Paris Hotels

The Cite The Cite, the center of the city’s life since the 3rd century was founded here on what was the largest of the islands in the Seine. It was the first settlement and first religious center, and here were erected the Cathedral and the Palais de Justice. Numerous bridges link it to the banks…

Place de l’Hotel de Ville Its present appearance dates from 1853, but from many centuries, from 1310 to 1830, this vast area was the site of public executions. Flanked by the Rue de Rivoli on one side and the Seine on the other, it is dominated by the wide facade of the Hotel de Ville….

The origin of the Louvre goes back to the end of the 12th century, when Philippe Auguste, before leaving for the Third Crusade, had a fortress built near the river to defend Paris from the incursions of the Saxons ( in fact the name Louvre seems to derive from the Saxon word “leovar”, meaning “fortified…

What the press defined as “the most beautiful museum in Europe” is to be found on the left bank of the Seine, where the State Audit Court originally stood in 1870; it was then destroyed during the Commune. In 1898 the Paris-Orleans railway company assigned the building of the new station to Victor Laloux. The…

This gate too, like the Porte St-Martin, has the form of a triumphal arch, with a single vault, measuring 79 feet both in height and in width. Designed by Blondel and erected in 1672, it has a sculpture by the Anguier brothers and was intended to celebrate the victories of Louis XIV in Germany, when…

The cathedral of Notre Dame stands on the site of a Christian basilica which had in turn been built on the site of a temple from the Roman era. Its construction was begun in 1163, under Bishop Maurice de Sully: first, the chancel was built, followed over the years by the nave and aisles and the…