| The
main
Paris Tourist attractions |
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The Paris Museum Pass:
this
allows unlimited visits to 60 museums and sites in and around Paris:
however, to make it worthwhile you would really need to take in at
least three museums a day over 2, 4 or 6 consecutive days. Given that
it is easy to spend a full day (9 a.m - 6 p.m.) in the Louvre alone -
cost 9 Euros a day - the cheapest Paris Museum Pass, at 30
€uros for 2 days - is hard to justify unless you are planning
just
an hour and a half on average per museum.
The pass is on sale at most participating museums - which means most
main Paris museums.
TIP:
if visiting Paris in a busy tourist period, start by visiting a less
busy museum, such as the Musée Rodin, the Army Museum, or
the
Musée des Arts Décoratifs. Buy your pass here,
then avoid
the (often long) ticket queues for the other busier museums. |
| PARIS
GUIDED TOURS |
 Paris
trip offers a range of guided tours in and round Paris,
including:
– Paris Night Tours
– A range of Paris sightseeing tours
– Dinner &
Show at the Moulin Rouge.
– Dinner &
Show at the Crazy Horse 
– Guided tour of Versailles
– Da Vinci Code
Tour 
and a range of day trip excursions from Paris |
Cafés on the boulevard St. Michel - the essence of Paris and
of France
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Paris offers the
largest concentration of tourist attractions in
France, and possibly in Europe. Besides some of the world's most
famous musuems, its offers a vibrant historic city centre, a beautiful
riverscape, an extensive range of historic monuments, including
cathedrals,
chapels and palaces, plus one of the most famous nightlife scenes int
he world.
Paris is also famous for its
cafés and
restaurants, its
theatres and cinemas, and just its general ambiance. While there are a
thousand other things to do in Paris apart from those mentioned on this
page,
for the traveller spending no more than a week in Paris, this list
offers more than enough choice to fill the time. Note
that national museums (i.e. the main museums) are generally closed on Tuesdays - though
a few, including the Musée d'Orsay, are closed on Mondays.
Museums:
 The
Louvre -
one of the world's great art galleries, with masterpieces such as the
Mona Lisa, and works by almost every great master there has ever been.
The Louvre is also a major museum, with an exceptionally rich
collection of antiquities and artefacts, including Egyptian mummies,
Classical bronzes, and artefacts from round the world. Note: the Louvre
is closed on Tuesdays.
The
Musée d'Orsay (Paris 7- Metro
Solférino) , the
museum of the nineteenth century, containg the works of the
Impressionists - Monet, Manet, Sisley, Van Gogh, Renoir and others.
Note: closed on Mondays.
The
Musée d'Art Moderne, at the Trocadero. The City
of Paris's
collection of modern art. And it's free.
The
Musée Marmottan, in the 16th Arondissement,
with a fine collection of Monets and other French art.
Centre
Georges Pompidou, (Beaubourg, 4° arrondissement),
Large collection of avant garde art, housed in a very avant garde
building. Open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., closed on Tuesdays.
Musée
Rodin 7° arrondissement - museum devoted to the
works of the great sculptor Auguste Rodin. Closed Mondays.
Musée
National Picasso, 3° arrond. Metro St.Paul - !!! The Picasso Museum is closed for renovation until 2012.
Musée
des Arts Décoratifs, Paris 1°. Metro
Louvre. Museum of decorative arts, close to the Louvre.
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Other
places to visit:
The
Eiffel tower - take the lift to the top, for a
spectacular panorama of Paris. The tower is 317 metres high, over 1,000
ft.
Notre
Dame cathedral - one of the finest gothic cathedrals in
Europe. Climb the 400 steps to the top of the towers (included in Paris
Museum pass).
La
Sainte Chapelle, not far from Notre Dame. thirteenth
century royal chapel, with remarkable stained glass windows. (included
in Paris Museum pass)
The
Arc de Triomphe - the largest triumphal arch in the world,
commissioned
by Napoleon. Another place with spectacular views over Paris. (included
in Paris Museum pass)
Montmartre,
and the Sacré Coeur. Narrow streets,
filled with artists, round the
19th century basilica on top of a hill on the north edge of Paris.
The
banks of the Seine - just wander along the footpaths
through the centre of the city. Free !
The
Latin quarter; narrow streets, with lots of
cafés and restaurants, antique shops and boutiques, near the
Sorbonne university. Free! |
Les
Champs Elysées; one of the most famous streets
in the world, a broad tree-lined boulevard. Enjoy a drink on a pavement
café, but watch the prices !
Seine
river boats (les bateaux mouche). Take a trip on one of
the famous Seine river boats, and see Paris from the river. Departures
from the Pont Neuf. Or use the Batobus..
daily and weekly passes from 12 to 17 Euros.
Les
Invalides A fine military museum, containing the tomb of
Napoleon, and a remarkable collection of historic models of French
cities (included in Paris Museum pass). |
Some
other things to see and do.....
Paris
panorama: see Paris from the top of the Tour
Montparnasse,
the tallest office block in the city. Panoramic viewing area, and it's
the only place from which the Paris skyline isn't spoiled by the tour
Montparnasse...
The
Gardens of the Luxembourg; the classic Paris city park.
Off Boulevard St. Michel.
Paris
by night:
Many tour-bus operators run Paris by night tours; but there's no need
to take a tour. The lights and sights can be seen in may ways. The most
carefree option is to just stroll down the Champs Elysées
and
along the banks of the Seine, looking at the lights and the illuminated
monuments that can often be seen from afar. Then there plenty of
restaurants with chairs and tables outside, where you can have dinner
and watch the world go by. Then of course there is Pigalle, Paris's
raunchy nightlife district, with its arrray of bars, cabarets, clubs
and shows. |
The Paris sewer museum.
(Musée des égouts) Quai d'Orsay - (Metro
Alma-Marceau)
There is a whole underground city beneath the Paris streets, and the
Metro is just one part of it. The ancient sewerage system is
a
historic monument, and it has its own museum and tour visit.
The
Moulin Rouge: the most famous cabaret in Paris, situated
in Pigalle at the foot of Montmartre. Running since 1889.
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About-France.com
- Paris
for free
(See also " Paris on a budget")
There
are plenty of things to see and do in Paris, without spending a single
centime. They include;
Free
museums and collections:
- City of Paris Museum of Modern Art, at the Trocadéro
- Maison de Balzac, devoted to France's great 19th century novelist.
- Musée Carnavalet - the museum of the history of Paris
- Petit Palais, City of Paris museum of fine arts; a large
collection of great master paintings and artefacts. Located just off
the Champs Elysées
- Jardin des Plantes botanical
gardens (opposite Gare d'Austerlitz). One of the world's oldest and
largest botanical gardens, open to the public since 1640! There is paid
entry for the "menagerie" section, specialised in the preservation of
endangered species. However the small pandas can be clearly observed
for free from the botanical gardens.
Free
only on
the first Sunday of each month:
The Louvre, Musée Rodin, Musée Picasso,
Musée d'Orsay and others. |
Free
monuments;
Notre Dame cathedral, other Paris churches.
Free
to wander :
Wander along the banks of the Seine, through the parks, through the
narrow streets of the Latin quarter, up to the heights of Montmartre.
And of course there's window shopping; look at exclusive or exotic
products in the fine shops in and near the Rue de Rivoli, or the
hundreds of specialist shops to be found all over Paris.
Free
travel:
Walk! But if you have a travel pass, then all your public
transport is free.
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Links
to main Paris tourist attractions:
The Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame
cathedral, La
Sainte Chapelle,
the Champs
Elysées,
The Arc
de Triomphe, The
Louvre, The
Orsay Museum, The
Latin Quarter, Montmartre, The
Moulin Rouge, Seine
river
boats, The
Pompidou
Center, Book Paris
hotels |
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