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I've heard that it's a good idea to buy tickets in advance of visiting the catacombs of Paris. Can someone tell me how to do this? I did research it a bit, and there are a number of sites selling tickets and "add-ons" Frankly, some of them seem like scams. I could buy the tickets here in California, or wait until getting to Paris and buy them somewhere.

Where can I buy the tickets ahead of time and are there any discounts available? My daughter has a french passport if that helps (I don't think it does because the Catacombs are not a public museum) and we could certainly understand a french tour guide/tape if that saves money.

Thank you,
Dave

I think that Catacombs are one of the few attractions in Paris that don't require an early booking, because they are not so crowded.
Anyway, if you want to buy them, you can do it via the official website (it's in english)

http://www.catacombes.paris.fr/en/homepage-catacombs-official-website

the french passport doesn't give you any discount.
There are some discounts for people under 26 years old or members of some associations, you can find the full list here:

http://www.catacombes.paris.fr/en/visit/access-opening-times-accessibility/museum-admission

For 5 euros you can get an audioguide.

What time of year are you going to Paris? If you are going during high season, usually April-September/October, I would DEFINITELY purchase tickets online. I have waited in that line 3.5 hours before and it is not fun.

They only let in 200 people at a time to avoid overcrowding, so there is really no way for them to speed up the wait time when there are a lot of people.

You can go on the Catacombs website and purchase them directly there. They have recently changed it so that all of their tickets purchased online ahead of time are "jump the line" tickets. Their site is really frustrating though because it is only in French and you have to create an account in order to purchase.

Otherwise I just had some friends of mine who said they visited with a guide using a company called The Paris Guy and that they had a really good time.

Have fun in Paris!

We went in May 2015 without a reservation. Just go in the morning, ideally before they open. We went about an hour before they opened and there was still a wait, but it was a nice day so it wasn't unpleasant.

Fortunately, they don't rush you while you're in there, and with the numbers being controlled, it's actually quite pleasant and relaxing down there. It's a very interesting experience.