Île de la Cité: Where Paris Was Born

The Île de la Cité is where Paris began – a small island in the Seine that became home to kings, bishops, revolutionaries, and martyrs. On this walking tour, you'll trace 2,000 years of history on the island where Celtic settlers, Roman conquerors, and medieval rulers each left their mark. You'll also hear the stories behind some of the most dramatic moments in French history, from royal sieges to public executions.

The tour starts on the Pont des Arts, the former love-lock bridge that links the Louvre to the Institut de France. You'll cross to the Île de la Cité past the bouquinistes' green book stalls and the Monnaie de Paris coin mint, then walk over the Pont Neuf – Paris's oldest surviving bridge, opened in 1604. Along the way, you'll hear how Henri IV converted from Protestantism to Catholicism just to claim his throne, and how the man who later assassinated him met a spectacularly gruesome end.

You'll visit Place Dauphine, one of Paris's most peaceful plazas, and pass the Conciergerie, where Marie-Antoinette stood trial during the Revolution. The tour then brings you face-to-face with Notre Dame Cathedral, whose three carved doorways tell the entire arc of Christian history in stone. You'll learn how Victor Hugo's novel saved the cathedral from demolition, and hear about its extraordinary post-2019 restoration. The tour ends at the Deportation Martyrs Memorial at the island's eastern tip, a quiet and sobering tribute to the 72,500 French Jews killed during World War II.

On this two-hour tour, you'll have a chance to:

• Hear the curse of Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, burned alive at the island's tip in 1314
• Explore the Square du Vert-Galant, the lowest point on the island – still at its original Roman-era level
• Decode the carvings of Notre Dame's Doorway of Judgement, including a devil caught cheating on the scales of souls
• Learn how Saint Geneviève held off Attila the Hun in 451 at just 28 years old
• Visit the Sainte-Chapelle, built to house Christ's crown of thorns – which cost half of France's annual budget
• Admire the ornate Art Nouveau entrance of the Cité metro station, designed by Hector Guimard in 1910

This is the perfect tour for Francophiles who want a taste of French history while enjoying a leisurely two-hour stroll along the heart of Paris.