Euro

PARIS — Long lines beneath I.M. Pei’s glass pyramid in Paris have become as much a part of the experience as the “ Mona Lisa ” itself.

Now the Louvre is putting a higher price on that pilgrimage, raising admission prices on Wednesday for most non-European visitors by nearly half as it tries to shore up finances after repeated strikes, chronic overcrowding — and a brazen French Crown Jewels heist that shook the institution.

The museum said the 45% price hike to 32 euros ($37) from 22 euros is part of a national “differentiated pricing” policy announced early last year that’s coming into force across major cultural sites, including the Versailles Palace, the Paris Opera and the Sainte-Chapelle.

But French worker unions have denounced the Louvre ticketing change, saying it undermines the universal mission of the world’s most visited museum — home to the “Venus de Milo” and the “Winged Victory of Samothrace.”

Some visitors echoed those concerns outside the Louvre on Wednesday.

“Culture should be open to everyone — yes — at the same price,” said Laurent Vallet, visiting Paris from Burgundy.

Despite the hike, workers walked out again Monday in the latest strike over pay and working conditions, thrusting the museum’s internal strain back into public view.

‘We’re still going to go’

The change affects visitors from most non-EU countries, including the United States, which typically accounts for the majority of the Louvre’s foreign tourists.

Under the new structure, visitors who are neither citizens nor residents of the EU — or Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway — will pay the higher rate.

The new price applies to individual visitors outside Europe; guided groups will pay 28 euros, with tours capped at 20 people “to maintain the quality of the visit,” the museum said.

Still, some tourists questioned the logic of charging visitors more. “In general, for tourists things should be a little bit cheaper than local people because we have to travel to come all the way here,” said Darla Daniela Quiroz, visiting from Vancouver.

Others said they would pay anyway. “It’s one of the main attractions here in Paris … We’re still going to go,” said Allison Moore, a Canadian tourist from Newfoundland visiting with her mother. “Hopefully it’ll be all worth it in the end.”

The CGT Culture union has denounced the policy, arguing it turns access to culture into a “commercial product” and creates unequal access to national heritage

Some categories remain eligible for free admission, though, including visitors under the age of 18.

The last price hike was in January 2024, when the standard entry fee rose from 17 euros to 22 euros.

Not just the Mona Lisa

The Louvre says it is not alone. Versailles and other flagship tourist attractions are adopting similar two-tier pricing this month.

At Versailles, the “Passport” ticket will cost 35 euros in high season for visitors from outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, compared to 32 euros for visitors who are citizens or residents of those countries. At Sainte-Chapelle, the ticket rises to 22 euros for visitors from outside those countries, versus 16 euros for those within them, according to heritage officials.

The Louvre said the new tariff will help finance investment under its “Louvre — New Renaissance” modernization project and could bring in as much as 20 million euros more per year.

A heist and an institution under scrutiny

French museums had already been considering higher fees for visitors from outside Europe before the Oct. 19 theft of French Crown Jewels from the Louvre, valued by investigators at about 88 million euros.

However, the robbery that was carried out in daylight, in minutes — was a speed and audacity that intensified scrutiny of how France protects its most prized cultural treasures.

It also fueled debate over how major landmarks should pay for upgrades and whether visitors should carry a bigger share of the cost.

Elsewhere in Europe, the standard entry to Rome’s Colosseum, along with the Forum and Palatine Hill, is 18 euros ($20), and an adult ticket for Athens’ Acropolis is 30 euros ($33).

Strike, strike — and strike again

The Louvre has repeatedly been forced to confront its internal stresses in public.

In June, a wildcat strike by gallery attendants, ticket agents and security staff delayed the museum’s daily opening, leaving thousands of visitors stranded beneath the pyramid.

Workers said the Louvre had buckled under mass tourism, citing unmanageable crowds, chronic understaffing and deteriorating working conditions.

By December, unions said the heist and the building’s condition had turned their long-running grievances into a national reckoning. Louvre workers voted to continue striking until what they consider real change comes to the aging former royal palace.

Adamson writes for the Associated Press. Jeffrey Schaeffer in Paris contributed to this report.

Move comes nearly two decades after the Balkan country entered the EU as hope for stability clashes with fear of rising prices.

Bulgaria has officially adopted the euro, becoming the 21st country to join the single currency nearly two decades after entering the European Union, a move that has led to both celebration and anxiety.

At midnight on Wednesday (22:00 GMT), the Balkan country abandoned the lev, its national currency since the late 19th century.

Images of Bulgarian euro coins lit up the central bank’s headquarters in Sofia as crowds gathered in freezing temperatures to mark the new year.

“I warmly welcome Bulgaria to the euro family,” said Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank.

Some residents welcomed the change with optimism. “Great! It works!” said Dimitar, 43, speaking to The Associated Press after withdrawing 100 euros from a cash machine shortly after midnight.

Successive Bulgarian governments have backed euro adoption, arguing it would strengthen the country’s fragile economy, anchor it more firmly within Western institutions and shield it from what officials describe as Russian influence. Bulgaria, with a population of about 6.4 million, remains the poorest member of the EU.

Divided public

Yet public opinion has long remained split. Many Bulgarians fear the euro will drive up prices while wages stagnate, worsening living standards in a country already struggling with political instability.

In a televised address before midnight, President Rumen Radev described the euro as the “final step” in Bulgaria’s integration into the EU.

However, he criticised the absence of a public referendum on the decision.

“This refusal was one of the dramatic symptoms of the deep divide between the political class and the people, confirmed by mass demonstrations across the country,” Radev said.

Bulgaria recently plunged into further uncertainty after anticorruption protests toppled a conservative-led government in December, pushing the country towards its eighth election in five years.

“People are afraid that prices will rise, while salaries will remain the same,” a woman in her 40s told the AFP news agency in Sofia.

At city markets, vendors listed prices in both levs and euros. Not everyone was worried.

“The whole of Europe has managed with the euro, we’ll manage too,” retiree Vlad said.

Bulgaria is saying goodbye to the lev and officially adopting the euro, but some citizens worry that shops will round up when changing currencies, making everything more expensive. Al Jazeera’s Aksel Zaimovic explains their concerns.

Dec. 31 (UPI) — Bulgaria will begin using the euro as its currency on Thursday, and the country hopes it will bring an economic boost, despite concerns.

Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007, but it’s only now adopting the currency after strong debate and political turbulence.

It’s the 21st country to join the eurozone, and lawmakers in Brussels and Sofia hope it will boost the economy of the EU’s poorest nation.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the move one of the EU’s greatest achievements.

“This milestone reflects years of hard work and commitment, overcoming challenges,” she said in a statement. “The euro will bring benefits for the Bulgarian people making payments and travel easier. It will bring new opportunities for Bulgarian businesses, allowing them to seize better the advantages of our common single market. It will further strengthen Bulgaria’s voice in Europe. This step is good for Bulgaria, and it strengthens Europe as a whole. It makes our economy more resilient and competitive globally. Congratulations, Bulgaria! You can be proud of what you achieved.”

The country has had dual displays of prices — in the euro and the Bulgarian lev — since August, and that will continue until August 2026. Consumers can use both currencies beginning Jan. 1 through Jan. 31. On Feb. 1, they must only use the euro. The price displays are a way for consumers to monitor prices and a stopgap to prevent retailers from price gouging.

Bulgarians can exchange their currency at banks and post offices for free until July. After that, they can charge for exchanges.

The country is still divided on whether switching to the euro is a good move.

A recent survey by the Bulgarian ministry of finance showed that 51% of citizens wanted to adopt the euro, and 45% were against it, The Guardian reported.

In June, a fight broke out in the parliament when the measure was adopted by the European Commission. Parliament members from the Revival Party blocked the podium. They also organized protests against euro adoption. Revival is a far-right, pro-Russian political party.

Petar Ganev, senior research fellow at the Institute for Market Economics in Sofia, told The Guardian that the division on the euro highlights the country’s broader political tension.

“This is not surprising. The country is divided on almost everything that you can imagine,” Ganev said. “And after the political instability, we ended up in a very hostile political environment.”

Bulgaria has endured a four-year political crisis with seven parliamentary elections and widespread corruption, which has caused a lack of trust in the government.

Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commission economy minister, said in a November speech in Sofia that the adoption of the euro was especially important during Russia’s war with Ukraine, rising geopolitical tensions and global economic uncertainty.

“Most European countries — including Bulgaria — are far too small to shape today’s world on their own. They only stand to gain necessary weight by fully integrating into the European Union’s larger political and economic structures,” he said.

“The euro area is not just a group of countries sharing a common currency,” Dombrovskis said in his speech. “It is a powerful symbol to the world of European integration, economic stability, and geopolitical strength. It gives Europe a collective economic weight that allows it to shape global trade, investment, and financial markets.”

The latest Eurobarometer, a survey conducted by the EU in Autumn 2025, showed that 74% of Europeans said their country has benefited from being a member of the EU, and 59% are optimistic about the future of the EU.

Many Bulgarians fear that prices will spike during the transition. The average monthly income is about $1,500 in the country, so rising prices could be detrimental to some. But the European Commission has said there is no evidence that inflation will rise.

Victor Papazov, macroeconomist and adviser to the Revival party, claimed Bulgaria was heading for a crisis similar to what Greece endured in 2009.

“Any person in their right mind would oppose adopting the euro,” Papazov said in a written statement to The Guardian. “Joining now will make things worse and faster. In my opinion there is not a single serious positive in adopting the euro.”

Maria Valentinova, 35, a pharmacist from Sofia, told The Guardian that she is glad her young son will grow up in the eurozone. She said the currency “will be good for the economy of the country in the long run.”

Valentinova called the transition period “a bit stressful” but said, “I think it will be a good thing in the end.”

Ganev said Bulgarians will get used to the new currency quickly. “What will happen to our country and if we are going to be a good example in the eurozone or a bad example … depends entirely on us.”