You can’t visit Paris and not climb up the Eiffel Tower to admire the finest panoramic views in the city. Unfortunately, that’s not as simple as it sounds. The tower is so popular that the queues to enter can take hours. During the summer, it might be so busy you are turned away because all the tickets have been sold.

However, you can book tours in advance that provide you with priority access to either the 2^nd floor, with the best observation deck and restaurants, or the summit, where you can visit Eiffel’s office.

Some tours are guided by an expert so that you can learn much more about the history of the tower and Paris than you would if entering by yourself.

I’ve reviewed the top-rated Eiffel Tower tours below. Take a read through the various options to see which Eiffel Tower experience would be best suited to your interests and tastes.

Be sure to see our reviews of Day Trips to Normandy, Louvre Guided Tours and Paris Catacombs Tours.

Best Tours of the Eiffel Tower

	Eiffel Tower Direct Access, Louvre, & Seine River Cruise	Private Eiffel Tower Elevator Tour with Summit	Eiffel Tower Direct Access Tour to Summit by Elevator
	Best Combination Tour	Best Private Tour	Best Value Tour
Departure:	"Anvers" Metro station (Line 2)	Allée des Refuzniks, 75007	62 Avenue Suffren
Start:	9:00 AM	11:00 AM, 12:00 PM, 1:00 PM. 2:00 PM	Wide Variety available
Duration:	9 hours	2 hours	2-3 hours
Includes:	Expert guide, Access to the 1st and 2nd floors of the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum and Seine River cruise	English speaking guide and priority access to the 2nd-floor observation area, and summit	Priority-access ticket to 1st & 2nd floors, and summit access.
	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking

Quick Answer: The 7 Best Rated Eiffel Tower Tours For 2024

1. Best Combination Tour: Eiffel Tower Direct Access, Louvre, & Seine River Cruise
2. Best Private Tour: Private Eiffel Tower Elevator Tour with Summit
3. Best Value Tour: Eiffel Tower Direct Access Tour to Summit by Elevator
4. Best Romantic Tour: Eiffel Tower Dinner Experience and Sightseeing Seine River Cruise
5. Best Budget Tour: Paris: Eiffel Tower Direct Access Tour to 2nd Floor by Elevator
6. Best Family Tour: Eiffel Tower Tour to 2nd Floor by Stairs and Summit by Elevator
7. Best Small Group Tour: Priority Eiffel Tower Tour With Optional Summit

Plan the Ultimate Paris Vacation: See our 5 Day Itinerary of the Best Things to do in Paris!

1. Best Combination Tour: Eiffel Tower Direct Access, Louvre, & Seine River Cruise

If you’re interested in exploring some of the “must see” sights in the most romantic city in the world, this is a perfect tour for you. The Eiffel Tower provides you with a great panoramic view of the whole city. And the cruise meanders through France’s capital and passes many of the important monuments.

Before you enter the Eiffel Tower, your tour guide will provide introductory commentary. Your priority ticket empowers you to skip the queues and swiftly gain the 2^nd floor of the Eiffel Tower. From there, you can enjoy sweeping views across this famous city.

You’ll find handy telescopes all around the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. Try to identify all the famous buildings you can see, such as the Arc de Triomphe. There are also a variety of dining options, from the popular macaroon bar to the Michelin-starred Jules Verne Restaurant.

Then take a short walk on the Seine River to the Louvre Museum. You will have an hour to enjoy a nice French lunch on the banks of the river. After which you will get a highlights tour of the museum where you will see the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and The Winged Bulls etc.

After the Louvre you will take a cruise on the Seine River to complete your amazing day in Paris. Now you’ll have an opportunity to view the same famous Parisian buildings from another angle. This is the perfect way to enjoy a day in Paris with three of it’s most famous attractions.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

Other Experiences You May Enjoy:

2. Best Private Tour: Private Eiffel Tower Elevator Tour with Summit

Looking to explore the Eiffel Tower with just your group? If so, this tour is the perfect way to do it. You will enjoy priority access to the summit of the Eiffel Tower and view the city from on high.

Your tour will begin with stories about Paris and the history of the Eiffel Tower narrated by your dedicated tour guide. At the tower, you’ll ascend by an elevator to the 2^nd floor.

From the observation deck, you can enjoy sweeping vistas of the City of Light aided by the telescopes along the side. Then head all the way up to the summit at 905 feet and enjoy the best views of the city!

Your guide will point out the various sites like Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Sacré-Cœur in Montmartre. With this private tour you get to choose among several start times and skip all the long lines.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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3. Best Value Tour: Eiffel Tower Direct Access Tour to Summit by Elevator

This is a great way to skip those long queues at the Eiffel Tower. Spend less time waiting and more time exploring the most famous tower in the world.

The tickets included in this package allow you to access all parts of the Eiffel Tower open to the public—the first and second floor and the summit.

This provides you with the best possible views of Gay Paree. From the summit, you can clearly see the palatial architecture of the Louvre, the burned towers of Notre Dame, and the weird and modern Pompidou Center.

And if you’re planning to drink Champagne in Paris, why not do it at the summit of the Eiffel Tower in the popular Champagne Bar? Share a toast with your loved one in the most romantic place on Earth.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

4. Best Romantic Tour: Eiffel Tower Dinner Experience and Sightseeing Seine River Cruise

If you are looking for the ultimate Eiffel Tower experience this is the one for you. Not only do you get the skip the queues at the Eiffel Tower but you can enjoy a 3-course gourmet French dinner on the 1st Floor’s Terrace.

What better way to enjoy an even than enjoying the stunning views of Paris while enjoying a fine French meal!

Instead of being left to find your own way around this historic tower, you will be guided around by a knowledgeable local. You’ll learn all about the tower’s amazing history and its place in France’s heart.

Your Evening begins with a stop at the Trocadero Plaza for a photo opportunity so you can get the best possible picture of yourself with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Then your tour guide will lead you to the Eiffel Tower where you’ll skip the queues to visit the 1^st and the 2^nd floors for fabulous views and a range of exclusive shops and restaurants.

The observation deck on the 2^nd floor provides you with some of the best views of Paris. Your tour guide will help you identify the many famous and historic buildings surrounding the Eiffel Tower, such as the Louvre Palace and Notre Dame de Paris.

After dinner take a short stroll on the banks of the Seine River to complete your evening with a romantic cruise. Instead of seeing the sights now from afar see them up close from the cruise ship. After the cruise, you will finish back where you started at the Eiffel Tower.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

5. Best Budget Tour: Eiffel Tower Direct Access Tour to 2nd Floor by Elevator

This is an amazing guided tour for anyone fascinated by France’s most famous iconic structure. After meeting your guide near the tower, you will be given an introduction to its fascinating history.

You’ll enjoy skipping the queues for rapid access to the 2^nd floor of the Eiffel Tower, where your guide will point out important landmarks from the observation deck. Learn all about Les Invalides, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, and Notre-Dame Cathedral from your knowledgeable guide.

While on the 2^nd floor, you might want to take advantage of one of its renowned food outlets. The Jules Verne Restaurant is Michelin-starred, but the macaroon store is my favorite. An optional extended trip to the summit is also available, so you can go all the way to the top of the world’s favorite tower.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

6. Best Family Tour: Eiffel Tower Guided Climb With Optional Summit Access

This is a great tour of the Eiffel Tower if you’d rather walk up to the 2^nd floor rather than use the elevators. Your expert guide will lead you up the 704 steps to the second level, stopping frequently along the way to point of sites of interest and tell you historic stories about the tower and the city of Paris.

On the 1^st floor, you can opt to walk across the clear glass floor…if you dare. There’s also an interactive multimedia exhibit and short film.

From the 2^nd floor, you can enjoy amazing panoramic views of Paris. Your guide will help you to recognize the surrounding districts, such as the Champ-Elysees and Montparnasse.

The queues to use the stairs are much shorter than those to use the elevators, so you’ll save time. And what’s more, you get to see much more of the tower while taking the stairs one-by-one. Unfortunately, you can only access the summit by elevator.

So, if you choose to book the summit access option, you’ll have to take the elevator for the final leg of your tour.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

7. Best Small Group Tour: Eiffel Tower Priority Access Guided Tour with Summit Access

If you want a complete guided tour of the Eiffel Tower, this is a great excursion for you. You’ll get to see all the most interesting features of the tower accompanied by an expert.

As you’re enjoying your tour of the tower, your guide will also point out the interesting sites visible from the observation areas, such as the Sacre-Coeur Church and Les Invalides. You’ll hear about the history of those places and the tower.

Not only will you hear about Gustave Eiffel’s life and works, but you’ll also get to see inside his office with his maps and equipment preserved at the summit of the tower. And while you’re up there, you might want to check out the Bar A Champagne and celebrate your stay in Paris with a sip of fine wine.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

Paris Travel Guide

In TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards 2019, Paris was ranked as the #2 Top Destination in the World. This is no surprise for a city famous for its food, art, and architecture.

Whether you’re looking for gourmet meals, a romantic getaway, a place to immerse yourself in fine art, or a family vacation, France’s capital city is a great destination for you.

Airports & Entry

The two best ways to travel to Paris are by air and by train.

Air

Paris boasts 3 busy international airports which together form the world’s 5^th busiest airport combination and a major transport hub for Europe. Paris’ three international airports are Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris-Orly, and Beauvais-Tillé.

Paris is well served by a selection of budget airlines including Easyjet, Ryanair, French Bee, Transavia, and Norwegian. You can secure better deals by booking at least a month in advance and using a ticket price comparison website, like Omio. You can literally save hundreds of dollars by choosing the right flight. Because Paris is such a major transport hub, flights are very competitive.

Usually, you will find flying both the most affordable and easiest way to reach Paris. However, if you are traveling from a neighboring country, it is worthwhile checking into high-speed trains.

Train

Paris is linked to neighboring countries by a network of high-speed rail links operated by SNCF. Although these trains take longer than flights, they transport their passengers from city center to city center. Flying, of course, usually requires a transfer to an airport some distance away from the city.

For example, if you’re traveling from London to Paris, a Eurostar train that passes through the famous Channel Tunnel will provide a relatively hassle-free journey when compared to flying. Also, in most cases, that journey will be quicker than flying because of the extra time taken up waiting for connections at the airports. And it also gives you bragging rights for using one of the world’s most famous undersea tunnels.

When planning your journey, compare the costs of flights and high-speed trains and decide which is the best option for you. Often flying will be cheapest, but if the cost isn’t too much more, the train will be relatively more comfortable and involve fewer complications.

Planning Tips

Paris is an amazing destination that should be on everyone’s bucket list. Here are 5 tips to help you on your way.

Tip #1: Watch out for Mondays and Tuesdays

When planning your itinerary for your stay in Paris, note that many major attractions, such as the Palace of Versailles and the catacombs, are closed on Mondays. A few attractions are closed on Tuesdays instead, including the Natural History Museum and the Pompidou Center. There are various major attractions open every day, like the Eiffel Tower and Disneyland Paris, so go there on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Tip #2: Buy unique souvenirs and gifts

Paris is, of course, the center of fashion. However, there is one relatively unfashionable item of dress that you might want to pick up during your stay in France’s capital city. The béret is the cliché headwear of France, and you’ll see cheap versions “made in China” in every souvenir shop you pass.

But, if you want to buy the real thing, look out for clothing stores that sell bérets made in France. La Cerise Sur Le Chapeau is a well-known chain store around Paris that stocks French bérets.

However, if you’re looking for something distinctly Parisian that few people will own, how about a piece of the Eiffel Tower? Victor Lustig once sold the Eiffel Tower twice in an elaborate con, but this opportunity isn’t a scam like that.

During repairs to the tower, inevitably some parts need to be replaced. The removed rivets are turned into unique souvenirs only available in the Eiffel Tower’s official gift shop.

Tip #3: Stay safe while visiting Paris

Although Paris is considered a relatively safe city, don’t forget that Kim Kardashian had all her bling stolen while she was staying in a vacation apartment there. Just like any other busy city, you will find purse-snatchers and pickpockets in crowded locations, especially around tourist hotspots.

Just use common sense. Keep your passport and other valuable documents in a hotel safe. Keep your money in a money belt. Don’t wear ostentatious jewelry in public places.

If you see abandoned packages or luggage in a crowded public place, especially a Metro station, distance yourself from the package and call 112. Paris is not a stranger to terrorist attacks.

Tip #4: Book in advance, especially during the summer

Paris is a popular destination in summer and during Christmas and Easter. Ensure you book your hotel rooms and any tours you wish to join well in advance of your vacation. You often get better air flight deals when you book in advance, and that is especially true during the summer.

The best time to visit Paris for bargain prices and fewer crowds is during the shoulder season—just before or just after summer. The weather is still fine, but there are simply fewer tourists.

Tip #5: Learn a few French phrases before traveling to Paris

The French are a proud people, not least of all Parisians. They are rightly concerned about the dilution of their native tongue by English words and phrases from Hollywood movies and internationally popular songs.

So, if you’ve ever heard someone say that French people are rude, it’s probably because the person telling you expected them to speak English.

Almost all French people you’ll meet speak English. But if you greet them in French and use a few words and phrases like “merci” and “s’il vous plaît”, they will be more likely to treat you with respect in return. You don’t need to speak more than a handful of phrases, and you don’t even need a good accent. Parisians will appreciate your effort.

Restaurants & Eating Out

Paris is recognized by many as the heart of the culinary world. Many internationally-acclaimed chefs trained there, and the terms used in gourmet kitchens worldwide originate in Paris. You won’t have any problem finding good food in the capital of France.

Breakfast

Traditional croissants are a great breakfast treat in any Parisian café. The best area for traditional cafés is the Boulevard Saint-Germain, a tree-lined avenue in the 6^th Arrondissement. The Neo Café is highly rated. But if you’re in a hurry and want your breakfast on the go, grab a fresh pain-au-chocolat from one of the family bakeries (patisseries).

Bo&mie in the 2^nd Arrondissement is the top-rated patisserie in Paris and close to attractions such as the Louvre and the Pompidou Center. In the early morning, you’ll often see Parisians walking out from patisseries with freshly baked baguettes. They do love freshly baked bread rather than long-life bread found on supermarket shelves.

Main meals

If you want to find the most exclusive, Michelin-stared restaurants, explore the area around the Champs-Elysées. That’s where you’ll find many of the oldest restaurants in Paris. But, if you have a less discerning palate, the same area is where you’ll find McDonald’s, Burger King, and Starbucks.

The top-rated French gourmet restaurant here is Pierre Gagnaire on Rue Balzac. Be prepared to spend at least €200 per person and you will require a reservation.

While in Paris, you should try at least one distinctively French dish, like coq au vin or ratatouille. If you’re feeling courageous, you could opt for snails or frogs’ legs…just so you can say that you did.

Snacks & sweets

For traditional street food, try the amazing crepes that you can buy from many street corners. You can eat these tasty pancake treats while you walk with savory or sweet fillings.

Before you leave Paris, ensure you sample some of its amazing desserts. The Crème Brulée is a delicious traditional sweet, and meringues are sweet and satisfying but also very messy.

Nightlife & Entertainment

Paris is famous as a getaway for romantic weekends, so of course you’ll find a rich variety of nightlife.

Pigalle

The most famous nightspot in Paris is undoubtedly The Moulin Rouge in the area of the 18^th arrondissement known as Pigalle. This historic cabaret club is where the Can-can dance was created and a favorite haunt for many famous celebrities over the past century, from Toulouse-Lautrec to Frank Sinatra. You can enjoy a cabaret here for around €145 ($160).

However, be aware that Pigalle is regarded as the red-light district. Watch out for overly friendly ladies and gentlemen inviting you into dance clubs in this district.

Champs-Elysées

The most exclusive nightclubs, restaurants, and live music venues are found in the 8^th arrondissement, around the Champs-Elysées. Many of the clubs here are impossible to enter unless you are a recognizable celebrity, royal, or billionaire.

You’ll need to dress up smart to get into any of the decent clubs here. And if you do enter, be careful whose drink you nudge and spill! But a word of caution — the exclusive clubs in this area also include a few strip clubs! They’re very different from the strip clubs in Pigalle, but still strip clubs. One to watch out for is the famous Whisper Club.

An example of a bar in palatial settings where you might be concerned about scuffing the silverware and smearing the crystal is simply called Le Bar in the George V Four Seasons Hotel.

This same area is also home to more touristy haunts which you won’t find so difficult to enter. However, these often contain more tourists than locals, so don’t expect a uniquely French experience. The club with the most laid-back reputation is the Dogstar Club. You might get past the bouncers without a $10,000 watch on your wrist and a designer cocktail dress.

Place Vendome

The 1^st arrondissement is literally the center of the city around the Louvre and where you’ll find boutique hotels with historic bars frequented by celebrities and the beautiful rich. Most of these hotels have strict dress rules to enter the bar, and you’ll need a healthy income to survive the night.

Bastille

The area around the Metro Bastille, on the borders of the 4^th, 11^th, and 12^th arrondissement, is where the younger and more relaxed crowd hang out. You’ll find decent nightclubs, cafés, live music venues, and dive bars frequented by local 20-somethings.

Check out the Niki Club on the Rue de Lappe for a casual night, or maybe the Black Star Club in Passage Thiere if you enjoy live rock music or jazz.

Marais

If you enjoy the LGBT scene, the Marais district in the southern part of the 3^rd arrondissement and northern part of the 4^th is where you’ll find welcoming cafés, bars, and live music venues where all genders and sexualities are made welcome. Café Cox is one bar legendary for its welcomes.

Getting Around

When you’re trying to find your way around, you might get confused by the way addresses sometimes emphasize the arrondissement, sometimes the name of the area, and sometimes the zip code. To simplify this a little, the last two digits of the zip code are the arrondissement number. So, the Eiffel tower is at 75007, meaning it’s in the 7^th arrondissement.

You might be surprised to discover it’s not in the 1^st arrondissement since it’s so central to the city. However, the way the arrondissements work is beginning in the Louvre — the 1^st arrondissement and true center of Paris (where the king’s palace is) — and then radiates out from there. The first layers are numbered from the north clockwise and wrap around the central arrondissements. The arrondissements get larger as you get further from the center.

Most of the main attractions are found in arrondissements 1 through 8, which form the core of the city. This means that it’s possible to walk from attraction to attraction. But if you want to go a little quicker, Paris boasts an affordable and efficient public transport system. And the best way to get around is on the Metro.

Metro

With 300 Metro stations, everywhere in Paris is within a 10-minute walk of a station. A Paris Visite Travel Pass provides unlimited Metro travel within a specified zone for a set period of time. The Travel Pass may also be used on trams, buses, and the RER underground train system. A 1-day ticket for Zones 1 to 3 costs €12 ($13).

Buses

There are even more bus stops than Metro stations and bus services run every 5 to 7 minutes. This means that buses are often more convenient for shorter journeys than the Metro. Since a Travel Pass allows you to swap between the Metro and buses, you can simply take the bus when it’s most convenient but use the Metro for longer destinations. To learn which would be most convenient for your planned journey, you can check the route maps on the RATP (Regie Autonome des Transports) website.

Hire bicycles

Like many capital cities in Europe, Paris has a public bicycle hire scheme. Around the city, you’ll find 1,800 Velib bike stations with 24,000 bicycles. You simply require a credit card with a chip to rent a Velib bike.

Taxis

There are over 16,000 taxis in Paris. Taxis are an expensive but convenient mode of transport. You can take a taxi from a taxi rank or hail one down in the street.

Car hire

While you can opt to hire a car in Paris, be aware that Parisian drivers have a bad reputation for safety. Also, the congested roads are difficult to navigate and parking places rare. If you really want to enjoy your time in Paris, walk or use public transport.

Accommodations

When choosing where to stay in Paris, you should consider why you’re there. If your main interest is in taking your family to Disneyland, Paris, then you’ll find accommodation near there more spacious and much more affordable than most places in the city.

However, if you want to visit the historical and cultural attractions, then you should confine yourself to the central areas between the 1^st and the 8^th arrondissements, where hotels are within walking distance of the main sites.

Below, I’ve divided the kind of accommodation by area. However, this is only a rough guide. You’ll find 5-star luxury hotels in the budget and family areas, and I’ve previously stayed in a very cheap family guesthouse about 2-minutes-walk from the Arc de Triomphe.

Budget

You’ll find a lot of budget accommodation around the 5^th and part of the 6^th arrondissements simply because these areas are a little further from the most popular tourist attractions and famous streets.

But if you don’t mind a little more walking, the area of Montmartre is still pretty central and boasts character-filled, winding streets. And with Metro stations dotted all around the area, it’s as convenient as any other central location if you plan to get around on public transport.

An example budget hotel in this area is the Hotel Marignan  on a quiet street in the Latin Quarter. This historic hotel has hosted many famous guests, such as EE Cummings, and is within walking distance of Notre Dame.

Family

The Rive Gauche area of the rest of the 6^th and the 7^th arrondissements is an easy walk from places like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.

This makes the affordable hotels there perfect for families with young and impatient kids who just want to get there quick. Many of the hotels in this area vary between small boutique hotels and cozy, family-run hotels.

The aptly named Eiffel Rive Gauche Hotel is super close to the Eiffel Tower and would provide a great base for your family to explore the French capital.

Luxury

While a few of the most exclusive hotels are in the 1^st arrondissement, the main selection of high-class hotels is found along the Champs-Elysees in the 8^th arrondissement. You’ll notice this coincides with where the most Michelin-starred restaurants and high-class bars and clubs are, many of which are attached to or inside the luxury hotels.

In terms of distance, the 1^st and 8^th arrondissements are neighbors, with the Champ-Elysees running between the Louvre area in the 1^st and the Arc de Triomphe in the 8^th. Government officials and important people have long made their home in the 8^th arrondissement, and it is considered the cultural heart of the capital.

A great example of a luxury hotel in this area is the Hotel de Crillon, which looks more like a palace or museum than a working hotel.

Weather

Although it’s fairly inland, Paris still benefits from an oceanic climate with cool but mild winters and pleasantly warm summers. Generally, the city sees light rainfall distributed evenly through the year, though sudden heavy showers can occur.

Paris gets coldest in January, with an average daily high of 45⁰F and a low of 37⁰F. During spring, the temperatures warm so that by April it reaches an average high of 60⁰F and low of 45⁰F. Spring is a great time to visit Paris because the flowers are blooming all around the city and the summer crowds have yet to descend upon the city.

The hottest month of the summer is July, with an average high of 77⁰F and low of 60⁰F. That’s when the city becomes crowded with visitors from all around the world. By October, the average high drops to 61⁰F and the low to 49⁰F.

The fall is another great time to visit because the weather isn’t too cold but the crowds have diminished and the trees have donned their beautiful autumnal cloaks.

Attractions

The main attractions radiate out from the center of the city, which is the 1^st arrondissement.

Louvre

The Louvre Palace in the 1st arrondissement was the main residence of the Kings of France from the 14^th century onward. Today it is much better known as the home of the world’s greatest art museum, the Musée du Louvre. If you want to see such world-famous masterpieces as the Venus de Milo sculpture and the Mona Lisa painting, then you should head straight for the glass pyramid in front of the grand palatial building.

Notre-Dame

The great cathedral of Notre-Dame in the 4^th arrondissement is so spectacular and famous that I cannot justify leaving it out of this list. However, please note that the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris is closed for at least the next four years and maybe more.

After the devastating fire of April 2019, the cathedral and nearby surrounding area were closed to public access until sufficient repairs can be made to make the area safe once again. You can still admire its amazing Gothic architecture from a distance and maybe catch a glimpse of some of the restoration work in progress.

Eiffel Tower

The most visited attraction in the center of Paris is the Eiffel Tower in the 7^th arrondissement. Although this renowned iron tower was erected as a temporary structure in 1889, it is still standing strong and looks good for another few centuries of service. The fact that it was the world’s tallest building when built is eye-opening when it is compared to the Empire State Building in NYC or the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, but it is still the best place for a panoramic view in Paris.

Arc de Triomphe

This triumphal arch in the 8^th arrondissement was commissioned by Napoleon but wasn’t built until 1836, long after his death. It stands on a huge roundabout at the northern end of the Champ-Elysees and is one of the most recognizable and photographed monuments in the capital. The Arc de Triomphe is also home to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the Flame of Remembrance that is kept alive in daily ceremonies.

Versailles

You have to leave the city and travel 12 miles southwest to reach the Palace of Versailles, where Louis XIV moved his court in the 17^th century. Now this famous palace is a grand museum full of amazing reminders of the power of the great Sun King. Look around the interior and exterior of the palace for the many sun-emblems reminding visitors who lived here. But the true highlight for many visitors is the beautiful formal gardens that surround the palace.

Disneyland Paris

Also outside the city, despite its name, is Disneyland Paris, 20 miles to the east. This famous theme park is the most visited attraction in France. If you’re visiting Paris with children, you’ll probably want to devote two days to Disney because there are two separate parks here: Disneyland Park opened in 1992 and Walt Disney Studios Park opened in 2002.

Inside both, you’ll find thrill rides for all ages as well as classic attractions, like actors dressed up as your favorite Disney characters and Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.