Sainte-Chapelle Tickets: Prices, Time Slots and Security

What a ticket costs, by visitor type

The Sainte-Chapelle has used two price levels since 12 January 2026: one for EEA nationals and regular residents (over four months), and a higher one for everyone else. The combined "twin" ticket adds the Conciergerie next door and is sold on the Sainte-Chapelle ticketing page or at the ticket office. Prices below are from the monument's practical information page, checked 9 October 2026.

For a couple from outside Europe with two teenage children, that is €44 for the chapel alone or €60 with the Conciergerie: the children are free, but they still need their own slot tickets. An EEA couple pays €32 or €46. The Conciergerie's own page lists a single Conciergerie ticket at €13, so a non-EEA visitor saves €5 with the combined ticket.

Do you need a time slot?

Yes. The official CMN ticketing page states that visitors must have a ticket and a time slot. Each slot lasts 30 minutes: with a 10:00 booking you must enter by 10:30. The Sainte-Chapelle FAQ confirms the same rule for the people most likely to skip it:

• Paris Museum Pass holders must book a slot and show the pass at check-in. The pass's reservation page sends you to the same CMN ticketing site.
• Children and visitors aged 18–25 entering free need a booked ticket too, even the youngest, and should carry ID or a passport for the age check.
• Culture, journalist and ICOM card holders are strongly advised to book under "Other free tickets".

The one exception is the free first Sunday (January to March, November and December): the FAQ says reservations are not possible that day.

The practical page also asks you to arrive strictly at your booked time and not before it. Tickets are neither exchangeable nor refundable, and the monument only handles complaints for orders made on its official ticketing site, so avoid resellers if you may need to change plans.

Opening hours and closures

• 1 April to 30 September: 9am–7pm.
• 1 October to 31 March: 9am–5pm.
• Last access 30 minutes before closing.
• Closed 1 January, 1 May and 25 December, with occasional one-off early closures posted on the practical page (it listed a 4:30pm closure on 1 October 2026).

In October 2026 that means a last entry at 4:30pm. If you want to combine it with the Conciergerie, check the Conciergerie's own hours: its page lists 9:30am–6pm daily with last access at 5:30pm, closed 1 May and 25 December, and posts its own one-off closures on that page. The Sainte-Chapelle FAQ gives an earlier last access of 5:15pm for the Conciergerie and a visit length of one to one and a half hours, so plan for the earlier time.

Security at the Palais de Justice

The FAQ explains the long waits directly: the chapel is inside the Palais de Justice and security checks are very strict. Police may also carry out identity checks nearby, and the ticketing page warns of a second check before you enter the monument itself.

Items refused at the door include knives, scissors and any sharp object however small, glass bottles (perfume included), aerosols, motorbike helmets, scooters, skateboards and bulky luggage. Confiscated items are not returned and there is no cloakroom or left-luggage office. Pushchairs must be small enough to fold into the X-ray machine and cannot go into the upper chapel; the FAQ suggests a baby carrier.

If you are coming straight from a train or before a flight, leave bags first; see where to store luggage near the Paris stations.

Inside: stairs, heat and works

The famous stained glass is in the upper chapel, reached by 33 steps up and the same number down. A lift is available only to visitors with mobility problems, who should ask the staff; wheelchair users report to the security guards at the visitors' entrance.

The monument's heatwave notice says there is no air-conditioned area, and that after security there is no access to water or toilets at weekends and on public holidays; a drinking fountain is on the pavement opposite. The ticketing page adds that in bad weather or extreme heat the route may change and some areas may close.

A February 2025 CMN notice announced restoration of the Ezekiel bay from early 2025, with scaffolding inside and outside the upper chapel and the chapel staying open at its usual times. It gives no end date, so part of the glass may still be screened; ask before you go if the windows are your main reason to visit.

Getting there and what else is included

The practical page gives the address as 10 boulevard du Palais, 75001 (the ticketing site lists 8 boulevard du Palais for the ticket office). The nearest stops are Cité (metro 4), Saint-Michel (RER B and C) and Châtelet (metro 1, 7, 11 and 14). The "Palais de Justice" bus stop is sometimes not served for security reasons.

A free guided tour in French runs at 11am and 3pm, subject to staff availability; book the 10:30am or 2:30pm slot to catch it. Visit documents are available in 11 languages, and the audioguide costs €4, paid on site.

If you are deciding whether a museum pass covers this and your other sights, the numbers are in whether the Paris Museum Pass is worth it. For which other Paris sights need advance booking, see booking Paris museums and monuments.