Paris Notre Dame Cathedral Guided Tour - Early Access
Recommended by 94% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Paris, France
- 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Offered in: English
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Overview
The world-famous Notre-Dame Cathedral of Paris is chock full of history that’s all too easy to miss if you explore its halls on your own. But with a guide to show you around, you get not just the best stories from Notre-Dame’s past, but your guide’s unique perspective as a Paris local, too.
- Early morning slots mean you beat the Notre-Dame crowds
- Want a more intimate tour? Private options are available
- Want something more independent? Opt for self-guided
- Booking a tour ahead of time guarantees entry to this popular landmark
What's Included
- Expert Paris guide (all options)
- State-licensed guide (Interior Guided Tour option)
- Self-guided cathedral visit (Guided Tour option and Private tour)
- Reserved interior access with audio headsets (Interior Tour Option only)
- Semi-private, max 9 guests (Interior Tour option only)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Food, drinks & personal expenses
- Tower Access
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Statue de Charlemagne et ses leudes75004 Île de la Cité, France
Meeting Point: At the Charlemagne statue. Our guide will be holding a black sign with SZ logo or holding a black sign with SZ logo. Please try to arrive 15 mints before the start time.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Most travelers can participate
- For Internal tours Service animals are not allowed
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 100 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.8
based on 179 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Kathryn_W, Sep 2026
Kam
Was Excellent. She got us into the
Notre Dame Cathedral before the lines got long and then met us with A very informative tour about the outside and many pictures of the inside and the fire. It was exactly what we wanted.
Debora_T, Sep 2026
We got there early and walked right in and looked at everything. When you come out then the history begins and the story of the fire begins. Our tour guide made it so interesting. I would highly recommend this tour.
Karolynn_H, Sep 2026
Kam was a great guide. Met her at 8:45am and she sent me into the church to look around until 9:30 on my own. She told me a few things to look for inside that she explained later. There was no line at that time, but massive lines later in the morning. Tour started at 9:30 until 11:00. Walked all around the block and learned so much more about Notre Dame than I would have found on my campus own. She answered a lot of questions and had a good sense of humor. This tour was definitely worth it. You can go to the church at 8am if you want to spend more time, no tickets were needed just have to go through security.
Gustavo_G, Sep 2026
I paid a lot of money to meet a guide at the statue of Charlemagne and tell us to enter by that railing. Notre Dame entry is free. just go on your own. guide was useless - she said to us come back outside and she will tell us significance of what we saw. get in free and buy the book at the gift store - much more worth it.
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you for your review.
We need to address the inaccuracy here: another member of your family group left a 5-star review on August 31st describing guide Kam as "entertaining and informative" and highly recommending this exact tour.
Changing a review from 5 stars to 1 star does not qualify you for a refund. A refund is issued when a service is not delivered as described - not when a guest's satisfaction changes after the fact.
If you have a legitimate service complaint, we're happy to review it. Otherwise, we wish you safe travels.
Scenic Zest Tours
Michael_P, Sep 2026
Very informative and well worth the time and money. So much to learn that you would never know otherwise.
kimberly_c, Aug 2026
Wonderful experience. Notre Dame is worth a visit. Enjoyed the tour with Liz. She was informative and interesting
James_B, Aug 2026
We were not able to go on this tour. I canceled on Friday, 22 Aug. I only rated to get to this page.
Frank_V, Aug 2026
Incredible!!!!Diane was a so full knowledge and was excellent at sharing it with our group. We would definitely love to have her again as a guide.
Emmett_S, Aug 2026
Great excusrsion where I was able to learn a lot of French and the Catholic Church history in France.
The church is beautiful!
Highly recommend this tour.
Sharla_A, Aug 2026
Very informative Kam our guide was amazing and answered any questions we asked and very knowledgeable Lived it was a smaller group
Shirley_M, Aug 2026
Excellent trip the cathedral was amazing well worth the money lots of history and the guide Kam was very helpful and knowledgeable
James_H, Aug 2026
Great guide, very knowledgeable & friendly. Very good English. Knowledgeable of all aspects of the outside architecture.
Wendy_W, Aug 2026
We loved our visit to Notre Dame, especially with our guide Kam. The history of this place is fantastic.
Shawna_A, Aug 2026
Absolutely absurd and a complete waste of money. We arrived and waited for our guide, only to be told to get into the same public line we could have joined ourselves as soon as we arrived. We actually lost time waiting for the tour to start.
Notre-Dame is FREE to enter. There was no special access, no priority entry, and the guide was not even taking us on a guided tour inside the cathedral. The “guided” portion was essentially walking us around the OUTSIDE of Notre-Dame and providing commentary.
We paid for an “experience” that provided absolutely no benefit to entering or visiting the cathedral. Had we simply gone on our own, we could have gotten in line immediately, entered for free, and saved both time and money.
Do not waste your money on this. Go directly to Notre-Dame, get in the public line, and visit the cathedral for free.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
For future travelers reading this review, it is important to clarify how this situation was handled.
We proactively emailed and messaged you multiple times days in advance warning you about the holiday limitations at Notre-Dame, an active church celebrating a major religious holiday with strict local restrictions. In those messages, we explicitly gave you the option to cancel for a 100% full refund, but you chose to ignore our messages and proceed anyway.
Additionally, the tour you booked was for an independent visit; if you wanted an interior guided tour, you could have chosen our interior tour option, which is clearly listed in the description. The rest of the 12-person group on your tour was completely informed, understood the active church's crowd conditions, and left happy. Unnecessary arguments with the guide on-site could easily have been avoided, especially since guests arriving just moments after experienced minimal wait times.
We maintain complete transparency and always offer risk-free cancellations when local religious sites alter their access, but guests must read their messages and select the appropriate tour option.
Carol_N, Aug 2026
Our tour guide , Sylvie, was very kind and knowledgeable. She was thorough, explains the exterior of the church. We were disappointed that we didn’t have at least an audio tour of the inside but must not have picked the correct tour for that. Carefully read what is included before booking.
Darlene_F, Aug 2026
This was an early access tour. It was amazing . Our tour guide was very informative about the history of Notre Dame. The negative is that the gift shop does not open until 10am.
Joanne_M, Aug 2026
Excellent guide Kam! Lots of information and descriptions. Thank you!
PS we’ll be back for another visit
Nilesh_M, Aug 2026
Great tour by Alex(andre) - very knowledgeable on the history and architecture of the cathedral. We learnt and observed things that we would not have without his guidance
Nancy_M, Aug 2026
Go first thing in the morning and the inside is easy with no wait and your guide will then walk you through all the history after your 30 minute inside visit.
John_T, Aug 2026
The tour guide made the visit. She was awesome. I wish she could have accompanied us inside, but I understand why she couldn’t. The guide was still well worth the money.
timothy_l, Aug 2026
My tour with Lady E was amazing! I would highly recommend booking with her, especially if it's your first time visiting Paris. She made the experience both fun and educational, sharing interesting insights while keeping the tour engaging from start to finish. It was a great introduction to the city, and I couldn't have asked for a better guide.
Kenneth_C, Jul 2026
Alexandre was a FANTASTIC guide. He was promp, pleasant, humorous and highly informative. Had I entered Notre Dame by myself I would have missed many important aspects of the Cathedral and thus the tour was well worth the investment. THANK YOU ALEX! Ken and Lin
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for your fantastic review! We're delighted to hear that Alexandre's expertise, enthusiasm, and engaging personality made such a positive impression. It's wonderful to know the tour added depth and context to your visit. We truly appreciate your kind words and look forward to welcoming you again in the future.
Jon_E, Jul 2026
Sylvie was Very informative. The early morning time was perfect to see the inside when it wasn’t very busy. Sylvie provided a lot of interesting facts and history of the exterior after the interior visit.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for sharing your experience! We're so pleased to hear that Sylvie's informative and engaging approach helped bring the history and architecture to life. We're also glad you enjoyed the early morning timing, which offers a more relaxed experience. We hope to welcome you back again soon!
Eric_W, Jul 2026
This was a great tour. Kam was fun, knowledgeable, and friendly. I would highly recommend to anyone!
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear you enjoyed your Notre-Dame tour with Kam. It's great to know his knowledge, friendly personality, and enthusiasm helped make your experience memorable. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you back to Paris for another adventure with Scenic Zest Tours in the future. Safe travels!
Troy_H, Jul 2026
Kam provided us with an amazingly educational and entertaining tour! Very thorough history and interesting.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Kam. It's fantastic to know that you found the experience both educational and entertaining, and that his thorough knowledge of Notre-Dame's rich history made the tour memorable. We truly appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you back for another Scenic Zest Tours experience the next time you're in Paris!
Sreejana_S, Jul 2026
Kim was an absolutely exceptional tour guide at Notre Dame Cathedral. Her knowledge of the cathedral’s history, architecture, and restoration was outstanding, and she presented everything in a way that was both engaging and easy to understand.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're thrilled to hear that you had such a memorable experience with Kim. Her passion for Notre-Dame and her ability to bring its history, architecture, and remarkable restoration to life are qualities we truly value. It's wonderful to know you found the tour both engaging and easy to follow. We sincerely appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you back for another Scenic Zest Tours experience on your next visit to Paris!
jamesbuller, Jul 2026
Our guide Kam (Cam) was thoughtful of making our tour the best experience. She was kind and an expert.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
We truly appreciate your wonderful feedback! It means so much to know that Kam's expertise and genuine care helped make your Notre-Dame visit memorable. Thank you for trusting us with your experience, and we hope to see you again for another adventure in Paris.
Jamie_F, Jul 2026
We had a fantastic tour of Notre Dame with Kam. She was very informative and kept both our elder parents and our teenager engaged. She was also very mindful of our parents needs which we all appreciated. We enjoyed our time and learned a lot.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
We truly appreciate your thoughtful review! It's wonderful to know that Kam was able to bring the fascinating history of Notre-Dame to life while making sure every member of your family felt included and comfortable. Thank you for choosing Scenic Zest Tours, and we look forward to welcoming you back for another unforgettable experience.
Michelle_L, Jul 2026
There was no tour guide there when we arrived. We arrived early at 8:30. It was 910 and nobody still came. Somebody came at 9:30 and they said we were in their group I would like a refund.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you for your feedback. We regret that you were unable to join our tour; however, I would like to clarify the events of this morning to ensure a fair representation of the experience.
Our team was at the designated meeting point for check-in starting at 08:45 AM. Our guides remained at the location until 09:05 AM, providing an extra grace period beyond the scheduled start time to accommodate our guests. As our team was on-site and the tour departed as scheduled with all other guests, we were fully prepared to provide the service as booked.
When you contacted us later in the afternoon, we offered to assist you in joining a later tour; however, we are unable to provide a refund for this booking, as our guides were present and the service was available to you during the allotted time.
We provide clear meeting point instructions in all confirmation materials to ensure a smooth arrival. We regret that you were unable to arrive within the check-in window, and we wish you the best with the remainder of your trip.
Betty_B, Jul 2026
Our tour guide, Kam, was excellent! She was extremely knowledgeable about the history and architecture of Notre Dame. She helped make our visit memorable. Notre Dame is a treasure.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you for the fantastic feedback! We're thrilled that Kam made your visit to Notre Dame so special. It truly is a treasure, and we are so glad you enjoyed exploring it with us. We hope to welcome you back on another tour soon!
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up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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