Answers
Montmartre Paris Tours — Frequently Asked Questions
Everything travellers ask before booking a walk on the Butte: what is free, what a guide costs, where the tours meet, and what happens if it rains.
The answers below are drawn from the operators’ own listings and from the published figures of the basilica, the two museums and the City of Paris. Where a number can move — a fare, an admission — the month it was checked is given with it. If you already know what you want, Montmartre guided tours are listed with prices and group sizes on the Montmartre Paris tours page.
Do you need Montmartre Paris tickets?
No. Montmartre is a public neighbourhood of Paris, so the streets, the squares and the view over the city cost nothing. The Sacré-Cœur is free to enter too, every day from 6.30am to 10.30pm. The only tickets on the hill are for the dome, the two museums and the funicular.
How much do Montmartre Paris tours cost?
Guided walks start at about $23 per person and run to roughly $76 for the longer city-wide half-days. Food tours sit between $69 and $154 because the fare covers what you eat. A private guide for your own party starts around $65 per person.
Is the Sacré-Cœur free to enter?
Yes. The basilica states plainly that the visit is free and that it opens every day without exception from 6.30am to 10.30pm. You pay only if you climb the dome.
How much does it cost to climb the Sacré-Cœur dome?
The dome is €8 for adults aged 16 and over and €5 for children up to 15, with group rates of €6 and €4 for parties of twenty or more. It opens from 10.30am, with last admission at 8.15pm, and closes briefly at midday. Expect 280 steps and no lift.
How do you get up to Montmartre without walking?
Take the funicular from Square Louise-Michel, a short walk from Anvers on metro line 2. One Métro-Train-RER ticket covers one ride in one direction. If you would rather not climb at all, the lift at Abbesses on line 12 brings you out most of the way up.
How many steps are there up to the Sacré-Cœur?
There are 222 steps from Square Louise-Michel to the parvis in front of the basilica, and the funicular exists precisely so you do not have to take them. Inside, the dome climb adds 280 more on a narrow staircase.
How long do you need in Montmartre Paris?
Two hours covers the basilica, Place du Tertre and the best of the lanes at a reasonable pace, which is why most guided walks are built to that length. Half a day lets you add a museum or a long lunch. A full day works if you are also walking the cemetery and the vineyard streets.
Do I need to book Montmartre Paris tours in advance?
In summer and over holiday weekends, yes — the small-group walks cap between ten and sixteen people and several listings mark themselves as likely to sell out. Booking three to five days ahead is usually enough. Out of season, a day or two is fine.
Can I cancel a Montmartre Paris tour?
Every tour listed here refunds in full if you cancel at least 24 hours before the start time. That is the policy on both booking platforms and on all twenty-one listings. Your Montmartre Paris booking is therefore low-risk if the weather turns.
What is the best Montmartre walking tour for a first visit?
If Montmartre is one part of a wider day, the ninety-minute walk from Rue des Abbesses covers the hill without eating the afternoon. If the hill is the plan, the two-hour-twenty walk from Place Saint-Pierre stops properly at five places instead of passing them.
Which is the best Montmartre food tour?
The best Montmartre food tour is the one whose inclusions match your appetite: they run from seven sweet stops to fifteen tastings with a lunch. A Montmartre food tour costs between $68 and $154 and replaces a meal rather than adding to one, so compare it against lunch plus a guided walk rather than against a walk alone. The listings that state a full meal, wine and eight to fifteen tastings are the ones where the arithmetic works.
Is there a guided Montmartre night tour?
Not among the tours listed here — the earliest departure is at dawn and the latest finishes in the evening. The basilica stays open until 10.30pm and the terrace outside it is free at any hour, so the walk up after dinner is one you make yourself.
What time of day is Place du Tertre quietest?
Early morning, before about 10am, when the painters are still setting up and the coaches have not arrived. One listed walk exists purely to be there at dawn. Late evening is the second-best window, especially outside July and August.
Is Montmartre Paris suitable for wheelchair users?
The hill is steep and largely cobbled, and only one listed walk describes itself as wheelchair accessible. The funicular and the Abbesses lift both remove the worst of the climb. The Sacré-Cœur itself is at street level from the parvis, but the dome has 280 steps and no lift.
Which metro station is best for Montmartre?
Anvers on line 2 for the funicular and the basilica, Abbesses on line 12 if you want the lift, Blanche on line 2 for the Moulin Rouge, and Lamarck-Caulaincourt on line 12 for the quiet back way in. Most guided walks meet at one of these four.
What is included in a Montmartre Paris tour price?
On a walking tour the fare covers the guide and nothing else, which is why those prices start at about $23. On a food tour it covers the tastings, and often the wine, which is why those start near $69. Entry fees appear in only one listing here.
How far in advance do Montmartre tours sell out?
Four of the twenty-one listings are marked as likely to sell out, and those are the small-group food walks and the dawn departure. Three to five days ahead is a safe margin in summer. Off-season you can often book the day before.
What happens if it rains on the day?
Almost every listed walk states that it runs in all weather, and two say so in capitals. Bring a light waterproof rather than an umbrella, because the lanes are narrow. If you would rather not go at all, cancel free of charge up to 24 hours ahead.
Are Montmartre Paris tours run in languages other than English?
Every listing sells an English departure. Six also run in French, six in Spanish, five in Italian and four in German or Russian, and those are concentrated on three products from two operators. Book the language option directly on the listing.
What is the smallest group size available?
Ten people is the smallest stated cap on a shared tour, on two of the food walks. Below that you are into the private listings, where the group is your own party.
Can children join a Montmartre food tour?
Most of them set a minimum age between six and seventeen, and one takes children up to thirteen free. Check the age bands on the listing before booking, because they differ sharply between operators.
Do the food tours cater for vegetarians or allergies?
Several state that vegetarian options exist if you tell them at booking, and one is explicit that vegan diets and severe allergies cannot be accommodated. Contact the operator when you book rather than on the day.
How much is a metro ticket in Paris?
A single Métro-Train-RER ticket is €2.55 as of January 2026, and paper tickets have been withdrawn in favour of a Navigo Easy card or the transport app. Check the current fare before you travel.
Does the funicular take a normal metro ticket?
Yes. One Métro-Train-RER ticket buys one ride, up or down, with no transfers, and it is included in the Navigo pass and Paris Visite. Machines at Anvers and Abbesses sell them.
What does the Musée de Montmartre cost?
Full admission is €16, with €10.50 for students aged 18 to 25, €9 for 10 to 17s and free entry under 10. The Renoir Gardens alone are €6. It opens every day from 10am to 7pm, last entry 6.15pm.
Can you visit the Clos Montmartre vineyard?
Only on a guided visit. The City of Paris lists the vineyard at 14 rue des Saules as accessible by guided tour, and it is otherwise behind its gates. Its 2,000 vines are harvested every October.
When is the Fête des Vendanges?
The 93rd Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre runs from 7 to 11 October 2026. It is the busiest the hill gets all year, so book any tour for those dates well ahead.
Is Montmartre Cemetery free?
Yes, and it holds more than 20,000 graves. From 16 March to 5 November it opens 8am to 6pm on weekdays, 8.30am on Saturdays and 9am on Sundays and holidays, closing half an hour earlier in winter. Nobody is admitted in the last quarter of an hour.
Are the streets of Montmartre closed to cars?
Fifteen streets on the upper Butte, including rue de l'Abreuvoir, rue Cortot, rue Norvins and rue des Saules, are a pedestrian zone. Motor traffic is destination-only and limited to walking pace, and pedestrians have priority throughout.
Where do most Montmartre tours meet?
At one of five points: Place Blanche by the Moulin Rouge, Anvers metro, Place Saint-Pierre by the carousel, Rue des Abbesses, or Avenue Junot in the upper village. Two more start at the cemetery gate and at Place du Tertre. Check yours the night before.
Is Montmartre safe in the evening?
The upper village around Place du Tertre and the basilica stays busy until late and the basilica itself is open to 10.30pm. Around Pigalle and the boulevard de Clichy the streets are livelier and worth ordinary city caution. Stick to lit streets on the way down.
What should I wear for a Montmartre walking tour?
Shoes you can walk cobbles and stairs in, and a layer more than you think in winter, because the hill is exposed at the top. Several listings ask for comfortable shoes by name. Cash is worth carrying for the bakeries.
Three of the answers above send you somewhere specific: the Clos Montmartre for the vineyard, the Musée de Montmartre for the Renoir gardens, and Montmartre Cemetery for a free hour nobody else is spending.
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Montmartre Paris Tours keeps this page in step with the listings as they change.