Discovering The Charms Of The First Arrondissement Of Paris

A Comprehensive Guide To The First Arrondissement of Paris

Wondering which is the nicest arrondissement of Paris? The first could certainly take this title. As one of the most interesting districts in the City of Love, it offers some beautiful architecture, gardens and sites to see. While it is one of the smallest arrondissements in the city, it is also the oldest and is fondly known as the Royal Heart of Paris.

Being lovers of both art and history, we thoroughly enjoyed discovering the charms of the first arrondissement of Paris and we are happy to share our comprehensive guide with you in this blog.

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What Is The 1st Arrondissement Know For?

Guide To Navigating The 1st Arrondissement

If you aren’t staying in the 1st arrondissement, then we recommend taking the metro to this part of the city.  This area of Paris is extremely busy and not particularly car friendly so if you are considering a cab or ride share, be prepared to sit in traffic, especially during rush hour.

Fortunately, this district of Paris is served by Metro Line 1 making it accessible from virtually anywhere in the city.  Metro Line 1 is also fully automated meaning that public transit strikes, which are frequent in France, may not be an impediment!

The 1st arrondissement forms a nice rectangle right in the centre of Paris.  It is bordered on the south by the iconic Seine River and to the north by Rue des Petits Champs.  

The western border is framed by Place de la Concorde, although that particular landmark is situated in the 8th arrondissement.  The arrondissement is bordered on the east by Boulevard de Sébastopol and also extends across the Seine to include the eastern part of Ile de la Cité.

✅ A perfect way to orient yourself in Paris is to take a walking tour. This small group tour will cover all the places in the 1st district that we mention in our blog post plus some additional sights.

First Arrondissement of Paris Map

Discover The Louvre

Who hasn’t heard of the Louvre? It is the world’s largest museum and home to some of the greatest masterpieces in history.  But did you know that the Louvre was not always a museum?  

In fact, its history dates back to the 12th century when a fortification was first built where the museum stands today.  And from the 14th century to the 17th century the fortress was transformed into Palaces for the Royal Family.

It was only as a result of the French Revolution that the Louvre evolved into the world’s greatest showcase for historical and cultural artifacts.

The Louvre is the most visited place in the 1st arrondissement so you need to make sure that you book well in advance of your planned visit to ensure entry.  While you can visit the museum on your own, it is massive and we recommend getting a guided tour to make the most of your time here.  

✅ This is a perfect 5 star, small group tour that will help guide you through the most famous sites but also let you in on some of the lesser known secrets of this famous location.

Of course, everyone wants to see Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa so the room she is displayed in is always crowded.  Be prepared to work your way through the masses if you want to get a closer look.  And be forewarned that the portrait is behind shatterproof glass to prevent vandalism to the priceless work.  

While the Mona Lisa is the most popular piece of art in the museum, there is plenty more to take in here, including the Venus de Milo, and we encourage you to get around to other areas.  

Regardless of your artistic or cultural interest, you will find something that resonates with you in this incredible treasure trove of art and history.

And while you are here, don’t forget to explore the outside of the museum as well. We were fascinated by the detailed architecture that includes Renaissance, Baroque and Modern styles.  This is an impressively large place when you admire it from the central courtyard.  

Here you will also find the iconic glass pyramid that was built as part of the new entrance to help with the flow of traffic through the museum.

Make sure you walk through one of the access points in the north buildings to Rue de Rivoli.  Here you will see the front facade and beautiful gardens that adorn this stunning building. 

Stroll Through The Jardin de Tuileries

The Jardin de Tuileries is an expansive garden that stretches from the Louvre Museum to Place de la Concorde.  It gets its name from the tile factories that existed here before Queen Catherine de Medici built her palace at this location in the mid 16th century.  

The original palace garden was an Italian style but in 1664 it was re-designed into a formal French style by André Le Nôtre, who was the gardener for King Louis XIV.  

The garden combines green open spaces intersected by paved pathways with groves of trees, manicured hedges, large, circular fountains and sculptures by Maillol (more on these later), Rodin and Giacometti.  

There are plenty of metal chairs and benches throughout the park where you can sit and relax, read a book, or just people-watch.

The  garden is a family friendly place  and we saw quite a few families who had stretched out their blankets on the lush grass and were enjoying a picnic lunch in the heart of Paris.

One of the fascinating things about this garden is that not only is it one of the oldest in France, but it has been the site of several previous Olympic Games.  In 2024, the garden will be home to the Olympic Flame.

Enjoy The Maillol Sculptures

The Maillol sculptures, located in the Tuileries Garden are particularly interesting because of their fascinating backstory.  The favourite subject of Aristide Maillol’s sculptures was the female nude.  His model and muse for his craft was Dina Vierny.

Maillol was 73 and Vierny was 15 when she began working with him in 1934.  She worked with Maillol for 10 years until his death in 1944 after which she spent her lifetime promoting and perpetuating his legacy.  

Vierny was instrumental in getting the Maillol sculptures on display in the Jardin des Tuileries.  An art collector in her own right, she opened the Maillol Museum in Paris in 1995 and later, the Musée Maillol in Banyuls-sur-Mer where Maillol was born (just down the road from our place in Collioure) in the south of France.  

There are many original sculptures interspersed throughout the garden – be sure to look for them during your walk.

Be In Awe At The Musee de l’Orangerie

The 1st arrondissement is home to the purpose-built Musée de l’Orangerie and it is one of our favourite museums in the city of Paris.  The museum was built specifically to house the incredible “Water Lillies” collection of the landscape impressionist, Claude Monet based on Monet’s own directions.

Monet offered the collection to the city of Paris the day after the armistice of November 11, 1918, and the museum was built just after his death in 1927.

His collection is displayed in two large adjoining oval rooms forming the shape of the infinity sign when viewed from above.  There are 4 massive paintings in each room and each one stands 6.5 feet high, though they are all different lengths so they could be hung along the curving surface of the walls.

While we have seen Monet’s beautiful artwork in other museums like the d’Orsay, these paintings are truly one of the great masterpieces of the 20th century. We highly recommend paying a visit to this wonderful museum to experience these incredible original pieces of art.

✅ If you are looking for a more in depth understanding of this incredible museum, be sure to book this highly-rated tour with an amazing guide that includes your reserved entrance ticket with skip the line.

Check Out The Arc de Triomphe Carousel

Don’t confuse this one with the Arc de Triomphe d’Etoile which is the massive Triumphal Arch that sits on the western end of Champs-Élysées. 

The Arc de Triomphe Carousel is in the Paris 1st arrondissement and is situated near the Louvre Museum.  In fact, it quite nicely divides the area of the Louvre from the Jardins des Tuileries.

This triumphal arch was built between 1806 and 1808 to commemorate the 1805 victories of Napoleon.  The Arc de Triomphe Carousel was modelled after the Arch of Septimius Severus which was built in 203 AD and is situated in the Roman Forum.

The Arch is supported by 8 Corinthian Columns, each capped with the statue of a soldier of the Grand Army.  The bas reliefs on the 4 sides of the arch depict the various Napoleonic victories.  The top of the arch is crowned by 4 horses pulling a chariot.

The monument has been under restoration since 2022 and is expected to be completed in time for the summer Olympics. 

Admire The Palais Royal

The Palais Royal is one of the great landmarks in Paris and enjoys a history of more than four centuries.  The original buildings were commissioned by Cardinal Richeliau who was a powerful Church dignitary and the King’s Prime Minister.  

He chose this location for what was then known as the Palais Cardinale to be close to the king whose residence was at what today is the Musée du Louvre.  When he died he left the palace to the King.  

This remained the residence of Royal families until the Palace of Versailles was built. During the 1800s it became a city within a city with hundreds of shops scattered throughout including theatres, restaurants, gambling houses and brothels.  

Unfortunately, the property was damaged by fire during the Paris Commune of 1871 but was later restored and became the site for various government ministries and offices. 

Today, the buildings maintain their original splendour.  Aside from the official buildings and offices on the eastern side of the palace, there are dozens of high-end shops along the covered arcade of the western side.  The property is also home to the oldest and one of the best restaurants in Paris, the Grand Véfour.  

Inside the Palais courtyard are the famous Buren Columns.  This work of contemporary art consists of 260 black and white striped columns that emerge from the ground in varying heights and providing a visual contrast to the majestic buildings of the palace itself.

There has been a lot of controversy over the years about the installation of these columns in the heart of this classic institution, but after spending a bit of time in the courtyard, it starts to blend in.  

The other contemporary work in the Palais Royal courtyard is the Bury Fountain.   The fountain consists of 10 very large stainless steel balls sitting on a large saucer.  As the water from the fountain cascades over the balls, they slowly rotate on their axis. 

When leaving the Palais you may notice some of the passageways that link between the streets. These reminded us of the traboules in Lyon and make getting around the city super easy.

Visit The Palais Royal Garden

In the middle of the Palais Royal complex, you will find one of the oldest gardens in Paris – le Jardin du Palais Royal.  This is a wonderful place to take a leisurely stroll and enjoy the lush greenery and calming effects of the circular central pool with its spouting fan-shaped fountain.

Like the Palais itself, the garden was first commissioned by Cardinal Richelieu in the early 1600s.  Only back then it was much bigger than it is today.

The garden is filled with rows of lime trees as well as strategically placed chestnut trees which provide cooling shade as you walk along the garden’s pathways.  In total, more than 450 trees are scattered throughout the gardens to provide a touch of nature in the heart of the 1st arrondissement.

Beautiful flower gardens surround two large manicured lawns.  There are plenty of benches along the pathways and surrounding the pool where you can sit and relax or read a book.  

We were here in the early spring and the flowers were just beginning to bud so we didn’t get a chance to see them in all their splendour.  But this just gives us an excuse to come back when we visit Paris again.

Explore Place Vendôme

Place Vendôme, like most of the landmarks in the 1st arrondissement, goes back over 400 years.  It was first commissioned to commemorate the victories of King Louise XIV and was initially graced by an oversized equestrian statue of the King.  

The original statue is long gone and in its place is the Vendôme Column, an obelisk-like monument that was constructed between 1806 and 1810 to commemorate the victories of Napoleon and the Grand Army in 1805.

The 42 metre tall column is made from a stone core that is covered in 425 bronze plaques that were made from the melted weapons that the army confiscated from the Russians and Austrians.  A bas relief that winds around the entire length of the column depicts the various events of the 1805 campaign.  At the top of the column is a statue of Napoleon.  

Interestingly, the statue was totally dismantled during the Paris Commune in 1871 and then re-erected in 1873.

It seems a little ironic to us that the location of the Place Vendome, which for centuries has been a place to commemorate the victories of war is at the start of Paris’ Rue de la Paix.

✅ If you want a special souvenir from Paris – plan a photo shoot at some of the top locations in the 1st arrondissement. This is a keepsake that you will cherish for years to come.

FAQs

Is The 1st Arrondissement In Paris Expensive?

While Paris itself tends to be expensive, you will find that the 1st arrondissement is one of the city’s most expensive districts.  It is at the heart of most of France’s valued treasures and is home to the Ritz Paris Hotel and some of the most expensive shops in the world.

But that shouldn’t stop you from visiting this incredible historic part of the city.  There are plenty of free things to do and you can find lots of cafés and bistros that offer good food at affordable prices.  

Is The 1st Arrondissement Safe?

The 1st arrondissement is one of the safer places to be in Paris.  That’s because it is the centre of the “Royal Paris” and hence has a lot of tourists and security is everywhere.  It is one of the nicest arrondissements of Paris because it has so many monuments, gardens and historical sites.  

The main issue that occurs here is pickpocketing which occurs in every cosmopolitan city so you just need to use common sense in crowded places.

1st Arrondissement Hotels

For a wonderful boutique hotel, be sure to check out the Hotel Therese. This property is in an ideal location to visit all the sites of the district. The rooms are very comfortable, clean and a good size for Paris. There is an elevator and they offer breakfast onsite.

The best part about staying here is the wonderful front reception staff who go out of their way to assist you with recommendations, directions, reservations, etc. We highly recommend this location.

If you would prefer a larger hotel with more than 100 rooms then we would recommend the Normandy Hotel. Here the rooms are decorated in a contemporary style and they also have some suites that have more space. The staff is very accommodating and the location is perfect for exploring. 

For those travelling with friends or families, the best option is La Clef Louvre. Here you will find more spacious rooms with kitchenettes. The rooms are well stocked and provide clean, comfortable spaces to sleep and relax. Also well positioned for visiting the main sites in the 1st district.

A solid three-star option would be the Hotel Washington Opera. In a perfect location, this property offers spacious rooms with a vintage style decor. Staff are friendly and there is a nice breakfast available for guests.

A Good Restaurant In The 1st Arrondissement

A wonderful bistro is Le Comptoir des Petits Champs. We enjoyed a great meal here. It is not a huge menu but it does offer some tasty dishes that change seasonally. The staff is very friendly and the atmosphere is cozy and welcoming. Be sure to make a reservation as the dining room is quite small.

The Final Word…Discovering the First Arrondissement of Paris

As you can probably tell by the content of this blog, we love this 1st district of Paris.  It has some of the rarest and most treasured pieces of art in the world.  While it is one of the smaller districts it has some of the grandest buildings, gardens and monuments that you will find anywhere.

As you walk around some of the historical buildings like the Palais Royal, you feel like you’ve stepped back in time.  

There are 20 arrondissements in the city, and while we have enjoyed the fifth and the seventh, one of our favourites for art and culture is the first arrondissement of Paris.