What a ticket covers
Every ticket covers access to the esplanade (free in any case) plus the paid levels of the tower. The paid levels are the first floor (57 m), the second floor (115 m) and the summit (276 m). Ticket categories are mainly a function of two choices:
- How high you want to go — second floor only or all the way to the summit.
- How you want to go up — lift (fast, popular) or stairs (slower, cheaper, limited to the second floor).
Current ticket categories
- Lift to the second floor — the most common ticket. Buys you access to the ground, first and second floors by lift. Suitable for a first-time climber, families with small children, and visitors who do not need the summit.
- Lift to the summit — the above plus access to the third-floor (summit) lift. The usual choice for a traveller for whom the summit is the point of the visit.
- Stairs to the second floor — a cheaper ticket for climbers who want the physical experience. 674 steps. Not suitable for visitors with reduced mobility.
- Stairs to the second, lift to the summit — a popular compromise. You climb the stairs to the second floor (the exterior view on the way up is excellent) and take the small summit lift from there.
- Reduced-price categories — children aged four to eleven, young adults twelve to twenty-four, and visitors with reduced mobility and a companion. Must be bought as such and may require documentation at the entrance.
Prices and reductions are set and updated by SETE. We do not reproduce them here because they change several times a year. Always consult the official site for the current amounts.
Our suggestions
- If the forecast is good and you can commit to a specific day and time, book online in advance. The queue on the esplanade for same-day tickets can be very long in peak season.
- If you are visiting as a family with young children, consider the first slot of the morning — see our family days note.
- If the point of the visit is a golden-hour photograph from the summit, pick a day where the forecast is clear and arrive on the deck forty-five minutes before sunset.
- If budget matters more than time, consider the stairs to the second; the climb takes about forty minutes at a steady pace and the view through the ironwork is one of the memorable experiences of the tower.