There are literally hundreds of sites and museums to visit in Paris — your head might just be spinning at the thought of what to include in your Paris itinerary. Instead of trying to navigate the best attractions in Paris by yourself, you might want to take a tour or two. In the capable hands of the best Paris tour guides, you’ll learn the ropes of the city, maneuver busy museums and monuments with ease, see the city with new eyes, and have some fun facts to share with your friends and family back home. From the Eiffel Tower to the Louvre, here are the best guided tours of Paris attractions.
*Some of the links in this article will earn a small commission if you click them and then purchase something. Thank you for your support!
(WA=Wheelchair Accessible)
Image Courtesy of Fat Tire Tours
Zoom past the top sites of Paris during a half-day bike tour
If you’d like to get a quick yet comprehensive overview of the city, then these half-day top guided tours of Paris attractions by bike are for you. Starting near the Eiffel Tower, you’ll whiz around to the top landmarks of the Left Bank (such as the Ecole Militaire and Les Invalides) before crossing the Seine to the Right Bank. Here you’ll take a break in the Tuileries Gardens before returning to the starting point through the elegant Champs Elysées area. Since there is an increasing number of bike lanes crisscrossing the city, it’s now that much easier (and safer!) to tour Paris by bike.
Learn more about this Paris Day Bike Tour | 1st, 6th, 7th, 8th and 16th Arrondissements
Have skip-the-line access and in-depth insight into the Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is the most visited site in Paris, so it’s no surprise that it’s on most first-time visitors’ bucket lists. This late 19th-century iron marvel is definitely worth going up at least once and you can save yourself the grief of trying to navigate the crowds AND secure difficult-to-obtain tickets by taking this guided tour of the Eiffel Tower. In addition to skip-the-line Eiffel Tower tickets (to the top floor), your guide will provide you with fascinating facts about the tower’s history as well as the various sites you can see from the tower’s different levels. If you can, we recommend visiting the tower just before dusk, that way you’ll see the sun setting over the city and then the Eiffel Tower’s lights coming on — simply magical!
Take the Eiffel Tower Guided Tour by Elevator with Summit Access | 7th Arrondissement
See Paris by night on a walking tour plus boat cruise
Held at dusk, these top guided tours of Paris attractions by night help you discover why the city is nicknamed the “City of Light.” Paris is enchanting in the evening and this tour takes you to some of the most beautifully lit sites while you also learn about the city’s history. Beginning at the lesser-visited Palais-Royal, you’ll then traverse the spectacular courtyards of the Louvre, which are even prettier at night than by day, when they also lack the swarms of daytime tourists. You’ll cross the romantic Pont des Arts, where you can admire some of the best views over the Seine and its monuments. The tour proceeds through the quieter streets of Saint Germain and at the end, you have the choice of continuing your Paris by Night experience on a Seine River cruise with a glass of champagne (tickets available at an additional cost through the guide).
Paris Night Tour with River Cruise and Champagne Option | Various Arrondissements
Discover the Top Masterpieces of the Louvre with an Art Historian
This small-group guided tour of the Louvre led by an art historian not only helps you bypass the masses who flock to the world-famous museum, but it also provides amazing insight into its top artworks and the history of the building. You start by learning how the Louvre went from fortress to royal palace then centuries to a museum. Your expert Louvre guide will usher you through the Louvre’s vast rooms, stopping to discuss both legendary works, like the Venus de Milo, the Nike of Samothrace, and the Mona Lisa, and hidden gems. By the end of the tour, you’ll have had a crash course in art history and knowledge to take to other top museums in Paris and around the world!
Reserve the Louvre Museum Tour: A Guided Crash Course | 1st Arrondissement | WA
Marvel at the Gothic architecture of Notre Dame and Sainte Chapelle while visiting the Ile-de-la-Cité
Travel back in time on an engaging guided tour of the Ile-de-la-Cité, one of the oldest areas of Paris which is home to Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Sainte Chapelle, and la Conciergerie. The tour will reveal how the island has been inhabited since Gallo-Roman times and how it has evolved over the ages. You’ll explore its prized sites constructed during Medieval Times, the most famous being Notre-Dame. The cathedral wows visitors with its intricately carved facade and soaring flying buttresses (the interiors are due to reopen at the end of 2024). The tour also includes skip-the-line tickets to Saint Chapelle, revered as a masterpiece of Gothic architecture thanks to its stunning stained glass windows whose beauty will leave you awestruck. The tour also covers the Conciergerie, the palace of the French royals before the Louvre. You’ll learn how it was converted into a prison and see the reconstructed cell of its most famous prisoner: Queen Marie-Antoinette!
Take the Notre Dame’s Island with Sainte Chapelle and Marie Antoinette’s prison tour | 1st and 4th Arrondissement
Discover what’s so important (and unique!) about Impressionism at the Musée d’Orsay
Lovers of Impressionist art won’t want to miss this two-hour guided tour of the Musée d’Orsay. The second most popular Paris museum, in the company of your expert-guide, and with skip-the-line Orsay Museum tickets in hand, you’ll enter the massive central atrium of what was originally designed as a train station. Home to the world’s greatest collection of Impressionist art, your guide will take you on the artistic journey through this revolutionary 19th-century art movement. You’ll see how painters like Monet, Renoir, and Pissarro took their palates and paintbrushes outdoors to capture light and color in a completely new way. You’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at the era’s entertainment scene via Degas’s ballerinas and Toulouse-Lautrec’s cabaret performers. Lastly, you’ll meet the many facets of Vincent van Gogh in his mesmerizing Starry Night and numerous self-portraits. Book your tour for Thursday late afternoon or afternoon, when the museum is open late, to be able to admire these works with much fewer crowds.
Meet the Impressionists: Musée d’Orsay Skip-the-Line Fully Guided Tour | 7th Arrondissement | WA
Uncover the hidden side of the former artist village of Montmartre
Once a village on the outskirts of Paris, the best way to escape the crowds and discover the area’s real side is to take this secret Montmartre tour. As you wander the cobblestone back streets of this hilly neighborhood, you’ll see firsthand some of the former art studios, homes, and watering holes of the likes of Renoir, Van Gogh, and Picasso. Along the way, you’ll get a taste of today’s Montmartre, by visiting the local market street and stopping in at an award-winning bakery for a treat. The tour also includes some romantic spots, the very popular and charming Maison Rose and ends at Sacré-Coeur Basilica where you can take in some of the best views in Paris.
Learn more about the secret Montmatre tour | Montmartre | WA
Be awestruck by the grandeur of glitzy Versailles
Although it’s technically not in Paris, a trip to Versailles is still considered among the top guided tours of Paris attractions. One of the most visited sites in all of France, we highly recommend going with a guide to simply better navigate the huge complex and have skip-the-line tickets to enter, and this excellent full-day tour of Versailles has you covered on all fronts. Starting in Paris, your guide will give you the low down on the palace as you take the 30-minute train ride together. You’ll then see the top highlights of the palace interiors, such as the King’s State Apartments, the War Salon and Peace Salon, and the shimmering Hall of Mirrors. You’ll then leave behind the large tour groups by venturing into the estate’s expansive gardens – which spread over 2,000 acres!) and were the stage of many important events and court life in their own right (if only those bushes could talk!). This full-day excursion to Versailles finishes with the Trianon complex, known especially for the Marie-Antoinette hamlet, where the Queen’s private escape… before she ended up at the Conciergerie!
Reserve your spot on the small group Paris to Versailles day trip with garden stroll | Versailles | WA
Pin this…
