Palais Garnier

The Palais Garnier is what Napoleon III's Paris looked like when it stopped pretending to be restrained. He commissioned it in 1861, Charles Garnier won the competition, and it was built from 1861 to 1875, opening on 5 January 1875. It rises 56 m from the ground to the top of the stage flytower. The auditorium seats 1,979 in the Italian horseshoe arrangement and the stage is the largest in Europe, able to hold 450 performers. Since the Opéra Bastille opened in 1989 the Garnier has been principally the home of the Paris Opera Ballet. Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can close the auditorium. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit. Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can close the auditorium. Adult self-guided admission is around EUR 15; performances and temporary products cost separately. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit. Metro Opéra, Chaussée dAntin-La Fayette or RER A Auber. Yes. Worship, events, maintenance, weather and security can change ordinary access. No. Special tours, exhibitions and upgrades use separate tickets. Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can

A staircase that is more famous than most of the operas performed above it. The grand ceremonial staircase is white marble with red and green marble balustrades, splitting into two diverging flights up to the Grand Foyer. It was designed to be walked up while being looked at, and it still functions that way. The auditorium ceiling is Marc Chagall's, painted in 1964 over Jules-Eugène Lenepveu's original. Beneath it hangs Garnier's bronze and crystal chandelier, which weighs seven tonnes. Adult self-guided admission is around EUR 15; performances and temporary products cost separately. Metro Opéra, Chaussée dAntin-La Fayette or RER A Auber.

Ninety minutes on a self-guided visit; an evening if you take a ballet. The daytime visit covers the staircase, the Grand Foyer, the library-museum and, when no rehearsal is running, a box overlooking the auditorium. That last is the part that gets closed at short notice, and it is the part with the Chagall. The Grand Foyer alone holds people for twenty minutes; it is a gilded hall the length of the façade with a mirrored end. A performance is the honest way to see the room lit and full. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit.

Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can close the auditorium. Metro Opéra, Chaussée dAntin-La Fayette or RER A Auber. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit.

Adult self-guided admission is around EUR 15; performances and temporary products cost separately. The base amount and currency follow the operator tariff; premium products and separate institutions remain excluded unless named. Yes. Worship, events, maintenance, weather and security can change ordinary access.

Metro Opéra, Chaussée dAntin-La Fayette or RER A Auber. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit. Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can close the auditorium.

An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit. Self-guided visits generally operate daily 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:00; rehearsals and performances can close the auditorium. Adult self-guided admission is around EUR 15; performances and temporary products cost separately. An accessible route serves principal lower or public areas, but stairs, historic fabric or summit routes limit the complete circuit. Historic surfaces, crowds and security remain relevant.

The grand staircase is the photograph and everyone takes it from the bottom looking up. From the first landing looking back down, with the two flights diverging below, is the better composition and the emptier spot. The Grand Foyer needs a wide lens and a steady hand; it is gilt on gilt and meters badly, so expose for the highlights and let the shadows go. The Chagall ceiling can only be photographed from a box, which is only open when no rehearsal is running. Photography during performances is prohibited. Adult self-guided admission is around EUR 15; performances and temporary products cost separately.