Eiffel Tower is one of the most famous monuments in the world and, by all means, an unmatched symbol for the city of Paris. The history of Eiffel Tower, known by Parisians as the “iron lady”, dives deep into events such as the Exposition Universelle of 1889 and the French Revolution, and it is nowadays a veritable cultural and national icon, as well as a hub for tourism in Paris.

Come with us to get to know the history, architecture and trivia of Eiffel Tower!

History of Eiffel Tower

Eiffel Tower was designed by French engineers Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier, employed at the company run by Alexander Gustave Eiffel, to be main landmark in the 1889 Paris Exposition, an event marking the first centenary of the French Revolution.

Inaugurated in March 31st, 1899, it became immediately successful amongst the public and, during its first two months of exhibition, it received nearly 30 000 visitors. By the end of the Exposition, two million people had visited it. Even though Eiffel Tower was meant to be dismantled in 1909, the city decided to keep it owing to its popularity and, moreover, due to its use for telegraph communication at the time.

Eiffel Tower has played a leading role in numerous historical events and inventions: zeppelin flights, the gramophone, the discovery of cosmic rays, innovative parachute gliding, bungee jumping, counterintelligence during wartime, testing the first television broadcast…

Eiffel Tower currently hosts seven million yearly visitors. Overall, ever since its inauguration, over 200 million people have already been to it!

Design and building

The construction of Eiffel Tower was part of a contest, carried out in order to erect an innovative design in Paris to represent the city ahead of the Exposition Universelle in 1889. Even though the building was devised by engineers Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier with the help of architect Stephen Sauvestre, their supervisor, Gustave Eiffel would later buy the patent, and the tower would always be known as Eiffel Tower thereafter.

In January, 1887, Eiffel signed a contract with the city of Paris to build the monument. The works would begin with immediate effect, based upon more than five thousand sketches which had to be made to portray its general design and tower pieces, in which over three hundred workers would take part. A humungous work which remained the highest building in the world up until 1930!

Inauguration and initial reactions

Even though the general public was delighted by Eiffel Tower from the very beginning, the project came under plenty of criticism from artists and engineers, and it became highly controversial. For starters, people thought it was impossible to erect a tower of two hundred or, even worse, three hundred meters of height. Others simply deemed it an “iron monstrosity”. Thus, several architects and artists went as far as signing a “Manifest against Eiffel Tower” a month after its construction works began.

The inauguration of Eiffel Tower, which was initially called, precisely, the Three Hundred Meter Tower, took place on the 31st of March, 1889, as the French flag was displayed atop the tower, and it was climbed by public and journalists alike on foot, since its elevators were not in place yet.

Architecture and Design

Eiffel Tower is three hundred meters tall (three hundred and thirty up to its tip), it is built in puddled iron and, counting its elevators, shops, restaurants and antennae, it weighs as much as ten thousand tons. Some of the construction techniques used to erect it were hugely innovative at the time, such as complex charts to measure its resistance to the wind and its thermal dilation, its unfathomably deep foundations or its modern hydraulic elevator system.

Let us find out some technical and architectural details about Eiffel Tower!

Structure and building materials

Eiffel Tower was mostly build in puddled iron, a kind of forged iron that was fairly similar to the more modern steel alloy. It consists of a base, three main floors and an intermediate platform which is no longer in use nowadays, which used to lodge the gear controlling its five original elevators.

Renovations and Maintenance

The maintenance of Eiffel Tower requires that it be painted every seven years to prevent the iron from rusting. Besides this, it has undergone several renovations and updates as time went by, such as the shift from gas light to electric lamps, belle-époque hydraulic elevators being replaced with electric ones, constant changes to the restaurant layout, or adding its current antenna. 

Visitors Guide

Eiffel Tower is open to visitors all year round except for occasional closures. As for its opening times, it is open from 09:00 to 23:00 (09:30 to 23:00 during fall and winter), except for the 31^st of December, when it remains open until 01:00 for the New Year’s Eve festivities.

Before purchasing your tickets, it is advisable to check beforehand which one of the many options and fees suits your needs the best. The fee will depend on how you want to access Eiffel Tower and the age of the visitor, thus ranging from 9 euros for children to 35 euros for an adult riding the elevator. You can check all the fees and other useful information here! 

What to do inside Eiffel Tower

There are so many activities you can embark on inside Eiffel Tower! Upon its inauguration, its first floor boasted three sprawling restaurants, although they were all demolished with the advent of the 1937 Exposition Universelle. During the last decades, another three restaurants have been installed for your enjoyment: Madame Brasserie, Le Jules Verne (holding a Michelin star), and the Tour Eiffel buffet, besides a champagne-only bar and a macaron parlour. 

You can also have a look at the products in its exclusive stores and, by all means, enjoy the Eiffel Tower lookouts, placed in the first and second floor, as well as the top!

Advice for your visit

The best times to visit Eiffel Tower are sunrise and dusk, after 17:00 and, especially, after 20:00. Our best advice is to choose one of these time slots and then book your tickets online beforehand.

How to reach Eiffel Tower

Public transport choices reaching Eiffel Tower are very varied: you can get to it via metro, riding lines 6, 8 and 9, by train on line C, or by bus with lines 30, 69, 72, 82 and 86. If you go by car, there are pay parking lots within less than a ten minute walk.

Tickets and booking 

Book your Eiffel Tower tickets online beforehand to find the most suitable one for you without trouble. You may choose to reach the top by elevator, or stay in the second floor, both by elevator or by climbing the stairs. Book your tickets here. 

Accessibility

Accessibility for visitors with reduced mobility wishing to explore Eiffel Tower is limited to accessing the first and second floor. For security reasons, the top cannot be accessed on a wheelchair. 

Cultural and social impact

Eiffel Tower has played an important role in culture and local lore. From its appearances in movies and television to taking part in special events, its outline is always present when it comes to portraying Paris and France as a whole.

The Tower in cinema and television

Eiffel Tower has been featured in theatre films such as Superman 2 (1980), A View to a Kill (1985), Rush Hour 3 (2007), Independence Day (1996) or Armageddon (1998). It can also be seen in TV shows such as Emily in Paris.

Special Events

The Eiffel Tower lights are famous for very good reason! You can see it lit up in golden hues every day at dusk, and also every hour, blinking for five minutes. It can also be seen in one off decorations for special occasions and paramount celebrations.

Finally, Eiffel Tower has borne witness to many events, as we were able to prove following the awe inspiring Opening Ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. There is no missing out on a visit to it!

Frequently Asked Questions