This article is to give you practical information on how to save your time and probably money while planning your visit to the exhibition of Leonardo’s works. The exhibition is currently taking place in Louvre, Paris. I visited it in November, so here I will share my firsthand experience.
When is Leonardo’s exhibition taking place?
Leonardo’s exhibition works from 24 October 2019 to 24 February 2020.
How to get tickets to Leonardo’s exhibition?
The answer is, unfortunately, there is almost no way. The tickets are sold here: https://www.ticketlouvre.fr/louvre/b2c/index.cfm/expovinci/eventCode/ExpoVinWeb and at the time of writing (6 January 2020) there are no available time slots until the end of the exhibition. I can only suggest to check this link from time to time in hope that some slots will appear.
Where is Leonardo’s exhibition taking place?
Leonardo’s exhibition is located in Louvre, in the centre of Paris. The exhibition occupies Hall Napoleon, on the -1 floor. All paintings and drawings are placed there except Mona Lisa, which lives in Louvre permanently, and it was left on its place – in the Salle des États (or Mona Lisa room). If you have the tickets – and you MUST buy your ticket beforehand – you should enter Louvre in Richelieu wing (the northern wing next to Palais-Royal, where cardinal Richelieu lived). This is just a “fast track” for those who have tickets for the exhibition (queues to enter Louvre can be quite long). Then you enter a very large hall on the -1 floor under the main pyramid with cloakrooms, toilettes, cafes, information desks, etc. From there, you can go straight to the exhibition.
How to visit Leonardo’s virtual experience?
When you enter the exhibition area, you will see the round desk where you can buy the exhibition catalogue (for some strange reason, it was available in French only!) and other books and souvenirs. Behind the desk there is a room with approximately 10 seats for the virtual reality experience. This is an approximately 10 minute long 3D film that you see through 3D glasses. You can’t just come in, you need to book a time slot. And the place where you can do it, the desk, is situated immediately after the exhibition ticket control, on the left hand side. The film is interesting, it tells some notable facts about Leonardo and Mona Lisa, and I can definitely recommend to watch it. So, I would suggest you to book a visit immediately after you enter the exhibition area after the ticket control.