jumped from the first deck in 1912 to test a tent-like parachute coat he had invented. He should have tried it first at a lower height. The impact area was a meter deep. Verdict: failure.

The first suicide was reportedly a printer's mechanic (what?) who hanged himself from the north pillar in 1891. He left his clothes to Mr. Eiffel himself. Mad as a hatter.

In May 1995 a Norwegian parachutist died after jumping from the second floor when his chute snagged on the tower’s superstructure. Fortunately (according to the BBC) “A spokeswoman for SNTE, the company that runs the tower, said security measures meant very few parachutists or hang-gliders managed to launch themselves from the monument,” 400 dead and not many get through? Not numbers to be proud of. Then, a bit later, they caught 2 more Norwegians with equipment trying to do the same thing! They should have let them go to see if history repeated itself

THE EIFFEL TOWER – DEADLY!