Is Influencer Culture Ruining Paris for Travelers?

Tourists in Paris are starting to notice something beyond the crowds and the lines: a growing wave of staged photo shoots in public places. Influencer culture isn’t just a niche phenomenon anymore, it’s shaping the way people experience the city. And for many travelers, it’s starting to take a toll.

Here’s what visitors say they’re seeing, and how it’s changing the Paris experience.

Some Public Spaces Get Hijacked for Photos

At places like the Musée d’Orsay, travelers describe people staging full photo shoots in areas meant for circulation, sometimes blocking doorways for several minutes.

One visitor says they couldn’t re-enter the museum from the terrace because a couple was monopolizing the entrance for a photoshoot. She posed while he took hundreds of shots, then they reviewed them on the spot, still blocking the door.

This kind of setup isn’t rare. It happens at restaurant tables, museum galleries, café terraces, and even staircases in metro stations.

The Louvre and Palais Garnier Among the Worst-Hit Spots

The Mona Lisa room in the Louvre gets mentioned a lot, not just for its usual crowding, but for the volume of influencer-style visitors who pose for selfies or video clips without engaging with the artwork.

At Palais Garnier, travelers say the balconies are often dominated by women in full ballgowns taking endless photos. It’s not rare to see the same person in the same spot for over an hour, holding up traffic in one of Paris’s most iconic interiors.

Even High-End Restaurants Aren’t Immune

Some people witnessed two women spending their entire meal taking staged photos at a 3 Michelin-star restaurant. They switch seats, pose with wine glasses, walk around the dining room, and even shoot in the bathroom.

This disrupts the mood for other diners and creates more traffic for the staff.

This type of behavior has also been spotted at Disneyland Paris, where people try to claim scenic spots as their personal set while others wait for parades.

Some Visitors Stopped Waiting

Patience is wearing thin. Dozens of travelers now say they simply walk through the frame, sometimes deliberately. They give a few seconds at most, then pass by.

Some pause just long enough to be visible in the shot, others carry flashlights or phones to disrupt the image if someone refuses to move from a blocked area.

In cafés and museums, locals are especially direct. Some Paris residents have no hesitation walking through staged scenes, and they recommend visitors do the same.

Businesses Now Cater to This Behavior

Travelers note a growing number of cafés and restaurants being designed with influencers in mind.

One well-known restaurant closed for renovation and reopened with decor tailored for photoshoots. It now regularly draws people who sit down, pose, and leave without ordering anything.

The trend of over-the-top flower façades is also designed purely for Instagram. These places often become so crowded that regular customers stop coming.

The Behavior Isn’t Just From Professionals

There’s a clear difference between a professional getting a shot quickly and amateurs doing drawn-out shoots in public.

Most disruptive behavior comes from regular tourists imitating influencer habits – posing at length, carrying props, or changing outfits mid-visit.

One visitor describes seeing people wheeling suitcases full of hats and jackets to rotate through looks at famous landmarks.

Museums Struggle to Balance Access and Enjoyment

Some visitors feel museums like the Louvre and Orsay should ban phones entirely or enforce photo-free times. A few museums have tested these policies, but enforcement is difficult and often met with backlash.

Still, many believe such changes would dramatically improve the visitor experience, especially in galleries filled with delicate or detailed works.

Tour Groups and Social Media Tourists Add to the Congestion

Tour groups sometimes block rooms for selfies or crowd into entrances for the same angle. Some visitors walk through entire exhibits without stopping to look, just filming themselves on the way through.

Some travelers now avoid big-name sights entirely, opting for quieter rooms or lesser-known museums.

Locals Are Losing Access to Their Own City

Paris residents sometimes compares the situation to cities like Venice. Many rarely visit popular spots anymore because of the disruption.

There is widespread frustration at the transformation of public spaces into photo sets, making it harder to enjoy everyday life in the city. The sense of “shared space” is fading as more people treat it like a private backdrop.