The most famous monuments in Paris transcend beyond the city boundaries to take up residence as some of the most recognizable in the world.
The Eiffel Tower, Musée du Louvre, and Arc de Triomphe occupy rarefied air as instantly identifiable by people all over the world.
There’s a good chance you’ll be looking to add these 3 big sights to your own sightseeing itinerary, but what’s the best way to do so while still respecting your limited time in the City of Light? How do you make it to the most famous monuments in Paris efficiently, while still leaving time to soak in their grandeur?
This tour is designed to do just that, getting you efficiently to each of these famous monuments of Paris with enough time to explore around them a bit.
While on this tour, I don’t recommend going into/up each of these big 3 monuments in Paris. If one or all of them are on your bucket list to see: GO FOR IT. Should you decide to visit any of them longer, the same advice applies to all: buy tickets online well in advance. This tour still makes for an excellent guide to get you from sight to sight no matter how long you plan to spend at each one.
Read on for what, to me, is the best way to string together the most famous monuments in Paris.
Tip: You can download a companion map below. It features much of the same information in this post but is laid out in a convenient map to help orient yourself along the way.
This tour was originally written as a companion piece to my “Day Trip to Paris From Disneyland Paris” post you can find here. Once I finished, I realized there was more to be seen for folks making this day trip if they still had the time. That said, this quick itinerary can be easily added to nearly any day in Paris, as it relies on readily available transit and doesn’t require advance tickets unless you choose to enter any of the sights I list.
Beginning at the Louvre, we will head to two of the other most iconic monuments in Paris: The Eiffel Tower and The Arc de Triomphe. Photo credit: Deirdre McKee
The Louvre: Priceless Masterpieces in Timeless Digs
This tour begins at the Musée du Louvre, the most famous museum in the world. Beginning in the Cour Napoléon, you’ll know you’re in the right place if you can see the massive, glass Grande Pyramide du Louvre. The first time I visited the Louvre, I was awestruck at just how immense it is. Beginning as a fortress on the edge of the medieval city of Paris, the Louvre has lived many lives as a palace, seat of government, and eventually an immensely popular museum. Home to over 500,000 unique pieces of art from around the world, it would be impossible to see them all in just a day.
Beyond the wall to the east sits the Cour Carrée, the southwest corner of which was home to the decidedly small fortress that was the original Louvre. Since then it’s zigged and zagged and been built, demolished and rebuilt to be the expansive architectural wonder it is today.
Much like this grand museum’s 2 main wings (Denon and Richelieu), you have a fork in the road to decide from right away to continue this tour.
Getting to the Eiffel Tower
You can find your way to the Eiffel Tower in one of two convenient ways, each with their own pros and cons.
- Batobus Water Taxi: These quick and fun watercraft will take you directly to the foot of the Eiffel Tower on the Seine. Along the way, you’ll have a panoramic view of other sights in Paris such as Les Invalides, The Grand Palais, and the many bridges over the Seine itself. The nearest station is just to the south of where you’re standing in the Cour Napoléon. One day passes cost €23 per person, which might seem a bit steep if you’re only using it for a one-way ride. That said, the views are excellent, and the ride is leisurely. From the Louvre, you’ll ride for two stops and exit at, you guessed it, the Eiffel Tower stop.
- Paris Metro via Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre Station: The Paris Metro is efficient and inexpensive, and you’re already near one of the stops on line 1. Hop on the metro headed towards La Défense, ride 6 stops and then transfer to line 6 at Charles de Gaulle-Étoile. On line 6 you’ll ride 5 stops and exit at the station Bir Hakeim. From here it’s a short walk to the Eiffel Tower. Unlike the Batobus, the metro won’t give you a constant panoramic view of the city. However, it does cross the Seine on the Pont Bir Hakeim which lends one of the best views of the Eiffel Tower possible if you sit on the left side of the train. In addition, the price for tickets is much lower.
Once you reach the Eiffel Tower, have a walk around. The spacious, tree-lined Champs de Mars is full of excellent angles for perfect photos or a break in the shade. Photo credit: Deirdre McKee
Touring Around La Tour Eiffel
No matter where you’re coming from or how you’re getting here, all roads lead to the Eiffel Tower. So once you arrive, have a look around! Engineered by Gustave Eiffel and completed in 1889, the Eiffel Tower remains an enduring symbol of Paris that welcomes around 7 million visitors a year.
It might seem like a million of those visitors are waiting to get in depending on the day and time you visit the Eiffel Tower. For this tour, I recommend avoiding the long ticket line and trip to the top so that you can set your sights on other, well, sights. However, if the Eiffel Tower is on your bucket list, here’s how to work it into your day.
- Buy tickets well in advance: The line to go up the tower is long, the line to buy tickets on the day of is insanity.
- Know that there are different levels to the tower, and each one charges a different amount to visit. All the way to the top will be the most expensive, with the 2 other levels lowering in cost.
- If you do choose to include going up the Eiffel tower on this day trip, start or end your day with it. Before 10:30 AM tends to be less crowded, and after 5 the crowd settles down as well.
The Eiffel Tower can be well-appreciated from ground level and the expansive Champ de Mars is a perfect green location to relax for a bit while soaking in the view. When you’re finished, cross over the bridge known as the Pont d’Iéna directly across the street from the Tower, and head towards the Trocadero.
A Pause at Place du Trocadero
Walk through the Jardins du Trocadéro and up the stairs until you come to a plaza between two large buildings. One of the most iconic views of the Eiffel Tower can be found here on Place du Trocadero. And chances are the rest of the people visiting Paris at the same time will have gotten the memo as well. Crowds aside, it really is an excellent spot to look over at the tower. Take the perfect photo with your travel companions and try to pick out how many different languages you can hear while you do so. People from all corners of the world have come to share this view with you.
There will be a good number of touts and vendors around, who are to be ignored.
Once you have that perfect photo with the Eiffel Tower in the background, head to the Trocadéro Metro Station across the traffic circle.
The last stop on this tour is the grand Arc de Triomphe. Normally you’ll find the circle around it full of hurried, chaotic traffic. But on rare occasions you might find it closed in favor of a parade or other event.
A Triumphant Return to the Arc de Triomphe
Once you’re in the Trocadéro metro station, hop on line 6 and head towards Charles de Gaulle – Étoile. Emerging from the Charles de Gaulle-Étoile station, you’ll be greeted by the grand Arc de Triomphe itself!
The final icon of Paris on our tour is a monument to France’s war veterans and remains an elegant and living symbol of the great country. L’Arc has seen it all on the 12 radiating avenues that lead away from it. Commissioned by Napoléon himself in 1806, L’Arc stood watch as France fell in World War II, returned triumphant during the Liberation and has ever since helped ring in every new year and most Tour de France victories.
The view from the outer ring of this busy roundabout is great, but if you’d like to get up close and personal with L’Arc itself, follow the signs for the pedestrian underpass. Don’t even think about trying to cross the traffic circle. Frog legs might be a delicacy in France but tourists playing Frogger themselves don’t receive as warm of a reaction.
It is possible to visit the top of the Arc de Triomphe, but again this should be booked well in advance if you’re dreaming of the view.
Respects paid to France’s triumphs, it’s time to tie a bow on this tour with one more stop.
Anything You Want and More on Champs-Élysées
The Champs-Élysées is the grand finale to our tour. And what a grand sight it is. The most famous of Paris’ great thoroughfares is perfect for a stroll and gently slopes downhill from here towards the Louvre where you started. The avenue is packed with luxury stores, fast food, and some just ok cafés. Ladurée is worth a look if you’re craving a macaron, but the line will likely be long. For the most part, the cafés and restaurants are not much to speak of, but if you’re willing to walk a block or so off the main drag you can find some great options like Le Sens Unique and The Kitchen which offer much better food at a more agreeable price.
Depending on how fresh you’re feeling after a long day, you can walk on Champs-Élysées all the way back to Jardin du Tuileries which will lead back to the Louvre, or you can stop and get on Metro Line 1 at the Ave. George V or Franklin D. Roosevelt metro stations which will take you back to the Palais Royal-Louvre metro station.
TIP: For those heading back to Disneyland Paris from Paris, you can get on the RER at Charles de Gaulle-Étoile Station or continue back to where you started your day at Chatelet-Les Halles station.
The Most Famous Monuments in Paris Wrapped Up
In the course of a few hours, you saw three of the most famous monuments of Paris along with some bonus stops along the way. I hope you enjoyed this little trip; please let me know about it in the comments. If you have other sights in Paris you’d like to see an itinerary for, I’d love to hear about that as well.
