Musée du Louvre · 1st arrondissement
A private guide is the best way to see the Louvre with children, little time, or little patience for crowds. Here are the tours worth booking, what they include, and the museum rules that changed in 2026.
Updated October 19, 2026 · Prices checked October 19, 2026 · Tour prices refresh daily
Photo: Michael Fousert / Unsplash
The Louvre has 403 rooms and some 30,000 works on display, and it drew 9 million visitors in 2025. Most of them head for the same three masterpieces at the same time of day. A private guide does not make the museum any smaller, but it means the route, the pace, and the stops are yours: two hours on the essentials, a detour to the one department your ten-year-old is obsessed with, or a slower walk with someone who uses a wheelchair.
Below are the private tours we could verify, plus two small-group tours for comparison, followed by the 2026 ticket rules every tour has to work within. One change matters for planning: since January 14, 2026, visitors from outside the European Economic Area pay €32 for a ticket, up from the €22 that EEA residents still pay.
N° 01Short on time
1erPrivateBest private tour
Tour Across Worlds
Fully private for up to six people, with timed entry tickets included and a licensed local guide who can shape the route around you. The listing says it is wheelchair and stroller accessible, and it also sells a Friday-night option.
Free cancellation
From$192.25
lowest listed option
2ePrivateBest for families
Raphael Tours & Events
A private two- or three-hour tour built around children, with pre-booked entry and a guide who specializes in kids. Each booking needs at least one adult and one child, up to six people, with 9am or 2pm starts.
Free cancellation
From$239.17
lowest listed option
3eSmall groupBest near-private value
Babylon Tours Paris
Not private, but capped at six guests, with reserved entry included and a long record of reviews. A sensible middle ground if a private guide is out of budget. It is not suitable for wheelchair users.
Free cancellation
From$72.09
per person
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N° 02Avec un guide
Prices shown are the lowest listed option. Private tours usually price by party, and one listing’s from-price is for a shared option, so open the listing to see the total for your group before you compare.
| Tour | Format | Length | Reviews | From | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louvre Private Guided Tour with Timed EntryTour Across WorldsCouples or small parties wanting a flexible, private visit at a mid-range price Free cancellation | Walking · private | 2 hours | 4.94169 reviews | $192.25lowest listed option | Check |
| Louvre Highlights: Private, 6-Guest or 12-Guest OptionsBabylon Tours ParisTravelers who want a private, highly reviewed highlights tour with tickets handled Free cancellation | Walking · private | 2.5 hours | 4.957,222 reviews | $72.09shared option; private costs more | Check |
| Private Louvre Tour for Kids & FamiliesRaphael Tours & EventsFamilies with children who want a private, kid-focused guide Free cancellation | Walking · private | 2 or 3 hours | 4.93469 reviews | $239.17lowest listed option | Check |
| Private Louvre Highlights Tour for Kids (ticket included)Paris Tours with KidsFamilies wanting an alternative kids-specialist private guide Free cancellation | Walking · private | 2 or 3 hours | 4.94189 reviews | $262.05lowest listed option | Check |
| Premium Private Louvre Tour with Reserved AccessMy Private ParisTravelers wanting a premium private guide experience Free cancellation | Walking · private | 2.5 hours | 4.9465 reviews | $427.98lowest listed option | Check |
| Louvre Semi-Private Tour, 6 Guests MaxBabylon Tours ParisValue-minded travelers who want a near-private feel without the private price Free cancellation | Walking · small group | 2.5 hours | 4.984,320 reviews | $72.09 | Check |
| Louvre Masterpieces Small Group (12 max)City WondersTravelers wanting a longer guided visit in a small group Free cancellation | Walking · small group | 3 hours | 4.68255 reviews | $124.73 | Check |
N° 03Cross-checked
One platform’s score is a sample, not a verdict. Here is how each operator rates on Viator, Tripadvisor, Google, and its own website.
| Tour | Viator | Tripadvisor | Operator site | Spread | Max group | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louvre Private Guided Tour with Timed EntryTour Across Worlds | ★ 4.94169 reviews | not found | not found | not found | — | 6 |
| Private Louvre Tour for Kids & FamiliesRaphael Tours & Events | ★ 4.93469 reviews | ★ 5.0160 reviews | not found | not found | 0.07 | 6 |
| Louvre Semi-Private Tour, 6 Guests MaxBabylon Tours Paris | ★ 4.984,320 reviews | ★ 5.014,229 reviews | ★ 5.03,361 reviews | not found | 0.02 | 6 |
| Louvre Highlights: Private, 6-Guest or 12-Guest OptionsBabylon Tours Paris | ★ 4.957,222 reviews | ★ 5.014,229 reviews | ★ 5.03,361 reviews | not found | 0.05 | 6 |
| Private Louvre Highlights Tour for Kids (ticket included)Paris Tours with Kids | ★ 4.94189 reviews | ★ 4.9272 reviews | ★ 4.859 reviews | ★ 5.0260 reviewsvia Tripadvisor | 0.20 | 6 |
| Premium Private Louvre Tour with Reserved AccessMy Private Paris | ★ 4.9465 reviews | ★ 4.9652 reviews | not found | not found | 0.04 | 6 |
| Louvre Masterpieces Small Group (12 max)City Wonders | ★ 4.68255 reviews | ★ 4.831,712 reviews | not found | not found | 0.12 | 12 |
Babylon Tours Paris holds its rating most consistently across the sites we could verify (spread 0.02).
The widest gap is Paris Tours with Kids: 5.00 on its own site versus 4.80 on Google (spread 0.20).
Checked October 20, 2026. Tripadvisor and Google figures are the operator’s own listings, which pool reviews of all its tours, so they measure the company rather than this exact product. Spread is the highest minus the lowest rating shown.
N° 04Private vs group
A route built for you. On a group tour the itinerary is fixed and the pace is set by the slowest person. With a private guide you can say "the Mona Lisa, then the paintings I actually care about, then coffee" and get exactly that.
Children who stay interested. The two family tours here are run by guides who specialize in kids, and both require at least one child per booking. That changes the tone: questions, stories, and a shorter attention span planned in, rather than a lecture delivered over a stroller.
Accessibility. If anyone in your party uses a wheelchair, private is often the only workable option. Babylon Tours says its wheelchair-friendly tour runs only as a private booking, while its six-guest semi-private tour is not available to wheelchair users. Tour Across Worlds lists its private tour as wheelchair and stroller accessible.
A language other than English. Babylon Tours sells private options in English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Russian, and Mandarin.
PrivateParis Tours with Kids
Free cancellation
From$262.05
lowest listed option
If you are on your own, on a budget, and happy with a plan, a timed ticket and the Louvre’s own audio guide (€6, nine languages) get you to the big three. A six-guest semi-private tour is the halfway house: close to private, at a shared price. And if two hours on the essentials is all you want, our Louvre in two hours route shows how to do it on your own.
N° 05Tarifs 2026
The same prices apply online and at the museum. Most tours on this page include the ticket; check the listing.
| Ticket | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Adult, from outside the EEA | €32 | Since January 14, 2026 |
| Adult, EEA citizen or resident | €22 | Residents need a residence permit or a visa of more than three months |
| Under 18 | Free | With ID |
| EEA residents and citizens under 26 | Free | With ID and proof of residency |
| First Friday of the month, after 6pm | Free | Not in July or August; reservation required |
| Audio guide | €6 | Nine languages |
Checked October 19, 2026. Groups pay a separate rate, €28 entry per paying participant plus a reservation fee (€20 for small groups, €90 for large ones), which is one reason guided tours cost more than a ticket. Some listings still quote an older ticket value. Source: louvre.fr, hours and admission.
N° 06Bon à savoir
Hours. The Louvre opens at 9am and closes at 6pm on Monday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, and at 9pm on Wednesday and Friday. It is closed every Tuesday, and on January 1, May 1, and December 25. Last entry is an hour before closing, and rooms start clearing 30 minutes before.
Time slots. Booking a time slot is recommended for everyone, including free-admission visitors, and on some dates it is mandatory: in 2026 that applied from July 1 to August 31 and again from October 17 to November 1. No mandatory period has been announced for Christmas 2026. A tour books the slot for you, which is part of what you pay for.
Group sizes. The museum defines a small group as up to six participants plus the leader, and a large group as seven to twenty plus the leader. That is why private and semi-private tours here cap bookings at six.
Licensed guides only. Only accredited people may speak to a group inside the Louvre, mainly holders of the French professional guide-lecturer card. Groups whose leader lacks it are refused without a refund, which is a good reason to book an established operator rather than a stranger at the Pyramid. Leaders of large groups may speak only if participants wear headphones, which the museum does not provide; the City Wonders small-group tour includes headsets.
Punctuality. Group tickets become invalid 30 minutes after the slot, and some operators will not take latecomers at all. Babylon Tours also says the whole group must leave the museum with the guide when the tour ends, so if you want to linger afterward, check the listing or plan a second visit.
N° 07Les chefs-d’œuvre
Every highlights tour is built around the same three works, and it helps to know where they are:
On October 19, 2025, burglars broke into the Galerie d’Apollon and stole eight 19th-century jewels. The gallery reopened on July 22, 2026, but with no jewels on display: it now shows only its painted and sculpted décor. If a tour still promises the crown jewels, it is out of date.
A long-term redevelopment announced in January 2025 includes a dedicated space for the Mona Lisa and new entrances. The architecture team was chosen on May 18, 2026, but the Louvre has published no dates for the works or for the Mona Lisa’s new room, so nothing changes for visits this season.
N° 08Pratique
01
Your tour names it. The Pyramid is the main entrance, the Galerie du Carrousel (99 rue de Rivoli) takes ticket holders and groups, and the Passage Richelieu is used by groups with an official guide.
02
This riverside entrance is for ticket holders only, and official sources disagree on its hours; the 2026 visitor rules also list it as closed on Fridays. Treat it as a bonus, not a plan.
03
Bags larger than 55 × 35 × 20 cm are not allowed. There are free self-service lockers under the Pyramid.
04
On Wednesdays and Fridays the museum stays open until 9pm. An evening tour is calmer than a 10am one, and one private tour here offers a Friday-night option.
05
Photos for private use are allowed in the permanent collections, but not flash, selfie sticks, or tripods.
06
Métro: Palais-Royal–Musée du Louvre (lines 1 and 7) or Pyramides (line 14).
N° 09Good to know
It depends on the size of your party. The from-prices in our comparison are the lowest listed option, and private tours usually price per booking, so open the listing to see the total for your group. Most include the museum ticket, which on its own costs €32 for visitors from outside the EEA in 2026.
Most of the tours we compared do: Tour Across Worlds, both family tours, Babylon Tours, and City Wonders list the ticket in their inclusions. The My Private Paris premium tour lists "reserved and dedicated access" but does not itemize a ticket, so check before booking.
For families with children, travelers with limited mobility, or anyone who wants a route built around their interests, yes. If you are a solo traveler happy with the highlights, a timed ticket plus the €6 audio guide, or a six-guest semi-private tour, is better value.
Two hours covers the big three and a handful of other highlights. Three hours lets you add a whole department of your choice without rushing. Beyond that, most people tire.
Every Tuesday, plus January 1, May 1, and December 25. It is open late, until 9pm, on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Not at the moment. After the theft of eight jewels in October 2025, the Apollo Gallery reopened on July 22, 2026 with no jewels on display.
Under-18s enter free with ID. Private tours still charge for each person in the booking, and the two family tours here require at least one child per booking.
N° 10Booking.com
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