The Arc de Triomphe is open from 10 am, and the official winter closing time is 10:30 pm, with last admission 45 minutes before that. Google Maps shows 11 pm as closing on most days, so the Arc de Triomphe opening hours differ slightly between the two sources. This guide gives the hours by day, the closing days, the best time to go, how to get there and the rules at the gate. If you want the tickets, my full comparison of Arc de Triomphe tickets lists all 10 options with prices.
Arc de Triomphe Opening Hours
Today is Saturday 7 November 2026, and the Arc de Triomphe opening hours per Google Maps are 10 am to 11 pm. This is the week as Google Maps lists it:
| Day |
Hours per Google Maps |
| Monday |
10 am to 11 pm |
| Tuesday |
11 am to 11 pm |
| Wednesday |
Closed |
| Thursday |
10 am to 11 pm |
| Friday |
10 am to 11 pm |
| Saturday |
10 am to 11 pm |
| Sunday |
10 am to 11 pm |
The official practical information page says something different in two places, and I trust it over Google. From 1 October to 31 March it lists Wednesday to Monday from 10 am to 10:30 pm and Tuesday from 11 am to 10:30 pm. From 1 April to 30 September the closing time is 11 pm. It does not list Wednesday as a closing day, so I treat Google’s Wednesday entry as an error, but check the date you want.
Arc de Triomphe Closing Time
The Arc de Triomphe opening hours end at 10:30 pm, and the Arc de Triomphe closing time is 10:30 pm from 1 October to 31 March and 11 pm from 1 April to 30 September, per the official page. Last admission is 45 minutes before closing, so in winter you need to be through the door by 9:45 pm. The security check comes before you climb, so don’t arrive at the last minute: the Arc de Triomphe opening hours count from the door, not from the queue.
Arc de Triomphe Paris Opening Hours
The Arc de Triomphe Paris opening hours differ on the days around the holidays. The official site lists annual closures on 1 May, 8 May, 14 July and the morning of 11 November. It also lists early closing at 4 pm on 24 and 31 December 2026, and it does not mention 25 December. The monument can close in part or in full for official ceremonies or bad weather, and the page says e-tickets bought online are then refunded automatically, with a delay. Resellers set their own terms, and the $18 rooftop ticket I compared is non-refundable, so read the cancellation line on any ticket you buy.
Arc de Triomphe Hours Open
The Arc de Triomphe opening hours through the year follow a simple pattern: 10 am start, a winter close at 10:30 pm and a summer close at 11 pm. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the base is free to access per the official site. Wikipedia describes it as the tomb beneath the vault from World War I, marked by an eternal flame. The rooftop is the part that needs a ticket.
Arc de Triomphe Entrance
The Arc de Triomphe entrance is not at street level. The $18 rooftop listing explains that you reach the central roundabout, Place Charles de Gaulle, by the underground stairs on the Champs-Élysées and Rue de la Grande-Armée, and that you meet at the monument’s entrance and pass a security check. Don’t try to cross the traffic. The address on Google Maps is Pl. Charles de Gaulle, 75008 Paris.
Is Arc de Triomphe Open Today
Today, Saturday 7 November 2026, the arch is open under both sources: 10 am to 11 pm per Google Maps and 10 am to 10:30 pm per the official winter hours. The one date to watch this month is the morning of Wednesday 11 November, an annual closure. The first Sunday of December, the 6th, is a free-entry day, so expect more visitors. Those free days sit inside the usual Arc de Triomphe opening hours, so there is no extra late opening.
Arc de Triomphe Hours of Operation
The Arc de Triomphe hours of operation cover more than the opening times. Tickets: the official site charges 16 euros from 1 October to 31 March, and 22 euros from 1 April to 30 September (16 euros on Wednesdays). Free entry applies to under 18s, to 18 to 25 year olds who are EU nationals or non-European legal residents in France, to a disabled person and one companion, and to jobseekers with proof. It also applies on the first Sunday of January, February, March, November and December.
Best Time to Visit the Arc de Triomphe
The best time to visit is early or late within the Arc de Triomphe opening hours, and I can say that from the hours and the light more than from crowd data. The official site does not publish crowd levels, so I won’t invent quiet days. One listing states that queues can occur on any day at any time, and that waits are longer in high season, at weekends and on public holidays. What the data shows is how the light changes.
| Month |
Sunrise |
Sunset |
Sunshine hours |
Rainy days |
| January |
8:38 am |
5:22 pm |
2.7 |
17 |
| April |
6:59 am |
8:42 pm |
11 |
7 |
| June |
5:46 am |
9:56 pm |
12.9 |
10 |
| September |
7:27 am |
8:03 pm |
8.2 |
11 |
| November |
8:00 am |
5:10 pm |
4.3 |
13 |
| December |
8:37 am |
4:54 pm |
3.7 |
8 |
Source: Open-Meteo historical weather, 2025 data for Paris.
In winter the sun is down before 5:30 pm, so a late afternoon slot gives you daylight and city lights in one climb. In June it is light until nearly 10 pm. For clear views I’d pick a spring or early autumn morning.
How to Get to the Arc de Triomphe
The nearest station is Charles de Gaulle-Etoile, which Google Maps places about 50 m from the arch, a minute’s walk by my estimate (straight-line distance multiplied by 1.3 at 4.8 km/h). It is run by RATP, and I did not confirm which lines stop there, so use the RATP journey planner. Other stations nearby are Kléber (about 260 m, 4 minutes), George V (450 m, 7 minutes), Argentine (460 m, 7 minutes) and Ternes (550 m, 9 minutes). The Eiffel Tower is about 1.7 km away, around 28 minutes on foot, and my guide to Eiffel Tower tickets covers that visit.
Tours meet elsewhere: the macarons tour at Place Clemenceau, the Champs-Élysées walk at the Luxor Obelisk, and the private tours in front of 152 Avenue des Champs-Élysées and at Rue de Tilsitt. Read the meeting point on your confirmation, because it can sit well away from the monument and the Arc de Triomphe opening hours do not apply to a street meeting.
Is the Arc de Triomphe Worth It?
The rooftop ticket at $18 is rated 4.6 from 38,548 reviews, and the official price is 16 euros in winter and 22 in summer, with Wednesdays at 16. Wikidata gives the height as 49.5 metres and the year as 1836. The lift is being modernised, so the way up is 284 steps, which matters for your answer. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the base is free. I’d climb it if you like views of the Champs-Élysées, and pick the Arc de Triomphe opening hours to catch the lights.
Things to Do Near the Arc de Triomphe
The Eiffel Tower is 1.72 kilometres away on Google Maps, rated 4.7 from 500,194 reviews. Place du Trocadéro is 1.40 kilometres away, rated 4.7 from 13,244, and the Palais de Chaillot 1.37. Gustave Eiffel’s office, a tourist attraction, is 1.71 kilometres away. A $22 walking tour covers the Champs-Élysées to the arch. See the Arc de Triomphe map for the roundabout and the tunnel.
What to Know Before You Go
Per the official site, the maximum luggage size is 40 by 40 by 20 cm, there is no left-luggage office, and pushchairs are not allowed inside (they can be left with the access control officers). Dogs are prohibited except guide dogs. Flags, banners, selfie poles, tripods, scooters, rollerblades, sharp objects and glass bottles are banned, and the monument applies Vigipirate security measures.
The stairs are the other thing to plan for: 284 steps, including an initial flight of 180, with rest landings that have seating. The official page says the route is not recommended for visitors who may find the climb difficult, because the lift is being modernised. I found no visit length on the site, so allow about an hour for the rooftop including the security check, my own estimate.
Once you know the Arc de Triomphe opening hours, the next choice is the ticket. Book for the hour you want, because a slot at the Arc de Triomphe opening time of 10 am is the calmest start I can suggest from the hours alone, not from crowd figures.
Arc de Triomphe Rooftop Tickets
- ★ 4.6 (38,548 reviews)
- 24-hour ticket
My pick: The ticket I'd start with: the rooftop at $18, 4.6 from 38,548 reviews. Non-refundable, so book once the date is firm.
What you get, where you meet, what reviewers say
Included
- ✓ Access to the Arc de Triomphe's rooftop
- ✓ Views over Paris
Not included / not suitable
Meeting point: Meet at the entrance of the Arc de Triomphe. To go to the Place Charles de Gaulle (the roundabout where the Arc de Triomphe is located) you have to take the underground stairs located on the Champs Elysées and Rue de la Grande-Armée.
You need to pass the security check line due to safety measures at the Arc de Triomphe. Pl. Charles de Gaulle, 75008 Paris, France
Duration: 1 day
Cancellation: This activity is non-refundable
“Incredible experience. We went in the evening and the views were spectacular! The stairs were not too bad to climb. Would definitely recommend this activity.” – GetYourGuide review
If you want a guide, the Champs-Élysées and the private tours are in my Arc de Triomphe ticket comparison, and the home page lists the other attractions I cover.
