Top 12 Must-See Places in Paris for the Ultimate Stay

So you've only got 3 days in Paris? Happily, that's enough for a whistle-stop tour of the must-see attractions in the gorgeous French capital. If you're lucky enough to have more time in the City of Light, you might care to consider a day trip from Paris – or why not experience the city like a local flâneur? Half the joy of discovering Paris is wandering atmospheric quartiers including pretty, cobbled SoMa with its hip stores, or boho-chic Saint-Germain-des-Près, known for its cluster of legendary cafés.

And as the city centre is reasonably sized, you can save money by walking between many attractions when visiting the must-see sights of Paris. 

Number one on many lists of must-see sites in Paris, the lattice-work Eiffel Tower is undoubtedly its most famous landmark. Built by Gustave Eiffel to celebrate the 1889 Universal Exhibition, this most soaring of structures looms 324 metres over the River Seine, and comprises 10,000 tonnes of steel held together by 2.5 million rivets.

Due to demand, it’s best to book a skip-the-line ticket to visit the tower – stay locally and you can get there early too. All three viewing platforms are open for truly spectacular panoramas over the Parisian skyline; on the first level the tower’s backstory is related in the glass Pavillon Ferrié, and on the second you can lunch to a backdrop of splendid views in the Michelin-starred Jules Verne restaurant. Those of you with a head for heights may like to sip bubbly in the Champagne bar on the top level – the scene of many a proposal – and to ramp up the romantic vibe, choose to visit after dark, when the tower is aglow with twinkling lights. 

Champ de Mars, 75007. Métro line 6 to Bir-Hakeim or RER line C to Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel. Open daily 9am–midnight. 

Arguably the greatest collection of art masterpieces under one roof in the world, the Louvre is a sprawling titan of a museum tucked behind the façade of a former fortress and 17th-century royal palace. Over the centuries it has been much extended, but no-one changed it quite as radically as starchitect IM Pei, when he added his iconic glass pyramid – a firm favourite for Insta selfies – to the forecourt in 1989. 

Just as its home grew and grew, so did the museum’s collection. Its marble galleries and hallowed hallways showcase art from prehistory to the 19th century, and there’s too much to see in a day – or even a week – so choose what you’d like to view ahead of time. Must-see attractions include a 2,000-year-old statue of the Venus de Milo, Leonardo’s show-stopping Mona Lisa (yes, it really is that small), and the massive Coronation of Napoleon, a fine piece of Bonapartian propaganda painted by Jacques-Louis David in 1807. 

75001 Paris. Métro lines 1 and 7 to Palais-Royal or Musée du Louvre. Open 9am–6pm Mon, Wed–Thur, Sat–Sun; 9am–9.45pm Fri. Admission €17.

If you only visit one district in the French capital, make sure it’s Montmartre – although of course there are plenty of special places to stay in Paris. This beguiling village within a city is perched on Paris's highest hill; its base may be surrounded by buzzy boulevards, but you’ll soon lose yourself in a warren of cobbled streets, all lined with a charming mélange of pavement cafés and indie boutiques. 

Montmartre is dominated by the sparkling white Sacré Coeur Basilica, and tucked behind this church is the old artists' quarter, haunted by the likes of Renoir, Van Gogh and Picasso – to this day Place du Tertre is full of artists painting ‘en plein air’. 

The village is also home to the Moulin Rouge, the nightclub infamous for introducing the can-can to the world. It’s open nightly for exotic cabaret shows. 

18th arrondissement. Métro line 12 to Abbesses, or line 2 to Blanche and Anvers. 

Standing guard at the (often traffic-snarled) intersection of 12 elegant Haussmann-designed boulevards, the stately Arc de Triomphe was commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1806. It was only completed 35 years later and is adorned with intricately carved stone reliefs depicting feats of valour in battle. Climb the 284-step spiral staircase up to the viewing platform, and on a clear day you’ll be able to pick out the Eiffel Tower, Sacré Coeur and avant-garde skyscrapers in La Défense on the horizon.

Place Charles de Gaulle, 75008. Métro lines 1, 2 and 6, or RER line A to Charles-de-Gaulle-Étoile. Open daily 10am–11pm Apr–Sept; 10am–10.30pm Oct–Mar. Admission €13.

Mired in controversy since its opening in 1977, the Pompidou is both an exceptional modern-art gallery and dramatic futuristic statement designed by renowned architects Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano. Its exterior is awash with multi-coloured tubing, walkways and steel girders, but behind this extraordinary façade lie stellar displays from the likes of Matisse, Dalí, Picasso and Warhol. 

Place Georges-Pompidou, 75004. Métro line 11 to Rambuteau, or line 1 to Hôtel de Ville and Châtelet. Open 11 am–9 pm Wed–Mon. Admission €15.

As much an al fresco art exhibition as a beautiful garden, Luxembourg Gardens provide idyllic moments of respite after lunching in the lively Latin Quarter or a guided tour of the Catacombs of Paris. Watched over by the stately Luxembourg Palace, the flower beds are interspersed with flamboyant fountains and follies, neo-classical sculptures and ornamental ponds. If you’re travelling to Paris en famille, it’s a wonderful place for kids to have some chill time too, with a boating lake, puppet shows and zip lines in the playground.

Rue de Médicis – Rue de Vaugirard, 75006. Métro line 4 to Saint-Sulpice, or RER line B to Luxembourg. Open 8am–5pm winter; 7.30am–10pm summer. Admission free.

Famously located in a former Beaux Arts railway station on the Left Bank of the River Seine, the Musée d’Orsay is a repository of the most impressive collection of Impressionist paintings on the planet. Standout pieces are almost too numerous to mention, but look out for dozens of seminal works by Van Gogh, Degas, Manet, Monet, Renoir, Gauguin – in short all the big names in French art between 1848 to 1914.

1 rue de la Légion d'Honneur, 75007. Métro line 12 to Solférino or RER line C to Musée d'Orsay. Open 9.30am–6pm Tue–Wed, Fri-Sun; 9.30am-9.45pm Thur. Admission €16.

An oasis of tranquility covering 44 hectares of central Paris, leafy Père Lachaise Cemetery is visited by up to 3.5 million people annually for peaceful ambles among its 70,000 elaborate marble tombs and grand family mausoleums. Downloading a cemetery map before your visit will help you find the final resting places of an extraordinarily eclectic range of famous names, from Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf and bad boy of rock Jim Morrison, to Chopin, Molière and Balzac. 

6 rue du Repos, 75020. Métro lines 1 and 2 to Père Lachaise. Open 8am–5.30pm Mon–Sat, Sun 9am–5.30pm Nov 6–Mar 15; 8am–6pm Mon–Sat, Sun 9am–6pm Mar 16–Nov 5. Admission free.

Overlooking Paris from its lofty Montmartre perch since the 1870s, the Sacré-Coeur is a confection of snowy-white domes, spires and ornamentation. The basilica is as stunning inside as out, with an apse dominated by a sparkling, gilded mosaic of Christ, and a vast pipe organ that you can hear played at services on Sunday.

35 rue du Chevalier de la Barre, 75018. Bus 40 to Place du Tertre, or Funiculaire du Montmartre from Abbesses. Open daily 6.30am–10.30pm. Admission free.

Normally another Parisian bucket-list attraction, Notre-Dame Cathedral remains closed until late 2024, but nearby is another church of ethereal beauty. Dating from the 13th century, Sainte-Chapelle is a triumph of intricate Gothic styling underneath vaulted ceilings decorated in vivid red, blue and gold. Enter the chapel’s upper chamber, however, and you’ll be simply stunned by a swathe of extraordinary, jewel-like stained glass – try to time your visit for a sunny late afternoon to see the colours dancing in rays of light streaming through the windows. 

10 boulevard du Palais, 75001. Métro lines 1, 7, 11 and 14 to Châtelet, or RER lines B or C to Saint-Michel. Open daily 9am–7pm Apr–Sept; 9am–5pm Oct–Mar. Admission €11.50.

The UNESCO World Heritage-listed Palace of Versailles, south-west of Paris, is a showpiece of royal opulence, designed by esteemed architect Lous Le Vau as the legacy of the Sun King Louis XIV in the late 17th century. To get the most out of a visit, plan to spend a day there, wandering thousands of gilded, marbled rooms packed with priceless decorative arts, before moving outside to tour the fantastical formal water gardens and pink-marble Grand Trianon, where the king and his feckless wife Marie-Antoinette liked to escape the hoi polloi of royal life on rural staycations.

Place d'Armes, 78000 Versailles. RER line C to Versailles Château Rive Gauche. Open 9am–6.30pm Tue–Sun. Tickets start at €10.

And those are our choices of the must-see sights in Paris – we hope you’ll have fun discovering them all!