A captivating 2-hour walking tour discovering the Marais, an extraordinary district that is today the beating heart of Parisian trends, yet preserves an immense historical and artistic heritage intact. Did you know that its name literally means "marsh"? Drained in the 12th century, the area became, in the 16th century, the sumptuous refuge of the aristocracy. Having escaped Baron Haussmann's great 19th-century demolitions, the Marais has preserved its characteristic maze of medieval lanes.
The guided route sets off from the monumental Hôtel de Ville (the City Hall) and unfolds in a continuous contrast: we will pass beside Renzo Piano's colourful, futuristic Centre Pompidou, stroll through the historic Jewish quarter of the Pletzl – among long-established kosher delis and the scent of falafel – and admire the exteriors of sumptuous noble mansions such as the hospice of the National Archives, the Picasso Museum and the Hôtel de Sully. Walking with our noses in the air in search of street art, we will cross the wonderful, symmetrical Place des Vosges, before revealing pop anecdotes (such as the house where Jim Morrison died) and ending the tour where the French Revolution began: at Place de la Bastille.
