By Harry Nara · Last updated
- Where
- Stade Roland-Garros
- Tickets
- Ticketed
- Time of year
- May to June
- Dates
- Around the same dates every year
The organiser publishes the tournament as running from 17 May to 6 June 2027. The opening days are qualifying, with the main draw following; the official site confirms the split each year when the schedule is released.
The second week is expensive, hard to get into and mostly watched from a long way back. The opening days are cheap, easy to get into, and put you a few metres from professional tennis on the outside courts. If the point of the trip is to watch tennis rather than to watch a final, go early, and treat the qualifying and first-round days as the event rather than the warm-up.
What Roland-Garros actually is
The clay-court Grand Slam, played at Stade Roland-Garros on the western edge of Paris beside the Bois de Boulogne. Clay is slower than grass or hard court, which makes rallies longer and matches later-finishing, and it is the surface that separates this tournament from the other three.
The site is three main show courts and a spread of outside courts. Court Philippe-Chatrier is the largest and has a retractable roof; Suzanne-Lenglen is the second; Simonne-Mathieu sits within the botanical garden and is the one regulars recommend. The outside courts are where the tournament is at its best for a casual visitor, because you stand close enough to hear the ball.
Where to watch Roland-Garros
- The outside courts in the opening week. Full professional matches, several running at once, watched from a few metres away rather than from the upper tier of a stadium. This is the argument for going early and it is a strong one.
- Court Simonne-Mathieu. Sunk into the greenhouses of the neighbouring botanical garden, it is the most pleasant place to sit on the site and is included with tickets that do not command Chatrier prices.
- Court Philippe-Chatrier. The main stadium and the one with the roof, which matters on a tournament played through changeable spring weather. Second-week seats here are the expensive end of the event.
- The screens on the grounds. A ticket to the grounds lets you watch whatever is on the big screens between matches, which on a rain-affected day is what a large part of the crowd ends up doing.
Tickets and what it costs
Tickets are released by the organiser in stages rather than all at once, typically opening with a registration and priority-sale process months ahead of the tournament, followed by general availability and a resale platform for returned tickets. Because of that staging, the practical question is not where to buy but when to be watching, and registering your interest on the official site is what puts you in front of the release.
Prices are strongly graded by day and by court. The qualifying and opening days are a fraction of the second week, and the difference is far larger than the difference in the tennis you watch from an outside court. Night sessions on the main court are sold as separate tickets from the day.
Buy from the official site or its own resale platform. Roland-Garros is one of the events where the secondary market around it is both expensive and, for unofficial sellers, risky.
Official information and booking: www.rolandgarros.com
Getting there
The stadium sits in the sixteenth arrondissement by the Bois de Boulogne. Porte d’Auteuil and Michel-Ange Auteuil on Line 10 are the usual approach, with Michel-Ange Molitor on Line 9 an alternative when the first two are crowded. Allow longer than the map suggests on a busy day, because the walk in from the metro is funnelled through security.
Remember that the flat regional fare covers this journey but not the airports, and that the tournament runs through the part of spring when Paris is busiest.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Aiming for the second week
It costs several times as much, sells out first, and puts you further from the court. The opening days are the value in this tournament by a wide margin.
Buying from the secondary market
Use the official site and its own resale platform. Tickets bought elsewhere are expensive at best and void at worst.
Treating a ground ticket as a stadium ticket
What you can enter depends on which ticket you hold, and the main court is not included by default. Check what the ticket covers before you assume Chatrier is part of it.
Not planning for rain
This is spring in Paris on clay. Only the main court has a roof, so a wet day means outside play stops and the grounds fill up around the screens.
Other Paris events
Frequently asked questions
When is the cheapest time to go to Roland-Garros?
The opening days, including qualifying. Prices are graded steeply by day, and the gap between the first days and the second week is far bigger than the difference in the tennis you see from an outside court. For a visitor who wants to watch professional tennis close up rather than to attend a final, going early is better value and easier to get into.
How do you buy Roland-Garros tickets?
Through the official site, which releases them in stages rather than all at once: a registration and priority-sale period months ahead, then general availability, with an official resale platform for returned tickets. Registering interest early is what puts you in front of the release. Avoid the secondary market, which is both expensive and unreliable for this tournament.
Which court should I try to get at Roland-Garros?
Court Simonne-Mathieu if you want the most pleasant seat on the site, since it sits inside the neighbouring botanical garden greenhouses and does not carry main-court prices. Philippe-Chatrier is the biggest and the only one with a roof, which matters in changeable spring weather. For a first visit, though, the outside courts in the first week give you the closest view of professional tennis you will ever get.
How do you get to Roland-Garros on the metro?
Line 10 to Porte d’Auteuil or Michel-Ange Auteuil, with Michel-Ange Molitor on Line 9 as the less crowded alternative. The stadium is in the sixteenth arrondissement beside the Bois de Boulogne. Allow more time than the journey suggests, because the walk from the station funnels into security queues on busy days.
What happens at Roland-Garros if it rains?
Only Court Philippe-Chatrier has a roof, so play continues there and stops everywhere else. The grounds then fill up around the big screens and the covered areas. Know that before you choose a day, because a ticket that does not include the main court is worth less in wet weather.
Sources
Dates on this page are checked against the organiser’s own listing and confirmed through 2027. Written and maintained by Harry Nara.