Skip-the-Line Louvre Museum Small-Group Tour with Champagne and Gourmet Lunch under the Pyramid

Admire the world-famous art of the Louvre Museum on this Viator VIP tour available nowhere else. Skip past the long entrance line and enter the world-class museum to uncover the history behind the Louvre masterpieces with one of the museum's own guides. Your small group of no more than 15 people enjoys up-close views of pieces like the ‘Venus de Milo,’ ‘The Raft of Medusa’ and of course, the ‘Mona Lisa.’ Then, feel like royalty at this former palace as you enjoy a glass of Champagne or a gourmet meal or both directly under I. M. Pei’s iconic glass pyramid. See in person works of art you’ve only seen on TV or read about in books. Afterward, when the museum café is packed with visitors looking for seats, relax at your specially reserved table as you drink a glass of Champagne or enjoy a gourmet lunch under the famous pyramid. Your Viator VIP experience begins with skip-the-line access into the Louvre Museum. Head straight inside with your small group and exhibition guide for your private 2-hour tour of the Louvre's masterpieces, works identified by the museum as ‘essential to art and the history of art.’ While the most popular exhibits are often crowded with onlookers, your Viator VIP status and Louvre Museum guide will help get you into prime viewing positions. Admire the late Hellenistic statue known as the Venus de Milo, winning instant fame and mystery ever since it was discovered in 1820 with missing arms. Learn about its construction and the theories behind whether she actually represents Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, or the sea goddess Amphitrite. Then, gain historical insight into another great Hellenistic piece, The Winged Victory of Samothrace, standing on a ship prow. Learn about the real-life 1816 wreck of a French frigate off the coast of Senegal that led to Géricault’s The Raft of Medusa, a significant piece of 19th-century French art. Study the enigmatic expression of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the first Italian portrait to focus on a sitting subject in a half-length portrait, and hear the various ideas behind her identity. Head over to the wall-to-wall canvas of The Consecration of the Emperor Napoleon and the Coronation of Empress Joséphine on December 2, 1804, and feel as if you’re part of the coronation in the life-size painting. See more masterpieces with your Louvre Museum guide and visit historical royal rooms as you continue down the hallways of the Louvre, formerly a palace for French kings. After your tour, relax for an hour at the Café Grand Louvre, located in the museum’s main lobby under I. M. Pei’s glass pyramid (Pyramide du Louvre). While other visitors swirl around the light-filled restaurant in search of seats, your guide escorts you to a table reserved for your group. Sit down in a plush chair and unwind with a glass of Champagne (or soft drink), or upgrade and settle in for a 3-course gourmet meal with optional Champagne. (See the Itinerary for a sample menu)