This catalogue is a non-exhaustive list of visits in the "Ile de France". These visits are an occasion to discover the unexpected and unrecognized aspects of well-known and other more confidential sights of Paris and its region.

Visits last 1h30. According to the time available, it is possible to join several subject in a same area.

These visits are to be appreciated in small groups with a maximum of twenty people. In the case of bigger groups, we suggest to divide them, and have a guide per group of twenty.

Our personalized visits are available in English, French, Spanish or German.

Some visits in Museums and Monuments, require an extra charge for entrance fees or reservation fees, which are to paid by the client. These sights are listed with the following abbreviations : R.N.I. (Reservation.Not.Included) or E.N.I. (Entrance.Not.Included).

A bustling area where famous landmarks related to memorable events neighbor with unexpected spots that call to mind the colorful and sometimes dramatic practices and stories that have spiced its long history.

A general view of this versatile and once again fashionable area, with its restored XVIIth and XVIIIth centuries mansions and squares, such as, the Place des Vosges and the hotel de Sully.

An "off the beaten track visit" to discover some more neglected but nonetheless interesting spots such as what used to be the "Champs Elysees" in the 17th century, three of Paris' oldest houses, the present Guild Hall, ...

A neighborhood of contrast, including Roger's and Enzo Piano's astonishingly modern cultural center and two of Paris' oldest houses.

In the heart of the Marais, a beautiful XVIIth century mansion shelters since 1980, Pablo Picasso's works given to the State by his heirs to pay their taxes. This permitted to recreate a wonderful chronology of his work from the blue period to surealism and gathering paintings, ceramics, sculptures which shows the diversity of his genius. (E.N.I)

Near the Champs-Elysées...

The history of the Parisian fashion world is written on the walls along the lower part of the "rue du Faubourg St. Honoré", the legendary and very select shopping ground of celebrities since the 19th century.

Residences, theaters, and Restaurants haunted by people who marked their times from the XVIIIth century to the present.

A magnificent XIXTh century mansion, built by a couple of art lovers which gathered two incredible collections. The ground-floor offers paintings and furniture from the XVIIIth century coming from Europe (Gainsboroug, Rembrandt, Quentin Latour, etc...). Its first floor has a unique collection of Renaissance Italian works... (E.N.I)

Around the Louvre

Paris' famous XIXth century opera. Known for its magnificent inside decoration and his famous phantom... (E.N.I)

Concerning this huge museum we offer several visits. The three followings visits are often asked :

Treasures of St. Denis abbey

Among the magnificent coronation artifacts used from the XIIIth to theXIXth centuries stand other precious historic objects, such as, the abbot Suger's four gorgeous vases, medieval book bindings in carved ivory, etc.

Three fabulous courtyards in the new wing

Three stunning six-storey-high glass-covered courtyards design by M' Pei, housing the Louvre's famous monumental sculptures (Assyrian VIIIth c BC, French XVIIth to XIXth century ). An occasion to admire the most remarkable "Bulls of Khorsabad" and "Chevaux de Marly" in a fabulous setting.

Once upon a Royal Palace, The Louvre ...

History of life in the Louvre from the 12th to the 17th centuries and an explanation of the significant architectural transformations it underwent during the 500 years in which it was the official residence of the Kings of France.
(R.N.I) ; (E.N.I)

This beehive of intellectual and artistic activity from the 13th century to the present is best discovered in a stroll along the gardens and through the "passages" (covered arcades) that inconspicuously furrow the neighborhood.

Enjoy the most fashionable XIXth century pass-time : a sheltered leisurely promenade through the arcades then teeming with art galleries and academies, theaters and celebrities, and shops of all sorts.

Recalling daily life in what was the heart of Paris from the12th c. to 1967, with St. Eustache church and its treasures to bring back stories of times when it stood next to Les Saints Innocents (the city's biggest cemetery) and the bustling central market where generations came to shop. In contrast the contemporary Forum (controversial excavated shopping center) brings today's shoppers to make two worlds coexist!

Near Montmartre

This lovely hilltop village of contrasts though mainly known for its basilica, its cabarets and artists that have peopled it since the past century (Renoir, Picasso, Rousseau, etc...), was also the site of a royal abbey and conceals along its narrow streets and paths many quaint little houses where life goes peacefully on, and where a small vineyard is still cultivated to produce wine!

A central and urbanistic area which once was the former countryside village of Les Batignolles joined to Paris in 1860. Transformed by the construction of the railway station of St. Lazare (1843), it became a new and convenient area of Paris which seduced the young generation of artists first known as the "groupe des Batignolles". This area will remain theirs from 1863 to 1875.

1875 date of Manet's death, marks a change for the impressionist group. Impressionists split and move in an other area situated below Montmartre. There, they join other artists attracted by the intellectual and artistic emulation that existed in this area since the beginning of the century. This fantastic gathering drew uponthe area a rush of diverse people interested in Art business : Art-dealers, color salesmen...., Thus creating the Art center of Paris of the late XIXth century.

A the foot of Montmartre, the Renan-Scheffer's charming little house is now a museum dedicated to Romanticism. A wealth of details reveals the family's private life and that of their famous close friends, which include such pillars of Romanticism as G. Sand, Lizst, or Chopin... (E.N.I)

Auteuil

Discreetly niched among other houses in fashionable Auteuil stand some of the most remarkable architectural treasures built by Guimard, the French master of Art Nouveau. Here the beautiful craftsmanship can be appreciated in its appropriate context.

An occasion to discover the hidden aspects of this elegant residential area: how a little village became first an "avant guard" town with Moliere, Racine, and Boileau among its famous residents, then an experimental working ground for later well-known architects such as Guimard, Mallet-Stevens, Le Corbusier.

Eastern Paris

A surprising discovery of vestiges that bring one back to the charming village that Charonne used to be. Perched on a hill, its bucolic and quaint parochial cemetery is one of the only two left in Paris.

Formerly only a picturesque village loved and made famous by Maurice Chevalier and Edith Piaf, Menilontant today offers a rich and uplifting image of contemporary French urban architecture with inventive residential buildings designed to respect the human scale by some of our most gifted architects.

With its 108 Acres, the cemetery is Paris' biggest park. Many famous people are buried here : Chopin, Colette, Balzac, Oscar Wilde, Sarah Bernhardt, Molière... Our visits offer several subject matters as like : Politicians, Painters, Writers, ...

A charming XVIIIth century mansion which transformed in almost a century ago, in a residence for artists where lived among others, Matisse and Rodin. Rodin bequeathed all his works and belongings to the state with the idea of creating a museum in this mansion so that it would be restored. Thus the Rodin museum opens in 1919, and since then, one can admire his works and part of his furniture.

We offer several visits of 1h30 in Orsay. Among them we have chosen three visits which are often asked :

The Impressionists and their followers

Orsay shelters an important collection of masterpieces which remarkably illustrates the fantastic transformation of painting in the second half of the XIXTh century. Thus we will start admiring the works made by precursors of Impressionism like, Courbet, Delacroix, Boudin, Corot, then continue with the Impressionists masters themselves like Renoir, Monet, Pissarro, Cezanne, Degas, and finish with some of their followers like Van Gogh, Gauguin, Seurat, Denis... A visit which shows the evolution of painting to arrive to the beautiful and colorful works made by the Impressionists masters and their followers. A perfect picture of the long Revolution of painting which took place in the XIXth century

Art Nouveau

Furniture, vessels and jewelry made by the most eminent creators of French and Belgian Art Nouveau : Victor Horta, Guimard, Lalique etc...

XIXth century French Sculpture

XIXth century has been very rich in reconstruct ions and public monument achievements. Therefore this century was very prolific for Sculpture. We distinguish three parties of sculptors : The animalists like Barye and Pompon, the academists like Dalou, and the realists like Carpeaux, Rodin, and Claudel. (E.N.I)

Latin quarter

A visit in the heart of the latin quarter, recalling student life since the XIIth century, in an area rich with memories of Calvin, Erasmus, the Scottish School, etc.

Now a famous restaurant ,"Le Procope" was originally , during the 17th and 18th centuries, the equivalent of a neighborhood "snack bar" where some of the intellectuals that have marked our civilization met regularly. To include a halt within its venerable walls in a walking tour of the Latin Quarter is therefore almost a "must".

Astonishing situation for this area, which is one of the rare places of Paris that have not suffered from the Revolution. At the contrary, this area was the beehive of the young revolutionaries, where they lived and met.

Around Montparnasse

A visit of this area, considered a beehive of artistic activity since the turn of the century, includes the famous "brasseries" (La Coupole, La Rotonde, Le Dome), the controversial statue of Balzac by Rodin, the painting and sculpture "academies", and the places where many artistic and literary figures ( Gauging, Modigliani, Jongkindt, Ezra Pound) lived and worked.

One of the three central Parisian cemetery where are buried some artists that marked the artistic area (such as Bourdelle, Zadkine, man Ray, etc...).

A visit through underground Paris, to discover a spectacular necropolis (an ossuary for 8 millions Parisians) in the labyrinths of the city's ancient quarries.

Near the Gobelins manufactory

Along the trail of this now underground river, a curious walk through the little the known 13th area of Paris to recall its "golden age". This visit reveals some surprising landmarks, such as, one of Paris' most historic 15th century mansions, an 18th century orangery used by Watteau, surprising little streets lined with charming small houses, ...

An unexpected aspect of Paris, where an astonishing population that settled in huge 1970 buildings has created a bustling, exotic, "city" within the city.

Ile de la Cité

Paris' first Royal Palace and its later turned into a prison where Queen Marie Antoinette was held. (E.N.I)

The former royal chapel, built to house the Holy Relics in the XIIIth century. This magnificent shrine is universally known for its breathtakingly beautiful and abundant stained-glass windows. (E.N.I)

A good introduction to Paris' history through the vivid explanation of models illustrating the city's growth, and vestiges dating from roman times to the XVIIIth century, excavated below the Cathedral's parvis. (E.N.I)

The bridges and banks surrounding "l'ile de la Cite" are as a book in which one can not only read the city's story as far back as Roman times, but also picture its bustling life highlighted by such spectacular and romantic events as river jousts, royal parades, beach parties, etc...

The cathedral and the former cloister area, (A city within a city from the IXth to the XIIIth century...).

Ile Saint Louis

Discover a typical elegant XVIIIth century residential area, still fashionable today. Reminiscence of anecdotes related to celebrities that lived on the island throughout the ages such as Richelieu, Rothschild, Daumier, Le Vau, etc.

Hemingway, Helena Rubinstein, John Dos Passos, and many others lived important moments of their lives in the narrow streets and shady banks of this select island at the beginning of this century.

We have gathered in this part visits outside Paris. The sights being sometimes very distant from one another, we have chosen a different classification.

The duration of the visits in Paris' region is very different according to the sights. Its difference is not determined by the length of the visit itself but by the distance of the sights and its accessibility.

Therefore we have decided to classify the sights according to their access facilities. Thus, a first part will gather sights accessible by Metro or RER, a second part will gather sights with foreseen transportation.

Near suburb

Discovery of French modern sculpture and architecture.

An amazing museum created in 1824 that houses a selection of pieces classified according to the country and date of fabrication : Near East, Europe, Italy, France (specially from Paris) are represented. (E.N.I)

This basilica was chosen in the VIIth century to become the French royal necropolis. First enlarged under the Carolingian it was rebuilt in the XIIth and XIIIth centuries. It is nowadays considered like a treasure of gothic classic architecture. And in spite of revolutionary damages it still houses a wonderful collection of gravestones dating from the XIIt to the XVIth centuries.

For this place we offer two visits of 1h30 each :
- St. Denis basilica treasure of gothic architecture.
- Graves and funeral practices of French kings. (EN.I)

Far suburb

Regarding this particular sight, we have several visit of 1h30. Here are some examples of them :
- The small or the big Trianon (each of them corresponding to a visit of 1h.30),
- The main gardens (till the Canal),
- The royal apartments.

Residence of the French sovereigns from XIIth to the XIXth centuries. The palace is a marvelous example of decorative art from the XVIe to the XIXe centuries. (E.N.I)

Palace of the XVIIth century made by the major artists of the time (Le Vau, Le Nôtre, et Lebrun). It was the residence of Louis XIV's minister of finance, Nicolas Fouquet. Today the palace privately owned, is opened to the public. (E.N.I)

This town is well-known for its marvelous cathedral with its "blue sky" stained glass windows dating from the XIIth century. On the way one can admire the landscape of this part of the Ile de France and see the palaces of Rambouillet and Maintenon. Count at least 4h for the tour just to visit the cathedral and the drive.

A magic word for the lovers of Impressionism. This little village became famous when Monet settled in 1883. One can visit the cute little house and its splendid gardens where the painter and his family lived until 1961. A few years ago, was inaugurated The American museum that houses works made by American artists that came to visit Monet. Some of them settled to work in Giverny.
(A minimum of 5 hours). (E.N.I)

This typical and adorable little village was chosen by artists in the XIXth century to settle and work. Some of them became very famous like Daubigny, Van Gogh or the kind Doctor Gachet that welcomed them all in his house. A sight that can be combined with Giverny. (A minimum of 5 hours). (E.N.I)

A palace built in the XVIth century, for the warmate of king Henry IV, the Connétable de Montmorency. One of the most beautiful example of XVIth century architecture that houses today the magnificent museum of the Renaissance period. (E.N.I)

Formerly a Royal city, Senlis has kept a special ambiance, with its charming narrow streets and its two churches, its cathedral and the church St. Frambourg. Since the settlement of the pianist Cziffra, the village became the center of Lizst.

Residence of Napoleon Bonaparte and Empress Joséphine. The original nineteenth century decor, with a varied collection of porcelain, paintings, furniture, and personal belongings recreate the ambiance known by the famous couple and their relatives. (E.N.I)

Palace built for Louis XIVth cousin, the prince of Condé. The museum houses an extraordinary collection of furniture and paintings of the XVIIth century. And specially its gorgeous library were are kept the unique illuminating of the duke of Berry dating of the XIVth century. (E.N.I)