Things to do in Paris
Paris can feel overwhelming because there is more than a lifetime of sights. Prioritise a few big reservations, then leave time for walking, markets and cafés.
The Louvre
The largest art museum in the world by gallery space, the Louvre was a royal palace before it opened as a museum in 1793. Beyond the Mona Lisa, seek out the Venus de Milo, the Winged Victory of Samothrace on the Daru staircase, the Napoleon III apartments and the Egyptian antiquities. Timed tickets are required and frequently sell out; enter via the Carrousel du Louvre entrance if the pyramid queue is long. The museum is closed on Tuesdays.
Musée d'Orsay and the Orangerie
In a Beaux-Arts railway station built for the 1900 Exposition, the Orsay holds the world's greatest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, including Monet, Renoir, Degas, Van Gogh and Cézanne. Look through the giant clock window towards Montmartre. The Orangerie in the Tuileries displays Monet's Water Lilies in two oval rooms designed to his specifications. The Orsay closes on Mondays.
Eiffel Tower
Gustave Eiffel's tower is 330 metres tall and was intended to stand for only twenty years. Book a lift ticket to the summit online, or climb the 674 stairs to the second floor for a lower price. For the classic photograph, go to the Trocadéro across the river; the tower sparkles for five minutes every hour after dark.
Notre-Dame and Sainte-Chapelle
Notre-Dame's reopening revealed brilliantly cleaned stone and a rebuilt spire. Entry is free, though you can reserve a time slot to skip the line. A few steps away, Sainte-Chapelle, built in the 1240s by Louis IX to house relics, has fifteen soaring stained-glass windows that are best seen on a sunny morning. The Conciergerie, where Marie Antoinette was imprisoned, is next door.
Montmartre
Climb to the Sacré-Cœur basilica (or ride the funicular with a metro ticket), then wander to the Place du Tertre, the Musée de Montmartre, the Clos Montmartre vineyard and the Wall of Love with "I love you" written in over 250 languages. Avoid the bracelet sellers at the foot of the basilica steps.
Seine cruises and riverside walks
A one-hour boat trip with Bateaux Mouches or Vedettes du Pont-Neuf is a gentle introduction. The banks between Pont de Sully and Pont d'Iéna are a UNESCO World Heritage Site; on summer evenings locals picnic along the quays, and the Paris Plages beach event runs in July and August.
Versailles
The palace of Louis XIV is about 40 minutes away on RER C. See the Hall of Mirrors, the King's Grand Apartments and the vast gardens, which come alive with musical fountain shows on many weekends from spring to autumn. Arrive early, avoid Mondays (closed) and Tuesdays (busy) and book timed tickets.
Covered passages, markets and food
Explore the nineteenth-century glass-roofed passages such as Passage des Panoramas, the oldest. Visit the Marché des Enfants Rouges in the Marais, dating from 1628, or the Sunday market on the Boulevard Richard-Lenoir. Taste a classic jambon-beurre baguette, a croissant from an award-winning boulangerie and steak frites at a traditional bistro. The city holds an annual competition for the best baguette, and the winner supplies the Élysée Palace for a year.
Cemeteries and quieter sights
Père Lachaise is the most visited cemetery in the world, with the graves of Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Édith Piaf and Jim Morrison. The Catacombs hold the remains of millions of Parisians moved from overcrowded cemeteries in the late eighteenth century; tickets must be booked. The Musée Rodin's sculpture garden and the Musée de Cluny's medieval tapestries are calmer alternatives.
Modern Paris
The Centre Pompidou has closed for a major renovation planned to last until around 2030, but modern art fans can visit the Bourse de Commerce, the Pinault Collection in a restored round exchange building, and the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Frank Gehry's glass "sails" building in the Bois de Boulogne.
Musée Rodin and Musée de l'Orangerie
The Musée Rodin, in an eighteenth-century mansion in the 7th, displays The Thinker and The Kiss in a rose garden. It is one of the most peaceful museums in the city. Combine it with a visit to Les Invalides, where Napoleon's tomb lies beneath the golden dome.
Fondation Louis Vuitton
In the Bois de Boulogne, Frank Gehry's glass-sailed building, opened in 2014, hosts major exhibitions of modern and contemporary art. The adjacent Jardin d'Acclimatation is an amusement park for families.
Panthéon and the Jardin du Luxembourg
The Panthéon in the Latin Quarter is the resting place of national heroes such as Victor Hugo, Marie Curie and Joséphine Baker. Nearby, the Jardin du Luxembourg has its palace, now the Senate, and the Medici Fountain.
Evenings
Catch a cabaret at the Moulin Rouge or Crazy Horse, see opera or ballet at the Palais Garnier, or simply join the apéro hour at a café terrace. Jazz clubs on Rue des Lombards have been active since the 1980s.
Day trips from Paris
Versailles is the classic half-day or full-day trip, reached by RER C or Transilien trains. Families often add a day at Disneyland Paris, about 40 minutes away on RER A. Book timed tickets in advance for both, and check for engineering works on the RER before you go.
See also: Versailles day trip from Paris: trains, tickets and how to plan the day, Disneyland Paris from central Paris: getting there and where to stay.
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