I find the best approach to the tower is to take the Metro to the Trocadero station & walk from the Palais de Chaillot to the Seine. The best view of the Eiffel Tower can be had from esplanade outside the Musee de la Marine at the Trocadero on the other side of the River Seine.

The gold statues are great to frame your photograph of the tower. On Sunday June 23, 1940 around 8 am, the famous photograph of Adolf Hitler standing in the exact same place to view the Eiffel Tower and occupied Paris. I like to stand at the bottom of the tower and look up to the biggest Mecano structure in the world. It is now one of the world's biggest tourist traps, that keeps drawing in around 6,5 million people a year.

Any visit to Paris wouldn't be complete without a visit to see the Eiffel Tower. If you are on a day trip do not waste your valuable time queuing in the incredibly long lines of tourist to get a ticket. Be content with looking at the tower from the outside. If you are in Paris for longer get up early and be prepared for a long wait. It is called la Tour Eiffel in French

la Tour Eiffel was built for the 1889 World Fair by Gustave-Alexandre Eiffel, the French engineer, famous mainly for his iron bridges. It was not meant to be a permanent feature. It weights 7,000 tones, being made of 15,000 pieces fitted together by 2,500,000 rivets. At first many Parisians hated the big mass of metal when it was first erected.

It is recorded that French writer Guy de Maupassant disliked it so much that he ate at the tower's restaurant nearly every day because it was the only place in Paris where he couldn't see the tower! It's also worth seeing it during the day and then going back at night to see it all lit up and to watch when the flashing lights go on - it sparkles each hour on the hour for about 10 minutes.

It is much cheaper to climb up the stairs and you avoid the long lines waiting for the elevator. You have to climb 345 steps to get to the first level, and another 359 steps to get to the second level. Do be aware that the stairs only go up to the second level, so if you want to go all the way to the top you're going to have to pay again to use the elevator.

If you do not want to walk up the steps or physical cannot, you'll find elevators in two of the Eiffel Tower's pillars. The first landing provides a view over the rooftops at 189ft - 57.63 meters. There are Souvenir shops, a restaurant 'Altitude 95' named because it's 95m above sea level (tel- 01-45-55-20-04) and Post office, with special 'Paris Eiffel Tower' stamps. The 2nd landing offers a panoramic look at the city at 379ft - 115.73 meters.

You can use Telescopes to explore the view and again there are more shops. There is also an extremely expensive Restaurant called Jules Verne (tel- 01-45-55-61-44). The 3rd landing can only be reached by elevator and is at 905ft 11 inches - 276.13 meters. On a clear day you can see for 40 miles - 64km If you really want to eat in the very expensive Jules Verne restaurant phone for a reservation at least 2 months in advance. You cannot use your 'Carte Musees et Monuments'.

Travel books