The Eiffel Tower reopened to visitors on Tuesday morning, 8 September 2026, after staff went on strike to protest the exclusion of female employees during a visit by a Hindu religious delegation. The tower’s operating company acknowledged that the delegation’s request to limit interaction with women should not have been accepted.
The resumption of operations followed the tourist landmark’s closure on Monday for a meeting between employees and the operating company’s management. Visitors again began passing through security checkpoints at the tower’s base. The landmark attracts about 7 million visitors annually.
Instructions sidelined female staff
The operating company said the delegation had asked for its visit on Saturday to be organized in a way that limited interaction with women, stressing that these conditions should not have been accepted.
In a statement, tower employees said work instructions had sidelined, replaced and kept female staff out of sight because of their gender. They added that some female workers had been asked to leave their posts and move to other areas, while men replaced them at some positions. Female employees were also barred from being in or passing through certain areas during the delegation’s visit.
Hindu organization apologizes
The Hindu spiritual movement known by the acronym BAPS apologized for any harm or inconvenience caused by the incident. In a post on X, it said that, to its knowledge, no one had been prevented from entering the tower.
The organization said the visit was scheduled at the start of official operating hours because of the delegation’s size, in order to avoid disrupting the movement of other visitors.
The visit coincided with the organization’s opening on Sunday of its first major temple in France, on the outskirts of Paris. Its spiritual leader, 93-year-old Mahant Swami Maharaj, led the temple’s consecration and inauguration ceremonies. The organization, which is close to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party, says its global network includes more than 1,300 temples.
Political criticism of incident
Gender Equality Minister Aurore Bergé criticized the incident, saying women in France are not asked to erase their presence. Presidential candidate Marine Le Pen also rejected limiting women’s presence, while candidate Gabriel Attal said that no culture, belief or religion should dictate the place women should occupy.
