Paris, one of the most popular cities in the world, is famous for delicious pastries, elegant fashion and above all one thing: the Eiffel Tower. A trip to Paris is not complete without some photos with the iconic Eiffel Tower! Unfortunately, this means that places are oftentimes hopelessly overcrowded with tourists. That’s why we rounded up these 9 best Eiffel Tower photo spots; top-secret places where you get the best Eiffel Tower photos without the crowds!
Paris Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower, also known as the Iron Lady, is located on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. Nowadays, the Eiffel Tower is one of the most iconic and photographed spots in all of Paris. In the past, however, the tower was initially criticized by some of France’s leading artists and intellectuals for its design. Back in the days, the 324 metres tall tower was the first structure to ever reach a height of 300m.
Fun fact: The Eiffel Tower, by the way named after Gustave Eiffel, is the most-visited paid monument in the world.
Where is the Eiffel Tower?
Before we get into the secret Eiffel Tower photo spots, we first wanted to explain where the Eiffel Tower is. The Eiffel Tower itself is located in Paris‘ 7th arrondissement and while the Champ de Mars might look small on a map, the park grounds are huge. You might want to keep this in mind when walking around Paris, because you will be in for a bit of a walk!
However, if you’re planning to do these secret Eiffel Tower photo spots in a day, you definitely can! Just take some breaks and stop for some delicious French pastries every now and then.
How to get around in Paris
Paris is a big city and it usually makes sense to use the metro every now and then. A few hotels also offer bike rentals, but you will be able to tick off the points listed here on foot without any problems. If you still prefer not to walk, we would recommend a bike, as it could definitely be too cumbersome with public transport.
Eiffel Tower Photo Spots – 9 Secret Spots to view the Eiffel Tower
Especially in times of Instagram and Co, photo spots are often completely crowded and no longer unique. That is why these 9 secret Eiffel Tower photo spots are supposed to help you with that.
1. Avenue de Camoëns
You’ve probably seen photos of this location over and over again. They always tend to appear on my Instagram explore page, but few people actually share this location. While some simply pretend to not know where they shot the photo: it’s Avenue de Camoëns. You’re welcome.
So, Avenue de Camoëns is such a popular photography spot since it’s just a short walk from Trocadéro, where most people spend their morning. It’s a quiet dead-end street with gorgeous architecture and a balcony overlooking the Eiffel Tower.
However, it’s a popular location and you should expect other people to take photos here too. So far we’ve been to Paris four times already and Avenue de Camoëns is always a little crowded. This problem can be solved by either going early in the morning or simply waiting for the person in front of you to finish his/her photos.
2. Pont d’léna
Pont d’lésa is a road bridge over the Seine that leads directly to the Eiffel Tower. For our photos, we went to this location around sunset and took some photos while the Eiffel Tower sparkled!
By the way, you won’t see any stars. So don’t be too disappointed by all these Instagram photos featuring tons of stars.
3. Pont de Bir-Hakeim
Besides Pont Alexandre III (see below), Pont de Bir-Hakeim is our favorite bridge in Paris! The architecture is just so beautiful that we could spend hours taking photos every time we visit Paris.
However, we used to take our photos in the morning and were quite disappointed, because the light just didn’t work as we imagined. Don’t get us wrong, it’s still a pretty impressive bridge in the morning and perfect if you want to take photo without people around you, but it’s even prettier in the evening.
Tip: Come just before sunset and get ready, set up your camera and wait for the sky to change colors. We loved this! It’s even more beautiful when the Eiffel Tower starts to sparkle. Incidentally, this is the case for about 5 minutes every hour after dark.
4. Rue de l’université
This quaint street is probably our favorite location to spot the Eiffel Tower. Rue de l’université has such a Parisian charm with cobblestone streets and beautiful architecture where the Eiffel Tower will appear grand in your photos. It’s only a short walk from Champ de Mars or Trocadéro. To find this exact location you have to go to the intersection between Rue de l’université and Avenue de la Bourdonnais.
Tip: Go early in the morning to have the road all to yourself! Unfortunately, it will often get quite crowded during the day. Since it’s such a small street anyways, it’s better to arrive a little early than be disappointed.
5. Rue St. Dominique
This residential street in Paris‘ 7th arrondissement offers the most incredible view of the Eiffel Tower. The best viewing spot is at Café Le Recrutement, however, you’ll catch a glimpse of the beautiful Iron Lady throughout the whole street.
6. Square Rapp
If you’re searching for some extra extra secret Eiffel Tower photo spots, then Square Rapp is the place to be! Square Rapp refers to the tiny dead-end right off Avenue Rapp. Be careful with taking photos at the quaint little garden at the end of the road. It is private property, but still charming to look at. However, you can of course ask if you could take just one photo.
Luckily, Square Rapp is lesser-known and you won’t find many people taking photos here.
7. Trocadéro
The Trocadéro probably is the most famous spot on this list, but it is the ultimate place to get the best photos of the Eiffel Tower. We’d definitely recommend visiting the place at least two times: in the morning and in the evening. This way you’ll have different types of lighting in your photos.
We already took so many photos here and still remain fascinated by the surrounding area and – of course – the pretty photo motif.
Tip: If you take your photos during the sunrise, you not only have fewer people in the picture. Fortunately, the sun comes from the right side, so you can take super beautiful pictures of the Eiffel Tower at sunrise.
What we love about this location are the many different angles and photo motifs that never fail to amaze us. Some popular spots include the main square, the staircase and the carousel on Avenue des Nations Unies.
8. Pont Alexandre III
Whilst Pont Alexandre III definitely is a photo spot in itself, you can still see the Eiffel Tower in the background. Again, we’d recommend to go there once in the morning and in the evening in order to have different lighting in your photos.
We love these pink sunset vibes as much as we do love a clear morning sky.
Tip: If you go down the side of the stairs, you have wonderful views of the bridge from the Seine.
9. Rue Surcouf
The last secret Eiffel Tower photo spot is Rue Surcouf. In fact it’s close to Rue St. Dominique which is why you can shoot these two spots right after one another.
However, we love the typical Parisian flair this street has. Combined with beautiful architecture and the Eiffel Tower in the background, Rue Surcouf is a photo spot that simply can’t go wrong.
We really hope you liked these secret Eiffel Tower photo spots. Here are some more posts you might enjoy:
- How to spend a weekend in Paris
- Paris Layover: One day in Paris
- Photo spots in Paris
- Christmas photo spots in Paris
- Pros and cons of visiting Paris in winter
Love this post about Eiffel Tower photo spots? Save it to read again later!
[…] 9 secret Eiffel Tower photo spots […]