Visiting the Paris Catacombs: Know Before You Go [2025]

Ready for eerie tunnels, skull-lined walls, and learning an important chapter of Parisian dark history? Let’s head down — 131 steps down, in fact, deep underneath the Montparnasse neighborhood to explore the depths of one of Paris’s most unique tourist attractions, the Paris catacombs.

This blog post will help you explore the other side of Paris, the quite literally underground one. The one hidden in tunnels that lead you in a labyrinth underneath the glamorous boulevards and picture-perfect cafés that act like catnip for photographers up above.

While walking the cool little neighborhood of Montparnasse, you’ll stumble across the entry to the Catacombs, housed in a small little building — a nondescript facade that hides something far darker and far cooler (literally and figuratively — it’s a consistent 14°C (57°F) in the tunnels year-round!): the Catacombs of Paris.

This unique place used to a quarry but now is an underground ossuary holding the bones of over six million people. The Catacombs of Paris are the perfect counterpoint to — and antidote to — overcrowded and overwhelming tourist sites like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.

With a strict limit on how many people can enter at a time (a mere 200!), you’ll feel a bit lost in your own world, in the best way — as long as you aren’t claustrophobic or afraid of the dark.

So swap the thimble-sized espressos at bistros and the Eiffel Tower’s twinkling views for a different side to Paris: through dimly lit tunnels, down swirling spiral staircases, and amongst corridors lined with skulls.

Yes, it’s creepy. Yes, it’s fascinating. And yes, you should absolutely go!

My Paris Catacombs Experience

Let’s just say this is not your average sightseeing experience! Even after visiting the bone church outside of Prague and other catacombs in Rome and other places, I was surprised by the immensity — and density! — of the skulls and bones that make up the Paris Catacombs.

Since the bones were mostly dug up and reinterred from various cemeteries, the history of the catacombs is not especially sad or tragic, so for me, the experience was not heavy, depressing, or even particularly morbid.

However, it was definitely a strange experience to be face-to-face (or skull-to-skull, rather) with so much proof of death. It’s nothing I’ve experienced before.

And even though I had seen so many photographs of the catacombs and thought I knew what I was in for, no photo can ever properly prepare you for the feeling you get walking beside them.

Walking in between them, surrounded by them— bone walls stretching on and on, it’s like something out of a horror movie.

And indeed, it is: helpful hint, if you’re at all a scaredy-cat, do not watch As Above, So Below before visiting the Paris Catacombs. My background knowledge of that movie definitely added a bit to the spook factor of my visit!

Booking Your Tickets

Here’s your (not-so-friendly) PSA: tickets are limited and sell out fast. Don’t just roll up and expect to waltz into a bone crypt. Nah. This is one of Paris’s most beloved sites and the entrance is strictly managed. I booked about 12 days in advance via GetYourGuide and even then, my ideal time slot was nearly full.

There are a handful of reserved walk-up tickets available if you arrive first thing in the morning… but the line is long and spots are, again, capped at 200 per time slot.

So unless you enjoy wasting hours in line while contemplating mortality (which I guess is kind of on brand for the experience?), book ahead.

I did it online via Get Your Guide and just showed the QR code on my phone — no need to print anything, a delight for perma-travelers like me, for whom printers are like oases in the desert, rare mirages often out of reach.

The Underground Experience

You start the journey with 131 narrow spiral stairs — so please be aware that this is a tight, claustrophobic passage with slightly uneven steps, so you’ll want to feel comfortably mobile for this experience.

There’s no elevator, which while it limits accessibility, adds to the unsettling underground feel: just a winding staircase that feels like it leads straight into the earth’s core. And then… an eerie stillness, cool air, and a labyrinth of tunnels calling you deeper into the Paris underground.

Once you’re down at the catacombs level, you’ll traverse about 1.5 kilometers (nearly a mile) of walking through dim tunnels and bone-lined galleries.

At first, you won’t see the bones, and you’ll walk through tunnels that explain the history of the tunnels, which were not originally intended to serve as a catacombs or ossuary. Rather, they were quarries, with the limestone being extracted for many buildings around Paris.

While some people might find this part a little claustrophobic, I personally found a haunting kind of calm to it all.

The path is one-way, and while you can stop to linger (respectfully, please, keeping in mind that others may want to pass you), there’s no backtracking.

Heads up — you don’t exit where you came in. The tour ends a solid 10-15 minute walk away (above ground), so if you’ve got plans afterward or a train to catch, build in that buffer time as you won’t be leaving from the same spot you entered.

Also: the ceilings are low in parts. I’m only 5’7” and even I found myself hunching. If you’re taller than me, you’ll definitely want to keep an eye out at all times.

Even at my relatively medium height, I had to hunch a few times and if I was just a little bit taller, I’d probably have walked the entire length of the catacombs hunched over.

What To Bring (and Not Bring)

Backpacks? Yes, if they’re small enough. But wear them carefully. Some of the passageways are tight, and if you’re swinging a bulky bag behind you, you risk bonking someone — or worse, a centuries-old wall of skulls — I’m not particularly superstitious, but that feels like some gnarly karma to me.

Heads Up: Keep in mind that only small bags with dimensions not exceeding 40 cm x 30 cm x 20 cm (16″ x 12″ x 8″) are allowed. Larger items must be stored elsewhere; there’s no on-site storage. Similarly, selfie sticks and tripods are not allowed. Strollers and baby carriages are also not allowed.

Photos are allowed, but flash photography is not. It disrupts the mood and can speed up the aging process of the bones, which are sensitive to light. And mostly, be respectful — these are real human remains, not a Halloween display.

I opted for the audioguide, which is an extra few euros. It was decent… until it randomly stopped working halfway through.

If you’re really into the history, I strongly suggest booking a tour with an in-person guide such as this special restricted access private tour. After all, human guides are far less likely to glitch out halfway through… at least until the androids replace us all.

The fact that my audioguide stopped working partway through was mitigated by the fact that I do in fact speak and read French (merci, Mme. Mona, for terrifying me into learning French all those years ago) but without it, I might have been totally lost at sea.

And a quick but crucial reminder: it’s cold underground. Around 14°C (57°F) year-round. I visited in April and saw people shivering in their thin tops. Meanwhile, I was very snug (and equal parts smug) in my parka jacket.

Is the Paris Catacombs Worth It? My Final Thoughts

Would I go again? Absolutely. Sure, it’s eerie — but I like that. Yes, it is a little physically demanding — but the time will pass quickly as you’re so lost in thought the entire time you visit.

But more than anything, it’s distinctly memorable and unique — a rare place unlike other places, an experience that’s harder and harder to find in our globalizing world where people favor the lighter side of life rather than the dark embrace of history.

It’s a totally different side of Paris that most visitors skip, and honestly one of my favorite experiences from all of my trips Paris… of which I’ve had at least 7+ over my lifetime.

If you’re even slightly intrigued, don’t hesitate. Just remember most of all that you need to book your ticket online in advance. And maybe don’t bring your most squeamish travel buddy.

🦴 Want to book your visit? I grabbed my tickets here – easy, mobile-friendly, and no lines! You can book an audioguide only experience with river cruise included or a live guide with access to restricted areas for not much more.

Now go forth and explore the underground world — Paris style!

And if you’re wondering where else you should go while visiting the Paris Catacombs, I highly recommend adding both the Tour Montparnasse and the Montparnasse Cemetery to your list to properly make a day out of it!

Allison Green

Allison Green is a former teacher who has been travel blogging since 2016, visiting 75+ countries in total. She has a Masters in Teaching and a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. As a former educator, she merges her writing and educational experience to encourage ethical, sustainable travel. She has been a speaker at the World Travel Writers Conference and TBEX. Her writing, photography, and podcasting work has appeared in National Geographic, CNN Arabic, CBC Canada, and Forbes, amongst others. When she’s not on the road, she lives in Bangkok, Thailand.