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Country guide

Historic monuments, Up to 1 hour in France — page 2

France is 18 regions and 632,702 km2, and five of those regions are overseas - French Guiana in South America, the French West Indies, islands in the Indian and...

Photograph · Pierre Blaché · CC0

7,605 Places
1Cities

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

France is 18 regions and 632,702 km2, and five of those regions are overseas - French Guiana in South America, the French West Indies, islands in the Indian and Pacific oceans. Metropolitan France alone runs from the Rhine to the Atlantic and from the Mediterranean to the North Sea, so a week here is a choice rather than a circuit. Of the 69.1 million people estimated in 2026, more than 13 million are in the Paris metropolitan area, which is why the capital tends to win the first visit. The corners - Alpine, Atlantic, Mediterranean - are further from one another than the map's familiarity suggests.

Checked 2026-08-25

Cities

Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.

Practical information

Language spoken
French
French is the language of the Republic under Article 2 of the Constitution
Dialling code
+33
The country code for metropolitan France
Currency
Euro (€, EUR)
France has used the euro as its official currency since 2002
Emergency number
112
One number across the country; 15 reaches an ambulance directly
Plug type
Type E · 220 V
Round-pin sockets use a projecting earth pin
Tap water
Safe to drink
The health ministry says tap water may be consumed safely unless local authorities issue specific advice

Planning a visit

Seasonal closures come from recorded opening hours.

  1. January: seasonal closure recorded
  2. February: seasonal closure recorded
  3. March: seasonal closure recorded
  4. April: seasonal closure recorded
  5. May: seasonal closure recorded
  6. June: seasonal closure recorded
  7. July: seasonal closure recorded
  8. August: seasonal closure recorded
  9. September: no seasonality data recorded — this month
  10. October: seasonal closure recorded
  11. November: seasonal closure recorded
  12. December: seasonal closure recorded

Top things to see

Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.

Filter the list

52 places match

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Category

Historic monuments 52 Museums 3 Places of worship 14 Nature sites 24 Viewpoints 0 Food and drink 10 Markets and shopping 9 Entertainment 0 Nightlife 0 Family attractions 0 Art and culture 10 Activities 1

Typical visit duration

Up to 1 hour 52 1 to 2 hours 9 Half a day or more 1

Interests

History 52 Art 0 Museums 0 Nature 0 Sea and beach 0 Viewpoints 0
  1. École Militaire École Militaire
    26 15 min

    École Militaire

    The Ecole Militaire is an operating French military academy, not a museum, and it is not open to the public.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  2. Luxor Obelisk Luxor Obelisk
    27 10 min

    Luxor Obelisk

    Obélisque de Louxor

    The Luxor Obelisk stands at the centre of Place de la Concorde, a 3,300-year-old pink granite obelisk that once stood at the entrance to Luxor Temple in Egypt, one of a matching pair carved in the reign of Ramesses II.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  3. galerie Vivienne galerie Vivienne
    28 20 min

    galerie Vivienne

    Galerie Vivienne

    Galerie Vivienne is a covered shopping passage, one of the best-preserved of the passages couverts that dotted central Paris in the early 19th century before department stores and Haussmann's boulevards displaced most of them.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  4. Jardin des serres d'Auteuil Jardin des serres d'Auteuil
    29 1 hour

    Jardin des serres d'Auteuil

    Jardin des serres d’Auteuil

    The Jardin des serres d'Auteuil is a municipal botanical garden built around a set of glasshouses, on the western edge of Paris beside the Bois de Boulogne.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  5. Arènes de Lutèce Arènes de Lutèce
    30 30 min

    Arènes de Lutèce

    Cavae des Arènes de Lutèce

    Arenes de Lutece is the surviving Roman amphitheatre of Lutetia, built in the 1st century AD on the slope of what is now the 5th arrondissement, and it once seated an estimated 15,000 people for gladiator contests and theatre.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  6. Saint-Jacques Tower Saint-Jacques Tower
    31 15 min

    Saint-Jacques Tower

    Tour Saint-Jacques

    The Tour Saint-Jacques is the last surviving fragment of the church of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie, a late-Gothic parish church built between 1509 and 1523 for the guild of Paris butchers, whose market gave the church its name.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  7. July Column July Column
    32 1 hour

    July Column

    Colonne de Juillet

    The Colonne de Juillet stands at the centre of Place de la Bastille and commemorates the July Revolution of 1830 — the Trois Glorieuses, three days of fighting on 27-29 July that drove King Charles X from the throne.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  8. Palais de Justice Palais de Justice
    33 20 min

    Palais de Justice

    Palais de Justice de Paris

    The Palais de Justice is the historic seat of the French judiciary on the Ile de la Cite, built on the site of the medieval Palais de la Cite, the residence of the Capetian kings from the 10th century until…

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  9. Pont Mirabeau Pont Mirabeau
    34 15 min

    Pont Mirabeau

    Pont Mirabeau carries a road and pedestrian walkways across the Seine between the 15th and 16th arrondissements, built between 1893 and 1897 under the chief engineer Paul Rabel using a steel arch design that was, at the time, one of…

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  10. Porte Saint-Denis Porte Saint-Denis
    35 10 min

    Porte Saint-Denis

    Porte Saint-Denis is a triumphal arch built in 1672 on the orders of the city of Paris to honour Louis XIV's military victories on the Rhine, in particular the crossing of the Rhine earlier that year during the Franco-Dutch War.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  11. Colonne Vendôme Colonne Vendôme
    36 15 min

    Colonne Vendôme

    The Colonne Vendome stands at the centre of Place Vendome in the 1st arrondissement, raised between 1806 and 1810 on Napoleon's order to commemorate the victory at Austerlitz.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  12. parc Montsouris parc Montsouris
    37 1 hour

    parc Montsouris

    Parc Montsouris

    Parc Montsouris is a 15.5-hectare public park in the 14th arrondissement, opened in 1878 as part of Napoleon III and Baron Haussmann's programme of large landscaped parks for Paris.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  13. pont au Change pont au Change
    38 10 min

    pont au Change

    Pont au Change

    Pont au Change carries rue de Rivoli's continuation across the northern arm of the Seine, linking the Ile de la Cite -- at the Conciergerie and the Palais de Justice -- to the Right Bank at Place du Chatelet.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  14. Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon
    39 30 min

    Hôtel de Crillon

    Hotel de Crillon opened as a hotel in 1909, but the building itself is a 1758 royal commission: Louis XV had Ange-Jacques Gabriel build two identical stone palaces flanking the Rue Royale on the new Place de la Concorde, and…

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  15. Académie de la Grande Chaumière Académie de la Grande Chaumière
    40 45 min

    Académie de la Grande Chaumière

    Academie de la Grande Chaumiere is an art school founded in 1904 by the Catalan painter Claudio Castelucho on the street of the same name in Montparnasse, near the older Academie Colarossi, and it became a defining institution of the…

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  16. Jardin du Luxembourg Jardin du Luxembourg
    41 45 min

    Jardin du Luxembourg

    The Jardin du Luxembourg is a 23-hectare formal garden on the Left Bank, laid out from 1612 for a queen who wanted a Florentine garden in Paris and built by the French Senate, which still owns the palace at its…

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  18. Port-Royal Abbey Port-Royal Abbey
    43 45 min

    Port-Royal Abbey

    Abbaye de Port-Royal

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
  24. 26 rue Vavin 26 rue Vavin
    49 45 min

    26 rue Vavin

    Immeuble Henri Sauvage

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Paris
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Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·

Common questions

How long should a first trip to France be?

Ten to fourteen days supports four or five days in Paris plus one coherent regional direction, such as Lyon, Bordeaux, Strasbourg, or Marseille. Avoid routing every extension back through Paris, because even fast TGV journeys leave local connection time at each end.

What entry documents are needed for France?

France applies Schengen entry rules, but the required passport validity or visa still depends on nationality and route. France-Visas is the official place to verify the exact requirement before booking and again before entering from outside Schengen.

What is the best way to travel around France?

TGV trains join France's largest cities, while TER services handle regional links and many rural areas still favour a car. Long-distance reservations may be mandatory, and each city retains its own urban ticket system rather than accepting one national visitor card.

When is a practical time to visit France?

April to June and September to October suit the Paris-plus-region route described here. Alpine access, Mediterranean heat, Atlantic weather, and rural seasonal services differ enough that the selected second region should determine the final dates.

What money and payment basics apply in France?

France uses the euro (EUR). Bank cards are common, yet a small euro reserve remains useful for markets or local machines; confirm any terminal conversion choice before accepting it because this page does not record changing fees.

What practical safety details should I save for France?

For urgent help anywhere in France, call 112; medical emergencies also use 15 and police matters 17. The electrical standard is 230 V with Type C and E plugs. This dataset has no recorded national tap-water finding, so consult the municipality or lodging for the specific stop.