Facts about Paris
City of Light
Paris is very eagerly visited by tourists. It surprises with the number of monuments and architectural marvels from various historical periods. Hundreds of restaurants and cafes tempt with delicious cuisine, while art lovers can lose themselves in hundreds of museums and art galleries.
1Paris is the capital city of France.
2Annually, it is visited by over 30 million tourists.
It is among the most visited cities in the world.
3Originally, Paris was called Lutetia and was a Roman settlement.
4There are 20 arrondissements in Paris arranged in a spiral, that extends from the city center.
5One of the most prominent symbols of Paris—the Eiffel Tower—was meant to be a temporary installation, but was scheduled for demolition after 20 years.
It was built for the World Fair in 1889. It is 324 meters high, consists of 18,000 metal parts joined together with 2,5 million rivets, and weighs 10,100 tons.
6Despite being one of the most recognizable symbols of Paris, the Eiffel Tower was, and still is, despised for its ugliness by many Parisians.
It is called a scar on the beautiful panorama of the city.
7There are 1 803 statues and 173 museums in the city.
Many objects, such as the Louvre, the Orsay Museum, and the Pompidou Center, are well known worldwide.
8The Louvre Museum is the most visited museum in the world.
Every year it attracts around 10 million visitors.
9The Louvre is known for its grand collection of top world-famous works of art, the most prestigious being the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.
10The oldest bridge in Paris is called the “New Bridge.”
The cornerstone for the construction of ‘Le Pont Neuf’ was laid in 1578 by the king of France, Henry III, and the construction was completed between 1604 and 1607.
11According to a fashion law from 1800, Parisian women were not permitted to wear pants in public.
The law was overturned in 2012. For almost 200 years, women would have to gain permission from city authorities if they wished to “dress as a man.”
12Paris has five replicas of the Statue of Liberty.
Given that Lady Liberty was a gift from France to the United States, it is only fair that replicas stand proudly in the motherland.
13On April 15th, 2019, the most famous cathedral, the Notre-Dame, burst into flames. The fire lasted for 15 hours.
2/3 of the roof surface was destroyed, and a spire pierced the ceiling, collapsing into the building on the marble floor. Fortunately, most of the works of art and relics were not endangered, and only some of the sculptures and paintings were soiled with smoke.
The cathedral is to be rebuilt by 2024. However, full restoration may take over 20 years.
14The Bloody Mary cocktail was invented in Paris in 1921 by a bartender named Fernand “Pete” Petiot.
15The Arc de Triomphe took 30 years to complete.
One of the most outstanding monuments in France is placed in the Champs-Élysées.
16The speed limit in Paris is 30 km/h.
The changes were introduced on August 30th, 2021 to prevent road accidents, noise, and air pollution. Although it may sound like a controversial idea, in a public opinion poll, as many as 59% of Parisians supported the speed limit.
17There are eight statues symbolizing the largest cities in France, located in one of the major city squares, called the Place de la Concorde.
They symbolize Lille, Strasbourg, Marseille, Nantes, Lyon, Bordeaux, Rouen, and Brest.
18The tallest skyscraper in France is the Tour First.
It is located in La Défense and is 231 meters tall.
19The longest street in Paris is rue Vaugirard.
It is located in the 15th arrondissement and is 4,36 kilometers long.
20The shortest street is only 6 meters long.
Rue des Degrés is located in the 2nd arrondissement.
21Café Procope is the oldest café in Paris.
Opened in 1686, it is located in the 6th arrondissement.
22There are over 450 gardens and parks in Paris.
Over 470,000 trees grow throughout the city.
23There was only one STOP sign in Paris.
It stood at the exit of a construction facility in the 16th arrondissement until 2012 when it was removed permanently.