Redevelopment of the first floor of the Eiffel Tower

New buildings and entirely redeveloped public spaces to make the Tower’s 1^st floor once again one of Paris’ most spectacular and attractive locations, 57 meters above the city

Since the last transformation of the 1^st floor 30 years ago, the Tower has welcomed more visitors than during its first century of existence!

The pavilions and public spaces of the 1980s are obsolete and not adapted to the number of visitors, the visitors’ expectations and technical standards. The floor reorganisation project includes: rebuilding the reception and conference rooms to turn it into one of Paris’ most attractive event spaces; rebuilding the pavilion dedicated to visitor services, particularly restaurants and shops; creating an entertaining and educational museographic path; and finally, creating two spectacular attractions: discovering space on the monument and its esplanade thanks to glass flooring and balustrades and an «immersion» film promising strong emotions.

Important goals linked to the sustainable development policy implemented at the Eiffel Tower: accessibility and reducing its carbon footprint.

Today, disabled people are unable to access most of the 1^st floor of the Tower. With this reorganisation all visitors, regardless of their disability, will be able to enjoy the whole space and all its services and contents. New building standards, solar energy for heating, wind energy, hydraulic energy, rainwater recovery, LED lighting: various techniques will be implemented to help improve the Tower’s energy performance.

An «influenced» architecture, designed entirely in diagonals and transparency by the architects Moatti-Rivière, providing an improved experience of the Tower and Paris and respect for the monument and its history.

The new pavilions are influenced by the pillars designed by Gustave Eiffel. They hug the Tower’s slant. The volumes are incorporated in the depths and curves of the pillars. Service areas are placed next to the gables to preserve the central transparency. The floor is designed as a real urban space with its streets, its buildings and its central space, 57 meters above ground. It gives a close view of the city and of the Tower itself.

It is a knowledge space where the inside of the «Tower object» can be explored. The project offers an improved experience of the Tower and Paris, an entertaining sensory experience, a journey of the senses and knowledge.

The redevelopment has been designed and carried out by the architects Moatti-Rivière architects, in consortium with Bateg for the construction. The latter won the design-construction contract in October 2010.

A few figures

• 4,586 m² redeveloped, out of the floor’s 5420 m²
• 25 million € excluding tax: total cost of the reorganisation, fees included, entirely funded by SETE (Eiffel Tower Operating Company)
• More than 2 years of work during which the Tower will remain open to the public

An influenced architecture: diagonals and transparency

The pavilions hug the incline of the Tower: the volumes are incorporated into the depths and curves of the pillars. In this way, they mirror the Tower’s rising movement and cannot be separated from it. Service areas are placed next to the gables so as to preserve the central transparency. The view of the Tower, close up or far away, is the same on all four of its sides.

Discovering open space above Paris

The opaque floor surrounding the central space has been partly replaced by a glass floor and the grille of the balustrade has been with glass.

The glass, protective, gives the experience of walking above the corbelled structure of the first floor thus revealed.

A significant experience, promising strong emotions

Find out more visiting the Eiffel Tower

Currently, a new exhibition located on the groundfloor takes place on the Monument to discover all you need to know about the 1st floor the redevelopment.