Paris 2024 Olympics: Where to buy tickets, stay, how to get around and other essential details

The story of modern Olympics dates back to April 6, 1896, when the long-lost tradition of ancient Greece was reborn in Athens 1,500 years after being banned by Roman Emperor Theodosius I. It was Baron Pierre de Coubertin who brought together various parties involved in international sport at the Sorbonne University in Paris on June 23, 1894 with the intention of reviving the Olympic Games. The first modern Olympic was held in Athens in 1896 in which 13 countries participated for sporting glory. (Also read: Paris 2024 Olympics: 10 best places to eat in Paris)

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be held from July 26 to August 11 and the Paralympic Games is scheduled from August 28 to September 8. If you are planning to attend the Games, here’s all the essentials that you need to know.

Olympic venues

Most of the events will take place in Paris: fencing and taekwondo at the Grand Palais, beach volleyball and blind football at the Stade Eiffel, swimming, triathlon, and on-road cycling at the Pont Alexandre III. Also hosting events are historic stadiums like Parc des Princes, Stade de France, and Stade Roland Garros. In mainland France, the cities of Bordeaux, Nantes, Lyon, Saint-Etienne, Nice and Marseille will host the football tournament. The Pierre de Mauroy stadium in Lille will be the venue for the handball matches, and the Marina of Marseille (in the Mediterranean Sea) for the sailing events. Overseas, Tahiti, with its exceptional Teahupo'o wave, will host the surfing event. (Also read: How to plan a trip to see the Olympics this summer—without going to Paris)

Where to buy tickets?

Almost 10 million tickets for the Olympic Games and almost 3.4 million for the Paralympic Games are on sale. You can also buy tickets at paris24tickets.com. You can download the ‘Paris 2024 Tickets’ app to access your tickets, transfer them to your recipients and resell them securely. Be sure to buy tickets only on the official platforms: tickets.paris2024.org and hospitality packages on hospitalitytravelpackages.paris2024.org.

Resale of tickets

This is the only official Paris 2024 resale platform for reselling tickets for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Tickets offered for resale are available on the platform up to 12 hours before the start of the session. If no takers are found by this time, the ticket will automatically be returned to the seller and the original buyer will be able to use it to access the session.

Tickets for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 can only be purchased by people aged 16 and over. Any unauthorised sale or resale outside the official distribution channels is likely to constitute a civil offence as well as a criminal offence punishable under Article 313-6-2 of the French Criminal Code.

Individuals under the age of 16 can attend the Paris 2024 Games, provided they are accompanied by an adult.

Getting around

Several metro stations and roads will be closed during the Games. The blue and red perimeters are accessible to pedestrians, cyclists and skateboard and scooter users. Vélib' self-service bicycles will remain accessible throughout the Games. Cargo bikes may access the red perimeter after inspection.

Spectators with tickets or accredited persons may access the red perimeter on presentation of ID and after a check at specific entry points. It is possible to access a specific point in the blue perimeter by taxi after a check has been carried out.

For updated details about transport and road closure, click here.

You can also visit the website set up by the Ministry of Transport Anticipate the Games where visitors, Parisians and Ile-de-France residents will find an interactive map, advice, tools to help them getting around.

Accommodation

With the Games fast approaching, book your accommodation as early as possible. Stay at the heart of the Games with Airbnb, worldwide partner of Paris 2024. Or experience the excitement up close with ALL, Premium Partner of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Stay at the world’s best hotel brands: ibis, Novotel, Mercure, Pullman, Sofitel and more, always at the best price guaranteed on ALL.com.

If you are looking for hotels, youth hostels, bed and breakfasts, book your accommodation with Paris je t'aime.

Enjoy the Olympic Games for free

Attend the Paris 2024 triathlon for free: The swimming (1.5 km), cycling (40 km) and running (10 km) events in the triathlon take place right in the centre of Paris. Only the stands situated at the level of the bridges Alexandre-III bridge (start/finish area) and Champs-Élysées bridge are ticketed (paying).

On August 10 and 11, marathon runners cover 42.195 km in a circular route between Paris and Versailles. The same applies to the marathon swimming events, with 6 loops of 1.67 km each in the Seine, between the Alma bridge and the Alexandre-III bridge.

Road cycling events

All the road cycling events - the time trial on July 27, men's route on August 3 and the women’s route on August 4 are accessible free of charge to anyone standing along the route. Spectators can also watch the final sprint across the Butte Montmartre.

Fan Zones

Also, for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games event, Paris City Hall is setting up 25 fan zones in which Olympic events are broadcast on giant screens. Plus, there will be special activities, refreshment stands, play areas and awareness raising spaces. Champions Park at Trocadéro will be freely accessible every day and where fans can greet the previous day’s medal winners.

Opening & closing ceremonies

The opening ceremonies will not take place in a stadium, as is traditional, but in the heart of Paris. The Olympic Games Opening Ceremony will be held on July 26 - the national delegations will travel six kilometres along the river aboard small boats from the Austerlitz Bridge to the Trocadéro, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. Note that the opening ceremony is only open to spectators with a ticket or by invitation.

First-time disciplines in Olympic Games

There is going to be ‘dancing’ in Paris 2024. Breaking, also known as breakdancing, is making its debut at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The events (August 9 & 10) - both men's and women's - consist of ‘battles’ between 16 participants, one-on-one, to music set by a DJ. The dancers compete for the highest artistic score from the judges, to become the first Olympic medallists in the history of this discipline. Sport climbing, skateboarding, and surfing are the other three new sports for the Paris 2024 Olympics.