Louvre to Raise Ticket Prices for Americans and Some Other Foreigners
Tourists visiting the Louvre Museum in Paris already have to cope with long entry lines, overcrowded galleries and, occasionally, robbers stealing masterpieces from its halls.
Now, some also face a sharp jump in ticket prices.
On Thursday, the Louvre’s board agreed to increase prices by 45 percent for visitors outside the European Economic Area, including Americans, as part of efforts to raise funds to overhaul the beleaguered institution.
From Jan. 14, those tourists will pay 32 euros, about $37 — instead of €22, or $25 — to roam the Louvre’s halls and admire the Mona Lisa. Visitors from Britain and Russia will pay more, too, as they are not part of the European Economic Area, which includes countries in the European Union as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
A spokesman for the Louvre confirmed the change in an email.
The museum is still on the mend after thieves broke into one of its galleries in October and stole about $100 million worth of jewelry. That brazen robbery, which took place in broad daylight while the museum was open, highlighted the Louvre’s security weaknesses and decaying infrastructure.
On Friday, a fifth person was charged in relation to the burglary, while three others arrested earlier in the week were released, the Paris prosecutor overseeing the case said in a statement.
In January, President Emmanuel Macron of France and the Louvre’s director, Laurence des Cars, announced a plan to overhaul the museum, called “Louvre — New Renaissance.” including moving the Mona Lisa to a new exhibition space to deal with overcrowding.
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