Of all the beautiful sights in France, the Eiffel Tower stands out as a symbol of its people. Found in the country’s romantic capital, this landmark has become one of the most romantic date spots for both tourists and locals.
However, despite its world-renowned fame, there is still so much more that people don’t know about it. Find out more about this famous monument with these Eiffel Tower facts.
Over 20,000 light bulbs light up the Eiffel tower each night.
For every hour each night, the Eiffel Tower will light up its 20,000 light bulbs for 10 minutes each time. This light display consumes a total of 7.8 million kWh of electricity each year which is also equivalent to powering a small village.
Tourists agree that the Eiffel Tower’s lights can be best seen at the Place du Trocadero, where many come to take photos and view the monument. The tower first lit up in 1889, placing gaslights in opalescent glass globes all over the tower.
The Eiffel tower is considered to be one of the most romantic spots in the world.
One of the widely-known Eiffel Tower facts is its status as the Symbol of Love due to the structure overlooking a breathtaking Paris view. Said to bring good luck to couples who visit it, many consider the Eiffel tower as the most romantic spot in the City of Love.
There is a Lego set made to recreate the Eiffel Tower with Lego pieces.
As an exclusive part of the LEGO Architecture Skyline Collection, the Lego Eiffel Tower set retails for a little over a thousand dollars. With 321 pieces in total, the finished set measures up to 12 inches high, 4 inches wide, and 4 inches deep.
The set is also compatible with all other Lego construction sets to allow consumers more flexibility with their creative structures. The step-by-step instruction manual allows both children and adults to assemble the tower with ease. Grab the set and build the Eiffel Tower yourself here.
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Visiting the observation decks of the Eiffel Tower costs around 19 Euros.
When visiting the Eiffel Tower, tickets come at different prices depending on the visitor’s preference and age. Ticket prices will vary on factors such as access to all three floors of the Eiffel Tower, using either the elevator or the stairs, and the visitor’s age.
Visitors may stay and enjoy the views and amenities of the Eiffel Tower from 9 AM until half-past midnight when the tower closes for the day. Additionally, depending on the day of the year, access to the tower may take longer during peak months and seasons.
A man once cycled down the stairs of the Eiffel Tower in 1923.
In 1923, a man named Pierre Labric once attempted to cycle down all the stairs of the Eiffel Tower to win a bet against someone. While Labric succeeded, he promptly got arrested when Parisian police came to the scene.
Many believe that this may have been a publicity stunt for a newspaper he was working for at the time, but it was never confirmed. Today, many photos of Pierre Labric’s attempts can be found online when you google his name.
Around 20% of the Eiffel tower visitors are of French nationality.
As of 2015, French nationalities only made up 20% of the Eiffel Tower’s visitors receives, with the other 80% coming from Europe and the US. On average, the United States and other South American countries made up around 10-15% of the Tower’s total visitors in 2015.
Additionally, the United Kingdom and other European countries such as Spain and Italy come next with an average of 6 to 7% each. The rest of the Eiffel Tower’s visitors come from Asia and the Middle East.
Since it first opened, the Eiffel Tower has received millions of visitors annually.
Upon its completion in 1889, the Eiffel Tower quickly became a huge success with the public. On its first opening, the monument attracted over 30,000 visitors who climbed the tower with a staircase over 1,710 steps long.
It took 3 months since its opening for the Eiffel Tower to have elevators. Today, the view from the top of the tower remains to be considered as one of the best views in all of Paris, France.
The Eiffel Tower weighs around 10,100 tonnes.
Most of the weight of the Eiffel towers comes from the metal frames it uses, along with the rivets that secure the pieces in its place. When the French government built elevators into the monument, it also contributed to its weight.
Additionally, this meant that only a limited number of people could be on the tower at a time for a safely-distributed weight. Today, the Eiffel Tower can hold no more than 5,000 people on its floors at once and a thousand or two less on its upper floors.
There are a total of 1,665 steps to the top of the Eiffel Tower.
During its early days, you could only climb up the Eiffel Tower through its 1,710 steps. However, some steps got removed over time for safety precautions. This also prevented visitors from going into parts of the monument that were off-limits to the public.
Upon removal, these steps sold at auctions for large amounts due to their connection with the original workers of the historical monument. On average, visitors take around 30 to 45 minutes to complete climbing up the stairs of the Eiffel tower from its first to second floor.
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The Eiffel Tower shrinks in size during the winter and colder months of the year.
During the winter, the Eiffel Tower has been noted to shrink in size by a few centimeters due to the cold weather affecting the metal frame of the monument. However, during the hotter months and the peak of summer, the metal frame of the Eiffel Tower expands, making the bigger by around 15 to 20 centimeters.
This phenomena roots from the kinetic energy in a material’s atoms as it reacts to changes in its environment. This phenomenon can also be referred to as thermal expansion, which can also be observed in several other metallic structures.
Gustave Eiffel also designed the inner elements found in the Statue of Liberty.
After graduating from college, Gustave Eiffel began specializing in metal construction where he focused on making designs for bridges. Before working on the Eiffel Tower, Gustave Eiffel was hired to replace the chief engineer on the Statue of Liberty after passing away in 1879.
Gustave Eiffel completed the design for the interior structure of the Statue of Liberty that finished construction in 1886. After the completion of the Statue of Liberty, Gustave Eiffel used the same design for the interior structure of the Eiffel Tower. Now there’s one for Eiffel Tower facts you never knew about.
During the German occupation, Nazis took control of the Eiffel Tower.
As the Nazis conquered France, they closed down the Eiffel Tower and kept it under constant Nazi surveillance. Due to the German’s takeover of the tower, the French resistance fighters purposely cut the wires of the elevator on the Eiffel Tower. This way, they forced the German soldiers to climb up and down the stairs over and over again to hoist their flag.
The Eiffel Tower is repainted once every 7 years.
Ever since its completion, the Eiffel Tower has been repainted a total of 18 times as of 2015. To hide corrosion from weathering and other elements, the Eiffel Tower is regularly repainted in 7-year intervals along with regular maintenance.
Painters use an average of 60 tons of paint to cover the Eiffel tower with a fresh coast from top to bottom. Due to the size of the monument, the repainting process takes an average of 3 years to complete each time.
Annually, the lifts on the Eiffel Tower travel a combined distance of 103,000 km.
At 64,000 miles, the Eiffel Tower lifts travel distances long enough to travel the world two and a half times. Each elevator ride takes around 10 minutes from the first floor to the third floor. How’s that for amazing Eiffel Tower facts?
The Eiffel Tower was originally intended to last no more than 20 years.
The lifespan of the Eiffel Tower only got extended due to its potential as a support antenna for wireless broadcasting. Since then, the Eiffel has doubled as both an observational tower and a broadcasting tower as well.
Originally, Gustave Eiffel pitched the idea to turn the monument into a broadcasting tower to save his work from being dismantled. Additionally, the Eiffel tower was also used for scientific experiments during the time of the early 90s.
A woman once married the Eiffel Tower in 2008.
In 2008, a woman named Erika “Aya” Eiffel held a commitment ceremony and married the Eiffel tower in Paris, France as an advocate of object sexuality. Erika Eiffel is also known as an American female athlete and competitive archer in the United States.
Due to this strange event, Erika also became famous all around the world for her love of the Eiffel Tower and has been interviewed regarding her marriage numerous times. Before this, she states that she was also in love with her archery bow whom she named Lance which helped her win several archery competitions.
Gustave Eiffel passed away while listening to Beethoven’s famous 5th symphony.
Gustave Eiffel passed away on the 27th of December in 1923 while listening to Beethoven’s 5th symphony on his record player. The man died at the age of 91 in his mansion located on Rue Rabelais in the city of Paris, France.
Today, Gustave Eiffel is forever known as the Eiffel Tower’s famous designer and is also acknowledged by the French prime minister Pierre Tirard and many other dignitaries.
The British Virgin Islands once launched a special coin dedicated to the Eiffel Tower.
This special edition coin celebrated the 125th anniversary of the Eiffel Tower and its completion. Released in 2014, the coin replicated the shape of the Eiffel Tower itself.
Today, collectors value this $10 silver coin as twice or thrice its original value. On one face, the coin bears details of the tower, while the other side features the engravings of the coin.
There is a small apartment located on the third floor of the Eiffel Tower.
During the construction of the Eiffel Tower, this apartment was kept as a secret from the public. The small apartment also acted as Gustave Eiffel’s personal hideaway.
Additionally, people of high prestige such as Thomas Edison would rent out this room for a small fortune to enjoy the magnificent view to themselves. However, visitors today are now allowed to view this apartment on the top floor of the Eiffel Tower as part of the attractions inside.
The Eiffel Tower was originally built as an entrance arch for the 1889 World’s fair.
Originally, the Eiffel Tower was planned out to become a temporary entrance archway for the 1889 World’s Fair held in the city of Paris, France. Aditionally, the monument meant to mark the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.
Held from the 6th of May until the 31st of October, the World’s Fair attracted more than 32 million visitors. The 1889 World’s Fair was also one of the 7 expositions held between the years 1855 and 1937 in Paris, France.
Around 300 workers helped construct the tower.
Upon the completion of the construction of the Eiffel tower, the team was made up of around 150 to 300 men. Assembled by levels, the Eiffel Tower was built from the ground up.
Workers also had a set construction schedule to follow the approximate timeline of how long each level of the tower would take to complete. Officially, the tower was fully finished on the 31st of March in 1889.
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A con artist by the name of Victor Lustig once tried to sell the Eiffel tower for scrap pieces.
After the completion of its construction, a con man by the name of Victor Lustig attempted to sell the Eiffel Tower not once, but twice. However, Lustig initiated his plan without proper research or preparations, which led to his arrest in 1936.
Additionally, Victor Lustig also became a famous icon after creating the ten commandments for aspiring con artists before dying behind bars in 1947.
The Eiffel Tower has been featured in numerous modern-day video games.
Due to its iconic nature, the Eiffel Tower has been featured in many video games, movies, television series, and many other media. It has also been a common feature in many French productions and films throughout the years.
In many other features, the Eiffel Tower can also be seen being destroyed or taken down for several reasons in these fictional works. Essentially, the Eiffel Tower has become synonymous to France in terms of imagery and symbolism.
The tower is also painted in 3 different shades of brown color.
The Eiffel Tower is painted in 3 different shades of color that becomes progressively lighter with each higher floor or segment. This creates a silhouette effect on the structure of the Eiffel Tower that pops out against the canvas of the bright sunny sky of Paris, France.
Over the years, the paint on the Eiffel Tower has also varied in different shades when being repainted every 7 years.
In 2015, the Eiffel Tower displayed lights in the colors of the French flag.
After the terrorist attacks on Paris in 2015, the Eiffel Tower was re-lit into the colors of the French flag to give hope and a sense of security to the French. Many similar occasions also happened with other famous monuments from around the world such as the Sydney opera house in Australia, and several other buildings in the United States.
The November 2015 Paris attacks started when a group of gunmen and suicide bombers invaded a concert hall, several restaurants, bars, a major stadium, and more. In total, the attacks resulted in over 130 casualties and several hundred cases of major injuries.
Hitler once attempted to get the Eiffel Tower demolished.
During the German occupation in France, Hitler reportedly attempted to get the Eiffel Tower demolished. However, this order was never followed as it was denied by German general Dietrich von Choltitz.
According to the General, he denied Hitler’s request to destroy the Eiffel Tower due to his fondness of the marvelous architecture and the history behind the monument. By this point, the general also concluded that Hitler had been moving towards insanity and did not agree with his vision anymore.
The Eiffel tower has also been featured in several motion pictures from around the world.
In many modern films, the Eiffel Tower is one of the most used landmarks when portraying the city of Paris, France. This iconic monument is also considered to be the heart of the city by many Parisians and foreigners from all around the world.
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Gustave Eiffel was not the company owner’s real name.
His full name was officially registered as Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, but his birth name was Bonickhausen dit Eiffel. Gustave Eiffel was born in France on the 15th of December in 1832, where he became a famous French civil engineer after graduating from a prestigious school.
Other than his work on the Eiffel Tower, he has also designed and constructed bridges. Additionally, he also focused on research in the field of meteorology and aerodynamics.
The Eiffel Tower is the fastest constructed structure in Paris.
In total, the construction of the Eiffel Tower took 2 years, 2 months, and 5 days to complete. Compared to all other monuments found in the city of Paris, France, this monument is considered to be the fastest-constructed piece in Parisian history.
On average, other famous monuments found within the city took around 15-20 years to complete.
You can ice skate at the Eiffel Tower during winter.
Located on the first floor of the monument, the Eiffel Tower ice rink opens to the public during the cold winter months. The rink typically stays open from December until February of the following year.
Additionally, the rink has been used for several Ice hockey games in the past, displaying the colors of the World Ice Hockey Champions.
The Eiffel Tower also shares a nickname with Margaret Thatcher.
One of the famous nicknames that the Eiffel Tower holds is La Dame de Der, which translates to The Iron Lady in English. This nickname was also given to Margaret Thatcher due to her association with British politics and her leadership style.
There are four restaurants on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower.
These restaurants include the Le Jules Verne, The Gustave Eiffel Room, a Champagne Bar, and the 58 Tour Eiffel restaurant. On this floor, visitors can take their time and enjoy a nice drink or meal during their visit and rest for a bit before making it up other floors.
These restaurants offer various meals and picnic-like lunches, typically staying open from lunch hour until dinner.
The Eiffel Tower has been replicated numerous times all over the world.
Due to its reputation as one of the world’s most iconic monuments, the Eiffel Tower has been replicated numerous times and displayed all over the world. A few examples include the Tokyo Tower monument located in Tokyo, Japan, which was modeled after the French monument and also serves as an observation tower.
Another example is the half scaled Eiffel Tower replica found in the famous city of Las Vegas in the United States. Other replicas also include the Watkin’s tower in the United Kingdom, The Dragon Tower in China, the Ismaning Radio Tower in Germany, and The Parisian tower in Macau.
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One of the legs of the Eiffel Tower doubles as a secret military bunker.
The secret bunker is located under the south leg of the Eiffel Tower and is typically used by military forces as a hiding spot. Today, the bunker opens to a small number of visitors per week and is still owned by the French military.
The secret bunker runs underground with several pathways and tunnels to explore. This bunker was also used to store ammunition and supplies for military operations.
Many aviators have attempted to fly aircraft underneath the Eiffel Tower.
Around the time of the Second World War, many pilots attempted to execute daring stunts by flying a plane underneath the arch of the Eiffel Tower. Additionally, a pilot from that time also became famous for accomplishing this task while taking down a German aircraft in the process.
Due to his services and piloting skills, the pilot William Overstreet Jr. became famous and was honored by the French ambassador years after his death.
Some parts from the Eiffel Tower were auctioned and turned into jewelry.
A few steps on the Eiffel Tower were taken down in 1983 to prevent several visitors from going into unauthorized locations within the Eiffel Tower. Later on, the pieces were cut into several smaller pieces and put up for auction.
One couple who acquired a piece of the staircase turned this piece into pieces of jewelry, later becoming known as the Korbella Eiffel Tower Jewelry.
The Eiffel Tower was officially inaugurated in the year 1889.
The Eiffel Tower was officially inaugurated inauguration at 1:30 pm on the 15th of May in 1889, which was also the opening day of the World’s Fair. During this time, the newly established monument attracted hundreds and thousands of visitors who would climb to the top of the tower and bask in the view that it offered.
The Eiffel Tower plays a small part in the Allied victory of the first battle of the Marne.
This battle was also known as the battle of the First World War that lasted from the 6th to the 12th of September in 1914. This battle resulted in the Allied victory against the German army in the west.
Many have stated that the victory was due to the Eiffel Tower being able to pick up German radio communications which would allow an advantage to the French.
Charles de Gaulle once proposed to dismantle the Eiffel Tower for an Expo in 1960.
During the year 1960, a French army officer once proposed to dismantle and reassemble the Eiffel Tower to join an expo located in Montreal. However, this plan was rejected by a majority vote of the owning company due to fears that the French government would not allow the original monument to return to its original location.
The firm that built the Eiffel Tower was a company called Eiffel Et Compagnie.
Founded and owned by Gustave Eiffel in 1866, the company established its headquarters in Colombes, France. With 4,100 employees, its value in revenue amounted to 703 million euros as of 2009.
Today, the company continues to do construction work and architectural designs for projects in many parts of the world. More recently, their latest project was the Simone de Beauvoir footbridge completed in 2006.
The tower is open to the public every single day of the year.
In its history, the Eiffel Tower has only shut down its doors to the public under extreme circumstances such as unstable weather, terrorist attacks, and plague outbreaks. Apart from these times, the Eiffel opens all days of the week and is accessible all year round.
On occasion, the Eiffel Tower will also hold special events on its floors to celebrate holidays and other memorial days of the French calendar.
The building team for the tower faced much criticism for omitting a mathematician's name.
The construction and architectural team behind the Eiffel tower were famously cited as an all-male team. However, one of the little-known Eiffel Tower facts is that it wouldn’t have been possible without a certain study on elasticity.
In particular, mathematician Sophie Germain had no credit during the project’s completion. Today, many believe that without Germain, the Eiffel Tower would not be standing as it is now.
Citroen once used the Eiffel Tower as a giant billboard in 1925.
During this time, the company had rented out a large space on the Eiffel Tower to act as a large billboard to advertise the company. In total, the ad lasted for 9 years before being taken down.
This advertisement took a total of 250,000 lightbulbs to accomplish, with 600 km worth of cables to connect each light. This feat is also considered to be the world’s largest advertisement in all of history.
Only a small number of tall buildings in Paris have a clear view of the Eiffel Tower.
This is due to the zoning restrictions held in the city of Paris which prevents buildings from going over a specified height. Typically, the Eiffel Tower can only be viewed in smaller houses if they are within the proximity of the tower itself.
Visitors can vote on the new tone of color of the Eiffel Tower.
In its history, the Eiffel Tower has been painted in approximately six shades of color. Today, Visitors can now vote for the next paint color that the tower will be repainted in on the first floor of the monument.
Selected shades of yellow, brown, and red can be selected by visitors to vote on during their time at the Eiffel Tower.
There are over 18,000 metallic pieces used to build the Eiffel Tower.
Each piece used in the making of the Eiffel Tower has been carefully measured and calculated to fit the design of Gustave Eiffel accordingly. The pieces were all prepared in Gustave Eiffel’s factory located outside of Paris.
The Eiffel Tower also used over 2.5 million rivets to ensure that each piece would be properly locked into place. Additionally, it took over 7,300 tons of iron to mold each piece of the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel tower has been used for numerous light shows for special events.
Apart from its nightly illuminations on each hour of the night, the Eiffel Tower has also held several spectacular light shows to mark special occasions. One of these involved the celebration of the Eiffel Tower’s 120th anniversary which featured a special light show.
On other occasions, the Eiffel Tower also held light shows in celebration of the Christmas season and New Year’s Day.
There once was a stair climbing championship on the Eiffel Tower.
In 1905, the Eiffel Tower hosted a stair climbing competition, where participants had to race up the monument’s steps. This event was organized by a local newspaper which attracted over 300 participants to join.
Originally, the Eiffel tower designs were measured to be 985 feet tall.
Upon its original completion, the Eiffel Tower measured a total of 985 feet or 300 meters tall. However, due to the changing weather, its size will vary from time to time as its metallic structure shrinks or grows.
Additionally, if the newly added satellite antenna was included, this would also make the Eiffel Tower’s measurement much higher than usual.
The Eiffel Tower was not intended to be built in Paris.
Originally, the plans to establish the Eiffel Tower involved the city of Barcelona. However, the Spanish rejected the monument, believing would become an eyesore to the public if it was placed in their city. How’s that for ironic Eiffel Tower facts?
The Eiffel Tower sways a few centimeters from left to right in strong winds.
In the event of strong weather, the Eiffel Tower has been noted to swing from side to side due to strong winds. The largest swing that the Eiffel Tower has taken reached up to 12 centimeters at most in high winds.
There is also a champagne bar open on the top floor of the Eiffel tower.
The champagne bar can be found on the first and top floor of the Eiffel Tower which can be enjoyed by guests of legal age. The bar also has a setup shop for those who want to take home a bottle of alcohol with them to enjoy later on.
The Champagne bar at the Eiffel Tower is typically open from 10 in the morning until 10 in the evening.
Official records show only 1 fatality on the Eiffel Tower since its construction.
According to the official records of the monument, there has only been one death that occurred at the Eiffel Tower. This death was recorded in the spring of 1889 right after the completion of the Eiffel Tower.
The names of those who worked on the construction of the Eiffel tower are engraved on the side.
There are a total of 72 names engraved on the Eiffel Tower. These names include a number of the main workers on the Eiffel Tower including the engineers, mathematicians, and scientists behind the project.
One of the men who helped build the tower died from a fall after its completion.
One of the darker Eiffel Tower facts is that a person has died from falling off of it. In particular, worker Angelo Scagolioti fell from the Eiffel Tower while giving his girlfriend a private tour of the monument. During their tour of the tower, Scagolioti lost his footing somewhere on the first level of the monument, falling to his death.
Taking a photo of the Eiffel Tower at night is against copyright laws when it is shared.
In the European Union, the copyright law states that artistic works of all kinds are protected during the lifetime of its creator and an additional 70 years after their death. This implies that taking photos of the Eiffel Tower at night is considered to be illegal if these photos are shared or used for monetary purposes.
However, there is a way to get around this law by keeping in mind the European Union’s ‘Freedom of Panorama’ law. This law states that copyrighted buildings may be photographed if it is included in a skyline photo.
Visitors cannot climb to the third floor of the Eiffel Tower via stairs.
Since the dismantling of the stairway leading to the third floor of the Eiffel Tower, visitors can only access the top floor via the use of elevators. This staircase was removed so that an additional elevator could be installed in the tower to transport more people from floor to floor simultaneously.
Many people protested against the Eiffel Tower.
During its construction, several artists protested against the Eiffel Tower. Many of the artists expressed that the Eiffel Tower was an attempt at a disrespectful anthology of the concept of love.
The protest also made the front page of the newspaper Le Temps, collecting over 40 signatures for its campaign against the Eiffel Tower.
Nazi soldiers once attempted to attach a large swastika flag to the top of the Eiffel Tower.
When attempting to do so, the first flag got blown away by strong winds. This then forced the soldiers to climb back up to the top floor to install a much bigger and heavier flag.
For the Germans, it was considered to be deeply symbolic, marking the start of the German Empire.
The post office at the Eiffel Tower can grant you an exclusive stamp for your mail.
This stamp is considered to be exclusive to the Eiffel Tower post office. Additionally, this stamp also includes the address of the Eiffel Tower.
Visitors and locals may opt to have their packages stamped and delivered to this post office to get the official stamp.
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