Palais Garnier, Paris — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

The Palais Garnier is one of the most opulent buildings in Paris and the setting that inspired Gaston Leroux's "The Phantom of the Opera." It opened on January 5, 1875, and remains one of the world's most celebrated opera houses.

The building was designed by 35-year-old architect Charles Garnier, who won a competition in 1860 from among 171 entries. When Empress Eugenie asked him what style the building was in, he reportedly replied, "It's in the Napoleon III style, Madame." Construction took 14 years, delayed by the Franco-Prussian War, the Paris Commune, and the discovery of an underground lake beneath the building site.

That underground lake is real, and it inspired the subterranean lake in Leroux's 1910 novel. The building actually sits above a water reservoir that the Paris fire brigade still uses as a water reserve.

The Grand Staircase, made of white Carrara marble with a polychrome marble balustrade, is one of the most photographed interiors in Paris. The auditorium ceiling was repainted by Marc Chagall in 1964, a controversial decision that replaced the original 1869 work.

The Palais Garnier seats 1,979 and continues to host opera, ballet, and orchestral performances. Self-guided visits are available when no rehearsals are scheduled.

If you're on a Questo quest through Paris, the Palais Garnier is a stop where real architecture inspired fiction, and where a phantom might still be lurking beneath the Grand Staircase.