The Louvre is high on the list of things to see while in France. It houses one of the most magnificent art collections in the world. And this work of art is displayed within the grand halls and luxurious rooms of a spectacular former palace, where the kings and emperors of France, from the Middle Ages to Napoleon, lived and loved, ruled and celebrated. Visiting the Louvre as a historic building is as memorable an experience as seeing the art on display within its walls. Great stairs. Opulent rooms. Painted ceilings and inlaid floors. Wide patios.

You will be able to see only a fraction of the Louvre and its collections during a single visit. So the best approach is to focus on having the full experience of the part of the museum that you can absorb in one day, knowing that one day you will return. Every time you visit the Louvre it will be a completely different encounter.

In its first incarnation, the Louvre was a medieval wartime fortress, built shortly after 1190 by King Philippe Auguste. During the 1300s, Charles V transformed the fortress into a fairytale castle, a splendid royal residence meant to impress his peers. In the 1500s, Françoise I transformed the Louvre into a grand Renaissance palace, consuming much of the country’s wealth on this and many other projects. As a passionate patron of the arts, Françoise filled her palace with an extravagant collection of art and sculpture.

The palace continued to be expanded over the centuries. When Henri II was felled by a lance that pierced his helmet during a tournament, his widow, Catherine de Medici, commissioned an additional palace for herself in front of the vast structure that was already in place, with magnificent gardens that reached all the way to Concord Square. The Catherine Palace was burned during the uprising of 1871, but the gardens remain and are extraordinary.

Join an imaginary tour of the Louvre, preparing for when you visit for real. Prepare to be amazed. When you actually visit, you will have obtained in advance a Pass for the museums of Paris which will allow you to skip the lines and enter the museum through the glass pyramid. As you explore this unique museum and stroll through its gardens, remember to look up and down at the rooftops. Notice the grandeur of the stairs and the views from the windows. You’ll be following in the footsteps of kings, viewing masterpieces once meant for royal eyes only.

It starts outside at the glass pyramid.

While you’re still outside in the Louvre courtyard, stand in front of the pyramid and orient yourself to the vast building that surrounds it. This palace is huge. It will be easier to orient yourself from the outside than after entering.

Directly in front of you is the section of the medieval fortress, called the Sully Wing. When you enter, you will first take the escalator up to this wing to visit the antique exhibits. To your right, along the Seine, is the Denon wing. Later, you will walk through the Grand Gallery of this wing to see Italian paintings from the 1300s to 1500s and find the Mona Lisa.

To your left, looking towards the pyramid, is the Richelieu wing. You will conclude today’s tour in this wing, exploring the glass-roofed courtyard, with its magnificent statue, displayed on terraces and bathed in constant natural light.

Follow a route sequence from Sully to Denon to Richelieu

Once you’re inside, follow the sequence of paths you traced while standing outside in the courtyard. Start with the Sully wing. Go from there to the Denon wing and end your visit in the Richelieu wing. Completing this circuit will take you around two hours, plus the time you take a break to rest at Café Mollien, on the landing of the grand staircase of the Denon wing.

Start at the medieval Louvre

To begin your circuit, take the Sully escalator directly in front of you and follow the signs for the medieval Louvre on the lower deck. You are now below the Louvre of today. In front of you is the cylindrical tower that was once part of the fortress wall that King Philip II ordered built around Paris in 1190 as he was about to set out on the Third Crusade. To see the scope of the original fortress, place the model next to the entrance to the old fortress moats.

Visit the Hall of the Caryatids

This collection of Roman copies of Greek sculptures is phenomenal. The front door is a copy of the caryatids, four gigantic sculpted female figures, holding on their heads what was once the base of a musicians’ gallery. Other notable statues in this room include Diana of Versailles, Artemis with the doeand the Centaur.

find the famous Venus de Milo and winged victory

Turn left through the sculpture room door and walk through the rooms of Greek antiquities to find the Venus du Milo, with a broken nose and missing arms. This is one of the most famous ancient Greek statues, discovered in 1820 buried in the ruins of the ancient city of Milos. She is still beautiful despite her disfigurements.

Follow your steps towards the Denon wing up the magnificent staircase, daru ladder, illuminated by the windows of the domes above. Here you will find, brilliantly displayed as if floating above you, the statue of the Winged Victory.

Discover the many metaphors of the sun in the audience room of Louis XIV

Go up the stairs to the left of Winged Victory and cross the roundabout to the entrance of the Apollo Gallery. This part of the old palace was used by Louis XIV, the Sun King, as an audience room. Louis chose the sun as his emblem because of his ties to Apollo, god of peace and the arts. So, of course, sun metaphors abound. The rotunda’s painted ceiling depicts the fall of Icarus, flying too close to the sun. The gallery itself displays paintings that trace the path of the sun. On the vaulted ceiling of the gallery there are allegorical images of Apollo.

Walk through the Grand Gallery and find the Mona Lisa

the massive great gallery it houses more Italian paintings than you could fully absorb in your lifetime. You will walk through room after room of them. Pause at those paintings that catch your eye, but otherwise keep moving. Look out for signs of the Mona Lisa, the masterpiece that Leonardo da Vinci himself brought across the Alps in 1515 as a gift to his patron and friend, Françoise I. The area surrounding this painting is a scene from peat. But move on, then take your time to see it fully. It is worth any amount of effort to stand in front of this mysterious work of genius and have this story to tell at home.

Pause for a coffee or snack at an outdoor table at Café Mollien

When your feet start to ache, and your eyes have been blinded by too much gorgeous art, pause for a break at Café Mollien, located on the landing of the Escalier (staircase) Mollien. Find a table on the outdoor terrace, overlooking the pyramid. From this vantage point, you’ll be able to look across the courtyard towards the Richelieu wing, your final destination for today’s tour.

Walk through the Michelangelo Gallery

Take the time to head downstairs to the ground floor to visit the Michelangelo Gallery. Among the many fine sculptures here are notable ones by Michelangelo rebel slave and dying slavefurther psyche and cupid of Canova.

Enter the glass-roofed sculpture courtyard.

Retrace your steps to Escalier Mollien and walk down to the ground floor to cross into the Richelieu wing. Here you will visit the vast glass ceiling marley cut, dedicated to the statues of Marley. This enclosed courtyard was created by IM Pei in 1993 by covering with glass, like the pyramid, what had been the open courtyard of the Minister of Finance. The impressive statues in this courtyard, depicting prancing horses and racing gods, were formerly located in Marly, the country palace on the banks of the Seine that was Louis XIV’s favorite residence. The statues, missing fingers, toes or nose, still bear the marks of living outdoors.

Much to your relief, you will find banks here. Sit among the statues and enjoy the sunlight through the glass ceiling. Be sure to locate the incomparable marly horses.

Follow your visit to the Louvre with a stroll through the Tuileries Gardens

It’s time to leave the Louvre for now, knowing that you will return. But take time to walk through the Italian gardens in front, created by Catherine de Medici. These gardens were once for the eyes of royalty as well. only. But they’ve been open to the public since 1667, and they’re genuinely beautiful, with flowers blooming from May to October and many magnificent statues.

Walk down to the large octagonal pool at the far end of the gardens, surrounded by tall but also comfortable lounge chairs. Find a chair for yourself and pause to soak up the sun alongside the many Parisians relaxing in comfort.

You have now visited (and survived) the Louvre, at least in your mind. You have followed in the footsteps of the kings of yore, who once treasured these masterpieces of art and sculpture for themselves and their court. When you repeat your imaginary visit with a real one, the experience will become a memory for a lifetime.