The Eiffel Tower is the world’s most famous landmark, according to a new poll of 1,000 travellers from around the world.

  It beat the Taj Mahal, the Statue of Liberty and the Golden Gate Bridge, in the survey which was commissioned by poll by hotels.com, the accommodation website.

  The iconic Parisian tower was named the greatest structure by nearly one-in-six (16 per cent) travellers from five continents included in the survey, well-ahead of its nearest rivals, St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican and India's Taj Mahal, which came a distant second and third place with just nine% and eight% of the vote respectively.

  As the mp3cityguides guide to Paris Grand Monuments explains, the writer Guy de Maupassant had lunch up the Eiffel tower every day because, he said, it was the one place in Paris where you didn't have to look at it.  You can do something similar - at the second stage is the Jules Verne restaurant, one of the best in Paris - take the special lift from the north tower.

  It was not just Maupassant who hated the Tour Eiffel - it divided opinion in Paris when it was built in 1889 for the World's Fair and to celebrate the centenary of the revolution.   What is most surprising about it is that it was supposed to be temporary and it's really only remained to this day because during the early part of the last century when radio was invented, it proved to be perfect as a base for aerials and antennae.   It was the tallest building in the world until the completion of the Empire State Building in 1931.

  Just to give you some statistics: it's 320 metres or over 1,000 feet high, except on hot days when the expansion of the metal can increase its height by as much as 15 cm.  It weighs 10,000 tonnes and the top sways up to 12 cm in the wind.  It contains over two and a half million rivets and needs 50 tonnes of paint every seven years.

  Various people have jumped off it with and without parachutes.  During the early twentieth century, a tailor sewed his own set of wings which he hoped would help him glide gently earthwards.  In fact he dropped like a stone in front of a horrified crowd.

  Your best bet to avoid the queues is to come first thing in the morning - it opens at 9am from mid June to the end of August and from 9.30am the rest of the year.  Otherwise try late evening – from mid June to the end of August the lifts operate until 11pm and, during the rest of the year, until 10.30pm. 

Clcik here for more information about our guide to Paris, the Eiffel Tower and the other great sites .

Back to Homepage