Parks and the outdoors in Paris

Parks and the outdoors in Paris

1. See5th arrondissement

   Arènes de Lutèce

   An ancient Roman theater, the only surviving above-ground ruins of the Gallo-Roman era in Paris (ancient Lutetia, French Lutèce) apart from the nearby Thermes de Cluny. The theatre could hold approximately 15,000 spectators and measures some 132 m x 100 m. Built sometime in the 2nd century CE, the location of the actor's dressing room, the platform of the stage, and lapidary remains can still be seen. The remains were rediscovered in 1869, when new streets were being built. An excavation was subsequently ordered in 1883. The theatre has been preserved as a quiet archaeological park removed from the bustle of Parisian streets.

   08ː00-17ː30 (winter), 08ː00-22ː00 (summer)·Free

2. See8th arrondissement

   Avenue des Champs-Elysées

   For many visitors one of the must-see places in Paris is the Avenue des Champs-Elysées which was first created in 1667 by Louis XIV's gardener, Andre Le Nôtre, in order to improve the view from the Tuileries garden. This elegant and broad avenue was extended towards the end of the 18th century, now running from the place de la Concorde to the Arc de Triomphe. It is noted today as one of the most prestigious shopping boulevards of Paris.

3. Buy4th arrondissement

   BHV

   Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville

   Is a general store with most of everything: clothes, perfumes, furniture, you name it—it's especially famous for its basement section, dedicated to handiwork & DIY --think of it as a small Home Depot in a basement, though with French hardware and house and garden accessories that look distinctive in other settings.

4. Drink11th arrondissement

   Bataclan

   Ba-ta-clan

   Attend a concert or have a drink at this popular café-concert music hall inaugurated in 1865 featuring brightly painted Chinese architecture. Always attracting a young crowd, the Bataclan has regained the splendor it once enjoyed and now books many emerging hip and rock acts. The café on the ground floor is outstanding, perhaps even better than in the old days. A memorial honoring those 90 persons killed in a terrorist attack on 13 Nov 2015 is across the street in a small park.

5. See12th arrondissement

   Bois de Vincennes

   There are many beautiful footpaths, a Buddhist Temple, and a lake with rowboats available for rental (about €10 as of 2009). The lake has many different kinds of birds, and islands accessible by footbridge.

6. Drink4th arrondissement

   Caféothèque de Paris

   Coffee in Paris is usually found to be lacking, but not in this mini temple to coffee. A gem tucked into a backstreet by the river in le Marais roasts their own beans from around the world and has a small laid-back café area with armchairs. Staff are passionate about great coffee, not just a scaldingly hot coffee! They have some cakes and wine, and speak Spanish and English.

   Daily 09:30-19:30

7. See8th arrondissement

   Chapelle Expiatoire

   A solemn neoclassical chapel built between 1815 and 1826 on the former burial site of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, commemorating their execution during the French Revolution. Set within a quiet, enclosed garden, it feels more like a memorial than a traditional church.

8. Eat4th arrondissement

   Chez Marianne

   At the corner of rue des Hospitalières-Saint Gervais, and the rue Rosiers, Chez Marianne—like the many falafel stands in the Pletzle—serves excellent sandwiches out of a walk up window, but unlike some of the others also has an attractive dining room and a truly lovely terrace where you can enjoy a full range of Jewish/middle-eastern dishes.

   Falafel out of the window is €4; in the dining room you'll pay around €15 for a vegetarian menu, or up to €22 for the most expensive dishes à la carte.

9. Buy1st arrondissement

   Forum les Halles

   In the late 1960s what was Paris's primary farmers' market moved out to the suburbs to be replaced by a park above ground, and a sprawling underground shopping centre below. The interior design is strikingly period (think Logan's Run). The place is showing its age now, but still draws nearly a half-million Parisians per day, mostly teenagers. There's a movie theatre and a media library too. Les Halles underwent extensive refurbishment in 2016.

   Daily 09:00-19:00

10. See4th arrondissement

    Hôtel de Ville

    Town Hall

    Many feel that this, Paris' town hall, is one of the loveliest buildings in the city. You might not get that from the front view, but try watching the light change on its roofs and towers during sunset from one of the cafés on the Ile de St. Louis, the Lutece for instance. Alternatively, go to the top floor of the Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville (BHV) department store opposite, on rue de Rivoli and walk up a flight of stairs to the roof terrace (terrasse), from which there is a dramatic view of both the roof of the Hôtel de Ville and the immediate surroundings and river. The present Hôtel de Ville replaced the 16th century original which was burned down during the Commune in 1871. A pastiche of its predecessor, but on a far larger scale, it was designed by the architects Ballu and Deperthes, chosen after a competition, and was mostly completed by 1882. The building is lavishly, and some would say heavy-handedly, decorated both inside and out, and finished in an arrestingly white stone, similar to that used for the even more eye-catching Sacre-Coeur basilica. The statue on the garden wall on the south side is of Etienne Marcel, the most famous holder of the post of "prevôt des marchands" (provost of merchants) which pre-dated the office of mayor. Marcel came to a sticky end, lynched in 1358 by an angry mob after trying to assert the city's powers a little too energetically. The Hôtel de Ville was for many years the private fiefdom of Jacques Chirac, France's president before Sarkozy, and was the site of a scandal centring on both illegal jobs given to Chirac's party members and an immense entertainment budget. General de Gaulle greeted the crowds from a front window in 1944 when Paris was liberated from the Germans and Robespierre was shot in the jaw and arrested in the original building in 1794. Admirers of Hôtel de Ville's architecture will want to know that Ballu also built the Church of La Trinité in the 9th arrondissement and the belfry of the town hall of the 1st arr

11. See12th arrondissement

    Jardin Yitzhak Rabin

    Nestled in the centre of the Parc Bercy (below) is a lovely, and truly peaceful, garden with several waterworks and other high-quality landscape-art pieces. If you are one of the many people visiting the 12th on business it would be well worth an hour of your time between meetings and dinner to explore the mound, the fountain, and the bridges, and to watch children play in complete peace, much like the peace to which the garden's namesake dedicated his life.

12. See5th arrondissement

    Jardin des Plantes

    The Paris Botanical Garden, founded as the royal medicinal garden in 1626 by King Louis XIII's doctor, contains over 10,000 species. The grounds also include a small zoo known as La Ménagerie, and the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, which includes the Grande Galerie de l'Evolution (where you can see thousands of naturalized animals from all over the world) and the Galerie de paléontologie et d'anatomie comparée (same thing, but with skeletons).

    daily summer 07:30 - 20:00, winter 8:00 - 17:30·free

13. See1st arrondissement

    Jardin des Tuileries

    Built adjoining the now-lost royal palace of the Tuileries, these gardens lying immediately west of the Louvre offer a central open space for Parisians and visitors with semi-formal gardens (an outdoor gallery for modern sculpture), various cafés, ice cream and crépe stalls, and a summer fun fair. The gardens are frequently home to a giant Ferris wheel and enclose the Musée de la Orangerie and the Jeu de Paume.

14. See1st arrondissement

    Jeu de Paume

    Built during the First Empire, in imitation of the Orangerie, this small building is used by the Galerie Nationale to display temporary exhibitions of art photography, either contemporary or historic. This museum once housed many of the Impressionist painters that are now to be found in the Musée d'Orsay on the other side of the River Seine.

15. See7th arrondissement

    La Tour Eiffel

    The Eiffel Tower

    A symbol of Paris and one of the most famous landmarks in the world. Built by Gustave Eiffel in 1887-1889, the tower was almost torn down in 1909 and only saved due to its use as a telegraphy antenna. The queues can be very long. The tower allows online reservations at its website. You can select a date and time frame. If you miss the time on your ticket, you have lost your money. The north, west, and east pillars have elevators that go to the first and second floors; the south pillar has stairs that can be climbed to the second floor. To reach the top floor, an additional elevator ride is required, and the wait for this can be very long as well. Disabled visitors are not allowed beyond the second floor due to safety concerns. Taking the Métro as far as Ecole Militiare and then strolling up the Champ de Mars is a lovely way to arrive at the tower. Another phenomenal approach is to exit the Metro at Trocadero and see the Eiffel Tower from the other side of the Ecole Militaire.

    Open now · closes 11:45 pm·€25 (€12 for age 12-24) to the top by lift. If you walk to the 2nd floor it is cheaper

16. See1st arrondissement

    Le Palais Royal

    Ordered by Cardinal de Richelieu (1585-1642), King Louis XIII's prime Minister in 1629 (completed in 1636); originally called Palais Cardinal; it became Le Palais Royal when Anne d'Autriche, Louis XIII's wife, came to live here to get away from the Louvre palace. It eventually housed Louis XIV until the move to Versailles. It includes also a beautiful garden Les jardins du Palais Royal, enclosed by the buildings. It's been the theatre of one of the seminal events of the French Revolution (Camille Desmoulins made a famous declaration here in 1789). The Théatre Français nearby was built in 1716. There are numerous restaurants inside the garden, including famous Le Grand Véfour. There's also the controversial Colonnes de Buren, striped columns installed within the inside yard amid the 17th century architecture.

    07:00-23:00 during the summer and 07:00-20:30 in the winter with hours varying spring and autumn

17. Drink11th arrondissement

    Moonshiner

    Cool speakeasy bar with a secret entrance. Cross the small dining room of the pizzeria Da Vito and open the walk-in refrigerator door. You will enter into the bowels of an ancient American-style boiler room and bar. The interior welcomes brave visitors to a dim, classy and jazzy world. There you will find friendly steampunk bartenders making innovative cocktails. Try a cigar in the large Art Deco smokehouse... but shhhhh, don't tell anyone.

    Open now · closes 1 am tomorrow·Cocktails €10-14

18. See7th arrondissement

    Musée Rodin

    A museum dedicated to the life and work of the great sculptor. The house contains an extensive collection, which is unusually well presented in a spacious building with big windows that are open in nice weather, which makes this museum double pleasant.

    Tue-Sun: museum: 10:00-17:45, park: till 18:00; ticket office: till 17:15. Closed Mon·Admission €5, with discount €3, garden only €1, family ticket €10 (2 adults+1 child, museum+garden), visitors under 18 free

19. See

    Musée de l'Orangerie

    [Jardin des Tuileries] Houses "The Water Lilies" (or "Nymphéas") - a 360 degree depiction of Monet's flower garden at Giverny. Also, impressionist and post-Impressionist paintings by Cézanne, Matisse, Modigliani, Picasso, Renoir, Rousseau, Soutine, Sisley and others.

20. See6th arrondissement

    Palais du Luxembourg

    Visitable only by reservation and then only one Saturday every month. A richly decorated palace built for Marie de Medici in the early 17th century, which is now the French Senate. For those interested in seeing a Parisian monument normally unavailable to the public, or for those interested in the inner workings of the French Government. The large Luxembourg Garden is open to the public year-round. The garden is home to the Medici fountain, a children's playground, and vintage toy boats for hire that children push around in the Grand Bassin duck pond (a 90-year tradition).

    Closed · opens 10:03 am tomorrow·free

21. See8th arrondissement

    Parc Monceau

    One of Paris's best kept secrets, painted by Monet numerous times. It is a very elegant centre of green in the middle of cosmopolitan Paris. Make sure you check out the statues, entrance rotunda and the surrounding mansions. Thanks to Haussmann himself this precious slice of parkland was reserved for the enjoyment and leisure of the people of Paris. It is unusual in France due to its casual, informal "English" style planning, and is a contrast to other Parisian parks such as the classically laid out and formal Luxembourg Gardens and the Tuileries. Randomly placed throughout the park are scaled-down architectural replicas including an Egyptian pyramid, Dutch windmill, and a Chinese fort. Free Wi-Fi in the park.

22. See14th arrondissement

    Parc Montsouris

    Considered one of the most colourful Parisian parks, a local favourite, the Parc Montsouris was opened in 1878, having been designed by Alphand for Baron Haussmann. A large man-made lake and waterfalls are surrounded by long stretches of gently sloping lawns. Bronze statues are to be found studding the grounds, amongst the 1,400 trees, including such exotic varieties as the giant sequoia and the ginkgo. The park is featured in the film Cléo de 5 à 7. It is popular among families (there are two playground areas for children) and students.

23. See12th arrondissement

    Parc de Bercy

    Between the River Seine and the rail yards attached to Gare de Lyon and Gare de Bercy is a green space which would seem pretty huge if the 12th weren't also the home of the Bois de Vincennes. The park is a good place to hang out waiting for the line to form for sporting events and concerts at AccorHotels Arena.

24. See12th arrondissement

    Promenade Plantée

    Coulée verte René-Dumont

    If you were a city planner in one of the great cities of our Earth and you discovered that a railroad right-of-way had been abandoned and would never be used again what might you do? Perhaps if you knew your stuff you'd convert it into a 4 mile long park, about half of which is elevated above street level on the old rail viaduct. This long narrow park pretty much allows the visitor to walk in carfree bliss from Place de Bastille to the Bois de Vincennes.

25. See

    Rodin Museum

    Collection and archives dedicated to the sculptor Auguste Rodin, in a charming home with garden.

26. Eat13th arrondissement Not mapped

    Green Garden

    East Asian vegetarian

27. Do7th arrondissement Not mapped

    Vedettes de Paris

    sightseeing cruises

    Discover Paris by river on a chic boat.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Paris (CC BY-SA 4.0).