Paris has been a thriving metropolis and a center of intellectual and artistic achievement for centuries. The city’s roots reach to the 3rd century B.C., and influences as diverse as Celtic, Roman, Scandinavian, and English are woven into the city’s rich heritage.

Paris is divided into sections North and South of the Seine, more commonly known as the Rive Droite (Right Bank) and Rive Gauche (Left Bank), respectively.

The city, which French people often describe as being shaped like a snail shell, is broken into 20 districts. The first district is at the very center of the city, near the Seine river. Subsequent districts spiral out clockwise away from the center. To obtain the best send of how lives are lived in Paris, the best district to visit is the Marais district, which especially comes alive at night. It features good restaurants, wonderful delicatessens, trendy nightspots and the Picasso Museum (Musee Picasso).

For more information on other beautiful sites in Paris, please see the following:

The Louvre
Notre Dame Cathedral
Musée d’Orsay
Arc de Triomphe
Eiffel Tower

For further information on getting to Paris from the Charles de Gaulle airport, please click here.