Where to Stay in Paris, Île-de-France

What is Paris known for?

Paris is known as the capital of France and the great museum city on the Seine. The Louvre Museum and the Musée d'Orsay hold two of the world's largest art collections, while the Centre Georges Pompidou gathers the modern work. Art defines it.

Above the rooftops the Sacré-Cœur crowns the hill of Montmartre, the Panthéon holds the nation's honoured dead, and the Catacombs of Paris run beneath the streets.

What are the main landmarks in Paris?

Paris carries more landmarks than any single visit can hold. The Louvre Museum and the Musée d'Orsay face each other across the Seine, and the Centre Georges Pompidou stands nearby with the modern collection. Churches mark the skyline.

The Sacré-Cœur crowns Montmartre and the Panthéon rises over the Left Bank, while the Musée Rodin, the Musée Picasso and the Catacombs of Paris draw visitors to quieter corners of the city.

What is the history of Paris?

Paris grew from an island in the Seine into the capital of France and the heart of the Île-de-France. The river gave the early city its defence and its trade, and the medieval town spread from the two banks around the crossing. Kings made it their seat.

Over centuries the monarchy raised the palace that became the Louvre Museum, and the Panthéon rose on the Left Bank as a temple to the nation's great figures. The Church of Saint Eustache and the Musée de Cluny survive from the older medieval and Roman layers beneath the modern streets. Revolution and enlightenment reshaped the city as sharply as any king.

Paris earned its name as the City of Light partly through its role in the Age of Enlightenment, and its museums grew into the greatest in the country. The Musée d'Orsay filled a former railway station with painting, the Centre Georges Pompidou brought modern art to the old market district, and the Catacombs of Paris gathered the bones of centuries beneath the streets. Through each age the Seine remained the axis, and the city on its banks stayed the political and cultural centre of France.

Where is Paris?

Paris sits on the Seine in the centre of the Île-de-France region of northern France. The river winds through the heart of the city, splitting it into a Right Bank and a Left Bank joined by many bridges. Low hills ring the centre.

The rise of Montmartre carries the Sacré-Cœur above the rooftops, and the flat basin of the Île-de-France spreads around the Seine to hold one of Europe's largest metropolitan areas.

What is the climate of Paris?

Paris has a temperate oceanic climate softened by its inland position on the Seine. Winters stay cool and damp rather than harsh, and summers run warm without long spells of extreme heat. Rain falls evenly across every Paris season.

The mild Atlantic weather that reaches the Île-de-France keeps the parks green across the seasons, and the Seine rarely freezes even in the coldest months.

How do you get to Paris?

Paris is the hub of the French rail and air network. High-speed trains fan out from the city's mainline stations to every corner of France and beyond, and two major airports serve the Île-de-France. Everything meets here.

From the central stations the Louvre Museum and the Seine lie a short ride away, and the dense metro binds the two banks and the outer arrondissements into one network across the region.