France Has Big Plans To Upgrade The Louvre Museum And Improve Tourist Flow

Given that the Louvre Museum is one of Paris' most popular tourist attractions, it's perhaps not surprising that it's also massively overcrowded. It was renovated in the 1980s to accommodate 4 million visitors each year, but it now sees close to 9 million people a year. Naturally, this leads to bottlenecks, long lines, and a chaotic experience for visitors, especially near the famous "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci. To fix this, France is launching a renovation project called the Louvre New Renaissance, which plans to increase the museum's capacity to 12 million visitors by 2031 and improve the overall experience for everyone.

This announcement comes after an internal memo to France's culture minister was leaked, sparking outrage over the state of the museum, a cherished French icon. The memo complained of issues like water leaks, temperature variations, damaged museum spaces, and more problems that endanger the conservation of the priceless artwork found in the museum. The renovation will include much-needed infrastructure updates to fix these issues.

One of the biggest planned upgrades is a new entrance near the Seine River, which will help ease crowding at the museum's famous glass pyramid entryway — a design that creates more heat and noise, which can become very uncomfortable for tourists. Given this is one of the most Instagrammed attractions in the world, perhaps this new entrance may also become a favorite spot for snapping pics. Fortunately, this renovation should make the Louvre more efficient and enjoyable for visitors while preserving its historic importance.

In order to make the most out of your visit to the Louvre, make time for "The Big Three": the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and Venus de Milo. And if you want a deeper dive into the Mona Lisa's background and history, "The Annotated Mona Lisa" is a guidebook chock full of facts and essays about the painting. Fortunately, with this new renovation, she's getting her own dedicated space — so hopefully there will be no more fighting your way through a sea of smartphones for a too-quick glimpse at a distance. Currently, she's crammed into the Salle des États, but the world-famous painting will be relocated to a separate gallery where visitors (with a ticket) can admire it without the usual chaos. 

Of course, these upgrades come at a cost, and part of the funding will come from higher ticket prices. Starting next year, non-European Union visitors will pay more for admission, with prices expected to rise from the current €22 beginning in 2026. This will allow the museum to fund improvements without putting the burden on taxpayers, while still keeping discounts in place for EU citizens (18 to 25-year-old residents get in free).

Regardless of this little uptick in price, the Louvre is making these changes to improve the experience for millions of visitors each year, and we're here for it. We'd be happy to shell out a little more to visit the museum if that means it will be less hectic.