Walk Arc-de-Triomphe to Place-de-la-Concorde via the Champs-Elysées Avenue

Arc de Triomphe
Place Charles de Gaulle
75008 Paris

Architects : Jean-François-Thérèse Chagrin
Sculptors : François Rude, Jean-Pierre Cortot et Antoine Etex
Access under the Arc de Triomphe (and to the Tomb of the unknown Soldier) : free (Take the underground).
Entrance in the Arc-Triomphe Monument

• Opening : 10 am to 11 pm from April 1st to September 30th and from 10 am to 10:30 pm from October 1st to March 31st.
• Closed: During parades and commemorations on January 1, May 8 (morning), July 14 (morning), November 11 (morning), December 25.
• Note: due to climatic conditions (wind), the visiting hours may be modified.
  Ascent to the Arc-de-Triomphe and reservation: ticket on site. Reservation : click here

Access

• Métro : lignes 1, 2 et 6 (Station Charles de Gaulle-Etoile)
• RER : ligne A (Station Charles de Gaulle)
• Bus : 22, 30, 31,52, 73, 92
• Parkings : Champs Elysées et avenues alentour

Short description

Construction of the Arc-de-Triomphe
The construction of the Arc de Triomphe monument was decided by Emperor Napoleon 1st after the battle of Austerlitz (today Slavkov u Brna, in the Czech Republic) on Monday, December 2, 1805. He declared to the present French soldiers: “You will return to your homes only under arches of triumph”. The Emperor was referring to the triumphal arches erected under the Roman Empire.
Construction began in 1806 (Imperial Decree dated 18 February 1806) and was completed 30 years later in 1836 under King Louis-Philippe, long after the Emperor’s death in 1821.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Arc de Triomphe
Place Charles de Gaulle
75008 Paris

Access under the Arc de Triomphe (and to the Tomb of the unknown Soldier) : free (Take the underground).
Reservation at the Marigny Theater : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Marigny Theater”  available in English or in French
Access

• Métro : lignes 1, 2 et 6 (Station Charles de Gaulle-Etoile)
• RER : ligne A (Station Charles de Gaulle)
• Bus : 22, 30, 31,52, 73, 92
• Parkings : Champs Elysées et avenues alentour

Short description

On January 28, 1921, 2 1/2 years after the end of the 2nd World War, the body of an unidentified soldier was buried in the center of Arc de Triomphe.
He was chosen at random from among 8 unidentified bodies. Of course, since that date, historians and history buffs have tried, without success, to find out the identity of this soldier..
It is written on his grave: “Ici repose un soldat français mort pour la patrie” (Here lies a French soldier who died for his country).
Two years later, André Maginot, then Minister of War, supported the project to install a “flame of remembrance” which was first lit on November 11, 1923 (Reminder date of the armistice day of November 11, 1918).
To have a close view of the tomb of the unknown soldier, you just have to go under the Arc-de-Triomphe by the tunnel which passes under the Place Charles de Gaulle (one entrance on the Champs Elysées side and one diametrically opposite on the place on Avenue de la Grande Armée), The same tunnel deserves the entrance to the Arc-de-Triomphe visitors.

Place Charles-de-Gaulle
75008 Paris

Architecte : Jacques Ignace Hittorff (D’origine allemande – Cologne 1792 – Paris 1867)
Access

• Métro : lines 1, 2 et 6 (Station Charles de Gaulle-Etoile)
• RER : line A (Station Charles de Gaulle)
• Bus : 22, 30, 31,52, 73, 92
• Parkings : Champs Elysées and avenues in the area.

Short description

By the decree of November 13, 1970, the Place de l’Etoile (“Star Square”) changes its name to officially become the “Place Charles-de-Gaulle“, after the death of “the General” 4 days earlier.
This square was created around 1670 and occupied the top of the northern part of the hill of Chaillot.
There were important works carried out between 1768 and 1774, to erase the top “so that the path would be of equal slope from the Place Louis XV (today’s Place la Concorde) to the Neuilly Bridge “.
At the end of the 18th century, it was only a country crossroads at the edge of Paris. Around 1800, the square was a “star” limited to the intersection of the axis of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées-Avenue de Neuilly (de la Grande-Armée).
The constrution of the Arc-de-Triomphe last from 1806 to 1836. From 1845 to 1855, Place de l’Étoile was the site of a famous and very large open-air performance venue: the Hippodrome. Moreover, aerostatic ascents are also organized there. The one of September 24, 1852, where the aerostat Giffard rises, was an important step in the history of aeronautics.
In 1854, Empereur Napoleon III demanded Hittorff, to change the square by applying Haussmann’s ideas. To the five existing star-shaped alleys in the middle of the lawns, seven new branches were added, without commerce but with 12 private mansions with gardens on the square side and entrance from the adjacent streets. This is the original idea which gave the look of the present Charles-de-Gaulle Square.

Potocki Hotel – Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Paris
27 avenue de Friedland
75008 PARIS

Architecte :  Jules Reboul
Access

• Métro : lignes 1, 2 et 6 (Station Charles de Gaulle-Etoile)
• RER : ligne A (Station Charles de Gaulle)
• Bus : 22, 30, 31,52, 73, 92
• Parkings : Champs Elysées et avenues alentour
• Opening : Visits not allowed. Rooms can be rented for events (Up to 900 people) – Tél : 33 (0)1 – http://www.cci-paris-idf.fr/

Short description

The current Potocki mansion is on the site of a hotel built in 1857. It entered the polish Potocky family in 1867 after being acquired by Count Gregory Potocki.
Count Felix-Nicolas Potocki (1845-1921), married in 1870 an Italian aristocrat, Princess Emmanuela Pignatelli (1852-1930).
In 1879 and 1882, they enlarged their Parisian property and undertook transformations of the hotel by the architect Jules Reboul. He rebuilt the entire façade on the avenue and completely restructured the building.
The outbuildings, located nearby at 16 rue Chateaubriand, were famous, especially the stables with mahogany stalls for thirty-eight horses and pink marble troughs. The sheds could hold up to fifty carriages.
After the death of Count Potocki on June 3, 1921, the hotel was sold in May 1923 to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Paris, which has owned it since that date.
Remarkable elements of the Potocki Hotel have been registered or classified as historical monuments since March 14, 1991. Unfortunately, they cannot be visited, except for the portal which can be seen from the street. This portal is a creation of the goldsmith Christofle

Lido de Paris
116 bis Avenue des Champs-Elysées
75008 Paris

Reservation at the Lido of Paris :

The Lido closed its doors on September 22, 2022. Work is planned to re-open it as a variety theater – if the project goes ahead.
Access

• Métro : lines 1, 2 et 6 (Station Charles de Gaulle-Etoile)
• RER : line A (Station Charles de Gaulle)
• Bus : 22, 30, 31,52, 73, 92
• Parkings : Champs Elysées and avenues in the area

Short description

The Lido (or Lido de Paris) was a Parisian cabaret located 116 bis avenue des Champs-Elysées (8th), near the Arc de Triomphe, on the north side of the Champs Elysées. Inaugurated in 1946 by Joseph and Louis Clerico, the place is famous for its shows in which dancers, singers and various artists perform.
An original show to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Lido de Paris!

Avenue des Champs Elysées (From l’Arc de Triomphe to Concord Square)
75008 Paris

Access

• Metro stations that serve the Champs-Élysées avenue
  • Concorde
  • Champs-Élysées — Clemenceau   
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt   
  • George V  
  • Charles de Gaulle — Étoile      
• RER – line A – Station Charles de Gaulle — Étoile
• Bus – lines 22, 28, 30, 31, 32, 42, 52, 72, 73, 80, 84, 92, 93
• Parkings : several under the avenue and in near streets

Short description

Champs-Elysees, were the place of the Underworld where the virtuous souls stayed in the mythology of ancient Greece.  Today it is one of the most visited sites in Paris with 300 000 visitors per day.
The evolution of the Champs-Elysées and History

• First a path in the axis of the central pavilion of the Tuileries Palace (1667)
• It was a notorious neighborhood until the Revolution (1789) and became an elegant place to stroll under the Empire (Napoleon 1st).
• In 1810 the entrance in Paris of Marie Louise of Austria at the time of her marriage with Napoleon and 4 years later the parade of the coalition troops which beat the Emperor at Waterloo.
• The 19th century was more peaceful with the development of the avenue by Jacques Hittorff and the Second Empire. Lined with luxurious mansions, it became the high place of the Parisian elegant life.
• August 26, 1944: liberation of Paris from German troops. General de Gaulle’s descent of the Champs Elysées after his return from exile.
• On May 30, 1968, in reaction to the student and union crisis, a large demonstration in support of President Charles de Gaulle (300,000 to 500,000 or even 1 million people.
• Every July 14, military parade of the National Day.
• Every December 31st, a gathering place to celebrate the New Year.

The 100 shops of the Champs-Elysées

List of 100 shops on the Champs-Elysées

The stores we recommend are rated from 1 to 5, and we’ve eliminated from our lists those rated below 4.0 (with a few exceptions, 3.2 or 3.5, to show you which stores to avoid in particular). Retailers are rated by tourists who have preceded you on this Champs-Elysées itinerary.

The final selection of stores on the Champs-Elysées represents less than 50% of those located along and in the immediate vicinity (less than 100 m) of the promenade. This means that by following our list, you’ll avoid the shoddy service and “tourist traps” regularly encountered in tourist areas such as the Champs-Elysées.

Short description

Shopping on the Champs-Elysées is a dream for many tourists. And to make your visit easier, we’ve selected the 100 shops most popular with the tourists who came before you.

And we present these stores in a variety of ways, for you to choose from:

• • on a map,

• • in the order in which they appear on your route,

• • in the odd/even order of their address (to avoid constantly having to cross the avenue),

• • but also by type of business (if your search is “specialized”),

• • in alphabetical order to search for a particular merchant,

• • with each merchant’s address, telephone number and a rating for quality of service (or appreciation) directly available on the map (Pop Up).

You will find all the information of this list by clicking on  “Magasins des Champs-Elysées: liste de 100 commerces à visiter” (en français) ou “Shopping on the Champs-Elysées : list of 100 shops to visit (in English).

Avenue Montaigne
Entre Place des Champs-Elysées
et Place de l’Alma
75008 Paris

Short description

The Montaigne-Avenue in Paris is probably the artery where the great names of French and international fashion and Haute-Couture are most numerous. It’s a shopping dream for many tourists whose means match their prices. For others, it’s a chance to dream, and to visit the boutiques if you wish.

To make your visit easier, we’ve selected the 29 stores and merchants on Avenue-Montaigne (almost 80%) that have been rated by tourists who’ve been there before you.

And we’ve presented these stores in a variety of ways, for you to choose from:

• on a map,
• in the order they appear on your itinerary,
• but also by type of business (if your search is “specialized”),
• alphabetically, to search for a particular shop,
• with each merchant’s address, telephone number and a service quality rating (or appreciation) directly available on the map (Pop Up).

You will find all the information of this list by clicking on  “Avenue-Montaigne à Paris, 500 m de luxe et haute couture” (en français) or “Montaigne-Avenue in Paris, 500 m of luxe and Haute-Couture (in English).

Théâtre des Champs-Elysées
15 Avenue Montaigne
75008 Paris
Tel : 33 (0)1 49 52 50 00
Tel reservation : 01 49 52 50 50

Reservation at the Champs-Elysées Theater : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Champs-Elysées Theater:  available in English or French
Access

• Métro : station Alma-Marceau (line 9) ou Franklin-Roosevelt (line 1)
• RER : station Pont de l’Alma (line C)
• Bus : 42, 63, 72, 80, 92
• Station de taxi Place de l’Alma, angle avenue George V
• Station Vélib’ en face du Théâtre
• Parkings : Alma-George V

Short description

The Champs-Elysées Theater is located 15, avenue Montaigne (Part of “The Triangle d’Or”), in the 8th district of Paris and inaugurated on April 2, 1913. It is in the immediate vicinity of the Champs-Elysées.
The Champs-Elysées Theater is owned by a State Bank: the Caisse des dépôts et consignations !
The Champs-Elysées Theater : a high place of classical music and also a place of scandal. First it was the world premiere of The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky on May 29, 1913. Years later, it was  the first real “mixed” musical work (a work for musical instruments and electroacoustic devices): Déserts by Edgard Varèse on December 2, 1954.
In the meantime, in 1925, it was La Revue Nègre with Josephine Baker. For some, its “shamelessness” is a scandal. For the artist, it was the beginning of a long international career.
To day, it is one theater but 3 auditoriums: the Theatre des Champs-Elysées (1905 seats – Main auditorium), the Comédie des Champs-Elysées (601 seats – for Comedies) and the Studio des Champs-Elysées (230 seats – “experimental theater).

Place Diana
Paris 75016

Access

• Metro: line 9 – Alma-Marceau station
• RER: line C – Pont de l’Alma station
• Bus: 42, 63, 72, 80, 92

Short description

Princess-Diana Square in Paris, one place, one eternal flame for two commemorations: that of Liberty symbolized by the copy of the flame at the top of the Statue of Liberty in New York and that of the place of the accident that cost the Princess her life.

François 1st Square (Place François 1er)
75008 PARIS

Architect : Henri Labrouste

Short description
Architect/Sculptor of the fountain : Gabriel Davioud/François-Théophile Murguet
On the François-1st square, several private mansions face each other. The only really remarkable one is the one at number 9 of the square: the mansion called “Vilgruy” built in 1865 by the architect Henri Labrouste, classified as a historical monument since 1981.
The fountain in the middle of the square was sculpted by François-Théophile Murguet at the initiative of the architect Gabriel Davioud. In reality, the sculptor built two sculptures to be initially installed on the Place de la Madeleine (Square of the Madeleine) in 1865.
The elegant fountain that nobody wanted
The basin is large and circular with a white marble pedestal supporting the bowl. The pedestal is made of four elegant winged griffins. The basin is adorned with a small gallery of lattices and twelve lions’ heads that distribute the water in the basin. A cylindrical column, flared at the top, rises from the center of the basin. It is decorated with four women’s faces.
François 1st Square, also very close to the “Gold Triangle”
From the François 1st Square, take the rue François 1er, direction north. After 100 meters, make a small detour to Avenue Montaigne. You will find there the Houses Dior, Chanel, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Cucci. This area is known as the “Gold Triangle”.

Palais de la découverte – Aile est du Grand Palais 
Avenue Franklin D. Roosevelt
75008 Paris
Tel. +33 (0) 1 56 43 20 20
www.palais-decouverte.fr

Reservation at Palais-de-la-Découverte : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Palais-de-la-Découverte”  available in English or in French
Accès

• Métro – Champs-Élysées – Clemenceau
• RER – Invalides
• Bus – 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 93

Short description

From the end of 2020 (until 2024), the Palais-de-la-Découverte and the Planetarium will close their doors for renovation.
The Palais-de-la-Découverte was a science-universe place, presenting in a dynamic way fundamental and contemporary science in the form of interactive experiments commented by scientific mediators.
The fields covered were astronomy with the “Planetarium”, but also biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, earth sciences.
Real experiments were performed in front of visitores.

Théâtre du Rond-Point
2 bis avenue Franklin Roosevelt
75008 Paris
Tel. +33 (0) 1 44 95 98 00 / +33 (0) 1 44 95 98 21
contact@theatredurondpoint.fr
https://www.theatredurondpoint.fr

Reservation at the Marigny Theater : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Marigny Theater”  available in English or in French
Accès
The Rond-Point Theater is located a few steps away from the Champs-Élysées garden and not far away of Champs-Elysées Theater.

• Metro : Champs Elysées-Clemenceau (lines 1 and 13) or Franklin-D.-Roosevelt (lines 1 and 9)
• RER : line C (Invalides station)
• Bus: lines 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93
• Nearest Velib’ stations :
  • n° 8031 > 2 rue Jean Mermoz
  • n° 8039 > 6 rue du Colisée
  • n° 8013 > 24 rue de Marignan
  • n° 8030 > 25 rue Bayard
• Nearest Autolib’ stations: 7 Rue François 1er, 38 Rue François 1er, 2 Avenue Matignon
• Parking 18 avenue des Champs-Élysées or 17 avenue Matignon
• Cab: Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées – Tel: 01 42 56 29 00
• Spectators with reduced mobility: all theatres are accessible to people with reduced mobility, adapted seats are available upon reservation – Single rate at 16 euros

Short description

The Rotunda of origine is replaced by a “Panorama”. This is a large 360 degree painting, which was produced mainly between the very end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 20th century.
In December 1893, the Rotunda of the National Panorama became the Palais des Glaces (Hall of Mirrors – deforming mirors), one of the most popular attractions in Paris during the Belle Époque and remained in operation until the end of the 1970s.
In 1981, Madeleine Renaud and Jean-Louis Barrault’s company had to leave the former Gare d’Orsay where the Orsay Museum, as we know it today, was to be built. The Renaud-Barrault Company then moved to the Rond-Point Theater. e.
From 1981 to 1991 the Rond-Point Theater presented contemporary works (Marguerite Duras, Nathalie Sarraute, Samuel Beckett, Yukio Mishima) as well as traditional shows from the Far East (Ramayana from Thailand, Javanese Opera, Music)
Since 2002, the theater has been directed by Jean-Michel Ribes, who has made it a mecca for contemporary creations by committing himself to producing and presenting only living authors. The theater has 3 rooms: Salle Renaud-Barrault, Salle Jean Tardieu and Salle Roland Topor.
In May 2010, Jean-Michel Ribes and Jean-Daniel Magnin launched Ventscontraires.net, the first European online media supported by a cultural theater. The initial idea was to create a “4th virtual room” where artists who cannot be seen on the stages of the Rond-Point (writers, cartoonists, video artists…) could intervene, in the spirit of joyful subversion that has animated this theater for 13 years now.

Théâtre Marigny
Carré Marigny des Jardins des Champs Elysées – Angle Ave champs Elysées et Marigny
75008 PARIS
Tél : 33 (0)1 53 96 70 30

Accueil

Architectes : Charles Garnier

Reservation at the Marigny Theater : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Marigny Theater”  available in English or in French

Accès

• Métro : Champs Elysées-Clemenceau (Lines 1 et 13) ou Franklin-D.-Roosevelt (lines 1 et 9)
• RER : line C (Station Invalides)
• Bus : lines 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93

Short description

Built in 1848 as a small theater, called “the Château d’enfer”, then a “panoramas”, to become a real theater only in 1910.
It is in 1946 with the arrival of the “Compagnie Renaud-Barrault” which settles in the theater that it knows its hours of glory. But it is also the stage where the very famous television programs “au théâtre ce soir” were filmed for 12 years.

Jardins des Champs-Elysées
Avenue Gabriel – Rue de l’Elysées
75008 PARIS
Architectes : Hittorff

Access

• Métro : Champs Elysées-Clemenceau (Lignes 1 et 13) ou Franklin-D.-Roosevelt (lignes 1 et 9)
• RER : ligne C (Station Invalides)
• Bus : lignes 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93

Elysée Palace – Palais de l’Elysée
55 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré
75008 PARIS
Tél : 33 (0)1 42 92 81 00
Write to the President (Ecrire au Président) : http://www.elysee.fr/ecrire-au-president-de-la-republique/ ,

How to visit the Elysée Palace
The Elysées Palace can be visited only during the European Heritage Days, the 3rd weekend of September. Free access with registration or recommendations.
Access

• Métro : Champs Elysées-Clemenceau (Lines 1 et 13) ou Franklin-D.-Roosevelt (lines 1 et 9)
• RER : line C (Station Invalides) – Line A (Station Charles de Gaulle – Etoile)
• Bus : lines 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93

Short description

Louis-Henri de La Tour d’Auvergne, a ruined nobleman, was able to build the Palais de L’Elysée in 1720 with the dowry paid by his father-in-law, the financier Crozat.
Louis XV’s mistress, the Marquise de Pompadour, made it her Parisian residence at the cost of expensive works (to Louis XV and to France).
Bathilde d’Orléans, cousin of Louis XVI, with a whimsical personality, was the owner until the Revolution. In 1797, it became “a house of pleasure”, then in 1805 it passed into the hands of General Murat, brother-in-law of Napoleon I, then into those of Josephine (1st wife of Napoleon), later the 2nd son of Charles X (Duke of Berry, assassinated in 1819).
The Elysee Palace became in 1848 the official residence of the President of the French Republic with Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, who became Emperor Napoleon III in 1852 and then moved to the Tuileries Palace.
Since the fall of Napoleon III in 1870, the Elysee Palace has hosted 25 presidents.
About 1000 employees work at the Elysee Palace, which includes 300 m2 of private apartments and 365 rooms, 320 clocks wound every Tuesday morning.
The surrounding park has an area of 2 ha (215278 sq ft). The largest tree has a circumference of 5.2 m and was planted before the Revolution.

Grand Palais
7 avenue Winston Churchill (3 avenue du Général Eisenhower)
75008 Paris

Visiting the Grand-Palais : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Grand-Palais”  available in English or in French
Access

• Métro : Station Champs-Élysées/Clemenceau (Lines 13 and 1) as well as Station Franklin D. Roosevelt (Lines 9 and 1)
• RER : Station Invalides (Line C)
• Bus : Lines 28, 42, 52, 63, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93
• Batobus, Stop Champs-Elysées.
• Velib’, station n°8029, 1, avenue Franklin-D-Roosevelt and station 8001, avenue Dutuit.

Short description

The Grand-Palais is now closed for 3 years in order to carry out a major renovation before 2024. It is to host the fencing events of the 2024 Olympic Games. But the majesty and immensity of the building can still be admired from the avenue that borders it.
The Grand-Palais is one of the most emblematic Parisian monuments. Built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900 (April 15 – November 12, 1900), it is recognizable by its large glass dome flanked by the French flag. An architectural masterpiece combining stone, steel, and glass, it has been listed as a historic monument since November 2000.

Petit Palais – Musée des Beaux-Arts de la ville de Paris – Musée du Petit Palais
7p Avenue Winston Churchill
75008 Paris

Architecte : Charles Girault
Visiting the Petit Palais Museum : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Petit Palais Museum”  available in English or in French
Access

• Métro – Lignes 1 et 13  – Station Champs-Élysées – Clemenceau / Ligne 9 – Station Franklin D. Roosevelt
• RER – Ligne C – Station Invalides
• Bus – 28, 42, 72, 73, 80, 83, 93
• En Vélib’ Station Petit Palais n°8001
• Entrée du public individuel : entrée principale
• Entrée des groupes et des visiteurs à mobilité réduite : rez-de-chaussée, à droite de l’escalier principal

Short description

The Petit-Palais Museum, built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition by the architect Charles Girault, has been the home of the Paris Fine Arts Museum since 1902. Its collections cover works from antiquity to the early 20th century..
The Petit-Palais offers its own collections to visitors and simultaneously organizes temporary exhibitions on specific artists or themes. They are internationally recognized and meet with great success.
Petit-Palais Museum’s own permanent collections
The original collections have been enriched by numerous donations. They include paintings, sculptures, works in the field of graphic and decorative arts. Rembrandt, Rubens, Cézanne, Corot, Courbet, Delacroix, Sisley, Renoir, Rodin, and dozens of other artists are exhibited in the Petit-Palais Museum.
Note: admission to the Petit-Palais collections is free.
International temporary exhibitions of the Petit-Palais Museum
The Petit-Palais Museum organizes 6 to 8 exhibitions each year (see the website address for current exhibitions).
Note: admission to the temporary exhibitions of the Petit-Palais is not free.
Over the past ten years, contemporary photography has also entered the Petit Palais when it was decided to present, as an introduction to major international exhibitions, images by photographers inspired by the civilizations on display.

Pont Alexandre III
Cours la Reine – Quai d’Orsay
75008 Paris

Architects/Ingénieurs : Cassien-Bernard and Gaston Cousin/  Jean Résal and Amédée Alby.

Access
Pont Alexandre III
Cours la Reine (8e) – Quai d’Orsay (7e)
75008 Paris

• Métro – Lines 8 and 13 – Station Invalides
• RER – Line C – Station Invalides
• Bus – 63, 72, 83, 93

Short description

The Alexandre-III bridge is located in Paris. It crosses the Seine between the 7th and the 8th districts.
It was inaugurated for the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900. The bridge was intended to symbolize the Franco-Russian friendship. It follows the signing of the alliance concluded in 1891 between Tsar Alexander III (1845-1894) and the President of the French Republic Sadi Carnot. The foundation stone was laid by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, Empress Alexandra Fedorovna and President Felix Faure on October 7, 1896.
Construction of this bridge made of cast steel is a real technical feat.  Because of its large span for a low height, the Alexandre-III bridge exerts a significant horizontal thrust. It is    107-meter wide arch with three points of articulation, making it possible to cross the river without an intermediate support point in the Seine. Total length: 160 meters.
Built along the axis of the Invalides esplanade, it leads from this esplanade to the Petit Palais and Grand Palais also built for the same Universal Exhibition. The panoramic view of these buildings, the Eiffel Tower and the Seine River make it a very popular place to walk, day and night.
The bridge is illuminated by 32 bronze candelabra and décorated by bronze statues.
The Alexander III bridge has been seen in more than 15 films. The diva Mariah Carey shot a large part of her video clip for the song “Say Something” in 2006.

Musée de l’Orangerie – Orangerie Museum
Jardin des Tuileries (côté Seine – on the Seine side)
Place de la Concorde
75001 Paris

Architectes : Auguste Perret, Antoine Bourdelle, Henry Van de Velde
Interior decoration : Bourdelle (bronze and frescoes). Maurice Denis
Visiting the Orangerie Museum : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Orangerie Museum”  available in English or in French
Access

• Metro: lines 1, 8 et 12 – Station Concorde
• RER: closest lines: A et C
• Bus: lines 42 45 52 72 73 84 94 (RATP)
• Noctilien N11 N24. (Night bus line)
• Tootbus Paris (Special bus line)

Short description

Orangerie museum is known for the Water Lilies of Claude Monet that it shelters. The Water Lilies cycle occupied Claude Monet for three decades, from the end of the 1890s, until his death in 1926, at the age of 86.
Orangerie museum also contains in its basement the Jean Walter and Paul Guillaume collection, devoted to the great names of the 20th century: Renoir, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso, Soutine and a few others. They are paintings of the Impressionist (XIXe) and Modernisme (XXe) periods.
Outside of the building are also sculptures by Rodin and a few others.

Place de la Concorde Quartier des Champs Elysées
75008 PARIS

Access

• Metro: lines 1, 8 et 12 – Station Concorde
• RER: closest lines: A et C
• Bus: lines 42 45 52 72 73 84 94 (RATP)
• Noctilien N11 N24. (Night bus line)
• Tootbus Paris (Special bus line)

Short description

The Concord Square, with 8.64 hectares, is the largest square in Paris.

The Concord Square is located a few hundred meters from the Louvre, at the bottom of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and adjoins the Jardin de Tuilerie. It is distinguished today by the Luxor Obelisk in its center, 3,300 years old (13th century with J-C) and erected in 1836 on Concord Square – See our article “Luxor Obelisk, Place de la Concorde, a present from Egypt“.
In the beginning of the 18th century, it was only an esplanade surrounded by a ditch and two large open sewers. Later (1770), it was the scene of a dramatic accident where 133 people died as a result of the panic caused by a fire stated by a falling rocket. It was in honor of the wedding of the Dauphin (the future Louis XVI) and the Archduchess Marie-Antoinette of Austria.
A few years later, during the Revolution, the Concord Square was one of the bloodiest places: 1 119 people died there out of the 2 498 guillotined in Paris. Among them, king Louis XVI and the queen Marie-Antoinette died on Concord Square.
Between 1836 and 1846, the square was transformed by the architect Jacques-Ignace Hittorff. He added two monumental fountains (which had the audacity to be made of cast iron) on either side of the Luxor obelisk and surrounded the square with lampposts and rostral columns. They also evoke the emblem of the City of Paris. Architecture surrounding the Concord Square, the monumental fountains and The statues add to its splendor.

Obélisque de Louxor
Place de la Concorde
75008 Paris

Access

• Metro: lines 1, 8 et 12 – Station Concorde
• RER: closest lines: Line A : Station Charles de Gaulle/Étoile – Line C : Station Invalides
• Bus: lines 24, 42, 72, 73, 84, 94
• Noctilien N11 and N24. (Night bus line)
• Tootbus Paris (Special bus line)
• Parking : Jardin des Tuileries et Carrousel (accès par le quai des Tuileries ou la rue de Rivoli)  – Rue du Mont-Thabor, rue des Pyramides
• Stations Vélib’ : 119, rue de Lille – 2, rue Cambon

Short description

The Luxor obelisk is part of a gift including 2 obelisks, the 2nd will never be brought to Paris. The gift to king Charles X and France of Mehmet Ali, Viceroy of Egypt, was made at the instigation of Baron Taylor and Jean-François Champollion (1790-1832 – the first to translate the hieroglyphics).
The donation of the Obelisk was made in early 1830. It was transported by a special barge called “Luxor” towed by the steamship and sailboat “Sphinx”. It finally arrived in Paris in 1834 after a stopover in Toulon and Rouen and the ascent of the Seine. It was erected on October 25, 1836.
Its weight is 222 tons. The stone base of 240 tons is from Brittany, western France, not Egypt.
Atop the Obelisk is a small pyramid called “pyramidion”. Also to be noted that the Obelissk is also a huge sundial: Roman numerals, lines are traced and metal inlays sealed on the ground of the Concord Square.

Musée du Jeu de Paume – Jeu de Paume Museum
1, place de la Concorde, jardin des Tuileries
75001 PARIS
Tél : 33 (0)1 47 03 12 50

Visiting the Jeu de Paume Museum : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Jeu de Paume Museum”  available in English or in French
Access

• Metro: lines 1, 8 et 12 – Station Concorde
• RER: closest lines: A et C
• Bus: lines 42 45 52 72 73 84 94 (RATP)
• Noctilien N11 N24. (Night bus line)
• Tootbus Paris (Special bus line)

Short description

The today Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume was inaugurated on June 17, 1991. Without a permanent collection, the exhibitions are exclusively temporary and concern the art of the second half of the 20th century. In 2004, by ministerial decision, the Jeu de Paume became a museum devoted to photography and image, video art, experimental cinema and documentary film.

Hôtel de la Marine
2 Place de la Concorde
Paris – 75008

Architecte : Ange-Jacques Gabriel
Access

• Metro: lines 1, 8 et 12 – Station Concorde
• RER: closest lines: A et C
• Bus: lines 42 45 52 72 73 84 94 (RATP)
• Noctilien N11 N24. (Night bus line)
• Tootbus Paris (Special bus line)

Short description

Visiting the Hotel de la Marine : conditions, prices and opening hours – see below “More on Hôtel-de-la-Marine Museum”  available in English or in French
The Hôtel-de-la-Marine is a new museum inaugurated in June 2021, in a magnificent 18th century historic building. From its loggia, visitors have a breathtaking view of the Place de la Concorde. A “Garde-meuble de la Couronne” building under the old regime (the forerunner of today’s Mobilier national) and then the home of the Ministry of the Navy, the Hôtel de la Marine bears witness to the changes in France, from royalty to the present day.

The Furniture Store of the Crown of France

The hotel was built between 1757 and 1774 to house the Garde-Meuble de la Couronne from 1772. It was organized into three exhibition rooms:

• the Salle d’Armes (collection of armor and weapons of the kings of France – today in the Invalides and the Louvre);
• the Galerie des Grands Meubles (fabrics and collection of tapestries unique in the world – now in the Louvre and the Mobilier National);
• the Hall of Jewels (vases of colored stones and rock crystal, silverware, diplomatic gifts, as well as the crown jewels, including diamonds set in jewel cases).

The course of history in the Hôtel-de-la-Marine

• The Revolution. The Hôtel de la Marine was looted for weapons by Parisian rioters on the morning of July 13, 1789.
• Establishment of the Navy. Later in 1789 and until 2015
• January 21, 1793: the Intendant of the Garde Meuble de la Couronne can attend from his office the execution of King Louis XVI
• October 16, 1793, from the same place, he can also attend the execution of Queen Marie-Antoinette
• October 24, 1793, it is in the Hotel that was signed the minutes of the execution of the former queen Marie-Antoinette.

The theft of the Crown diamonds

The theft of the century, in the middle of the revolution! This theft took place during the week of September 11 to 17, 1792, over several days, by about forty people, in the chaos that reigned in this revolutionary period. Between 1792 and 1794, two thirds of the jewels were found, including the “Regent”, the “Sancy”, and most of the “Mazarins”. Some of the stones were permanently lost. The collection, deposited in the National Treasury, was estimated at 17 million pounds.

Abolition of slavery

The decree of abolition of slavery was signed on April 27, 1848 by Victor Schœlcher, Under-Secretary of State for the Navy in the provisional government. This government was the result of the Revolution of 1848, which had driven King Louis Philippe I from power.

The 4 most important balls of the 19th century in the Hôtel-de-la-Marine

• February 27, 1802: the ball of Europe
• June 1825: the ball of the coronation of Charles X
• February 12, 1866: the ball of Napoleon III
• October 18, 1893: the ball for the Russian squadron

The visit of the Hôtel-de-La-Marine

The proposed tours are special and original: the tours are done with the sound of the “Confident”, a connected headset that tells the story along the routes. Four audio tours are offered: three of 1h30 each and one of 45 mn, for immersive visits at the heart of more than 250 years of history of the monument:

• • The Grand Tour: available in 3 versions to explore the monument in its entirety in 1.5 hours:
    • • Time Travel,
      • Age of Enlightenment and
      • Family.
  • Salons & loggia: for a 45-minute discovery of the ceremonial salons and the most beautiful view of Paris.

The loggia adjoining the salons d’honneur of the Hôtel de la Marine, offers a breathtaking view of the Place de la Concorde, the Tuileries gardens, the Musée d’Orsay, the Grand Palais and the Eiffel Tower.

The Hôtel-de-la-Marine Museum will also host the Al Thani Collection from Qatar for the next 20 years, in parallel with a program of temporary thematic exhibitions. These presentations follow an agreement between the Centre des monuments nationaux and the Al Thani Collection Foundation.
The Al Thani Collection is among the most prestigious private collections in the world. It includes an exceptional group of works of art covering a long period from Antiquity to the present day. Encyclopedic in its approach and representative of a rich array of cultures and civilizations, the Collection celebrates the creativity and universal power of art through the ages. Previously, these works have been shown in temporary traveling exhibitions at major international institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, and the National Museum in Tokyo.