Getting to Know Paris

City Layout

Paris is surprisingly compact. Occupying 2,723 sq. km (1,051 sq. miles), its urban area is home to more than 11 million people. The river Seine divides Paris into the Rive Droite (Right Bank) to the north and the Rive Gauche (Left Bank) to the south. These designations make sense when you stand on a bridge and face downstream (west) -- to your right is the north bank, to your left the south. A total of 32 bridges link the Right Bank and the Left Bank. Some provide access to the two islands at the heart of the city -- Ile de la Cité, the city's birthplace and site of Notre-Dame; and Ile St-Louis, a moat-guarded oasis of 17th-century mansions.

The main street on the Right Bank is avenue des Champs-Elysées, beginning at the Arc de Triomphe and running to place de la Concorde. Avenue des Champs-Elysées and 11 other avenues radiate like the arms of an asterisk from the Arc de Triomphe, giving it its original name, place de l'Etoile (étoile means "star"). It was renamed place Charles-de-Gaulle following the general's death; today, it's often referred to as place Charles-de-Gaulle-Etoile.

Finding an Address

Paris is divided into 20 municipal wards called arrondissements, each with its own city hall, police station, and post office; some have remnants of market squares. Arrondissements spiral out clockwise from the 1st, in the geographical center of the city. The 2nd through the 8th form a ring around the 1st, and the 9th through the 17th form an outer ring around the inner ring. The 18th, 19th, and 20th are at the far northern and eastern reaches of the Right Bank. Arrondissements 5, 6, 7, 13, 14, and 15 are on the Left Bank.

Most city maps are divided by arrondissement, and addresses include the arrondissement number (in Roman or Arabic numerals and followed by "er" or "e"). Paris also has its own version of a zip code. The mailing address for a hotel is written as, for example, "Paris 75014." The last two digits, 14, indicate that the address is in the 14th arrondissement -- in this case, Montparnasse.

Numbers on buildings running parallel to the Seine usually follow the course of the river -- east to west. On perpendicular streets, building numbers begin low closer to the river.

Maps

If you're staying more than 2 or 3 days, purchase an inexpensive pocket-size book called Paris par arrondissement, available at newsstands and bookshops; prices start at 6.50€. This guide provides you with a Métro map, a foldout map of the city, and maps of each arrondissement, with all streets listed and keyed.