The best place for an eyeful of the Eiffel, of course, can never be at its top, n’est ce pas, but instead from high up the Paris Montparnasse Observatory.
Which is still the only skyscraper in the City of Light and soars to 688ft.
Now to get the full panoramic experience of the French capital you’ll have to get moving, though.
With the Observatory due to close on March 31 for years of renovations.
The closure precedes the launch of a major renovation program aimed at completely transforming the building and its surroundings.
Highful in the Eiffel
Naturellement the Eiffel Tower is the biggest draw for visitors to France.
Many of whom, like ourselves with our then young family, will climb 674 stairs to reach… the second floor.
Because you can’t scale the 1,665 steps and will instead have to take the elevator, although you can skip the lot and get the lift from the ground floor.
All of which you’ll find out or already have in your Paree vacation.
Va va voom
What you might not know is that that other grand edifice by the Seine, the Paris Montparnasse Observatory, boasts the fastest elevator in Europe to get up to its observatory on the 56th floor.
Which more than 30 million visitors have taken in since its opening in 1974, offering a 360-degree view of Paris and its suburbs.
Now with such a vista you won’t be surprised to learn too that the Observatory has hosted more than 3,200 cultural, artistic, and institutional events at the top of the tower.
It has notably served as the venue for concerts by internationally renowned artists such as Justin Bieber, Soprano, Indochine and Feu Chatterton.
As well as events open to the general public, such as temporary recreational installations, an ice rink, a temporary roller skating rink and fashion shows during Fashion Week.
C’est Magnicity
The renovation project will involve a complete transformation of the building and its surroundings.
Mais non, it’s not adieu though, only a bientot.
And Magnicity, which has owned and operated the Paris Montparnasse Observatory and its floors for 53 years, will continue to operate its other panoramic sites internationally.
Notably the architects in Warsaw, Berlin, Rotterdam, and the iconic Sears tower in Chicago which is a truly ear-popping experience.
