Paris

France · 8 sights · guided virtual tour

Welcome to Paris, the capital and largest city of France, set on the Seine in the heart of the Île-de-France region. It is nicknamed the City of Light, mainly for its leading role in the Age of Enlightenment. In the 19th century, Haussmann's renovation laid out new boulevards and parks, creating what became known as the capital of the 19th century. Its Art Nouveau Métro has become a symbol of the city, and its riverbanks have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991. Paris has hosted the Summer Olympics three times, in 1900, 1924 and 2024. Let us set off along the river.

Sights

1. Eiffel Tower ▶ Listen

   Look up at the Eiffel Tower, the lattice of wrought iron that Parisians call the Iron Lady. Gustave Eiffel's company built it from 1887 to 1889 as the centrepiece of the World's Fair. At first, some of France's leading artists and intellectuals criticised its design, yet it became one of the most recognisable structures in the world. For 41 years it was the tallest human-made structure on Earth. Climbing to the second level takes about 600 steps. And on the very top level hides a private apartment built for Eiffel himself, where he welcomed friends such as Thomas Edison.

2. Louvre ▶ Listen

   Before you stretches the Louvre, the largest museum in the world and home to the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory. The palace began as a medieval fortress, and its remnants can still be seen in the basement. In 1546 Francis the First made it the main residence of the French kings, until Louis the Fourteenth moved his household to Versailles. During the Revolution it was decided that the Louvre should display the nation's masterpieces, and the museum opened on 10 August 1793 with 537 paintings. Today it holds around 500,000 objects.

3. Notre-Dame de Paris ▶ Listen

   On the Île de la Cité rises Notre-Dame, one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture. Construction began in 1163 and was largely complete by 1260. Notice the flying buttresses and the enormous, colourful rose windows. The cathedral was badly desecrated during the Revolution, and it was Victor Hugo's 1831 novel, known in English as The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, that inspired a great restoration. A fire in April 2019 caused serious damage, and the cathedral reopened in December 2024. Inside are kept some of the most important relics in Christendom, including the crown of thorns.

4. Arc de Triomphe ▶ Listen

   At the western end of the Champs-Élysées, where twelve avenues meet in a star, stands the Arc de Triomphe. It was commissioned to honour those who fought and died for France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the names of victories and generals are carved into its surfaces. Designed by Jean-François Chalgrin in 1806 and inspired by the Arch of Titus in Rome, it is almost 50 metres tall. Beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the First World War, where an eternal flame remembers unidentified fallen soldiers.

5. Sacré-Cœur ▶ Listen

   At the summit of Montmartre gleams the white Basilica of the Sacred Heart, looking out over the whole of Paris. It was proposed in 1870, after France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, and Paul Abadie's neo-Byzantine and Romanesque design was chosen from 77 proposals. Construction began in 1875 and continued for forty years under five architects. Because it was built on the hill overlooking the site of the Paris Commune after its defeat, it has long been controversial for some on the French left. The hill is traditionally linked with the martyrdom of Saint Denis, patron saint of Paris.

6. Musée d'Orsay ▶ Listen

   On the Left Bank of the Seine, this grand building was once a railway station, the Gare d'Orsay, built between 1898 and 1900. Since 1986 it has been the Musée d'Orsay, devoted mainly to French art from 1848 to 1914. Step inside and you find the largest collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist masterpieces in the world, with works by Monet, Manet, Berthe Morisot, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne and van Gogh. Many of these paintings hung in the Jeu de Paume gallery before the museum opened under the station's great roof.

7. Palace of Versailles ▶ Listen

   Southwest of Paris lies the Palace of Versailles, conceived by Louis the Fourteenth to glorify the French monarchy. From 6 May 1682 until 6 October 1789, the king, the court and the royal government lived here permanently, apart from the Regency years. The palace contains roughly 2,300 rooms and is considered a masterpiece of French classical architecture, influencing architecture across Europe. Its park covers 815 hectares, yet before the Revolution the estate covered more than 8,000 hectares. Wander on to the Grand and Petit Trianon, or the Queen's hamlet, the Hameau de la Reine.

8. Sainte-Chapelle ▶ Listen

   Step into the Sainte-Chapelle, a royal chapel built between 1238 and 1248 for King Louis the Ninth. It was made to house his relics of the Passion, among them the Crown of Thorns, one of the most important relics in medieval Christendom. The chapel was part of the medieval royal palace on the Île de la Cité, and it is one of the few buildings of that palace still standing. Now look up: the windows of the upper chapel form one of the most extensive collections of original 13th-century stained glass anywhere in the world.

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