The Louvrevreux, the world’s most visited museum and one of the most beloved arts institutions, suddenly closed its doors on June 16th as museum workers staged an unplanned strike.
Thousands of confused visitors are surrounded by chaotic rows outside near the museum’s iconic glass pyramid, according to various media outlets, including reports on the Associated Press and social media. The AP reported that the issue began during an internal meeting in which museum workers, including gallery attendants and security guards, refused to feature their posts, citing poor working conditions such as “uncontrollable crowds and chronic staffing shortages.”
For visitors, at least for visitors, the good news is that the museum has reopened. Some visitors affected by Monday’s strike reported on social media that they could use tickets to enter the next day.
However, the incident sounded the alarm (again) all the way to the ongoing challenges of popular destinations that are crushed by the weight of too many tourists. The strike at the Louvre came on June 15th the day after a wave of anti-tourism protests in southern Europe spanning Barcelona, Mallorca, Genoa and other tourist hubs. Some protesters sprayed tourists with water pistols, blocked tourist buses in at least one case, and raised flags to protest over the flag. Locals are tired of the impact of overtourism on resources such as housing and the lack of government response to alleviating tensions.
This is Lisa Get a new room
While the French are well known for exercising their right to protest, the Louvre closure on Monday marks a relatively unusual event. The previous closures were during the pandemic before the unannounced strike. But it’s not a deadly virus, it’s just too many visitors, the reason for a voluntary staff strike in 2019, and staff also held a strike in 2013, citing that the gang of thieves became “more aggressive” and targeted both workers and visitors.
According to a statement from the museum, Louvre had nearly 9 million visitors in 2024, with 92% of whom said they were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the experience. But the vast amount of visitors stuffing in the biggest room, the Salesétats, is just for snapping selfies. This is LisaLeonardo da Vinci’s 16th century masterpieces are increasingly common complaints.
Suppressing these crowds (or at least redirecting them) was a well-known topic in recent public discourse. Monday’s strike comes months after French President Emmanuel Macron announced a comprehensive, decade-long plan to overhaul the facility, and was upgraded to an aging infrastructure aimed at alleviating issues such as water leaks, temperature fluctuations and enormous visitors.
With a price tag of between $730 and $830 million, the new plan, which will be fully funded by the museum’s “own resources,” includes “special places.” This is Lisa. It is in the portrait The new exhibition spot, which has “independent access paths” and “independently accessible compared to other museums,” is a press conference at the Louvre, where the mysterious paintings behind him were revealed. world.
The new plan also addresses the issue of crowding at the entrance to the museum’s pyramid, where annoyed visitors gathered after improvised workers attacked Monday.
