Paris

The Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 World's Fair and originally meant to be dismantled after twenty years, owes its survival to its radio antenna, deemed strategically valuable. Standing 330 meters tall and long the world's tallest structure, it weighs 10,100 tons and expands by 15cm in summer heat. Three levels are open to visitors: the first with its vertigo-inducing glass floor, the second offering the most photogenic view of Paris, and the summit, where Gustave Eiffel's reconstructed office can be visited. At night it sparkles for 5 minutes every hour thanks to 20,000 light bulbs - a free show visible from across Paris. Book your tickets online several weeks ahead: walk-up waits often exceed 2 hours without a reservation.

Metro line 6, Bir-Hakeim station, or RER C, Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel station - 5 to 10 min walk.

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The Musee d'Orsay, housed in the former Gare d'Orsay built for the 1900 World's Fair and later threatened with demolition before its conversion into a museum in 1986, holds the world's richest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. Van Gogh (including his famous Starry Night Over the Rhone and several self-portraits), Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cezanne, and Manet are all gathered under the immense glass-and-iron nave of the former station, whose original metal structure remains visible. The station's large gilded clock, visible from inside the museum's cafe, frames a spectacular view over the Seine and the Louvre opposite. Allow 2.5 to 3 hours for a full tour of all five levels.

RER C, Musee d'Orsay station, or metro line 12, Solferino station - on the Left Bank of the Seine.

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Saint-Germain-des-Pres, named after Paris' oldest church founded in the 6th century, was in the mid-20th century the cradle of existentialism and French intellectual life. Cafe de Flore and Les Deux Magots, where Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Albert Camus reshaped the world over a cafe-creme, still welcome writers and the curious in an almost-unchanged Art Deco setting. Shakespeare and Company bookshop, on the quays facing Notre-Dame, founded in 1951 in the tradition of the legendary original shop frequented by Hemingway and Fitzgerald in the 1920s, remains a pilgrimage site for lovers of English-language literature, with hidden beds among the shelves for traveling writers. Luxury boutiques and contemporary art galleries have since moved into the surrounding streets.

Metro line 4, Saint-Germain-des-Pres station - right in the heart of the neighborhood.

Saint-Germain tour

The Louvre, a 12th-century fortress turned royal palace and then a museum after the French Revolution in 1793, is the most-visited museum in the world with nearly 9 million annual visitors and over 35,000 works displayed across 60,600 sqm. Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, protected behind bulletproof glass in the Salle des Etats, draws dense crowds on its own; the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory of Samothrace rank among the other must-see masterpieces. I.M. Pei's glass pyramid, unveiled in 1989 despite fierce controversy at the time, has itself become a Parisian architectural icon. Allow at least half a day, entering preferably via the Carrousel or Porte des Lions entrance to skip the pyramid line.

Metro lines 1 or 7, Palais-Royal-Musee du Louvre station - direct exit toward the pyramid.

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Sainte-Chapelle, built in the record time of under seven years under Saint Louis (Louis IX) and consecrated in 1248 to house Christ's Crown of Thorns, bought at great expense from the emperor of Constantinople, is considered one of the absolute high points of Rayonnant gothic art. Its upper chapel unfolds 15 stained-glass windows 15 meters tall, made up of over 1,100 biblical scenes from the 13th century, about two-thirds of which are original - an unmatched ensemble of medieval stained glass in scale and state of preservation anywhere in the world. On sunny days, the colored light flooding the nave creates a striking 'cage of glass and stone' effect, best visited in late morning when the sun hits the south-facing windows directly.

Metro line 4, Cite station, or RER B/C, Saint-Michel Notre-Dame station - within the Palais de Justice grounds.

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Notre-Dame de Paris, built between 1163 and 1345 on the Ile de la Cite, the capital's historic birthplace, is the jewel of French gothic architecture and one of the most-visited monuments in Europe - until the devastating fire of April 15, 2019 destroyed its spire and much of its medieval timber frame. Its restoration, a extraordinary project followed by the whole world and led by artisans using original-era techniques, was completed with its reopening in December 2024. Its 13th-century rose windows, gargoyles, and facade with three sculpted portals have regained their full splendor. The zero-point marker of France's road network, engraved in the pavement of the forecourt, marks the official spot from which all distances from Paris are measured.

Metro line 4, Cite station, or RER B/C, Saint-Michel Notre-Dame station - on the Ile de la Cite.

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Le Marais, literally 'the marsh' after land once drained by monks, is one of the few Paris neighborhoods to escape Baron Haussmann's 19th-century redevelopment, preserving an exceptional collection of 17th-century mansions. Place des Vosges, the oldest royal square in Paris, unveiled in 1612 and once home to Victor Hugo, is its architectural jewel, with 36 perfectly symmetrical brick-and-stone pavilions. Historically the Jewish quarter of Paris (the Pletzl, around Rue des Rosiers) and, since the 1980s, a major hub of LGBT culture, Le Marais today has an unmatched concentration of contemporary art galleries, independent designer boutiques, and trendy bars - on Friday and Saturday nights, the atmosphere is particularly electric.

Metro line 1, Saint-Paul station, or line 11, Hotel de Ville station.

Le Marais audio guide

Montmartre, a former winegrowers' village annexed by Paris in 1860, has kept the atmosphere of a hilltop hamlet perched on its 130-meter butte, the highest natural hill in the capital. The Sacre-Coeur Basilica, built of self-cleaning travertine stone between 1875 and 1914 as penance after the defeat of 1870, overlooks all of Paris from its forecourt - one of the finest free viewpoints in the city. Place du Tertre, just steps away, has gathered portrait painters for over a century, a legacy of the golden age when Picasso, Renoir, and Toulouse-Lautrec had their studios here. Cobbled lanes like Rue Lepic, where Van Gogh once lived, and the urban vineyard on Rue Saint-Vincent complete this village within the city, still surprisingly untouched by tourist crowds.

Metro line 12, Abbesses station (then funicular or stairs), or line 2, Anvers station.

Guided tour Montmartre

The Arc de Triomphe, commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 to celebrate his military victories but only completed in 1836, rises 50 meters and bears the engraved names of 660 generals and 128 battles of the Empire. Beneath its vault has rested, since 1920, the Unknown Soldier of World War I, whose flame is rekindled every evening at 6:30pm in a public ceremony. Twelve avenues radiate from the Place de l'Etoile surrounding it, including the Champs-Elysees, nicknamed 'the world's most beautiful avenue', which runs 1.9km down to Place de la Concorde past luxury boutiques, cinemas, and cafes - it's also where the July 14th parade and the Tour de France finish each year. The arch's rooftop platform offers one of the best perspectives on Paris' historic axis.

Metro lines 1, 2, or 6, Charles de Gaulle-Etoile station - access to the arch only via the underground passage, never cross the square at street level.

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The Palace of Versailles, transformed by Louis XIV from 1661 onward from a simple hunting lodge into Europe's largest royal residence, symbolized French absolutism for a century before hosting the signing of the treaty ending World War I in 1919. The Hall of Mirrors, 73 meters long and lined with 357 mirrors, remains one of the most photographed rooms in the world. The Grand Apartments and the French-style gardens designed by Andre Le Notre, with geometric flowerbeds, ponds, and groves across 800 hectares, showcase the Sun King's grandeur. The Grandes Eaux Musicales, on weekends from April to October, bring the fountains to life to baroque music - a memorable show worth planning around.

RER C to Versailles Chateau-Rive Gauche station - about 40 min from central Paris, then a 10 min walk.

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