Hi friends, welcome back to my Paris and London Anniversary series 🙂 Today’s post is all about the Eiffel Tower, one of the most iconic sights in the world! Jon and I didn’t visit the Eiffel Tower until our fifth day of the trip, so the anticipation was definitely building. Our second hotel was about a twenty-minute walk away, so logistically it made more sense to wait until we left Saint Germain to ascend the tower. I bought passes ahead of time to take the lift all the way up to the third level. I figured if we were going up, we might as well see it all!
The Eiffel Tower was built in 2 years, 2 months, and 5 days, quite the speedy project and architectural marvel! Its current height is 1,083 feet up to the antennae and 1,024 feet to the original top, just slightly taller than the Chrysler Building in NYC. The tower was a lot larger than I thought it would be, especially the base.
We made it through security and got in line for the lift up to the second floor. If you take the lift, you miss out on seeing the first observation deck, but you don’t have to climb up 720 stairs. That was a sacrifice we were more than willing to make! The lift was jam packed to go up, but luckily we were on the perimeter so we could see out the window as we rose up 377 feet. It had the feeling of going up a very tall roller coaster, but without the anticipation of a scream inducing drop.
This level was quite large and very full of tourists enjoying this must-see monument and spectacular views. Getting pictures took some patience and skill, but we managed! Jon and I went on a Monday night so I can only imagine what a weekend is like.
We loved being able to locate all of the sights we’d visited during our trip. I think it is worth saving a visit to the top of the Eiffel Tower until the end of your trip so you can appreciate the views more. I feel like if you don’t know what you’re actually looking at it’s not as wow-inducing.
After getting in our fill of pictures, we lined up to go to the third level via the necessary lift. We were on the perimeter again and the views going up in the lift made my stomach drop a little. I’m not afraid of heights, but looking out the lift was a little unsettling as we ascended up to 900 feet, or approximately 80 stories up. Once we stepped off the lift we felt the strong winds, but the top was very secure and not scary. The only thing I was nervous about was accidentally dropping my phone off the tower to get a clear picture. There is even a champagne bar at the top to make the experience even more memorable.
It was amazing how different the views were between the two levels.
Rain was moving in so we didn’t get to see a beautiful sunset. We headed down and made it to the front of the Eiffel Tower in time to see the first light show of the night at 10 pm. It started raining at this point, but the twinkling tower was absolutely magical! The light show lasts about five minutes and is displayed on the hour from dusk until 1 am.
I loved being able to watch the light show again from our hotel window and away from the natural elements outside 🙂
The following morning, we met at 7:15 with our Parisian photographer Pamela. I found the Parisian Photographers through some Google and Yelp searches, and then loved the light and airy pictures in their online gallery. You know I love pictures so I was so excited to have beautiful, professional photos to remember our trip. We booked an hour session around the Eiffel Tower and that was the perfect amount of time. We started at the Avenue de Cameons and had the place to ourselves.
We then walked down along the Seine Riverside.
We finished our photoshoot on the Bir Hakeim Bridge and this was my favorite spot!
These photos are so special to us and I’d highly recommend Pamela and the Parisian Photographers if you are looking for pictures in Paris. It was a great experience!
As you could guess, we loved the Eiffel Tower and definitely think it’s worth going up to the top! I’d highly recommend buying tickets as soon as you know the day you’re going because they sell out very fast, especially in the summer. I’d also recommend buying tickets with the lift, it’s relatively inexpensive and with the way the weather is going, you won’t regret skipping the stairs! I initially thought the Eiffel Tower was going to be something you see once and cross off your list, but I couldn’t get enough of the mesmerizing structure! Stay tuned for our time at the beautiful Rodin Museum coming up next 🙂
Posts in my Paris and London Anniversary series:
- Day 1 – Saint Chapelle, the Concierge, and Notre Dame
- Day 2 – Palace of Versailles
- Day 2 – Versailles Garden
- Day 2 – Touring the Versailles Summer Homes
- Day 3 – Louvre Museum
- Day 3 – Champs Elysees & Arc de Triomphe
- Day 4 – Montmartre & Sacre Coeur
- Day 4 – Musee d’Orsay & Crepes
- Day 5 – Luxembourg Gardens & Eglise Saint-Eustache
The Eiffel Tower is always a good sight, whether from afar or at the top of the tower. We managed to be at the top of the tower at the exact moment of our wedding on our 30th anniversary. So great to see the views in daytime and nighttime. Thanks for sharing Lyssy. Allan
That is so special to be up there at the exact moment of your wedding on your 30th anniversary! I hope we are always able to travel to celebrate anniversaries. I thought the Eiffel Tower was going to be a bit of a tourist trap, but it’s spectacular!
Those anniversary shots are STUNNING, so bright and light and just beautiful.
Also good choice on the list, I did the 700 steps last time and that was not fun.
Thank you, Hannah!! I love the pictures so much 🙂 I couldn’t remember what I booked and the night before Jon was freaking out that we’d have to climb all the steps haha. He was very relieved when I checked and told him we didn’t have to climb any steps haha
What beautiful photos!! I have pictures from the top of the Eiffel tower but didn’t make it up there myself. LOL. My best friend took my camera when she went but the only time we found to go up inside was just an hour before our flight was leaving and I was much too nervous about missing my plane back and being stranded in a foreign country at 16! Plus it was a super cloudy and visibility was quite limited. I’ve always wanted to go back and experience it myself though.
Thank you!! I hope you get to go up to the top one day! I would definitely not risk missing my flight to go up haha. We got lucky with clear visibility! The ride up is quite an experience too.
Awwww your photos are lovely! Also, I can’t get over how enormous Paris is. I don’t think I realized it’s such a big city.
Thank you!! Paris is quite large and we covered most of it by foot. Such a great city with so much to do. I can see why everyone keeps going back!
Beautiful photos!!!! Great memories for sure! 🙂
Thank you so much!!!
You are most welcome!! 🙂
I love the fact that you can see the Eiffel Tower from pretty much anywhere in Paris. I still remember my excitement on seeing it for the first time and, even though I hate heights, ascending the various levels – just magical. Particularly loved your professional photos, a wonderful reminder of a very special trip.
I love that too, whenever I’d catch a glimpse of the tower I’d elbow Jon and point to it. I’m sure he appreciated that after 10x 🙂 The tower is truly a sight you never tire of, and the trip up is definitely magical! Thank you so much, I am looking forward hanging those instead of our 100 selfies.
Only 100 selfies?
Spectacular photos of and from the Eiffel Tower, and even more spectacular ones from your photo shoot. (I love your beret!) You’re definitely enticing me to book a trip to Paris!
Thank you so much!! It was such a special photoshoot and great memories 🙂
The views are amazing! And I love all the shots of you both at the tower 😍
Thank you so much!! We got lucky with good visibility up the tower.
What stunning photos Lyssy, they are all so special and such a beautiful reminder of your first wedding anniversary and your stay in Paris. We also took the lift all the way up when we visited!
Thank you!! They are such a special memory! The lift was such a fun experience!
Really nice pics! 👌🏼
Funny I never went on top of the Eiffel Tower lol I guess because I was seeing it everyday 😅
The Bir Hakeim bridge pics are also my favorite! Also it reminds me of the movie Inception 😉
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!! You’ll have to go to the top one day, although I still haven’t been to the top of the Empire State Building yet so I understand haha. Oh yes I forgot about Inception!
Lovely anniversary photos, light and airy. The Bir Hakeim Bridge photo is my favourite of the bunch as well. I think saving The Eiffel Tower for the end of the trip is excellent advice. It is certainly more meaningful if you can actually pick out the sights you’ve already seen or walked by.
Thank you, Leighton! Not many people venture past the Eiffel Tower so it was nice to have the views and bridge mostly to ourselves. It might seem crazy to not see the Eiffel Tower first thing, but we appreciated having a feel for the city first. I feel like we walked the whole city by the end of our time there!
Gorgeous pictures! Our hotel was right down the road from Les Invalides, and if we opened the window and looked left we had a view of the tower. Not perfect, but so majestic!
Thank you!! It is so cool to be able to see the Eiffel Tower from your hotel, no matter the view. It is so majestic!
Nice pictures, not only the photoshoot but the whole article. The Eiffel Tower is so well known that it is difficult to be original, at least the photos showing the conditions of the visit give a different angle. This whole trip was well thought out and well prepared, it pays off once you get to the destination. There are still the uncertainties of the weather.
Thank you! That is true, everyone knows the Eiffel Tower. I have never planned for a trip this much and it definitely paid off! Everything went so seamless and we left without feeling like we missed anything or could’ve done the trip differently. We felt pretty lucky to only have one day of rain the whole trip.
Lovely! Can’t wait to see more of your trip even though I’m still catching up on some of the past posts. Also I absolutely love the beret photo. Can’t go to Paris and not don a beret!
Thank you!! Our photographer actually brought the beret and it made for the best pictures, especially because it matched my dress so well 🙂
The photo with the beret makes you look like a real French couple. Your photos measure up well to the professional ones, and that’s not a knock on your photographer. Great photos and great anniversary memories, Lyssy!
Thank you!!! That is quite the compliment 🙂 It is so great to have these pictures to remember our first anniversary!
I am in awe with how tall the Eiffel Tower is. Your photos of Paris are simply spectacular, and I love how you can see the landscape of the city in them. That is really sweet that you guys did a photo session out there too, the photos look so beautiful!
Thank you Allie!! The views from the top can’t be missed.We loved how the pictures turned out and can’t wait to display them. They are a lot better than our selfies 🙂
Two of your photos really impressed me, Lyssy. The third image of the Tower from the cobbled street is an angle I’d never seen before. It creates the illusion the Tower is in a residential neighborhood. Then the photo from the second deck, with the skyscrapers in the distance. It reminds me of Dallas, where you can see the downtown from far, far away. Okay, so I lied. The third anniversary photo impressed me too. Hard to pick just one from any of those beautiful poses, but that’d be my choice.
Thank you! The one of the cobblestone streets is a very popular spot for Instagrammers. We happened to walk through on our way to the Eiffel Tower and it was relatively empty, shockingly. It does look similar to Dallas! That is one of my favorite anniversary pics too, our photographer really knocked it out of the park!
Nice shots!