With over 7.8 million visitors in 2022, the Louvre is the world's most-visited museum. We knew it would be full of tourists, we knew we would have to contend with crazy crowds to see the Mona Lisa, we knew people often recommend the Musée d’Orsay instead. But there was no way we were going to miss it on our trip. At the end of our week we decided that Claude Monet’s Water Lilies at Musée de l'Orangerie was probably our favorite artwork (that’s okay, I own my basicness, lol), overall we liked the artwork at Musée d’Orsay the best (we like the Impressionists), and the Louvre was the best experience. I like to say the Louvre is a museum with a capital M - there is nothing else like it.

Just as integral to the experience as the artwork it contains, the Louvre building itself is a masterpiece. The Louvre began as a fortress in the 12th century to protect the western edge of Paris and remnants of the Medieval Louvre are still visible in the crypt today. The building transitioned to a royal residence in the 14th century and in the 16th century the original fortress was demolished and the Louvre was rebuilt as a Renaissance-style royal residence. It remained a royal residence until 1682 when Louis XIV built the Palace of Versailles. The Louvre became a public museum named Muséum central des arts de la République during the French Revolution, opening in 1793 on the anniversary of the monarchy’s demise.

The Louvre has constantly been in flux as successive French monarchs added onto the building and renovations and changes have been undertaken throughout time. In the 1980s French President François Mitterrand initiated the Grand Louvre plan. This involved relocating the Finance Ministry out of the building, renovating the Richelieu Wing, restructuring and refurbishing other galleries, and creating an underground entrance in the central Cour Napoléon. This latter part of the plan resulted in the famous Louvre Pyramid designed by I.M. Pei and inaugurated in 1989. The Louvre Pyramid met with some criticism and controversy at the time, but has become one of the most iconic landmarks in Paris and arguably the world (similar to the arc of the Eiffel Tower). An additional underground space known as Carrousel du Louvre was created as an additional entrance and features the Inverted Pyramid, also designed by I.M. Pei.

Just like the building, the Louvre artwork collection was established early and has evolved over the centuries. The collection spans work from ancient civilizations to the mid-19th century and contains around 550,000 works of art. Only a fraction of the collection is displayed at one time: around 35,000 works of art. The collection is divided among eight departments: Egyptian Antiquities; Near Eastern Antiquities; Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities; Islamic Art; Sculpture; Decorative Arts; Paintings; Prints and Drawings. The painting collection represents all periods of European art up to the Revolutions of 1848. Works painted after that were transferred to the Musée d’Orsay when it opened in 1986. The Louvre collection is world renown containing many famous pieces. During WWII to avoid pillaging by the Nazis, 4,000 of the Louvre's most significant artworks, including the Mona LIsa, were moved to Château de Chambord in the Loire Valley.

The sheer size of both the artwork collection and the building itself can be overwhelming to Louvre visitors, so it felt necessary to have at least a basic plan. Before our trip Norah did her research to make a list of famous pieces to see and a general route through the building. We had booked an early time slot and walked across Pont des Arts to enter Cour Carrée (Court Square). This Renaissance façade is the oldest part of the Louvre Museum. We crossed the courtyard and exited out the other side to get breakfast pastries at Boulangerie BO&MIE - they were delicious! Armed with full bellies and a plan, we walked a few blocks to enter the Louvre through the underground entrance at Carrousel du Louvre. This entrance is a lot less crowded than the main entrance at the Pyramid and we got right in. Bonus is that there is still a pyramid here to see: La Pyramide Inversée du Louvre.

We decided we should knock out the Mona Lisa first. The crowds were as expected as we waited our turn for the obligatory pictures and selfies (while thinking of the movie The Glass Onion, lol). As we continued along our route, we could clock famous pieces by the small crowds gathered around them, although I didn’t find the crowds overbearing in the morning (we noticed the crowds increased as the morning went along). What is nice about the Louvre is because it is so big, it is easy to find rooms that are not busy at all. I think people generally see the main famous pieces then bounce. It was nice that there were rooms we could explore at our leisure with hardly any other people. I especially liked walking through the Egyptian antiquities rooms. Of course it was also cool to see the famous pieces. I felt we had a nice mix of checking pieces off our list and discovering others as we wandered through random galleries. One note comparing the crowds at the Louvre versus the Musée d’Orsay - we found d’Orsay more crowded because it’s not as big and a lot of the visitors were concentrated in the Impressionist galleries (we also visited Musée d’Orsay in the afternoon versus the morning for the Louvre, so that could have made a difference too).

I had no idea how long we would stay at the Louvre, so we didn’t plan anything else for the day except watching the sunset from the Arc de Triomphe and a dinner reservation at Assanabel. We ended up lasting around four hours at the Louvre before museum fatigue set in. We only saw a fraction of what the Louvre has to offer, but we felt satisfied with our visit. By the time we were winding down at the Louvre we were hungry and ready for lunch. Between the Louvre and Palais Garnier is a small area called Little Tokyo, concentrated on Rue Sainte-Anne. There are a number of highly rated Japanese restaurants here and we ended up at Aki Cafe for lunch. The food hit the spot and we got dessert down the street at Mochi Mochi Aki.

We had the rest of the afternoon to poke around the neighborhood and eventually make our way to the Arc de Triomphe. In addition to wandering down streets that looked interesting, we saw a few sights in the area:

Passage Choiseul: This is the longest covered passage in the city at 190 meters long (623 feet). The passage was built between 1826 and 1827 and at one time was home to the author Louis-Ferdinand Céline when he was a child in the 20th century. He mentions Passage Choiseul in two of his novels and described it as “having gas lamps that stank as badly as the stagnant air, and the aroma of dogs urine in the passage”. A ringing endorsement! After some years of disrepair and private ownership, the passage was revamped in 2013 and reopened to the public.

Palais Royal: The Palais-Royal is a former royal palace that now serves as the seat of the Ministry of Culture, the Conseil d'État, and the Constitutional Council (not open to the public). It was originally called Palais-Cardinal when it was built for Cardinal Richelieu from 1633 to 1639. In the 18th century a courtyard named Cour d’Honneur (the Courtyard of Honor) was created, separated from the garden by a double row of columns (the Orleans Gallery). A distinct and controversial work of art was installed in the courtyard in 1986: Les Colonnes de Buren by Daniel Buren (also known as Les Deux Plateaux). This installation consists of 260 black and white striped octagonal columns of unequal height and is a popular spot for pictures.

Jardin du Palais Royal: On the other side of Cour d’Honneur is a public garden with avenues of lime trees and a central fountain. This was a nice green space and we were happy to see some spring blooms (and a cat!).

Galerie Vivienne: Located behind the Bibliothèque Richelieu and near the Palais-Royal, Galerie Vivienne was built in 1823 and listed as a historical monument in 1974. This covered passage is 176 meters long (577 feet) with a beautiful glass roof that illuminates colorful mosaics on the floor.

We took a break at a street cafe, grabbing a table outside to enjoy a drink and watch the hustle and bustle of the neighborhood. About 1.5 hours before sunset we hopped on the Metro to ride to the Arc de Triomphe. The station we were going to get off at was closed due to the protests, but luckily we were able to get off only a stop away. The Paris Museum Pass works at the Arc and no reservation is required with the pass, so we basically just walked right in.

After the Battle of Austerlitz, Napoleon I returned to Paris and ordered the building of the Arc de Triomphe to the glory of the Great Army. Napoleon originally wanted to build the Arc on the site of the Bastille, but the Place de l'Étoile at the end of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées was eventually chosen (this is why the official name is The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile. Later this location was renamed Place Charles de Gaulle). The name Étoile or "star" was given to this spot because twelve avenues radiate from here (making necessary the underground pathways to reach the Arc).

The Arc de Triomphe was designed by Jean Chalgrin in 1806 in a Neoclassical style, inspired in part by the Arch of Titus in the Roman Forum. The overall height of the Arc is 50 m (164 ft), the width is 45 m (148 ft), and the depth is 22 m (72 ft). Since the Arc’s completion in 1836 the monument has witnessed major national events in France’s history: the passing of Napoleon I’s remains under the Arc in 1840 on their way to Les Invalides, the vigil for the funeral of Victor Hugo in 1885, the First World War victory parade by the Allies in 1919, and the Free French forces on parade after the liberation of Paris on August 26, 1944. Not all parades were in honor of the French - infamously Nazi tanks rolled past the Arc de Triomphe and down Champs-Élysées in 1940 during the occupation.

There are three areas to visit at the Arc de Triomphe: the base/outside, the mezzanine, and the terrace. On the outside there are sculptures and engravings to honor those who fought and died for France during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Six reliefs are sculpted on the facades of the Arc, representing important moments from these wars. On the walls are engravings with names of 158 battles and 660 military leaders who served during the French First Republic and the First French Empire; underlined names signify those who died on the battlefield. Under the vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the First World War. The tomb recognizes the sacrifice of the 1,500,000 French soldiers who lost their lives during the Great War. The Unknown Soldier was interred under the arch on January 28, 1921 and the eternal flame was lit on November 11, 1923. The flame is rekindled every day at a 6:30 pm ceremony.

Reaching the Mezzanine requires climbing 202 steps. On this level there is a First World War monument, a permanent exhibit about the design and building of the Arc de Triomphe, and a gift store. Climbing the last 82 steps brought us to the terrace with 360 views. It was cool to circle the terrace, seeing the views in each direction and picking out Paris landmarks. The Eiffel Tower featured prominently in these views - the Arc is a great vantage point from which to see the tower. We were at the top during rush hour and spent a lot of time watching the craziness of traffic navigating the twelve avenues and massive roundabout. It really resembled a traffic jam game! It was nice to see the views in daylight, then sunset, and finally at night when the Eiffel Tower lit up. It was a lovely way to spend an evening.

Our last stop of the day was dinner close to our hotel at Assanabel Saint-Germain-des-Prés, a highly rated Lebanese restaurant. The server was very friendly and helpful and recommended the house specialty Fattete Assanabel - a dish with eggplant, bread, yogurt, and meat. It was delicious! We also shared fresh hummus and pita, chicken wings, and baked pita stuffed with kafta and pine nuts. For dessert we shared mouhalabia (a milk-based cream flavored with orange blossom) and an assortment of baklava. This was a great meal and one of our favorites of the trip.