The 7th arrondissement is deemed to be the most aristocratic. With iconic monuments such as the Eiffel Tower, the Assemblé Nationale and many ministries in the area, the 7th offers an unlikely bureaucratic yet neighbourly feel.
With the Eiffel Tower taking centre stage in the arrondissement, tourists often ignore the rest of the district. And even though the immediate area around the Eiffel Tower is to be skipped for people wishing to avoid crowds, the tower manages to surprise and please when parts of it are revealed unexpectedly through small side streets like rue Saint Dominique, rue Grenelle and rue de Monttessuy.
When you reach the Parc Des Invalides, where Napoleon’s tomb resides within the Musée de l'Armée, you see some of the most open-air space you ever get to experience in Paris. The eye can travel all the way to the other side of the golden Pont Neuf. On Place du Palais Bourbon, you can enjoy a quick lunch or coffee among politicians and journalists working in the Assemblé Nationale, and on one street to the left you can admire the view of the Basilique Sainte-Clotilde, followed by a visit in the gardens of the Musée Rodin, adorned by many of the artist’s famed sculptures.
Many of the historical buildings in that quarter have been turned into universities and schools, bringing back a sense of life into the monuments. Walking on the west side of Les Invalides you will hear a lot of English and other European accents as most of that area is taken over by the urban campus of the American University of Paris.
