Paris Night Tours — Frequently Asked Questions
Everything people ask before booking an evening in Paris, answered from the operators' own listings and the venues' own opening hours. If you already know what you want, every night time paris tours option sits on one page with its price and refund terms; if not, start here. The timings are the part that changes most, so check the month you are travelling.
What time do Paris Night tours start?
Between about 6pm in December and 10pm in June, because the departure has to follow the sunset rather than the clock. Paris is far enough north that sunset moves from roughly 16:55 in December to 21:55 in June, and full dark follows around thirty-five minutes later. Check the month you are travelling on our sunset times page and pick the departure that starts after dark rather than before it.
Will it actually be dark on my tour?
It will if you match the departure to the season, and it will not if you book a 6pm start in May. From May to August the sky is still bright at 9pm, which is why several operators here run 9pm and 10pm departures through the summer. In November, December and January a 6pm start is already fully dark, and that is the cheapest, quietest time of year to go out.
How much do Paris Night tours cost?
The cheapest is a seventy-minute Seine cruise at about $19 a head, and the most expensive is a private car at about $447. Between them sit an open-top bus at roughly $34, a segway tour at $77, a dinner cruise at $147 and a cabaret dinner and show at $353. Three of the private cars are priced per vehicle rather than per person, so for two or three travellers they work out far cheaper than the headline suggests.
Do I need to book Paris Night tours in advance?
For the small-group and private options, yes. A vintage car carries three people and a walking tour caps at eight, so there is no spare capacity to absorb a same-day booking. The cruises and the open-top bus have far more room and can often be booked the same afternoon. Almost everything here refunds in full up to 24 hours ahead, so booking early costs you nothing.
Can I cancel a Paris Night tour?
Almost every tour here refunds in full if you cancel at least 24 hours before the start time. Two do not: the Bateaux-Mouches evening lights cruise and the restored-car tour called Paris by Night are both sold non-refundable, and each says so on its own card. If your evening is not yet fixed, book one that refunds and decide later.
Which Paris night tour is best for a first visit?
A Seine cruise or the open-top bus, because both cover the whole monument circuit in one go and cost very little. The cruise gives you the river angle nothing on the road can reach; the bus gives you the boulevards, Montmartre and the Moulin Rouge. Do one of those on your first evening to get your bearings, and save a private car or a walking tour for a later night when you know what you want to go back to.
Do the tours go inside the monuments?
Almost all of them are exterior tours, and the listings say so plainly. One exception stands out: the private Louvre evening tour includes a timed entry ticket and takes you inside the museum on one of its late-opening nights. If you want to go inside something else after dark, our page on what stays open lists the hours venue by venue.
When does the Eiffel Tower sparkle?
For five minutes at the beginning of every hour, from dusk until midnight or 1am depending on the season. It is 20,000 bulbs on the four sides of the tower firing in short random bursts, and the first sparkle is the first full hour after nightfall. The 1am sparkle is different from the rest: the golden floodlighting and the beacons go off, so for five minutes there is nothing but the flashing.
Is a Seine night cruise worth it?
It is the best value of anything here, and it gives you a view no road tour can. From the water you pass the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, Notre-Dame and the bridges in a single hour, and the boat sits low enough that the lit facades fill the sky. Three cruises run from three different pontoons at very different prices, and our Paris Night boat tours page compares them.
How cold does it get on an evening tour?
Colder than the daytime forecast suggests, and colder again in anything open-topped. Paris evenings drop several degrees once the sun is down, and an open bus deck, a convertible car or a boat deck adds wind on top of that. Bring one more layer than you think you need between October and April, and note that the 2CV tours provide blankets.
Are Paris Night tours suitable for children?
Many are, and the age rules differ sharply between them. The open-top bus, the golf cart, the cruises and the walking tours all take children, and several offer infant seats. The segway tour will not take anyone under twelve, the bike tour sets a minimum age of fourteen for its e-bikes, and the Moulin Rouge admits nobody under six.
Is Paris safe at night?
Central Paris is busy and well lit into the small hours, and the areas these tours cover are among the most policed in the city. The ordinary precautions apply: keep your phone out of an open pocket on the métro and around the Champs-Élysées, and use a taxi or a ride app rather than walking a long way alone after the trains stop. A guided departure removes most of that question, which is one honest reason to book one.
How do I get back to my hotel afterwards?
The métro runs until roughly 01:15 on weeknights and about 02:15 on Friday and Saturday nights, with last departures around 01:40. After that, 47 Noctilien night bus lines run from 00:30 to 05:30 through five hubs — Châtelet, Montparnasse, Gare de l'Est, Gare Saint-Lazare and Gare de Lyon. Times vary by station, so check yours before you set out, and remember the private car tours drop you back at your door.
Do the tours include hotel pickup?
Several of them do. The private cars, the 2CV tours and the golf cart collect you from an address you give, and two of the walking tours meet you in your hotel lobby. The cruises, the open-top bus, the segway and the bike tour all have a fixed meeting point instead, and our meeting points map shows exactly where each one is.
What should I wear on an evening tour?
Comfortable shoes and a layer more than the daytime temperature suggests. Two departures have a stated dress code: the Moulin Rouge requires smart dress and turns away shorts, sportswear and trainers, and the dinner cruise asks for smart casual. Everything else is as you like, though closed shoes are sensible on the segway and bike tours.
What is the difference between a night tour and a sunset tour?
A sunset tour shows you the sky and a night tour shows you the lighting, and in Paris they can be two hours apart. The golden floodlighting on the monuments switches on automatically within ten minutes of it getting dark, so a departure that ends before dusk never sees it. In June that means anything finishing before about 22:40 is a sunset tour whatever it is called.
Which Paris night tours have an open top?
Four: the panoramic night bus, both Citroën 2CV tours and the electric golf cart. All four are the best of the lot in fine weather and the worst in rain, and the bus operates with its top closed in poor conditions. The 2CV tours carry blankets, which matters more than it sounds between October and April.
Can I take a Paris night tour in the rain?
Yes, and most of them run in all weathers. The cruises, the buses and the private cars are unaffected; the segway and bike tours run rain or shine and hand out raincoats. If the forecast is poor and the open air is the reason you were booking, take the free-cancellation option and move it to another evening.
What can a phone camera actually capture at night?
More than most people expect, if you brace it. Modern phone night modes hold three to five seconds of exposure, which is enough for the lit facades but not for a moving boat or car. Rest the phone on a railing or a wall rather than holding it, and shoot the sparkle as video rather than stills.
Are tripods allowed?
On the street, generally yes; on a moving vehicle or boat, no. A tripod on a cruise deck or a bus top is both useless and in the way, and several operators will ask you to put it down. If night photography is the point of your evening, take a walking tour and use the bridges.
Is there a Paris Night catacombs tour?
Not among the tours here, and not really at all: the Catacombs close in the evening, so a genuine catacombs night tour is not something you can book for a normal night. The nearest equivalent after dark is a guided walk through the lit centre, which several of these tours cover. If the Catacombs are what you want, plan them as a daytime visit instead.
Is there a Paris helicopter tour at night?
No. Sightseeing flights over central Paris are not run after dark, so a night helicopter tour of the city is not something you can book. For height at night, the Arc de Triomphe terrace stays open until 23:00 in summer and the Eiffel Tower until 23:00 all year.
Which Paris night tours are wheelchair accessible?
Around half the listings describe themselves as wheelchair accessible, including both Seine cruises, the panoramic bus, the golf cart and the Louvre evening tour. The walking tours, the bike tour, the segway and the Moulin Rouge all state that they are not, though the Moulin Rouge will accommodate a collapsible wheelchair with an accompanying adult. Check the individual listing before you book, because the wording differs between them.
Can I bring a pushchair?
On about half of them. The private cars, the golf cart, the dinner cruise, the panoramic bus and the Louvre tour all list themselves as stroller accessible. The segway, the bike tour and the Moulin Rouge do not.
Do I tip the guide?
Tipping is not built into the price and gratuities are explicitly excluded on many of these listings, so it is entirely your call. In France a tip is a thank-you rather than an obligation, and something in the region of five to ten per cent is normal for a driver or guide who has made the evening. Nobody will be put out if you do not.
What languages are the tours run in?
English on all of them, and several run in more. The Louvre evening tour lists German, Arabic, Portuguese, Mandarin, Italian, French and Spanish alongside English; the panoramic bus carries recorded commentary in several languages through earbuds. The Vedettes cruise has no guide at all, but its free app gives commentary in ten languages if you download it before you sail.
How many people will be on my tour?
Anywhere from three people to two hundred and fifty. A restored car takes three, a 2CV takes three per vehicle, the walking tours cap at eight, the segway and bike tours at fifteen, the panoramic bus at fifty, the Moulin Rouge at forty, and the two big cruises carry two hundred and two hundred and fifty. Every listing states its own maximum and we print it on the card.
Are there toilets on the boats?
Yes, on all three Seine boats. The dinner cruise and the Bateaux-Mouches boats are large vessels with proper facilities, and the Vedettes boat has them too. On a one-hour sailing it is worth going before you board rather than losing part of the view.
What happens if I am late for the departure?
It depends on the format, and on a boat it is unforgiving. The cruises leave on time from a fixed pontoon and will not wait, which is why they ask you to arrive fifteen to twenty minutes early. A private car will usually wait a short while, and a Bateaux-Mouches ticket stays valid for six months if you miss the sailing entirely.
Which Paris night tours are non-refundable?
Only two of them. The Bateaux-Mouches evening lights cruise and the restored-car tour called Paris by Night are both sold without a refund, and both say so on their own listing and on their card here. Everything else refunds in full up to 24 hours before the start.
What is the dress code at the Moulin Rouge?
Smart dress, and it is enforced. Shorts, Bermuda shorts, flip-flops, sportswear and sports shoes are all turned away, and a suit, a dress or ordinary business clothing is the expected standard. The cloakroom is compulsory and is not included in the ticket, so budget a few euro for it.
What time is the last métro?
Around 01:15 on weeknights and about 02:15 on Friday and Saturday nights, with the last train leaving its terminus around 01:40. The exact time depends on your station and your line, so check yours on the day. If you miss it, the Noctilien night buses run from 00:30 to 05:30.
Still deciding which one?
The comparison table sets all of them side by side on price, length, refund terms and what each evening actually shows you.
If a question here is not answered, the individual listings carry the operator's own wording, and every one of them is linked from Paris Night Tours.