The Louvre is one of the world’s most famous museums and a must-visit destination for anyone exploring Paris. But what is it like to visit the Louvre as a wheelchair or powerchair user?
We’ve spoken to Andrea Cary, who recently explored this incredible museum with her TGA WHILL C2, to hear about her experience and discover just how accessible the Louvre can be.
Discovering the History of the Louvre
The Louvre is the world’s largest art museum and a historic monument, with a fascinating history that stretches back more than 800 years. The original structure was built as a defensive fortress in the late 12th century. Later, it became a royal palace, before officially opening as a public museum during the French Revolution in 1793. Today, the Louvre is home to around 35,000 works of art, displayed across more than 60,000 square metres of gallery space.
Among its most famous treasures are Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory of Samothrace. With so much to discover, you could spend an incredible amount of time exploring the museum. In fact, it has been estimated that seeing every artwork on display would take more than 100 days. The museum welcomes around 15,000 visitors every day, making accessibility an important part of the visitor experience.
The Iconic Louvre Pyramid
For many visitors, the Louvre experience begins outside beneath the museum’s instantly recognisable glass pyramid. Although the Louvre itself dates back centuries, the pyramid was added in the late 1980’s, when the museum needed a new entrance to accommodate its increasing number of visitors. Standing approximately 21 metres tall, the pyramid has since become one of Paris’s most recognisable landmarks.
But what is it like to arrive at the Louvre and explore it using a wheelchair?
Andrea’s Accessible Visit to the Louvre
Andrea visited the Louvre with her WHILL C2 on a particularly gloomy day. Despite the weather and the long queue outside the pyramid, she found that accessing the museum as a wheelchair user was straightforward.
Andrea tells us, “Visiting the Louvre museum with the WHILL C2 was a ‘breeze’. I arrived outside the glass pyramid on a very wet and windy day.”
There was a long queue to enter, but Andrea was directed towards an accessible entrance, meaning she didn’t have to wait with the main queue. She was also pleasantly surprised to discover that visitors with disabilities, along with their companion, are not charged an entrance fee.
Accessible Entrance and Getting Inside
Andrea found the Louvre’s accessible entrance particularly impressive.
An accessible circular lift takes visitors down to the main entrance area, with museum staff on hand to help control the lift smoothly. Once inside the museum itself, Andrea found that the different areas were accessible using lifts and ramps.
For a museum of this enormous size, having accessible routes throughout makes a significant difference to the experience. The Louvre also provides downloadable accessibility maps, which can help visitors plan their route around the museum before and during their visit.
For anyone visiting for the first time, this can be particularly useful when deciding which galleries and artworks they want to see.
Exploring the Louvre with the WHILL C2
For Andrea, the WHILL C2 made navigating the museum even easier.
The C2’s manoeuvrability and turning circle were particularly useful when moving through the museum’s different spaces.
With so much to see and such a large area to explore, being able to manoeuvre easily can make a real difference to how comfortable and enjoyable a visit feels.
And, of course, no visit to the Louvre would be complete without seeing one of the world’s most famous paintings.
Getting Up Close to the Mona Lisa
The Mona Lisa is arguably the Louvre’s most famous resident.
It became a global household name after museum employee Vincenzo Peruggia stole the painting in 1911. It remained missing for two years before being recovered. Today, visitors queue to see Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece, and the crowds around the painting can make getting a good view challenging.
Andrea found that wheelchair users are given additional assistance.
“There is a long queue and many people struggling to see behind a barrier. However, wheelchair users are escorted beyond the barrier to view the painting at a very close distance.”
For Andrea, this was a particularly memorable part of her visit.
Being able to get beyond the main barrier meant she could enjoy a much closer view of the Mona Lisa without having to struggle to see over a crowd.
Andrea’s Verdict: Is the Louvre Wheelchair Accessible?
After exploring the museum with her WHILL C2, Andrea would definitely recommend the Louvre to other wheelchair users.
“I would definitely recommend the Louvre to wheelchair users. They will definitely have a stress-free and really enjoyable visit viewing the incredible artwork on view there.”
Her experience highlights how these well thought out accessible features can make visiting one of the world’s busiest and largest museums much more manageable. From accessible entrances and lifts to ramps, accessibility maps and assistance when viewing some of the museum’s most popular artworks, the Louvre offers a range of facilities to support visitors with disabilities.
Along with the manoeuvrability of the WHILL C2 helping Andrea navigate the museum, she was able to concentrate on what really mattered – enjoying the incredible art and history around her.
Planning Your Visit to the Louvre
If you’re planning an accessible visit to the Louvre, take a look at the museum’s accessibility information and maps before you travel.
Planning your route in advance can help you make the most of your time, particularly given the incredible scale of the museum, and leave plenty of time to explore. With tens of thousands of artworks and centuries of history to discover, there’s no shortage of things to see.
Andrea’s experience shows that a visit to the Louvre can be an enjoyable and memorable experience for all, and with the right preparation, you can spend less time worrying about accessibility and more time taking in some of the world’s greatest works of art.
Photography: Andrea Cary and Eleanor Ling
