Officials at the Louvre in Paris are granting free entry to the museum the first Saturday night of every month in a bid to attract more French people, especially less affluent visitors. A previous free-admission scheme introduced in 1996, implemented on six Sundays annually, has been abandoned. The first free night at the museum is due to launch 5 January; admission is usually €17.
The move is part of a plan to “democratise” the museum, say officials who also hope to draw more lower-income visitors. The inaugural event will include a board game area and reading corner for families. Jean-Luc Martinez, the director of the Louvre, says that "the free Saturday night [scheme] is a new, more convivial way, to discover the [museum]”.