Paris Catacombs Tickets 2026: Prices, Booking & What to Expect
Adult tickets are €31, audioguide included. The catch: only 7 days of booking window, and slots sell out fast. Here's exactly how to book and what you'll walk through.
You descend 131 steps into the Paris Catacombs, the walls grow damp, and the temperature drops to 14°C. For the first 15 minutes, you walk through limestone quarry tunnels with no bones. Then you pass under a doorway with a French inscription, and the ossuary begins.
The Catacombs reopened in April 2026 after a five-month renovation. Tickets cost €31 for adults, audioguide included. The booking window is exactly 7 days — not more, not less.
How much are Paris Catacombs tickets in 2026?
Adult: €31 (audioguide in French, English, Spanish, or German included). Reduced (18–26, students): €25. Child 8–17: €15. Under 8: free. No museum passes accepted — the Paris Museum Pass, the Carte Blanche, and equivalent cards are not valid here.
The audioguide is automated by your headset's location in the tunnel. You do not press buttons — it plays as you move through each section.
Where to book
Our take: Official is cheaper at €31, but booking opens only 7 days ahead and sells out within hours; GetYourGuide costs a few euros more and books further ahead with free cancellation, the safer bet once official slots are gone.
The Catacombs of Paris guide — walk the route in 45 minutes
- The first 15 minutes have no bones — what to notice in the quarry section before the ossuary
- The Port-Mahon corridor: what François Décure carved, and why it changes how you read everything around it
- The exact moment in the route where the bone arrangements shift from stacked rows to skulls and femurs — and why Héricart de Thury designed it that way
Why Paris Catacombs tickets sell out so fast
The site allows only 200 visitors underground at any time. Tickets release exactly 7 days ahead — no earlier. In peak months (April–October), weekend morning slots sell out within hours of the window opening. Weekday slots and the last entry (19:30) hold availability longer.
The Catacombs reopened April 8, 2026 after a €5.5 million renovation: new theatrical LED lighting, expanded signage, upgraded audioguide. Demand has not eased since reopening.
If official slots are sold out, GetYourGuide is on the Catacombs' official list of authorized resellers. Avoid any site not on that list.
What to look for on the route
The 1.5 km circuit runs in one direction. You cannot turn back. Each of these is worth slowing down for:
- Notice the quarry section before the ossuary. The first 15 minutes have no bones — only the original limestone quarry that supplied Paris's medieval buildings. The carved walls and chisel marks predate the ossuary by centuries.
- Stand under the doorway inscription. "Arrête, c'est ici l'empire de la mort" — Stop, this is the empire of death. It marks the exact threshold between quarry and ossuary, placed here when the site opened to the public in 1809.
- Look at the wall arrangements, not just the mass. Inspector Héricart de Thury reorganized the ossuary between 1810 and 1814. The rows of femurs alternating with skulls are deliberate. He treated the remains as architectural material.
- Find the Port-Mahon corridor. Quarryman François Décure carved a scale model of a Minorcan fortress where he had been held prisoner by the British. He did it during lunch breaks, over several years, with quarry tools, in the dark.
- Locate the Fontaine de la Samaritaine. A spring quarrymen used to mix cement. Now a decorative feature on the route. Most visitors walk past without identifying it.
What do most visitors wish they knew before going?
The exit is not where you entered. You descend at Place Denfert-Rochereau (1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy) and emerge several blocks away at 21 bis Avenue René-Coty. If you are meeting someone or have a time constraint, tell them the exit address, not the entrance.
Restrooms are available at the entrance and at the exit — not inside the circuit. There is no re-entry. Plan accordingly.
If you are over 168 cm / 5'5", some sections require crouching. The floor alternates between cement paving, compacted dirt (muddy in spots after rain), and gravel. Wear shoes with grip.
The least crowded slots, based on visitor reports and confirmed by the Secrets of Paris first-day review (April 2026), are the first and last entries of the day: 9:45 and 19:00–19:30.
The Liberation of Paris Museum is directly across the street from the entrance and is free. For planning multiple paid attractions, see our Paris Museum Pass guide — the Catacombs are not covered by the pass, which is worth knowing before you buy it. More Paris: what to do in Paris.
- Tickets
- Adult €31 (audioguide incl.) · Reduced 18–26 / students €25 · Child 8–17 €15 · Under 8 free · No museum passes accepted
- Hours
- Tue–Sun 9:45–20:30 · Last entry 19:30 · Closed Monday, 1 Jan, 1 May, 25 Dec
- Route
- 1.5 km one-way · 131 steps down · 112 steps up · ~45–75 min · 14°C
- Entrance
- 1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy, 75014 · Metro/RER B: Denfert-Rochereau
- Exit
- 21 bis Avenue René-Coty — not the same as entrance
- Bags
- Max 40×30×20 cm · No large bags, suitcases, or motorcycle helmets · No coat check on site
- No inside
- No toilets · No food or drink · No smoking · No tripods · No touching of bones
- Booking
- 7 days max in advance via billetterie-parismusees.paris.fr
- Book at
- GetYourGuide · guided tour + skip-the-line · Official site (€31 adult)
Hours and prices can change — confirm on the official site before you go: catacombes.paris.fr
Last verified: June 2026
Frequently asked questions
How much are Paris Catacombs tickets in 2026?
Adult tickets cost €31, with the audioguide included. Reduced rate is €25 for visitors aged 18–26 and students. Children aged 8–17 pay €15. Children under 8 enter free. No museum passes (Paris Museum Pass, Carte Blanche) are accepted at the Catacombs.
How far in advance should you book Paris Catacombs tickets?
The official site releases tickets exactly 7 days in advance. That is the maximum booking window — you cannot book more than a week ahead. In peak season (April–October), morning slots on weekends sell out within hours of release. Check the official site at billetterie-parismusees.paris.fr the moment your 7-day window opens.
Are there any free entry days at the Paris Catacombs?
There are no free public entry days. The Catacombs are never free for the general public. Free admission is available only to specific categories with valid ID: disabled visitors and their attendant, job seekers, city of Rome residents (Paris twin city), ICOM members, journalists, and professional museum staff. Free tickets must be collected at the front desk on the day — they cannot be booked online.
What is the Paris Catacombs route like?
The circuit is 1.5 km, one-way, with no branching off and no going back. You descend 131 spiral steps at the entrance on Place Denfert-Rochereau and exit via 112 steps at a different street, 21 bis Avenue René-Coty, a few blocks away. The route takes roughly 45–75 minutes. Temperature stays at 14°C throughout.
Can you skip the line at the Paris Catacombs?
All visitors need a timed-entry ticket booked in advance — there are no walk-up sales. A skip-the-line ticket on GetYourGuide (an authorized seller) includes the audio guide and a pre-booked timed slot, so you enter at your reserved time without queuing for a ticket at the door.
Book your slot the day your 7-day window opens and aim for a weekday morning or the last entry of the day. Wear layers — 14°C feels cold after the first half hour. The route is one-way and there is no turning back, so pace yourself from the start.
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