The Champs-Elysées: From Place de la Concorde to the Arc de Triomphe
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About the Tour
About the Tour
Be a flâneur for the day on a stroll up the full length of the world-famous avenue, the Champs-Elysées.
This walking tour starts at Place de la Concorde, Paris’ largest square, where you’ll hear about its connection to the French crown, and discover its history of royal glory and revolutionary blood-letting. From there, we’ll set out to discover the pleasures and treasures along the Champs-Elysées, with one small detour to see the city’s most elegant bridge, Pont Alexandre III, also considered its most romantic and photogenic. Our tour ends at one of Europe’s most iconic monuments, the unmissable Arc de Triomphe.
Along the way you’ll encounter statues of historical figures, including former president, Charles de Gaulle, political activist, journalist and publisher, Georges Clemenceau, former UK prime minister, Winston Churchill, and La Païva, a famous courtesan. I’ll also point out sculptures of the mythical figures Apollo, Pegasus and Fame. Along with a golden rooster, you’ll see many other famous and lesser-known sites along the Elysian Fields, including the Petit Palais and the Grand Palais.
On this walk, I’ll tell you about:
- Paris’ oldest outdoor monument, the Obelisk
- King Louis XVI’s beheading during the French Revolution
- The fabulous sculptures of flying and frenzied horses that are often missed by unwitting visitors
- Elysée Palace’s impressive back entrance, well-hidden behind trees
- Avenue Montaigne, the famous catwalk of luxury fashion boutiques frequented by fashionistas from around the world
- The flock of luxury brands willing to pay handsomely for a seat at the real estate table of “the most beautiful avenue in the world”
Put on your walking shoes and charge up your phone for this enjoyable, informative and eye-popping stroll through the glory, glamour, and glitz of the Champs-Elysées and its monumental bookends, Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe. I’m Gary Kraut, and I look forward to guiding you on this most essential of Paris walks.
Plan for 90 minutes on an easy-going walk, or several hours if you’d like to take the opportunity to visit the Petit or Grand Palais, shop along the Champs-Elysées, sit in a café, or stop for lunch.
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
Gary Kraut
Gary Lee Kraut is an American and French dual citizen who has been inspiring and informing travelers for over three decades through travel writing, consulting, lecturing, and private guiding. He is the author of five travel guides to France and Paris, hundreds of articles, and numerous essays, short stories, and op-ed pieces concerning travel, culture, cross-culture, and life abroad. He operates the award-winning travel e-magazine France Revisited, francerevisited.com.
Gary’s unparalleled experience has made him the go-to guy for individuals and travel professionals seeking highly personalized tours, advice, and small-group adventures in Paris and throughout France, garysparistours.com.
He’s happy to share his passion for travel discovery in his VoiceMap tours.
Preview Location
Preview Location
Location 9
Pronouncing Champs-Elysées
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How VoiceMap Works
Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
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Place de la Concorde
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Obélisque de Louxor
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Hôtel de la Marine
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Hotel Crillon
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Champs-Élysées
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Petit Palais
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Pont Alexandre III
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Le Grand Palais
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Avenue Montaigne
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Louis Vuitton
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Lido 2 Paris
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Arc de Triomphe
Getting There
Getting There
Route Overview
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Start locationPl. de la Concorde, 75008 Paris, France
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Total distance3km
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Final locationPl. Charles de Gaulle, 75008 Paris, France
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Distance back to start location2km
Directions to Starting Point
Start: Place de la Concorde, 75008 Paris, France
Meet me on the eastern edge of Place de la Concorde, just outside the gate to the Tuileries Garden. You'll know that you're in the right place if have a view of the Obelisk and beyond it the Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe, all in a straight line. The Eiffel Tower will be to your left.
If arriving by metro, get off at the Concorde stop from which you would take the exit "Sortie 1 Jeu de Paume/Jardin des Tuileries," which brings you close to our starting point, of exit "Sortie 4," which brings you closest to the starting point though that exit may be hard to find.
This tour follows directly after my Tuileries Garden VoiceMap tour. It begins right where that one end.
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Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
There are numerous places to stop and worth visiting along the way. Feel free to pause the tour to visit the Petit Palais (the Little Palace), even if just to get an eyeful of the interior (it's free) and to use the rest rooms. You can also spend more time there by visiting the art and sculpture collection and/or having coffee or a snack by the interior garden. It's usually not necessary to have an advance ticket to enter. The Grand Palais (the Great Palace), a major exhibition hall, is closed until 2024. You'll see many cafés, restaurants, fashion shops and other stores along the way--snack stands on the lower portion of the Champs-Elysées and many eateries on the upper portion, including fast food. The tour ends at the Arc de Triomphe, so you might plan to visit it at that time. If so, and if you'd like to climb to the top of the arch, consider purchasing an advance ticket. If purchasing a timed ticket, you might want to set the time at two hours, even three hours if you plan to dawdle, after the start of this tour. Tickets to the Arc de Triomphe may also be purchased on site, in the tunnel beneath the monument.
Best time of day
This tour is worthwhile at anytime day or night. Buildings and shops may be closed at night but you don't need open doors to enjoy this tour from start to finish. The Champs-Elysées is a main hub of activity and traffic in Paris, so there's movement in the area even early in the morning and late at night.
Precautions
Beware of pickpockets but don't be paranoid; know where your valuables are and don't carry backpacks behind you in crowds. Demonstrations (not always authorized) take place the Champs-Elysées, particularly on Saturdays, so ask at your hotel or your national embassy if concerned. Due to the presence of major monuments, embassies and the French presidential palace on or near this route, there is often a sizeable police presence in the area.
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Questions and Reviews
Questions and Reviews
