The Eiffel Tower was inaugurated March 31, 1889 and became one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. Here are 10 things you did not know!
1. The Eiffel Tower was not always brown. In 1889, she stayed yellow for a short time, and from 1954 to 1961, she was painted in red-brown.
2. It was built in record time, for the time. After two years, two months and five days, the structure dominated the sky of Paris.
3. At the beginning of the 30s, the monument was used as a billboard for Citroën.
4. Originally, the French do not like the Eiffel Tower. They said it was “useless” and “monstrous”. A petition for its destruction was even launched.
5. The French newspaper “Le Figaro” had a printing press in the second floor of the Eiffel Tower.
6. During the winter, the Eiffel Tower shrinks from April to August for a few centimeters. When temperatures rise, it returns to its original size.
7. With 7 million visitors a year on average, the Eiffel Tower is the most visited paid monument in the world. For comparison, the Empire State Building in New York attracts “only” 3.5 million visitors.
8. There is the equivalent of 16 tons of paint on the Eiffel Tower. In total, it was repainted 18 times.
9. Originally, the Eiffel Tower would have remained twenty years. Gustave Eiffel built it to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.
10. The first two months, the elevators were not yet operational. Visitors should therefore take the stairs to access all levels. It took an hour.