The world's famous tourist attraction, Eiffel Tower, has joined the Louvre in closing down.

The Tower will be closed to the public as of 9 pm this evening, the Express.co.uk reported

In a televised address to the nation on Thursday, President Emmanuel Macron announced school closures and urged people to avoid close contact for fear of spreading the virus that has killed 61 people in France and infected almost 3,000.

Disneyland Paris will also close after three employees tested positive for COVID-19.

In a statement, the Walt Disney Company said the move was being made "in an abundance of caution".

Hotels will remain open to give guests time to make alternative arrangements and will close their doors at the close of business on Sunday, March 15.

The tourist industry has been dented in the City of Light. Rachid Said, who manages the Monsieur Saintonge, a four-star hotel in the Marais district, has seen bookings plummet by 30-40% this month. The hotel has slashed its prices in half but there hasn’t been an increase in bookings, he said.

Mr Said told AFP the virus is having a bigger impact on business than the populist yellow vests movement which brought tens of thousands to the streets to protest for economic justice through arson attacks on state buildings and violent marches involving setting bins on fire and lobbing paving stones.

He told AFP: "It is starting to feel like catastrophe. It is worse than the strikes, worse than the yellow vests.

“Tourists are scared to come, and I can understand that.”