Hi, I’m David with New York Habitat. Today we will be visiting a fascinating Paris area, the Champs Élysées, which is centered around one of Paris’ most famous streets. In today’s video tour, we’re going to discover its glitz, glamour and intriguing history.
We’ll be splitting this video tour of the Champs Élysées in Paris into two parts. You can watch Part 2 of our Video Tour of the Champs Élysées here.
Video Tour of the Champs Élysées in Paris – Part 1 (6:06)
The Champs Élysées is located on the right bank of Paris. Starting from beautiful Place de la Concorde, in front of the Hotel Crillon and the Tuileries Gardens, it slowly travels away from the Seine’s riverbank towards the Arc de Triomphe. It is encircled on the north by the presidential Palais de l’Elysée and to the south by Grand Palais and Petit Palais. The Champs Élysées is also the starting point of the most expensive street of the French Capital: l’Avenue Montaigne.
Champs Élysées History
The Champs Élysées was built in 1667 by Le Notre, king Louis XV’s landscape architect, to make an elegant road between his summer palace at St-Germain-en-Laye and the Louvre. Under the Second Empire of Napoleon III, the avenue became even more attractive with fountains, restaurants & theaters which helped to turn the Champs Élysées into the playground of the French rich and famous.
Place de la Concorde
It is almost impossible to find a more royal and revolutionary place in Paris than the Place de la Concorde, located between the 1st arrondissement and the 8th arrondissement of Paris. Commissioned by Louis XV in the 17th century, “La Concorde” as Parisians call it, is rich with refined statues and monumental fountains. In addition, Place de la Concorde is flanked by the Assemblée Nationale, the French Parliament. Royalty is also reflected in the Tuileries Gardens which was he former royal gardens and includes gold covered fountains. That is where the royal connections ends, literally, as the Place de la Concorde was the home to the guillotine during the French Revolution, where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette met their fateful demise. The guillotine has since been replaced with the mysterious Egyptian Obelisk from Luxor.
Avenue Montaigne
Avenue Montaigne is famous for its Haute-Couture shops including Chanel, Dior, Mugler, Balanciaga, Louis Vuitton and more, add a fantastic theater and a glamorous café and you have the perfect recipe for a chic Paris street.. Take a break on Avenue Montaigne at the Sex & the City hot spot, the Plaza Athénée, to sip a martini and star watch.
The Champs Élysées is certainly the right place for shopping. The street has a fantastic array of clothing, shoes, perfume, pastries, music & book shops. Don’t miss the famous drugstore at the end of the Avenue or the Monoprix at the corner of rue de la Boétie to buy groceries to cook in the kitchen of your vacation rental.
You’re sure to be tired after a long day of shopping on the Champs Elysées, so why not rent one of the many Paris vacation rentals that New York Habitat has to offer? New York Habitat offers both short and long term furnished apartment rentals all over Paris.
Check out this one bedroom furnished apartment located in the Champs Élysées neighborhood (PA-4121). The apartment is located on the top floor of a 10-story, elevator building. In addition the apartment is child-safe, features a washing machine , a fully equipped kitchen and television with cable channels.
Or consider this Paris two bedroom furnished apartment in the Champs Élysées area (PA-2623). The apartment is situated on the 4th floor of an elevator building. One room is furnished with a queen size bed while the other has a single bed. This rental also offers a fully equipped kitchen and includes the added bonus of a parking space.
Grand Palais and Petit Palais
Along with the Eiffel Tower, the magnificent Grand and Petit Palais were built for the 1900 World’s Fair. The Grand Palais was inspired by London’s Crystal Palace and today it is mainly used for major art exhibitions. Across the road from the Grand Palais is the Petit Palais, though it’s not less prestigious, despite of its “little” name. Inside the Petit Palais is a very lovely museum that has free admission, so you can quickly pop in to have a look at its eclectic collection of art from Roman times to the 20th century.
Further down the street from the Palais you can admire the golden dome of Les Invalides as well as the Pont Alexandre III, which is one of the nicest bridges in Pairs, with its flying horses that are covered in gold.
Tucked in behind the Petit Palais you will find The Ledoyen, one of French Cuisine’s finest restaurants, which dates back to Louis XVI.
In front of the Petit Palais you’ll find statues of two remarkable leaders; the first one is British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the other is the French President Georges Clemenceau. Across the street in front of the Grand Palais is the statue if the grand General Charles de Gaulle. These statues are located in a fitting place as this is where Parisians gathered on the Champs Élysées in 1944 to celebrate the liberation of the country.
Thank you for joining us today on our visit to the Champs Élysées here in Paris. We covered a few highlights of the fantastic area,. Please feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below if there is another activity that you enjoy in the area near the Champs Élysées.
Continue the visit with Part 2 of our Video Tour of the Champs Élysées.
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