Here’s a rundown of the best things to do in Paris from my point of view. I find that Paris doesn’t feel as closed in or congested as some other capital cities. That is partly due to a lack of tall buildings, but also because of a redevelopment that went through in the 1850’s and cut entire rows out of the city, to create wide avenues and boulevards. Prior to this historians tell us that the streets were dark, cramp and unwelcoming.
So lets have a look at some of the must see sights, in the city of lights. If the name of the attraction is highlighted blue, then it is a link which will take you to the official website where you can check opening hours and purchase tickets.
Getting Around
Paris is easy to get around, mainly due to the excellent Metro service, which is their underground rail system. The system is fast, efficient and affordable and follows logical patterns to make it user friendly. Coupled with this, Paris is a very walk-able city, and several of the attractions are spaced perfectly so that you can use the Metro to get to the first, then walk to the second and third. You then get back onto the Metro and move to a different section of the city.
Notre Dame Cathedral
The nearest rail stops to Notre Dame are St-Michel Notre Dame – RER B Train Line (blue) St-Michel Notre Dame – RER C Train Line (yellow) Cité – Metro Line 4 (fuschia). Notre Dame Cathedral is located on Île de la Cité. Which is a small island in the Seine River, right in the heart of Paris. Notre Dame was constructed between 1200 and 1500 and was a magnificent building. In 2019 a fire ripped through this beautiful building and did a huge amount of damage. Fortunately as of October 2021, repair works are well under way.
I haven’t been to Notre Dame since the fire. (Not many people except Parisians have, thank you Covid-19). Looking online, it would seem that there in still enough of a facade to be able to get a sense of just how majestic this building was. Even today it is one of the taller buildings in Paris. So over the centuries it certainly would have dominated every day Parisian life.
From Notre Dame we cross back to the mainland from where we came and turn right. We can walk following the Seine River to get to our next attraction.
Les Invalides
Les Invalides was originally built by Louis XIV as a hospital for his injured soldiers, and a nursing home for those who were unable to return to normal life. These days it still has links to the military, but now it houses France’s military museum. And what a museum it is.
Now in Australia we have a military museum and it is very good. But what we don’t have is the depth of history. This museum goes way back and you can follow military progress throughout the centuries. I could easily spend a few hours here.
Out the back of Les Invalides is a small building which houses Napoleons Tomb. I joke of course. It’s not small, it’s enormous. Napoleon may not have been popular in Britain but he was certainly well loved in France. If you’ve ever seen a picture of his tomb within the building it is difficult to get a sense of scale. You just think, okay its basically an ornate coffin. Actually I think from memory it is 7 coffins inside each other like Babushka dolls. The final coffin is about the size of a 10-12 seater mini van. This is well worth seeing, and the whole building is very photogenic.
From here, walk back down to the river where we got to Le Invalides. Turn left to continue our walk to our last stop on this tour, The Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is also situated on the Riverbank. You can see it from just about everywhere in Paris, so it’s not hard to know if you’re heading in the right direction. It was built in 1889 for the Worlds fair and was supposed to stay up for 20 years. It was not loved. Parisians generally thought of it as a stain on the landscape.
Fortunately radio came along and the tower was the perfect place to put up some antennas. It seems like Parisians have grown to love it now, and it really is the symbol of the city. Definitely buy tickets in advance for this attraction as the lines can be horrendous. The first time we went it was December and we waited for about 30 minutes.
The next time we went was July and we didn’t even bother to try and go up the tower. The lines were just snaking around all over the place.
One of the great things about Paris is that they realized early on that the tower could be a tourist attraction. So in order to retain that, there are no tall buildings in the main part of Paris. The tall buildings are all in the commerce section of town. This means that when you go up the tower, you have uninterrupted views in all directions across the city
The nearest train station from here is the Champ de mars – Tour Eiffel, where you can head off for the rest of you evening.
Arc de Triomphe
Our next journey starts at the Arc de Triomphe. It is important to do this journey in this order to that you are constantly walking downhill and not uphill. The Metro station for this attraction is Charles de Gaulle – Étoile, on Metro line 1. This comes out right under the Arc de Triomphe. It is definitely worth going inside for a look. The views from Paris are again outstanding due to the lack of tall buildings, and this attraction being on high ground.
Champs-Élysées
The Champs-Élysées is an avenue heads away downhill away from the Arc de Triomphe. On your left hand side are all the shops. Lots of shops. The kind of shops that I generally can’t afford to go into. That’s not fair really. There are a lot of top end shops along here, but there are more regular department stores as well. Just don’t expect to find a Pound World or Reject Shop here. It’s not that kind of place.
To the right hand side of the street are lots of stately homes that have been repurposed into commercial buildings. So the plumbers union looks like a small palace. That sort of thing.
Naturally, being an avenue, it is tree lined. There are many things that the french are good at, and one of them is pruning trees and shrubs. Come Christmas time when the trees are pruned to look like wines glasses. (Well I thought they looked like wine glasses, but I may have been getting thirsty). The trees are decorated with lights and the display is outstanding. A stroll down the Champs-Élysées, should certainly be on your bucket list.
Place de la Concorde
Place de la Concorde is the main square in Paris. It is about 19 acres of open area and parks. This sits at the bottom of the Champs-Élysées, which stretches almost 2 km back up to the Arc de Triomphe. This is an excellent place to relax after a bit of a walk. You can grab a drink or an ice cream here and let the kids run free a bit.
It is a great place to relax, unless you were Louis XVI or Marie Antoinette. The last time they came here their heads were removed so, not everyone’s experience is positive.
If we continue to move through the park in the same direction we traveling from the Arc de Triomphe we will run into the Louvre.
Louvre Museum
The most important thing I can tell you about the Louvre Museum is that it is closed on Tuesdays. A fact that I have forgotten the last 2 times that I’ve been there. Very frustrating. So as a result I am quite good at walking around the pyramid and doing Robert Langdon impersonations (Da Vinci Code). I am told that you could spend days walking around inside trying to see every painting. Instead, go to the website, figure out which ones you want to see, and get in and out in a couple hours.
Versailles
Set just outside Paris, Versailles is a huge palace. Boasting some 1700 rooms which developed slowly over time as each new King moved in and started to create his mark on the site. The palace is such an integral part of French history that it should not be missed. Personally though, I find it a bit big to really grasp. It is overwhelming and you can easily spend a lot of time with your jaw hanging open in wonder. The tour takes in about 20 rooms to give you an overall flavor of the place, and it is very good.
For me though, it’s the gardens. My wife and I have been here 3 times now, and on 1 of those occasions we went solely for the gardens. I’m still not convinced that we’ve seen more than half of them. Everyone has a look at the main gardens just outside the back of the palace, but I would urge you to look a bit further.
The Trianon can be reached by a little train service which cuts out a decent chunk of walking. The Trianon is a much smaller dwelling, designed mainly for the King to have his affairs with a little more privacy. Beyond this is the Queens Hamlet. This was commissioned by Marie Antoinette. She wanted to experience life in a small country village, so she had one built. Just so that she could walk through and enjoy it. She also brought her friends along as well. It is a beautiful area for a leisurely stroll.
You can drive to the palace as there is ample parking. Or you can take the train to Versailles Château – Rive Gauche Train Station using Line C of the RER system from Paris. It is then a short pleasant walk to the entry.
Disneyland Paris
You know you want to. Just step through the gates, under the rail bridge and enter another world. Forget that you are a cynical adult. Forget about wars and troubles at home. Be a kid again, if only for a day. Everyone should go to a Disney Park at least once in their lifetime. Disneyland Paris is about 40 minutes by train from Gare du Nord Station in Paris, which is certainly doable for a day trip. My advice however is to spend at least a couple of days out there. I have a separate post which highlights the benefits of staying near the park with some suggested accommodation. You can check that out here.
These certainly aren’t the only attractions in Paris, and you could spend weeks or longer here exploring. This is just a tasting plate and a few suggestions to get started. And that’s the most important thing. Just get out there and get started.
Cheers and Happy Travels