Paris landmarks Louvre, Eiffel Tower close early as heatwave grips France; Tour de France stage shortened

Paris monuments shut early

The Eiffel Tower closed at 4pm on Saturday, hours before its usual midnight shut, as Paris reached 35 degrees Celsius. The iron monument, which can expand by several centimetres during a heatwave, was closed for the safety of visitors and staff. The Louvre shut at the same hour, while the Musée d’Orsay locked its doors at 5pm, leaving thousands of holidaymakers stranded. “Aujourd’hui, c’est fermé à cause de la chaleur,” one tourist told others outside the tower.

The building, although naturally resilient in parts of its architecture, remains fragile and insufficiently adapted to climate change.

The museum said late-day heat build-up no longer guarantees comfort for visitors or staff. Mont-Saint-Michel, the tidal island in Normandy, urged tourists to postpone their trips as narrow alleys baked at 37 degrees. Red Cross and civil protection teams were deployed there to assist visitors in distress.

Heatwave tightens its grip on France

Météo-France placed 24 departments under its highest red alert on Saturday, covering some 22.2 million people. The number of red-alert departments is set to rise to 37 on Sunday and to 58 by Wednesday, putting nearly all of France under serious strain. President Emmanuel Macron called for vigilance as wildfires have already consumed roughly twice the area burned by the same point last year. “A single second of carelessness can endanger families, endanger those who protect us, and destroy our landscape,” he wrote on X.

The current heatwave is the third to strike the country since May. Official figures attribute more than 2,000 excess deaths to June’s extreme temperatures and about 300 to the May episode. Parisians sought relief in three open-air swimming pools in the Seine, which reopened for the summer this weekend and will stay available until 30 August. The Louvre’s statement underscored a broader anxiety: many historic French buildings are ill-equipped for prolonged extreme heat, prompting fresh debate about installing air conditioning systems.

Tour de France stage shortened

Organisers of the Tour de France announced an unprecedented move on Saturday: stage 9, the 185-kilometre run from Malemort to Ussel scheduled for Sunday, will be cut by 30 kilometres to 155 km. The route will deviate shortly after the start at Brive-la-Gaillarde, skipping the initial section to Lanteuil.

This decision was made necessary due to exceptional weather conditions. The goal is to allow the race to proceed in conditions compatible with the red heatwave alert.

The alteration is the first of its kind in the race’s history.

Fireworks fizzle before Bastille Day

With the 14 July national holiday approaching, dozens of municipalities have cancelled traditional fireworks displays because of drought and elevated fire risk. Bans in various departments run through mid-July or even into August. Lyon received an exceptional permit to proceed, while La Rochelle and Saint-Denis-d’Oléron kept their shows because fireworks would be launched from the sea. Several towns, including Chelles in Seine-et-Marne, postponed spectacles and are exploring drone light shows as a safer alternative.

Deadly fires in southern Spain

The heatwave extends beyond France. In Andalusia, firefighters have battled blazes for three days. The fires have claimed 12 lives, left more than 20 people missing, and scorched over 6,600 hectares. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is due to visit the affected areas on Monday to pledge government support as residents guard their homes in fear.