Must see places in Paris

What to do and see in Paris ?

Find out what the “must see” places are and what you can do in the city. Read the list and pick your choices of the best things to see – also the things that are for free, maybe you will have fun without spending a cent.

Below we have some recommendations for you. You can use the disqus field below to share experiences with other travellers.

Louvre

The Louvre is one of the largest palaces in the world and, as a former residence of the kings of France, also being one of the most illustrious one in Paris. It epitomizes traditional French architecture since the Renaissance, and it houses a magnificent collection of ancient and Western art.

The vast Palais Le Louvre was constructed around 1200 as a fortress and rebuilt in the mid 16th century for use as a royal palace. It became a public in 1793. The museum presents the main part of its treasures to visitors, in the new Richelieu wing, Islamic art collections, oriental antiques, French sculptures, objects d’art, French paintings & paintings from the Northern school including Rubens.

The Louvre palace in Paris dates back to 1190 and houses the Louvre museum. Its name has been taken from the Latin word Lupara (kennels). During eight centuries, it has been constantly enlarged and blown up by French kings and emperors alike. President François Mitterrand added the final touch to it with his “Le Grand Louvre” project. The project from1981 to 1997 includes an extension and the complete reformation of the museum. The famous Pei glass pyramid marks the new entrance to the museum.

The Louvre is both a splendid and huge royal palace along the Seine River and one of the best art museums in the world. It hosts the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci one of the most famous paintings in the world. From the pyramid entrance, one can also have the way in to one of the best and largest shopping centers in Paris, a really nice underground shopping experience. The relaxing Tuileries garden near by the Louvre museum is one of the most beautiful parks in Paris.

In the late 1980s the Louvre embarked upon an insistent program of renovation and development. When the first plans by the Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei were disclosed in 1984, they incorporated a glass pyramid in the central courtyard that would serve as the museum’s main entrance. Despite having protests before its construction, since its opening in 1989 the pyramid has proven remarkably effective in accommodating the large numbers of visitors. It has even become a relatively beloved landmark of the city. To mark its 200th anniversary, in November 1993, the museum unveiled the Richelieu wing in the quarters that had been vacated by the Ministry of Finance in 1989. This expansion, which completed the museums occupancy of the palace complex, added 230,000 square feet (21,390 sq meters) to the existing 325,000 square feet (30,225 sq meters) of exhibition space, and allowed it to put an additional 12,000 works of art on display in 165 new rooms.

The Museum is divided into four divisions – Sully, Denon, Richelieu and Hall Napoleon. Sully shapes the four sides of the Cent Carree at the eastern end of the building. Denon stretches along the Seine to the south. Richelieu is the northern wing along rue de Rivoli. The split level public area under the glass pyramid is known as the Hall Napoleon. It has an exhibit on the history of the Louvre, a bookshop, a restaurant, a cafe and auditoriums for concerts, lectures and films. The attraction of the Carrousel du Louvre shopping centre, which runs underground from the pyramid to the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, is an inverted glass pyramid, also by Pei. All in all a good blend well worth a full day of one’s time.

The Eiffel Tower

This enormous structure of exposed latticework supports made of iron, was constructed for the Paris Exposition of 1889. The Prince of Wales officiated at the ceremonial opening. Of the 700 proposals submitted in a design competition, one was collectively chosen, a radical conception from the French structural engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who was assisted in the design by engineers Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier, and architect Stephen Sauvestre.

The Eiffel Tower was admired by Rousseau, Utrillo, Chagall, and Delaunay. It was almost dismantled in 1909 at the termination of its 20-year lease, but was saved because of its antenna – used for telegraphy at that time. Beginning in 1910 it became part of the International Time Service. French radio and French television have also made use of its stature. In the 1960s, it was the subject of a wonderful study by semiologist Roland Barthes.

Built to commemorate the science and engineering achievements of its age, soaring 300m / 984 ft. and weighing 7000 tons, the structure is made up of two visibly distinct parts – a base composed of a platform resting on four separate supports and, above this, a slender tower created as the bents taper upward, rising above a second platform to come together in a unified column.

This unparalleled work, the tallest structure in the world until the Empire State Building was built about 40 years later, had several previous circumstances. Among them were the iron-supported railway viaducts designed by Eiffel, an arch bridge over the Douro River in Portugal with a span of 160 m, and a design for a circular, iron-frame tower proposed by the American engineers Clarke and Reeves for the Centennial Exposition of 1876. Eiffel acknowledged this influence publicly; as he was no stranger to the United States, having designed the wrought-iron pylon inside Frederic Bartholdi’s Statue of Liberty in 1885. Later in the same year, he had also begun work on the cupola of the Nice observatory.

In the basements of the eastern and western pillars, one can visit the gigantic 1899 machinery which powers the elevators. From the Tower’s three platforms -especially the topmost – the view of Paris is superb. It is generally agreed that one hour before sunset, the panorama is at its best. The camera should not be forgotten to capture a dazzling sunset on the Seine.

There are other magnificent views, especially when the Trocadéro fountains are in full force; one gets free show from the dancers and acrobats who perform around the Palais de Chaillot. The vast green boulevard beneath the tower is the Parc du Champs-de-Mars, which extends all the way to the 18th-century Ecole Militaire, at its southeast end. This formal lawn was once a parade ground for French troops.

The Eiffel Tower at night is one of the grand sights of Paris and shouldn’t be missed. The gold lighting highlights the delicacy of the steelwork in a way that is missed in daylight.

The Eiffel Tower is a real crowd pleaser. At the crossroads of the entire world, 180 million visitors have come since its construction. It’s not surprising when one considers that the Eiffel Tower is the monument that best symbolizes Europe. It’s also the one tourists prefer.

Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile, is the world’s largest triumphal arch. It forms the backdrop for an remarkable urban collection in Paris. The monument surmounts the hill of Chaillot at the center of a star-shaped configuration of 12 radiating avenues. It is the pinnacle of a vista seen the length of the Champs Elysées from the smaller Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel in the Tuileries gardens, and from the Obélisque de Luxor in the place de la Concorde.

Since 1920, the tomb of France’s Unknown Soldier has been sheltered underneath the arch. Its eternal flame memorializes the dead of the two world wars, and is rekindled every evening at 6:30. On every Armistice Day, the President of the Republic lays a ceremonial wreath on the tomb. On July 14, the French National Day, a military parade begins at the arch and proceeds down the Champs Elysées. For main occasions of state, and on national holidays, a huge French tricolor is unfurled and hung from the vaulted ceiling inside of the Arch. The last leg of the Tour de France bicycle race also finishes here on the third or fourth Sunday in July.

At the bases of the Arc’s pillars are four huge relief sculptures, commemorating The Triumph of 1810; Resistance, Peace; and the Departure of the Volunteers, which is commonly known as La Marseillaise. On the day the Battle of Verdun started, the sword carried by the figure representing the Republic broke off from La Marseillaise. The relief was immediately hidden to conceal the accident, so that it would not be interpreted as a bad omen.

Carved around the top of the Arch are the names of major victories won during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods. However the names of less important victories, as well as those of 558 generals, can be found on the inside walls.

The first view of this enormous monument will be startling. Naturally as it is the largest arch in the world. The imposing triumphal arch in Paris standing on an elevation at the end of the Avenue des Champs Élysées and in the center of the Place de l’Étoile, which is formed by the intersection of 12 radiating avenues. It celebrates the victories of Napoleon I, under whose decree it was built. Construction was begun in 1806 by J. F. Chalgrin from his own designs and was carried on after his death by L. Goust, J. N. Huyot, and G. A. Blouet successively, who brought the arch to completion in 1836. In 1920 the body of an unknown French soldier of World War I was interred beneath the arch, and a perpetual flame was lighted.

One can climb right to the top of the Arc De Triomphe for a small fee. Any person will have to climb 260 steps up the narrow spiral staircase. Inside the arch, at the top, there is a small museum which has displays about topical events and the background history of the arch. There is a souvenir shop there, too. One can go outside at the top and enjoy the view across the city. There is a special fence to keep everyone safe. When one walks around, one can see all the twelve avenues that make up the “star”.

Notre Dame

Notre-Dame Catholic cathedral in Paris dates back to the 13th century and are one of the masterpieces of Gothic art in Western Europe. The combination of stain glasses and the huge interior are really stunning which arouses artistic experiences of mystical dimension. Located on the Cité island and surrounded by the Seine river, Notre-Dame is a flagship in the Parisian landscape and provides a magnificent view of the city from the top of its towers.

Notre-Dame was preceded by a Gallo-Roman temple to Jupiter, a Christian basilica, and a Romanesque church. Its in Paris began in 1163 during the reign of Louis VII. Pope Alexander III laid the foundation stone. Construction was completed approximately 200 years later in about 1345.

Notre-Dame has had an action-packed history over the centuries. Crusaders prayed here before leaving on their holy wars and polyphonic music developed in the cathedral. Notre-Dame was plundered during the French revolution, as were a number of other cathedrals throughout France. Many of the cathedral’s other treasures were either destroyed or plundered only the great bells avoided being melted down. Revolutionaries devoted the cathedral first to the cult of Reason, and subsequently to the cult of the Supreme Being. The church interior was used as a warehouse for the storage of food.

Notre-Dame has the distinction of being the cathedral where Napoléon, wishing to emphasize the primacy of the state over the church, crowned himself emperor, and then crowned Joséphine, his Martinique-born wife, as his empress. During the 19th century, writer Victor Hugo and artists such as Ingres brought awareness to the dangerous state of disrepair into which the Cathedral had fallen, consequently raising a new awareness of its artistic value. Whereas 18th-century neoclassicists had virtually ignored the creations of the Middle Ages – and had even replaced the stained glass at Notre-Dame with normal glass – the 19th-century romantics saw that distant period with new eyes and greater appreciation.

Besides bringing new life to the rose windows and the statues, Viollet-le-Duc designed Notre-Dame’s spire, a new feature of the building, and the sacristy. Also in the 19th century, Baron Haussmann evicted those Parisians whose houses cluttered the Cathedral’s vicinity. During the Commune of 1871, the Cathedral was nearly burned by the Communards. Whatever happened, Notre-Dame survived the Commune essentially unscathed.

Yet it is the art of Notre-Dame, rather than its history, that still awes. The west front includes 28 statues representing the monarchs of Judea and Israel. The three portals illustrate, from left to right, the Last Judgment; the Madonna and Child; St. Anne, the Virgin’s mother; and Mary’s youth until the birth of Jesus. The interior, with its slender, graceful columns, is imposing – there is room for as many as 6,000 worshipers. The three rose windows to the west, north, and south – are masterful, their colors a glory to behold on a sunny day.

To have looked at the upper parts of the church, the river, and much of Paris, climbs the 387 steps to the top of one of the towers. The south tower holds Notre-Dame’s 13-ton bell, which is rung on special occasions.