How Much Does It Cost To Visit Sacre-Coeur?

How Much Does It Cost To Visit Sacre-Coeur?

Entry to the Sacre-Coeur basilica is free, every day, with no ticket and no reservation, and the doors open from 6:30am to 10:30pm. The only paid part of the building is the dome: 8 euros for adults aged 16 and over, 5 euros for children up to 15, sold on site only. Crypt visits are a free offering, and the funicular up the hill costs the same as a single metro ticket. Before you plan your visit, it helps to know why this gleaming basilica stirs such strong feelings, and our guide to the Sacre-Coeur controversy explains the story behind the monument.

That is the headline answer, and it is a genuinely cheap one by Paris standards. The basilica is a working place of worship, and the official site states plainly that the visit is free and open every day without exception. You walk in, you stay quiet, you look around, and you pay nothing. The costs start only when you add layers: the dome viewpoint above the nave, the walk or funicular up the hill, the museums and tours around it.

One point worth knowing before you plan: the dome price list on the official page also covers groups. Groups of 20 or more pay 6 euros per adult, and children's groups of 20 or more pay 4 euros. Those group rates only apply to organized parties, not to families buying individual tickets at the office.

If you want a guide rather than walking in alone, the guided options are a separate cost layer. The trio below covers the range: the private and semi-private walk, the small-group basilica-focused walk, and the private walk priced per group.

What Does The Dome Ticket Actually Get You?

The 8 euro dome ticket buys the climb and the panoramic view from the top: roughly 280 steps up a narrow staircase, no elevator, and a terrace walk around the dome at about 83 metres. It does not include a guide, a headset or priority entry, and the dome closes for a midday staff break, with last admission at 7pm.

The official dome page describes the climb as about 280 steps, with no elevator to the top. Either way it is a real stair workout in a confined spiral, and the page says plainly that it is not recommended for anyone with mobility issues or a fear of enclosed spaces. There is no elevator and no shortcut. What you get at the top is one of the widest views over Paris available anywhere, a full circuit of the dome exterior.

Hours matter here. The dome is open daily from 10:30am, with last admission at 7pm and seasonal and weather variations, and the official page notes it sometimes closes for maintenance or weather. Checking the dome's own page before you go costs nothing and saves a wasted climb. The basilica itself never closes on that schedule, so a weather-shortened dome visit still leaves you the free nave below.

Tickets are sold only on site, at the ticket office you reach by going down into the moat to the left after the outdoor security check. That means no online pre-booking exists, official or otherwise, and anyone selling you a "skip the line dome ticket" is selling something the basilica does not offer. Budget your time for the queue, not your money.

If you are weighing whether the climb is worth it at all, the companion piece on Montmartre Paris Tours about going inside the basilica covers what the free nave visit gives you, and the separate question of how much time you need in Montmartre helps you decide whether the dome fits your day.

Is The Crypt Free To Visit?

Yes, in the sense that the crypt's accompanied tours are described as a free offering on the official basilica site. But there is a catch for most visitors: the tours run in French only, last about 40 minutes, and depart Tuesday to Thursday and Saturday at 4pm, so an English-speaking visitor without French gets little from them.

The crypt is not a walk-in space like the nave. Access is by accompanied tour, and the current schedule is limited to those afternoon slots. The official page also notes the tours are not held on certain dates, so the schedule is a guideline rather than a guarantee. For a French speaker on the right day, it is one of the better free offerings in the neighborhood. For everyone else, the honest answer is that the crypt is effectively closed to you, at no cost.

That leaves the practical cost picture for the building itself very simple. The nave is free, the dome is 8 euros for an adult, and the crypt is free but French-only. Nothing else inside charges. There is no dress fee, no photography permit for ordinary visitors, and no suggested donation printed anywhere on the official pages, though the basilica is maintained by the religious community and donations boxes exist for those who want to contribute.

Do Guided Tours Include The Dome Ticket?

No guided tour listing on this site's roster states that it includes a dome ticket, and you should not assume one does. The tours cover the district, the bohemian streets and the basilica with a guide, but the dome's 8 euro ticket is bought separately on site in every case. Treat the dome as an add-on you pay for yourself.

The guided options around Sacre-Coeur fall into three shapes. The Montmartre District and Sacre Coeur Exclusive Guided Walking Tour, run by Babylon Tours Paris, is a private 2.5 hour walk rated 5.0 from 410 reviews, with a cheaper semi-private option capped at 12 on the same listing. It runs rain or shine, meets outside the Blanche metro exit, and includes free cancellation. The Montmartre Highlights walk from My Super Tour is a small-group option capped at 15, rated 4.9 from 249 reviews, 2 hours, with the guide holding a yellow sign outside the Blanche metro. And the private Sacre Coeur walk with an expert guide prices per group of up to 2 rather than per person, rated 4.9 from 97 reviews.

For a broader walk that still passes the basilica, the classic walking tours are the lower-priced tier. The Montmartre Highlights Walking Tour with a Local Guide is rated 4.9 from 2,825 reviews, runs 2 hours 20 minutes in a group capped at 16, and meets near the carousel at Place Saint-Pierre, right at the foot of the basilica's stairs. The shorter Montmartre Guided Walking Tour from Discover Walks covers the hill in 1.5 hours and sits in the lowest price tier on the roster. None of these includes the dome ticket either, which is consistent across the whole category: guides walk you to the door, the dome is yours to buy.

One listing does state interior entries: the Montmartre for Art Lovers tour from Trivial Guides includes entry to the Montmartre Cemetery and entry to the Sacre-Coeur basilica, plus a sketching session on a small canvas, rated 4.9 from 718 reviews. Since basilica entry is free anyway, that inclusion is a convenience, not a saving, and the dome remains separate. The full Sacre-Coeur tour guide compares these listings in more detail.

How Much Does Getting Up The Hill Cost?

The climb itself is free: 222 public steps from the bottom to the basilica forecourt. The alternative, the Montmartre funicular, costs the same as a single metro ticket for a one and a half minute ride, running seven days a week from 6am to 12:45am. Many visitors pay nothing at all and simply take the stairs.

The funicular is operated by the RATP and takes the same tickets as the metro network, with no transfers included. It exists for one reason: to save you the 222 steps. Whether that is worth a metro ticket depends entirely on your knees, the weather, and whether you are walking up once or three times in a day. On a hot afternoon with children, it earns its fare. On a cool morning with a camera, the stairs are part of the experience and cost nothing.

There is a third option that people forget: approach from the top. If you arrive via the back streets rather than climbing from Place Saint-Pierre, much of the hill is gentle, and the walk from the Abbesses side or along rue des Abbesses reaches the basilica with only short staircases. The question of where to start your walk in Montmartre covers the routes, and the answer can save you both the fare and the climb.

What Extra Costs Should You Budget For Around Sacre-Coeur?

The basilica's own costs are near zero, but the surrounding attractions are not. The Musee de Montmartre charges 16 euros full price during the exhibition period, the dome is 8 euros, a coffee on Place du Tertre runs at tourist prices, and a guided walk sits anywhere from the lowest tier to the private tier depending on the format. A realistic half-day budget is built from these add-ons.

The Musee de Montmartre, a few minutes' walk from the basilica at 12 rue Cortot, is the main paid attraction nearby. Full price during the exhibition period is 16 euros, students aged 18 to 25 and teachers pay 10.50 euros, ages 10 to 17 pay 9 euros, under 10s are free, and a gardens-only ticket is 6 euros. The museum is open daily 10am to 6pm, last admission 5:15pm, and its gardens overlook the Clos Montmartre vineyard, which itself is accessible only on guided visits. The museum's current exhibition, on the circus and modern art, runs from mid-October into February.

Beyond that, the costs are the small ones. A portrait on Place du Tertre is priced by the individual artist, with no official price list, so agree the price before the artist starts. A drink near the basilica costs more than the same drink three streets down. And the walks listed above cover every tier: the Discover Walks tour in the lowest price tier, the small-group basilica walks in the mid tier, and the private options, of which only the Danis Tour Sacre-Coeur walk is priced per group of up to two.

For visitors who want the deeper context on whether the interior is worth the stop at all, the companion piece on going inside Sacre-Coeur weighs the free nave visit against the paid dome, and the round-up of free things to do in Montmartre covers everything on this page that costs nothing. If you're still weighing the dome climb against a quick look at the nave, the guide to what you actually get inside Sacre-Coeur lays out both options plainly.

If you are deciding between touring the district with a guide or going solo, the trio below is the current shortlist for Sacre-Coeur-focused walks, spanning private, small-group and per-group pricing.

Common Questions About Sacre-Coeur Costs

How Much Does It Cost To Visit Sacre-Coeur?

Entry to the basilica is free, every day from 6:30am to 10:30pm. The dome costs 8 euros for adults and 5 euros for children up to 15, sold on site only. The crypt's accompanied tours are a free offering in French, and the funicular up the hill costs the same as a metro ticket.

Is The Sacre-Coeur Basilica Really Free?

Yes. The official basilica site states that the visit is free and open every day without exception. There is no ticket, no reservation and no timed entry for the nave. A 10 to 15 minute wait is possible between 10:30am and 5pm when crowds build.

Can You Buy Dome Tickets In Advance?

No. Dome tickets are sold only at the on-site ticket office, reached by going down into the moat to the left after the outdoor security check. There is no advance booking system, official or otherwise, so any reseller offering a pre-booked dome ticket is not offering what the basilica provides.

Do Guided Tours Of Montmartre Include The Dome?

No listing on this site's roster states that it includes a dome ticket. Guided walks cover the district and bring you to the basilica, but the 8 euro dome ticket is always bought separately on site. The one listing that states interior entries includes basilica entry, which is free anyway.

Is The Funicular Worth The Fare?

The funicular costs the same as a single metro ticket and saves you the 222 steps, on a ride lasting about a minute and a half. If the stairs are no problem for you, the free staircase is right beside it. The choice is about legs and weather, not money.

What Should You Not Pay For At Sacre-Coeur?

Do not pay for basilica entry, which is free, and do not pay anyone for a skip-the-line dome ticket, which does not exist. Do not pay for a Moulin Rouge show ticket expecting a walking tour connection: no walk on this roster includes a show. The dome, the museum and the funicular are the only standard paid items.