Opera Garnier Mysteries Private Guided Tour with Skip-the-Line Entrance
Recommended by 95% of travelers
Paris, France
- 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Offered in: English
Explore our promoted experiences
Overview
One of the world’s best-known opera houses, Paris’ Opéra Garnier offers opulent detailing and centuries of history—and this in depth private tour makes it easy to understand. Pick between morning and afternoon start times, meet directly at the Opéra Garnier, and head right in. Once inside, you’ll learn all about its history from your guide’s commentary, will admire its ornate architecture, and will have the chance to discover a French cultural icon at your own pace.
- This private tour offers the most personalized sightseeing experience
- Discover the highlights and history of Paris’ iconic Opéra Garnier
- Choose from morning and afternoon tour times to fit your schedule
- Benefit from your certified guide's expertise, and learn the stories behind the landmark
What's Included
- Entry Fees included - Entrance Tickets pre-booked for you
- 100% Private Tour : only your travel party will participate - one booking = one group
- Official Expert guide fluent in English, German and French
- Transport to/from attraction
- Food and drinks
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Opéra75009 Paris, France
We'll meet at the café L'Entracte in front of the Opéra Garnier Access by subway : lines 3,7&8, Station Opéra, exit n°1
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Palais Garnier
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Near public transportation
- Stroller accessible
- Wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.8
based on 66 reviews
Amy_B, May 2026
Our guide, Nick, was the absolute best! Fantastic 90-minute private tour of Opera Garnier. Nick not only thoroughly knows Opera / Paris history, he is able to converse about seemingly everything. And is an incredibly nice guy and companion. Cannot recommend more highly.
Jason_E, Apr 2026
Terrific job from our guide! Very knowledgeable about the history and architecture behind this stunning building.
Response from Host, Apr 2026
Thank you so much for your wonderful review, Jason! It was a pleasure to welcome you to this temple of lyrical art.
Jamie_J, Jan 2026
Opera Garnier was one of our favorite activities in all of Paris! Nick was an incredible tour guide, and made the day perfect. He took the best photos, was very knowledgeable, and made the tour exceptional. Don’t hesitate to book this tour with Nick.
lucyparra, Sep 2025
Nick, our tour guide, was incredibly engaging and informative. He brought every detail to life, blending rich historical facts with amusing anecdotes, local gossip, and fascinating architectural insights. The tour was both highly educational and thoroughly enjoyable.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Muchísimas gracias! It was a pleasure to welcome you to this temple of the arts.
Gary_D, Aug 2025
Tour guide Pierre was fantastic! Friendly, knowledgeable on opera history and all things Paris.
Highly recommended
citygirllh, Jul 2025
Really liked taking a private tour. Our guide listened to what we were interested in seeing and made this a wonderful experience. The Marc Chagall ceiling is a must see!
jbmondou, Apr 2025
We had a private visit with Nick as our tour guide inside the beautiful Opera Garnier. Nick was very attentive and provided us with a lot of interesting info on the architecture, specific places within the Opera and other unexpected details making our tour enjoyable and educational. I would recommend this tour with Nick.
Jessica_W, Apr 2025
Guide was knowledgeable and helpful for what we could see. We didn’t have access to the auditorium itself, which was the main event for us.
Response from Host, May 2025
Dear Customer,
We’re truly sorry to hear that the tour didn’t fully meet your expectations. As mentioned in the tour description and on the opera’s official website, access to the auditorium and workspaces—may occasionally be restricted due to technical or artistic reasons. Unfortunately, as the opera does not maintain any schedule for these changes, we have no control over such limitations.
Best regards
Sue_B, Apr 2025
Wonderful tour of the Palais Garnier. Nick was very knowledgeable and clearly enjoys this piece of Paris history. Highly recommended
Response from Host, Apr 2025
Thank you, it was a pleasure to meet you at the Opera Garnier!
Susan_S, Apr 2025
An amazing tour of a most beautiful piece of Paris history with an excellent guide. Our guide, Alex, was excellent and every detail of this beautiful Opera house was explained. Absolutely stunning.
Response from Host, Apr 2025
Thank you for your positive feedback!
Bonnie_A, Mar 2025
Nick is a terrific guide who is passionate about the Opera. He takes the time to answer any questions and explains this history behind the beautiful building. I highly recommend this tour because of Nick and the building is so much more than you expect. Must see!!!!
Response from Host, Mar 2025
Thank you very much for your review! The Opera Garnier is truly a one-of-a-kind monument!
Juan_A, Jan 2025
Beautiful place. Lots of history. Nick was a Great tour guide. Very knowledgeable with a great sense of humor.
Brian_G, Jan 2025
Nick was an excellent guide. The opera house is stunning. Nick was very knowledgeable and let us go at our own pace. We never felt rushed
Diana_R, Nov 2024
Nick was a great guide. He provided us with great information and brought the Opera House to life. Thank you!
Response from Host, Nov 2024
Thank very much for your review, Diana!
Gail_D, Nov 2024
Knowledge of history and styof the building on many levels. Ability to skip the lines and crowded tours. Ability to see and understand what in particular interested us the most.
Elma_C, Oct 2024
Nick was friendly, informative and great photographer! He was patient and took time to answer our questions.
Teree_R, Oct 2024
First of all, this was a personal tour - just me and my husband. No group tagging along . Our guide, Nick, was fabulous! He contacted us by text the day before to tell us where to meet him, thus eliminating confusion. The Opéra House itself is a must-see when in Paris. It is a gorgeous example of the baroque style on the inside, and the Grand Foyer rivals Versailles in opulence. One of the most beautiful spaces I’ve ever seen! We were disappointed that we couldn’t see the auditorium (there was a rehearsal going on), but we were notified of this in advance and still chose to take the tour. Nick was extremely knowledgeable about Paris history and the Opera House in particular, pointing out many details that we would have missed otherwise. I could tell that he felt bad about not getting us into the auditorium, and even offered compensation for it (a tour of Lafayette Galleries across the street) but we were on a tight schedule and couldn’t do it. I certainly appreciated his thoughtfulness, though. If you are visiting Paris, do NOT miss this place, and don’t try to see it without a guide because you will miss so much background/details. If you get Nick as your guide, you will be lucky indeed.
Jefferey_K, Sep 2024
We thoroughly enjoyed our skip the line guided tour of the Palais Garnier led by Nick. Nick was delightful and full of information about the creation of the opera house, the numerous amazing architectural and ornamental designs in its many rooms, and the bases for Gaston Leroux's original Phantom of the Opera story. The Opera House is truly a work of art and should not be missed.
Tonya_C, Sep 2024
Two us got to experience this tour, since the rest of the crew got jet lag, but the two that went loved it! My daughter is a dancer and Nick was wonderful at catering the experience to her love of ballet.
dwight_d, Aug 2024
My wife and I have done this tour twice and though we will probably not do it a third time- we highly recommended this tour.. Both times we were with a with a well informed guide, whom made it memorable.
Sean_D, May 2024
Informative tour by Nick. Beautiful and interesting building. accommodated my mom by using elevator
Nick and the building are a winning combo
Elizabeth_C, May 2024
Got to skip the very long line. Wonderful conversation with the knowledgeable guide. The Opera House is worth a visit.
Dane_V, May 2024
Nick was excellent and answered all of our questions with class and humor. A wonderful tour. His knowledge of art, and Paris as well as his command of English made this an enjoyable educational experience
Randy_M, Sep 2023
Friendly and knowledgeable. Knew some unique facts. Very accommodating to any requests Even took us to an added attraction outside the opera
RICHARD_K, Oct 2022
Nick was immensely knowledgeable and friendly. The huge downside of our tour is that we were unable to enter the theater that day which was an incredible disappointment. While it was nice to learn about artwork in the grand entrance & hallways, it was all anticlimactic because we could not see or learn anything about the theater which was largely why we booked the tour in the first place. Nick was an A+ but given what we paid for this private tour and that we never even got a glimpse of the theater, it was pretty disappointing.
Response from Host, Oct 2022
Thank you for your review! I'm very sorry we couldn't visit the auditorium that day. It was unfortunately entirely beyond my control. Despite being a rare occurence, the Opera can close the auditorium without notice. It was clearly mentioned in the tour description ( "Please note that the auditorium may be closed for technical or artistic reasons"). On that specific day, a crew was shooting scenes for a TV show.
Mary_S, Sep 2022
Nick was a great guide, but the tour was underwhelming for the price, and there were no “behind-the-scenes” or private entrance as advertised. It’s was an overpriced personal guided tour that you could really do yourself.
Response from Host, Feb 2023
Thank you for your review. I'm sorry the tour didn't meet all your expectations. There was probably a misunderstanding as to what this tour entailed.
The tour description mentions a skip-the-line entrance (and we actually entered without any waiting time), but not a private entrance. The back entrance is only used by the artists and the administrative staff of the Opera.
We visited all the accessible areas, clearly listed in the tour's description. There was no mention of the backstage areas like the Foyer de la Danse or the subterranean cistern in the foundations of the monument. These areas are not accessible to the public.
The price of the tour you booked is actually in line with similar tours you can book on Viator or other sites for strictly private tours (only your travel party participated) lead by official licensed guides. My certification is available upon request.
Best Regards,
Nick
Vernon_K, Aug 2022
Nick was an excellent and attentive guide and his explanations of, and insight into, the various statues and their meanings was greatly appreciated.
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Thank you so much for the fifteenth positive review given to this tour!
Jeff_B, Aug 2022
Nick, the tour guide, was excellent! Very knowledgeable, accommodating and personable. Highly recommend! We will use him for other tours as well.
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Merci beaucoup! See you an other time in Paris for other tours!
tracyho66, Aug 2022
We enjoyed our private tours with Nick so much. He was knowledgeable and friendly. He answered all my questions and customized the tours to my interests. Nick was a wonderful part of or vacation. Thanks again!
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Thank you for your review! The bespoke tour we tailored together was actually a great success!
SALLY_F, May 2022
My guide, Nick, was very knowledgeable about the opera and pointed out things that I never would have seen had I been in my own. The opera is spectacular and this was the favourite experience of my whole stay in Paris! Highly recommended!
From $236.98
per person-You will not receive a refund if you cancel.
Compare Similar Experiences
Current
Opera Garnier Mysteries Private Guided Tour with Skip-the-Line Entrance
66
1 hour 30 minutes
Free Cancellation
From
$236.98
Customers Who Bought This Tour Also Bought
Explore Similar Things to Do
Attractions in Paris, France
- Napoleon's Tomb Tours & Tickets
- Pont de l'Alma (Alma Bridge) Tours & Tickets
- 6th Arrondissement Tours & Tickets
- Fontaine Saint-Michel Tours & Tickets
- Buttes-Chaumont Park (Parc des Buttes-Chaumont) Tours & Tickets
- Grevin Museum (Musée Grevin) Tours & Tickets
- Les Invalides Tours & Tickets
- Les Caves du Louvre Tours & Tickets
- Bastille Tours & Tickets
- Mémorial de la Shoah (Shoah Memorial) Tours & Tickets
- Palais de Justice Tours & Tickets
- Musée National Eugène Delacroix (Musée Delacroix) Tours & Tickets
- Chapelle Expiatoire Tours & Tickets
- Pont des Arts Tours & Tickets
- Left Bank (Rive Gauche) Tours & Tickets
- Centre Pompidou Tours & Tickets