Navigating The Louvre

When you go to the Louvre, you need a game plan in order to not be overwhelmed.

The Louvre has ~35,000 works of art, with the remaining ~500,000 works in its collection in storage. If you walked all the halls, you’d clock eight miles. To have a fulfilling and non-draining museum trip, I recommend planning 2-4 hours. I’ve been to the museum four times and have still barely scratched the surface.

Outline for a first-time visitor:

• Buy timed tickets in advance

• Start in the Denon wing: go up the stairs towards the Winged Victory of Samrothace, on to the Mona Lisa, then swing around to the Venus de Milo (see the Beyoncé tour)

  • I also love…

    • The double sided David Slaying Goliath by Daniele da Volterra

    • Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss by Antonio Canova

    • Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix

    • Gallery of Views of Modern Rome by Giovanni Paolo Panini

• Choose another exhibit you’re interested in (Egyptian, Islamic, Greek, Roman, Italian, anything goes!)

• Stop for coffee and a snack at Le Café Mollien in the Denon wing or lunch in the Bistrot Benoit under the pyramid

• Finish with one final exhibit (I love walking through the Cour Puget and the Cour Marly in the Richelieu wing to finish)