Sacre-Coeur Basilica, Paris
Sacre-Coeur Basilica
Address: Basilique Sacre-Coeur De Montmartre, Adoration Eucharistique Jour Et Nuit, 35 rue du Chevalier De La Barre, 75018 Paris
Arrondissement: 18th arrondissement
Hours: The Basicilica is open 6:00am to 11:00pm, last entries 10:15pm; The dome and crypt are open from 9:00am to 7:00pm (6:00pm during the winter); Bookshop everyday except Monday’s from 9:15am to 5:45pm
WWW: Sacre-Couer
Phone: 33 1 53 41 89 00
Email: basilique@sacre-coeur-montmartre.com
About the Sacre-Coeur Basilica
Sacre-Coeur Basilica, translated to the Basilica of the Scared Heart, is a Roman Catholic basilica and popular Paris attraction. The monument is located at the highest point in the city, a top Montmartre hill, so that all of Paris can see its full glory.
The original idea behind the construction of the church was to dedicate it completely to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Sacred Heart is a sect of the Roman Catholic church that is devoted entirely to the physical heart of Jesus which stands for diving love for all humanity. After nearly 60,000 soldiers lost their lives in the Franco-Prussian War, the Assemblee nationale agreed to go forward with the plans at the request of the archbishop of Paris. The project was taken on as a National Vow by the church and patronage poured in from parishes throughout France to support the noble cause. Architect Paul Abadie, chosen over nearly 80 other fine architects, was given the commission and sent to work. The foundation was finally laid in June of 1875 and the rest is history.
The Sacre-Coeur is done in Romano-Byzantine style. A conscious effort was made not to display any of the lavish neo-Baroque pieces that were so popular during its construction time. Rather there are many other nationalist themed design elements such as the grand portico, the beautiful arches, equestrian statues of saints Joan of Arc and King Saint Louis IX and the nineteen ton Savoyarde bell; one of the world’s heaviest bells. The Basicilica is also home to an enormous and exquisite organ built made by Aristide Cavaille-Coll.
Abadie made sure that the Basicilica was built only of travertine stone, which was quarried in France and brought to the city of Paris. The stone does not absorb calcite which ensures Sacre-Coeur will remain white as long as it stands.
From a top the Dome, guests can enjoy fantastic views of Paris year round. Guests may also attend a mass or rid themselves of sin at they daily confession if they so desire.
Getting to Sacre-Coeur Basilica
You may get on metro lines 12 or 2 at any of the following places: Jules Joffrin, Pigalle or Anvers. Get off at stop Place du Tertre or Norvins to get to the Sacre-Coeur.
Sacre-Coeur Basilica Hotels
Here is a short guide to hotels near Sacre-Coeur Basilica.
2 star Hotel Altona offers a quiet yet convenient location at 166 rue du Faubourg-Poissonniere, Paris in the 10th arrondissement. Merely a quarter kilometer from Barbes and Anvers tube stations, it can get you to the Montmartre district with ease. Here you can visit Sacre Coeur as well as scour the 18th arrondissement for more fantastic Paris attractions. Rates start as low as 44EUR with breakfast included.
Located at 41 rue Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, the 3 star Trinite Plaza offers a perfect spot between the Opera Garnier, Grands Boulveards and Sacre-Couer. Its pleasant atmosphere offers up to date, comfortable amenities. For 80EUR a night, you can get a single bed with breakfast included to start your day visiting the sites of Paris.
The elusive 4 star Millennium Hotel Paris Opera has a fine position at 12 Boulevard Hassumann in Paris. The hotel boasts authentic 1920s style decor and delicious French cuisine. The Liberty Bar is has a cozy fireplace and friendly atmosphere. Situated in a central location it is steps away from Sacre Coeur as well as other sites like the Louvre.
Photo courtesy of Magda Zych.
Jardin des Tuileries, Paris
Jardin des Tuileries
Address: Rue de Rivoli
Arrondissement: 1st
Phone: 01 44 94 98 00
About the Tuileries
The Tuilieries is most famous for what used to be there. The Tuileries Palace stood at the west end of the Louvre’s courtyard until its destruction. Widowed Catherine de Medici began the planning of the palace during her lifetime and during construction Louis XIV moved in with his family. When the king left the building was abandoned. This beginning started an effect of negativity that surrounded the Palace. It was attacked several times by angry Parisian mobs. It’s demise was a horrible one. Twelve Commune men, under the orders of extremist Dardelle, set the Palace on fire at 7pm using petroleum, liquid tar and turpentine. The fire raged for 2 days, consuming the entire Palace. There the shell of what the palace once was stood for 11 years until it was finally torn down in 1882. There is consideration of rebuilding the magnificent place for all to see.
The acreage where the palace stood is now called the Tuileries Garden. It sites on 63 acres and still follows its original layout of Louis XIV’s landscaper Andre Le Notre. Two buildings do remain on the grounds and they are the Musee de l’Orangerie and the Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume. They are the only two original buildings remaining from the Tuileries Palace. The grounds are also home to numerous sculptures, basins and fountains as well as garden after beautiful garden. A footpath bridge was constructed over the Siene in recent years to connect the gardens with Musee d O’rsay.
Getting to Jardin des Tuilieres
Tuileries is a station of the Paris Métro line 1, named for and serving the Jardin des Tuileries.
Here is a short guide to hotels near Jardin des Tuilieres.
Don’t be fooled by the Comfort Hotel Opera Drouot’s two star rating. Located at 4 rue de la Grange Bataliere, this charming hotel offers a great position in the city. It is surrounded by many wonderful attractions, including the Jardin des Tuilieres. The rooms are simple and relaxing and the stone vaulted breakfast room is a beautiful touch to wake up to in the morning. Just a short distance from the metro station Grands Boulevards, which can be accessed by lines 8 or 9, this hotels 52EUR per night starting price is hard to beat.
The 3 star Crystal Hotel, located at 24 Rue Saint Benoit, is a mere 20 minute walk from Notre Dame and also a short walk to the Louvre, St Germain Des Pres, Musee D’Orsay and the Tuileries. A delicious breakfast is offered in a cavernous stone walled room each morning. The receptionists are there to make your stay unforgettable and help you any way that they can. All of the rooms are done up with pieces of art and beautiful deep color palettes. Rates start at 101.37EUR per night. Crystal Hotel is a short distance from metro line Saint Germain des Pres on line 4 and Mabillon station on line 10.
Located half a mile from the Tuileries, the Hotel le Vignon settles into the heart of the fashion district. The creamy beige decor with red and yellow accents follows fashionable suit. Situated at 23 rue Vignon in the 8th arrondisement, it is two minutes on foot from the Galeries Lafayette, Rue St Honore and the Opera. Close to several metros including Havre Caumartin, this three star gem offers stand out locality and superior room for 137EUR per night.
Photo courtesy of Simona Dumitru.
Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris
Notre Dame Cathedral
Address: Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris, 6 place du Parvis, Place Jean-Paul II, Paris 75004
Arrondissement: 4th
Hours: 8:00am to 6:45pm
Tickets: With a hostess 20EUR; Without a hostess 3EUR, Children 1EUR; With an audio guide 5EUR
WWW: Notre Dame Cathedral
Phone: +33 (0)1 42 34 56 10.
Email: info@cathedraledeparis.com
About Notre Dame
Notre Dame is a French Gothic cathedral that is still used today as a Roman Catholic church and the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. The cathedrals construction was long and spanned the Gothic period from 1160 until 1345. This period was known for its influence called naturalism which can be seen in the buildings stained glass, sculptures and more rounded appearance. It was also one of the first to use architectural plans that included the use of flying buttresses as support features. Today it is still considered one of the finest examples in the world of French Gothic architecture.
Notre Dame has seen its fair share of ups and downs, along with the French people. Crusaders prayed within its walls before they went out to fight during the Holy Wars. During the French Revolution in the 18th century a majority of the most treasured items in the church were destroyed. The famous status of the biblical kings of Judea were beheaded and only recently in 1977 were the heads found during an excavation and put on display. For some time the church was used as a warehouse to store food by the Cult of Reason and then the Cult of the Supreme Being before it was turned back over to the Catholics. In 1871 it was nearly burned to the ground by Communards but some how came out untouched.
There is much to see and do at the church such as going up the 387 steps to one of the towers made infamous by the story of Quisamodo. The south tower holds a 13 ton bell that is rung for all of France to hear during special occasions. Notre Dame also houses a large and beautiful organ which has was built in the early 1700’s and completely reconstructed in the 1800’s. There is also exquisite architecture around every corner and sculptures throughout.
Getting to Notre Dame
The island where Notre Dame is located, Ile de la Cite has one Paris Métro station, Cité; the RER station, Saint-Michel-Notre-Dame” on the Left Bank has an exit in the square front of the Cathedral.
Here is a short guide to hotels near Notre Dame, Paris.
Located at 1 Rue Racine, the Hotel de La Faculte offers a setting in a late 19th century building situated in center of the active Latin quarter. It is just mere steps from Notre Dame as well as other sites like Sorbonne. From your room, you can enjoy a view of the beloved cathedral for a mere 55EUR per night. For this price, you not only get sweeping views of the city, but a continental breakfast and 24 hour front desk and concierge service. Fido is also more than welcome. This hotel is a half a mile from the Notre Dame cathedral and even closer to metro station Cluny La Sorbonne and St. Michel Notre-Dame.
The 3 star Crystal Hotel, located at 24 Rue Saint Benoit, is a mere 20 minute walk from Notre Dame and also a short walk to the Louvre, St Germain Des Pres, Musee D’Orsay and the Tuileries. A delicious breakfast is offered in a cavernous stone walled room each morning. The receptionists are there to make your stay unforgettable and help you any way that they can. All of the rooms are done up with pieces of art and beautiful deep color palettes. Rates start at 101.37EUR per night. Crystal Hotel is a short distance from metro line Saint Germain des Pres on line 4 and Mabillon station on line 10.
Located beside a vast Parisian park, 4 star hotel Novotel Paris Les Halles is an ideal stay for visitors who want to see the Notre Dame, Louvre, Pompidou Center and views from a top the banks of the Siene. The restaurant and bar “La Place” offers tasty delights and beautiful views of the Saint Eustaches and Les Halles gardens. It offers business with 8 high tech meeting rooms and pleasure with its perfect location in the heart of Paris. All of the rooms are completely elegant with a soothing decor. Rates start at 155.70EUR per night. The hotel can easily be reached by Metro Chatelet and getting off from Lines 1 & 7’s shared station Place Ste-Opportune or Line 4’s Rue de la Lingerie station. Situated half a mile from Notre Dame and it is less than a mile from the Cite metro station.
Photo courtesy of Anthony Von Hoe.
Pantheon, Paris
Pantheon
Address: Place du Pantheon, 75005 Paris
Arrondissement: 5th
Hours: Winter hours are 10am to 7pm. Summer hours are 9:30am to 6:30pm.
Tickets: Adult 26EUR, Group 17EUR, Children 7EUR
Phone: 01 43 54 34 51
About the Pantheon
The Pantheon has an incredible and vast past. It’s history goes back as far as 507AD when King Clovish, the first of the Frankish Merovingian King’s, chose the site as a tomb for him and his wife Clothilde. In 512 the patroness of Paris, Saint Genevieve, was buried here. In 1744 when King Louis XV fell seriously ill, he made a promise to resurrect a church and breathe new life into this locate – which was known at the time as Abbey Saint Genevieve - for the love of Saint Genevieve. After a miraculous recovery, he did just that. The construction began in 1757 and was completed 34 years, during the French Revolution. During this year the Constituent Assembly of the Revolution dubbed the church as a temple to appease the remains of the great men of France that were buried there. The men in the crypt include some of the most famous French figures of all time such as Victor Huge, Jean Monnet, Marie and Pierre Curie and Emile Zola. Shortly there after in 1806 the buildings function was changed yet again to a pantheon and it served the public as a civic building as it still does today.
This place is also the location where astronomer Jean Bernard Leon Foucault proved to people everywhere that the world spins around its axis. His experimental pendulum is still there today. The dome also offers exciting views of Paris.
Getting to the Pantheon
Go to Cardinal Lemoine station on Paris Metro line 10. It is named after the Rue de Cardinal Lemoine. Cardinal Jean Lemoine (1250-1313) was a papal legate of Pope Boniface VIII to Philip IV the Fair.
Here is a short guide to 2 star and 3 star hotels near the Pantheon.
Don’t be fooled by the Comfort Hotel Opera Drouot’s two star rating. Located at 4 rue de la Grange Bataliere, this charming hotel offers a great position in the city. It is surrounded by many wonderful attractions, including the Jardin des Tuilieres. The rooms are simple and relaxing and the stone vaulted breakfast room is a beautiful touch to wake up to in the morning. Just a short distance from the metro station Grands Boulevards, which can be accessed by lines 8 or 9, this hotels 52EUR per night starting price is hard to beat.
The 3 star Crystal Hotel, located at 24 Rue Saint Benoit, is a mere 20 minute walk from Notre Dame and also a short walk to the Louvre, St Germain Des Pres, Musee D’Orsay and the Tuileries. A delicious breakfast is offered in a cavernous stone walled room each morning. The receptionists are there to make your stay unforgettable and help you any way that they can. All of the rooms are done up with pieces of art and beautiful deep color palettes. Rates start at 101.37EUR per night. Crystal Hotel is a short distance from metro line Saint Germain des Pres on line 4 and Mabillon station on line 10.
Located half a mile from the Tuileries, the Hotel le Vignon settles into the heart of the fashion district. The creamy beige decor with red and yellow accents follows fashionable suit. Situated at 23 rue Vignon in the 8th arrondisement, it is two minutes on foot from the Galeries Lafayette, Rue St Honore and the Opera. Close to several metros including Havre Caumartin, this three star gem offers stand out locality and superior room for 137EUR per night.