Eiffel Tower Tickets: Summit or Second Floor, Lift or Stairs?

Buy the summit elevator ticket if reaching the top is the experience you have pictured. Choose the second-floor elevator ticket if you mainly want a broad Paris view with less time spent changing lifts and waiting. Take the stairs when the climb itself sounds fun, not simply because it costs less.

The official adult prices checked for 2026 are €36.70 for the summit by elevator, €23.50 for the second floor by elevator, €28 for stairs to the second floor plus the summit elevator, and €14.80 for stairs to the second floor. Reduced youth, child and disability rates are listed on the official price page.

Buy through the official Eiffel Tower ticket office. It guarantees the official price and makes the level and access method explicit before you pay.

Choose the summit for the landmark experience

The summit sits at 276 meters. You take one elevator to the second floor and change to another for the top. That transfer adds time and another queue, but it is the ticket to buy if you will feel you stopped short without reaching the highest public level.

Choose the second floor for the useful view

The second floor is 116 meters up, high enough to understand the city while its monuments and street pattern remain easy to pick out. This is my choice for someone who wants the view but does not care about saying they reached the top.

You cannot add summit access to a second-floor ticket once you are there. Make that decision before buying. Summit access can also close during severe weather or busy periods, so check the live status on the day.

The stair ticket means a real climb. The tower estimates roughly 15 to 20 minutes per level. The second floor is reached after 674 steps. Choose it when everyone in the group wants that experience and can manage the climb.

The stairs-plus-summit ticket takes you on foot to the second floor, then by elevator to the top. It is a good compromise for an active traveler who still wants the summit. It is not a way to avoid every line because the summit still requires the elevator change.

The summit and stairs are not suitable for people with limited mobility. The official accessibility guidance directs visitors who cannot use them toward elevator access to the second floor, whose lower level and the first floor are wheelchair accessible.

Elevator e-tickets are sold up to 60 days ahead. Stair-access e-tickets are sold up to 30 days ahead. The tower recommends booking as early as possible from June through September and during school and public holidays.

If the summit is important, note the date 60 days before your visit and check the official calendar. If you are flexible about the level, compare summit and second-floor availability before changing the whole day.

Your ticket time is when you should be beneath the tower in the ticket-holder queue. The tower says to allow 15 to 20 minutes for the first security check before reaching the esplanade. Bring identification for every person, including children, because e-tickets are personal and reduced rates require proof.

Check again on the day, then decide whether the on-site queue is worth it. The official ticket site can release same-day tickets, including slots in the next 30 minutes when available. The monument also sells tickets at its on-site offices for immediate entry even when online inventory is gone.

On-site availability does not promise a short wait. If you have only two days in Paris, I would not sacrifice half a day to an uncertain summit attempt. See the tower from Trocadéro, Champ de Mars or the river and keep the rest of the itinerary intact.

Stair tickets can be another option when elevator slots have disappeared, but choose them because the climb suits you. Do not buy a vague third-party product without confirming the final level, access method, meeting point and whether it includes an official admission ticket.

Morning is the cleanest choice for a tightly planned day. You visit before fatigue and can continue to lunch without watching the clock all afternoon. Sunset is the romantic booking, but it is also the one most dependent on season, weather and getting the exact slot.

An evening visit gives you city lights and keeps the daytime free. Check the calendar for the date because opening hours and last ascents change. The live official page also reports summit restrictions.

I would not attach a timed ascent to the afternoon you land from the United States. Immigration, bags and the hotel transfer can easily consume the cushion. Put the tower on the next day if going up matters, or keep the arrival-day visit outside and flexible.

Keep the meals nearby and avoid another major reservation. La Fontaine de Mars is the proper sit-down choice for southwestern French cooking on rue Saint-Dominique. Look for cassoulet or chicken with morels. Zia works for brunch and specialty coffee near École Militaire when you want something more casual.

After the tower, a Bateaux Parisiens sightseeing cruise leaves from the area and returns there. Treat it as an hour sitting on the river, not transportation to another neighborhood.

Our first-visit booking guide puts the Eiffel Tower in the right order with the Louvre and Versailles. The two-day Paris itinerary shows a flexible arrival-day version, while five days in Paris gives an ascent its own reserved block.