Paris has spent the last couple of years quietly outdoing itself. Notre-Dame is back and gleaming, the Catacombs have had a glow-up (well, as much of a glow-up as six million skeletons can have), and Versailles is hosting Sofia Coppola, of all people. If you’ve been waiting for a sign to book the Eurostar, this is it.
The trouble, of course, is that Paris has roughly a thousand “unmissable” things to do, and every one of them comes with a queue. Do you spend your one precious Saturday with Monet or at the top of the Eiffel Tower? With the kids at the aquarium or with your other half at a canalside wine bar? It’s enough to make you give up and just eat croissants all weekend (not the worst plan, to be fair).
Lucky, then, that our editors have done the legwork. We’ve climbed the stairs, braved the security lines and eaten more ice cream than we’d like to admit, and we’ve sorted the 40 best things to do in Paris by the kind of trip you’re actually on. First-timer, art obsessive, parent, romantic or unapologetic luxury lover: your list starts here.
How we chose
Every entry is somewhere our editors have visited, and we judged each on the experience itself, value, crowd levels and whether it’s genuinely worth your limited time in the city. Two practical notes: the Centre Pompidou is closed for renovation until 2030, so you won’t find it here. And if you’re travelling from the UK, Britons now pay the higher non-EU rate at the Louvre, with several other major monuments following suit, so the prices below are the non-EU rate unless stated.
IF YOU’RE DOING THE CLASSICS
The Eiffel Tower, 7th arrondissement
Best for: The “I’m actually in Paris” moment
Price: From €14.80 for the stairs to the second floor, €23.50 by lift to the second floor, and €36.70 by lift to the summit
Why we love it: Come on, it’s the Eiffel Tower! We’ll be the ones to say it, though: the summit isn’t always the best bit. From the second floor, Paris still looks like Paris (rooftops, bridges, the dome of Les Invalides glinting in the sun), whereas from the very top it starts to resemble a very pretty map. If you’re fit, take the 674 steps up to the second floor and admire the ironwork up close, a detail lift passengers completely miss.
Go at golden hour, then stay on the Champ de Mars for the sparkle, which sets the whole tower twinkling for five minutes on the hour after dark. Book online well ahead. No, really.
Book it here; Paris: Eiffel Tower Summit or 2nd Floor Reserved Access
The Louvre, 1st arrondissement
Best for: Bucket-list masterpieces
Price: €32 for non-EEA visitors, €22 for EEA residents, and free for under-18s
Why we love it: Yes, the Mona Lisa is smaller than you think, and yes, you’ll see her over a sea of raised phones. Go anyway, then walk away from the crowds. The Winged Victory of Samothrace at the top of the Daru staircase is the real showstopper, and the Napoleon III apartments (all gilt, velvet and chandeliers the size of a Mini) are criminally overlooked.
Use the Carrousel entrance under the shopping arcade rather than the pyramid, and book an evening slot on a late-opening night, when the galleries feel almost civilised.
Book it here: Paris: Louvre Overview, Exploration Tour and Reserved Entry
Notre-Dame de Paris, Île de la Cité
Best for: Goosebumps, free of charge
Price: Entry to the cathedral is free with a reservation, while the bell towers cost €16
Why we love it: We weren’t prepared for how emotional it would feel to step back inside. After the 2019 fire and five years of restoration, the stone has been cleaned back to a pale, almost buttery limestone, and the light that pours through the nave is extraordinary. Book your free slot on the official site and ignore any reseller trying to charge you for “skip-the-line” entry.
If your knees are willing, climb the towers for a close encounter with the chimeras (the gargoyles’ moodier cousins) and a view straight down the Seine.
Book it: Paris: Notre-Dame Cathedral Interior and Exterior Guided Tour
Sacré-Cœur and Montmartre, 18th arrondissement
Best for: Views and village charm
Price: Free (the dome climb is extra)
Why we love it: The white basilica on the hill is the postcard, but Montmartre is the real reason to come. Take the funicular up if you’re feeling lazy (we won’t judge), then wander past the painters on Place du Tertre, down the cobbles of Rue de l’Abreuvoir and past the candy-pink façade of La Maison Rose.
Get there before 9am and you’ll have the steps almost to yourself, with the whole of Paris spread out below. Delectable.
Book it: Paris: Montmartre Must-See Walking Tour with a Local Guide
The Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées, 8th arrondissement
Best for: The best view of the Eiffel Tower
Price: €22 in high season and €16 in low season, with high-season Wednesdays also charged at €16
Why we love it: Here’s what nobody tells you: the roof of the Arc de Triomphe gives you a better city view than the Eiffel Tower, precisely because the Eiffel Tower is in it. From the top, twelve grand avenues fan out from the Étoile like spokes on a wheel, and watching the traffic chaos below is oddly soothing.
Use the underground passage to cross (please don’t attempt the roundabout), and treat the Champs-Élysées as a stroll rather than a shopping trip.
Book it: Paris: Arc de Triomphe Rooftop Tickets
The Palace of Versailles, Versailles
Best for: Royal-level day tripping
Price: The Passport ticket costs €25 in low season and €35 in high season for non-EEA adults
Why we love it: What’s not to love about a palace so over-the-top it helped start a revolution? The Hall of Mirrors is every bit as dazzling as you’ve been told, but the Passport ticket is the one to buy, because the real magic lies at the Trianon estate and Marie Antoinette’s storybook Queen’s Hamlet.
Take the RER C from central Paris, arrive before opening, and hire a rowing boat on the Grand Canal after lunch. This autumn there’s extra reason to go: the Sofia Coppola exhibition opened on 22 September 2026. The Marie Antoinette director, at Versailles? Hear, hear.
Book it: Paris: Palace of Versailles and Gardens Full Access Ticket
Les Invalides and Napoleon’s Tomb, 7th arrondissement
Best for: History buffs and golden-dome spotters
Why we love it: You’ll have seen that gilded dome glinting over the rooftops all week, so go and find out what’s under it. Spoiler: it’s Napoleon, in a red quartzite sarcophagus so enormous it’s almost funny (the man did like to make a statement). The Army Museum around it is vast, with suits of armour, cannons and a surprisingly moving section on the two World Wars.
Walk back via the Pont Alexandre III, the most ornate bridge in Paris, all gold statues and Art Nouveau lamps.
Book it: Les Invalides: Napoleon’s Tomb & Army Museum Entry
The Moulin Rouge, Pigalle
Best for: A night of feathers and can-can
Why we love it: Is it touristy? Completely. Do we care? Not one bit. The red windmill has been turning since 1889, and the revue is a whirlwind of sequins, plumes and high kicks that you’ll still be talking about on the walk back to the hotel. Champagne is very much part of the deal.
Book the later show, skip the dinner package, and eat properly in South Pigalle beforehand.
Book it: Paris: Moulin Rouge Cabaret Show Ticket
IF YOU’RE INTO ART
Musée d’Orsay, 7th arrondissement
Best for: Impressionist heaven
Price: €16 online, or €12 on Thursday evenings after 6pm
Why we love it: If we could only visit one museum in Paris, it might well be this one (whisper it, over the Louvre). It’s housed in a former Beaux-Arts railway station, and the art is as thrilling as the building: Monet, Renoir, Degas and a room of Van Goghs that will stop you in your tracks.
Head to the top floor and look out through the giant clock face towards Sacré-Cœur, then have lunch in the restaurant under its gilded Belle Époque ceiling. Timing tip: the Mary Cassatt exhibition runs from 6 October 2026 to 31 January 2027.
Book it: Paris: Orsay Museum Entry Ticket
Musée de l’Orangerie, Jardin des Tuileries
Best for: Monet at his most immersive
Price: A combined Orsay and Orangerie ticket costs €20
Why we love it: Two oval rooms, eight enormous panels of Monet’s Water Lilies wrapping around you under soft natural light. That’s it. That’s the whole pitch, and it’s more than enough. Monet designed the space himself, and sitting on the benches in the middle feels like stepping inside the painting.
Don’t skip the basement, home to a lovely collection of Renoir, Cézanne and Modigliani. It’s a short walk along the river from Orsay, so do both in one day.
Book it: Paris: Musée de l’Orangerie Reserved Entrance Ticket
Musée Rodin, 7th arrondissement
Best for: Sculpture in a secret garden
Price: A combined Orsay and Rodin ticket costs €25
Why we love it: The Thinker is here, of course, perched in the rose garden looking as pensive as ever. But it was The Kiss, inside the elegant 18th-century mansion, that had us swooning. The gardens alone are worth the ticket, with sculptures tucked between the hedges and the golden dome of Les Invalides peeking over the wall.
Bring a book and grab a coffee at the garden café. It’s one of the calmest hours you’ll spend in the city.
Book it: Paris: Rodin Museum Entrance Ticket
Sainte-Chapelle, Île de la Cité
Best for: The most beautiful room in Paris
Price: €22 for non-EEA visitors, €16 for EEA residents, or €30 for the combined Sainte-Chapelle and Conciergerie ticket
Why we love it: Trust us when we say you’ve never seen stained glass like it. You climb a narrow spiral staircase from the rather plain lower chapel, and then the upper chapel hits you: walls that are almost entirely glass, glowing ruby and sapphire, built in the 13th century to house royal relics.
Book a sunny morning slot if you can, when the light is at its most jewel-like. The security queue (it sits within the Palais de Justice) is the slow part, so allow time.
Book it: Paris: Sainte-Chapelle Guided Tour & Reserved Entry Ticket
Musée Picasso, Le Marais
Best for: Getting to know the man behind the myth
Why we love it: The largest public Picasso collection anywhere, housed in the Hôtel Salé, a grand 17th-century mansion in the heart of the Marais. Its baroque staircase makes a gloriously odd backdrop for Cubism, and the collection spans his whole life, from blue-period gloom to late-career playfulness.
Pair it with a wander around the Marais afterwards (read: a falafel on Rue des Rosiers)
Book it: .Paris: Picasso Museum Entry Ticket
Bourse de Commerce, Pinault Collection, 1st arrondissement
Best for: Contemporary art in a jaw-dropping space
Why we love it: With the Pompidou closed, this is where you come for your contemporary art fix. Japanese architect Tadao Ando slotted a vast concrete cylinder inside a historic domed rotunda, and the meeting of raw concrete and painted 19th-century frescoes overhead is genuinely breathtaking.
The shows rotate through François Pinault’s formidable collection, so check what’s on. Then book a table at the rooftop restaurant, Halle aux Grains, for dinner under the dome.
Musée Marmottan Monet, 16th arrondissement
Best for: Monet devotees who’ve already done the Orangerie
Why we love it: This is where you’ll find Impression, Sunrise, the very painting that gave Impressionism its name. It sits in a former hunting lodge on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne, and the basement gallery holds the world’s largest collection of Monet’s work, including the late, almost abstract Giverny canvases.
It’s properly off the tourist trail, so you can actually stand in front of a masterpiece for as long as you like. Imagine that.
Musée Jacquemart-André, 8th arrondissement
Best for: A peek inside a Belle Époque mansion
Why we love it: A wealthy 19th-century couple, Édouard André and Nélie Jacquemart, filled their Boulevard Haussmann home with Italian Renaissance art, and the result feels less like a museum and more like being invited round to the grandest house in Paris. Think Botticelli, Rembrandt and ballrooms dripping in gilt.
Don’t miss lunch in the café, the couple’s former dining room, beneath a Tiepolo ceiling. Cake with a side of fresco? We’ll allow it.
IF YOU’RE WITH THE KIDS
Jardin du Luxembourg, 6th arrondissement
Best for: A perfectly Parisian afternoon, all ages
Price: Free
Why we love it: This is what childhood in Paris looks like. Rent a little wooden sailboat at the Grand Bassin and watch the kids nudge it across the pond with a stick, then catch the Guignol puppet show, ride the ponies, and let them loose in the playground while you claim one of the famous green chairs.
It’s a favourite with locals too, which is always a good sign. Pack a picnic from a nearby boulangerie (natch).
Jardin d’Acclimatation, Bois de Boulogne
Best for: Old-fashioned fun with a Parisian twist
Why we love it: Part amusement park, part garden, part petting farm, this 19th-century park at the edge of the Bois de Boulogne keeps children busy for an entire day. There are rides for every age, a little farm, water play in summer and gardens where the grown-ups can decompress.
It sits right next to the Fondation Louis Vuitton, so if you’re travelling with a co-parent, one of you can sneak off for some culture while the other handles the rollercoaster.
Book it: Paris: Jardin d’Acclimatation, Unlimited Pass, 1-Day
Grande Galerie de l’Évolution and the Ménagerie, Jardin des Plantes
Best for: Budding naturalists
Why we love it: Walking into the Grande Galerie is like stepping onto the set of a family film: a vast iron-and-glass hall where a parade of elephants, giraffes and zebras marches across the ground floor as if heading for Noah’s Ark. Kids lose their minds. So did we, frankly.
Afterwards, the Ménagerie next door (one of the oldest zoos in the world) is small enough for little legs, with red pandas and orangutans among the stars.
Book it: Paris: Entry Ticket to the Great Gallery of Evolution
Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, Parc de la Villette
Best for: Rainy days and curious minds
Why we love it: Europe’s biggest science museum is a godsend when the Paris weather turns. The Cité des Enfants zones are designed for hands-on play (book these in advance, they’re popular), and older kids can climb aboard the Argonaute, a real decommissioned submarine parked outside.
The Parc de la Villette itself is great for a run-around afterwards, with themed playgrounds and a seriously long dragon slide.
Book it: Paris: City of Science and Industry Museum Entry Ticket
The Catacombs, 14th arrondissement
Best for: Teens who think they’re too cool for Paris
Price: €31 for adults and €15 for children aged 8 to 17 accompanied by an adult, with an audio guide included
Why we love it: Want to impress a sulky 14-year-old? Take them 20 metres underground into a labyrinth of tunnels lined with the neatly stacked bones of millions of Parisians. It’s eerie, oddly beautiful and utterly unforgettable. The site reopened in April 2026 after several months of renovations, so it’s looking its (ahem) best.
Pack a jumper, since it can drop to around 14 degrees down there. Tickets go on sale a maximum of seven days ahead and regularly sell out, so set a reminder. Not one for little ones or the claustrophobic.
Book it: Paris: Catacombs Entry Ticket and Audio Guide
Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallée
Best for: The ultimate treat day
Why we love it: Is it Paris? Technically, no. Will your kids remember it forever? Absolutely. It’s around 40 minutes from central Paris on the RER A, making it a very doable day trip, and the castle at the end of Main Street is, dare we say it, more elegant than its American cousins.
Arrive before the gates open, download the app to track queue times, and stay for the evening show. It’s a tough job, etc.
Book it: Disneyland® Paris 1-day ticket
Jardin des Tuileries, 1st arrondissement
Best for: Burning off energy between museums
Price: Free
Why we love it: Wedged between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde, the Tuileries is the perfect pressure valve after a morning of culture. There are trampolines, an old-fashioned carousel and wooden sailboats on the octagonal pond, and in summer a full funfair sets up along the Rue de Rivoli side, big wheel and all.
Grab a crêpe from one of the kiosks and let the adults rest their feet on the green chairs. Everyone wins.
Aquarium de Paris, Trocadéro
Best for: Little ocean lovers (and wet weather)
Why we love it: Built into an old quarry beneath the Trocadéro gardens, this aquarium is home to sharks, jellyfish and a touch pool where kids can get up close with the fish. It’s compact enough that small children won’t flag, and the shark tank is the one they’ll talk about for weeks.
Come out and you’re right opposite the Eiffel Tower, so the obligatory family photo is sorted too.
Book it: Paris: Aquarium de Paris Entrance Ticket
IF YOU’RE ON A ROMANTIC TRIP
A Seine cruise at dusk
Best for: Falling in love with the city (and each other)
Why we love it: Cheesy? Maybe. Worth it? Every time. There’s something about gliding under the bridges as the lights flicker on along the quays that turns even the most cynical traveller soft. Time your cruise for sunset so you catch the Eiffel Tower’s sparkle from the water.
Skip the dinner cruises if you’re watching the budget (the food rarely matches the view) and go for an hour-long sightseeing boat, then find a bistro afterwards.
Book it: Paris: Seine Cruise departing from the Eiffel Tower
Place des Vosges, Le Marais
Best for: A slow Sunday morning
Price: Free
Why we love it: The oldest planned square in Paris, dating back to 1612, and still one of the loveliest. Red-brick townhouses with arcades on all four sides frame a square of lime trees and fountains, and on a sunny morning it’s dotted with couples reading on the grass.
Wander the arcades, poke your head into Victor Hugo’s former apartment (now a free museum) and linger over coffee under the arches. Stunning.
Musée de la Vie Romantique, 9th arrondissement
Best for: A secret garden tea for two
Price: Free (permanent collection)
Why we love it: Tucked at the end of a cobbled lane at the foot of Montmartre, this green-shuttered villa was once a meeting place for Chopin, George Sand and Delacroix (what an interesting dinner party that would have been!). The collection is small and charming, but the real draw is the garden café, all rose bushes and wrought-iron tables.
Come mid-afternoon, order tea and cake, and pretend you’re in a period drama.
Île Saint-Louis
Best for: Ice cream and a stroll
Price: Free (ice cream not included)
Why we love it: The quieter sister to Île de la Cité feels like a village frozen in time, with tiny boutiques, old stone mansions and one of the prettiest views in the city: the flying buttresses of Notre-Dame from the Quai d’Orléans. We still dream of the salted caramel at Berthillon, the island’s legendary glacier.
Take your cone down to the riverbank, dangle your feet over the edge and watch the boats drift by. Perfection.
Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, 19th arrondissement
Best for: A picnic with a view
Price: Free
Why we love it: Most visitors never make it out here, and that’s exactly why we love it. This dramatic park has cliffs, a waterfall, a suspension bridge and the little Temple de la Sibylle perched on a rocky island, all dreamt up in the 19th century.
Picnic on the slopes in the afternoon, then head to Rosa Bonheur, the park’s guinguette, for a glass of rosé as the sun goes down. Locals only (and now you).
The Palais-Royal gardens, 1st arrondissement
Best for: A dreamy afternoon wander
Price: Free
Why we love it: Just steps from the Louvre, this hushed courtyard garden with its neat lime trees and elegant arcades feels like a well-kept secret. Take photos among the black-and-white striped Buren columns, browse the vintage jewellery and glove boutiques under the arches, then settle on a bench by the fountain.
For a truly special occasion, book lunch at Le Grand Véfour, a gilded restaurant that’s been feeding lovers since the 18th century.
Canal Saint-Martin, 10th arrondissement
Best for: Bohemian Paris, hand in hand
Why we love it: Iron footbridges, tree-lined quays, locks that open and close as the boats pass through: this is the Paris of Amélie, and it’s every bit as charming as you’d hope. The neighbourhood is full of independent boutiques, natural wine bars and cafés where the young and stylish while away their afternoons.
On a warm evening, do as the locals do: buy a bottle of wine, sit on the edge of the canal and watch the world go by. Bliss.
Père Lachaise Cemetery, 20th arrondissement
Best for: Couples who like a little melancholy
Price: Free
Why we love it: Hear us out. The most famous cemetery in the world is also one of the most beautiful places in Paris, a leafy hillside of cobbled lanes and moss-covered tombs. Oscar Wilde, Édith Piaf and Jim Morrison are all here, but romantics should head for the tomb of Héloïse and Abélard, the medieval lovers whose letters have been making people swoon for 900 years.
Go on an autumn afternoon when the leaves are turning. Moody, magical and not remotely morbid.
IF YOU LIKE LUXURY
Best for: Cocktails with a legend
Why we love it: Come on, it’s the Ritz! Even if you’re not staying, the Bar Hemingway is one of the most atmospheric bars in the world, a wood-panelled little room lined with the writer’s memorabilia and serving some of the finest cocktails in Paris. It’s tiny and doesn’t take reservations, so arrive early.
Want more? Book afternoon tea in the Salon Proust, or a treatment at the Chanel au Ritz spa. We know, we know.
Book it here
La Galerie Dior, Avenue Montaigne
Best for: Fashion fans
Why we love it: Inside the house’s historic 30 Montaigne headquarters, this gallery traces Dior from Christian’s first New Look collection to the present day, and it’s genuinely jaw-dropping. The highlight is a spiralling staircase wall of miniature dresses and accessories arranged in a rainbow of colours (prepare to take about 40 photos).
Book ahead, then take a stroll down Avenue Montaigne for a spot of window shopping (or actual shopping, we don’t judge).
La Samaritaine, 1st arrondissement
Best for: Designer shopping in an Art Nouveau jewel box
Why we love it: The grand old department store by the Pont Neuf reopened after a lavish restoration, and it’s now the most beautiful place to shop in Paris. Look up at the glass roof and the peacock frieze, then lose yourself among the designer labels and beauty counters.
Afterwards, head next door to Cheval Blanc Paris for a drink on the terrace, with a view straight down the Seine.
Palais Garnier, 9th arrondissement
Best for: A night of glamour
Why we love it: You can take a self-guided tour of the opera house during the day, and you should, if only to gawp at the marble grand staircase, the Chagall-painted ceiling and Box 5 (reserved, legend has it, for the Phantom). But nothing beats seeing a ballet here in the evening, dressed up and sipping champagne in the Grand Foyer at the interval.
Book tickets as soon as the season opens. Seriously, they go fast.
Book it here
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Bois de Boulogne
Best for: Architecture lovers with expensive taste
Why we love it: Frank Gehry’s building looks like a glass ship in full sail, and it’s as thrilling inside as out. The exhibitions are consistently world-class, and the rooftop terraces offer unexpected views across the Bois de Boulogne to the towers of La Défense.
Pair it with lunch at the museum’s restaurant, then walk back through the park. Very chic, very Parisian.
Le Jules Verne, Eiffel Tower
Best for: A dinner you’ll never forget
Why we love it: Yes, it’s expensive. Yes, it’s worth it. Reached by a private lift in the tower’s south pillar, this Michelin-starred restaurant on the second floor serves refined French cooking with the most romantic view in the world. Watching the lights of Paris come on from your table is a moment that stays with you.
Request a window table when you book, and save room for dessert. You’re in the Eiffel Tower, darling.
Book it here
Hôtel Plaza Athénée, Avenue Montaigne
Best for: The most Parisian afternoon tea
Why we love it: Those red geraniums and scarlet awnings make up one of the most photographed façades in the city, and stepping inside is every bit as glamorous. Book tea in La Galerie, where the pastries are as pretty as the crowd, or a cocktail at the bar before a night out.
It’s in the heart of the Golden Triangle, so arrive with a few shopping bags from Avenue Montaigne for full effect.
Book it here
Guerlain, 68 Champs-Élysées
Best for: A bespoke beauty indulgence
Why we love it: The Guerlain flagship has been on the Champs-Élysées since 1914, and it’s the one address on the avenue we’d genuinely cross the road for. Browse the fragrance bar (and those famous bee bottles), then disappear into the spa for a facial that will make you feel like a new woman.
Want something truly special? Ask about the bespoke perfume consultations. Hear, hear.
Book it here
Planning your stay? See our guide to the best hotels in Paris for the perfect base.
