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Major Sights in Paris

World-Famous Monuments

Even if you have never been to Paris, you may already have an idea about some of the monuments you want to check out. Paris is full of world-famous monuments, and some of its largest structures, statues, and museums have become central icons in international culture. If you head west on Champs-Elysees, you'll eventually see the 164-foot tall Arc de Triomphe in the center of the roadway. The arc was constructed in the early 19th century to as a monument to those who gave their lives to France. If you're adventurous enough to drive through Paris, you can approach the the monument while bottlenecking through the roundabout traffic. A better suggestion is to get up close on foot.

Another impossible-to-miss is the Eiffel Tower. The iconic tower was built during the 1880s to impress planet earth at the world's fair in 1889. You can visit several levels of the 1063-foot tower for the ultimate view of a city - anywhere.

Churches

Aside from its artistic monoliths, Paris boasts several world-renowned churches.

Sacre Coeur, the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris, sits atop a hill in Paris, giving visitors a pretty sweeping view of the city. Montmartre is the name of the hill and ironically, the nightlife that surrounds the pious 1919 basilica is world-famous for its decadence.

Sainte-Chapelle, or Holy Chapel, is located on Ile de la Cite on the River Seine. The chapel was consecrated back in 1248 and served as a showcase for the Christian relics of one King Louis XIV.

The Mackdaddy of Parisian houses of worship is the Notre Dame Cathedral, also located in the heart of Paris. The imposing specimen rises 402 feet to the sky, outright demanding the attention of anyone passing through the city.

Bibliophilia

France is also home to many monumental sites in the history

The Latin Quarter is the epicenter of French and expat intellectualism. The Sorbonne is just one of many universities circling the quarter, located on the left bank of the River Seine. The streets are lined with sidewalk cafes for you to drink, smoke, and think.

While on the left bank, be sure to stop by the Shakespeare and Company bookstore and English lit reading library. Famous past patrons include a veritable list of writer royalty.

Pere Lachaise is the final resting place to over one million people. It's here that you can pay your respects to Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Gertrude Stein. French people also lay rest here, including famous writers Colette, Marcel Proust, and Honore de Balzac.

Art

It's nearly impossible to even think about Paris without your mind conjuring up an image of street artists furiously working on sketches of the Eiffel Tower.

The Musee d'Orsay on the left bank of the River Seine is where you'll find all that French post-impressionist artwork found in your art history texts and coffee table books. Monet, Manet, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Degas, and more grace the walls at this museum.

The right bank of the Seine gets downright medieval with its art at the Louvre - unarguably the most famous and most visited art museum in the entire world. The 35,000-piece collection spans all of human history. All of it. Like pre-history through today.

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Major Sights in Paris