{"id":5270,"date":"2024-03-02T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-02T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/evanevanstours.com\/blog\/?p=5270"},"modified":"2025-10-06T15:27:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T14:27:08","slug":"facts-about-paris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/evanevanstours.com\/blog\/facts-about-paris\/","title":{"rendered":"10 interesting facts about Paris you (probably) didn’t know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Also known as the City of Light<\/a>, Paris is one of the most fascinating European capitals, not just because of its art, culture, architecture, history, or even Emily in Paris<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though it may be synonymous with romance, Paris has many quirky secrets that only add to its appeal. Here are 10 of our favourite interesting facts about Paris that you (probably) didn’t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Louvre is big\u2026 very big<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
\u00a9 Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With over nine million visitors annually, the Louvre Museum is the most famous museum on the planet. It\u2019s famously home to the Mona Lisa, but over 35,000 art pieces are on display. But in the museum\u2019s entire collection, there are over 460,000. Allocate just 30 seconds of viewing time to each, and you\u2019d still need 35 days to see them all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Eiffel Tower shouldn’t be there<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Believe it or not, Paris\u2019s most iconic building<\/a> was only meant to be a temporary monument. It was France\u2019s way of demonstrating its superior technology and construction skills. When it was constructed in 1889, it was extremely unpopular. Residents and senior figures protested against it, and the media called it a \u2018useless monstrosity\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is NO ‘STOP’ sign in the entire city<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes, you read this right. Despite being one of the most populous European capitals, Paris’ streets have no stop signs. The one and only stop used to be located at the end of a construction company\u2019s drive in the 16th arrondissement, but was removed in 2016. Throughout the rest of the city\u2014and we mean all of it\u2014the right gets priority. Simple as that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can visit an old guillotine spot<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before we get you overexcited, you won\u2019t find a guillotine in the streets of Paris. But at the corner of Roquette and La Croix-Faubin Street, you will find five concrete spots where a former guillotine was located. They\u2019re in front of what was once a prison. The old guillotine was constructed there in 1851 for public executions. Visit this unique spot to glimpse into Europe’s relatively recent eerie past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s a huge sundial in the city<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The 23-metre-high Obelisk in the Place de la Concorde is not just a visual marvel. It\u2019s a functioning sundial complete with Roman numerals on the surrounding pavements. Most Parisians overlook it, but it makes Egypt\u2019s gift to France during the 19th century all the more unique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pont Neuf is… the oldest bridge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Pont Neuf (literally New Bridge<\/em>) is now the oldest standing bridge in the French capital. However, at the time of its construction, it was one of the first stone bridges with pedestrian sidewalks, so it was named “Pont Neuf”, New Bridge<\/em>. All other bridges from its era are no longer standing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are beaches<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The beaches that line the banks of a small section of the River Seine prove that Paris is a city that really has it all. Head over for a spot of volleyball and sunbathing. There are swimming pools for those who\u2019d rather not dive into the river.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Love-Locks Bridge is no longer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
\u00a9 Photo by lassedesignen on Shutterstock<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As amazing as it was, the \u2018love-locks bridge\u2019 (Pont des Arts) no longer exists! The 1 million locks weighed over 45 tonnes and had to be removed to prevent structural damage. The bridge has been redecorated with modern Art Deco designs. It is still a pretty sight, but be aware of what to expect if you plan to visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paris has its own Statue of Liberty<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You might already know that New York\u2019s Lady Liberty was a gift from the French. What you might have known is that there\u2019s a miniature version in Paris facing the larger counterpart, symbolising the friendship between France and the US.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s full of ghostly metro stations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With around 400 stations, it\u2019s no surprise that Paris\u2019s metro network has a few secrets. One of those is that at least 14 of them are either \u2018never used\u2019, \u2018abandoned\u2019 or \u2018no longer in use\u2019. The Porte des Lilas station is rented out as a film set by production companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For an exciting trip to Paris, check out our Paris self-guided tour options, including either a lunch on a river cruise<\/a>, a lunch on the Eiffel Tower<\/a> or a delightful river cruise experience<\/a> – just a short Eurostar journey away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Though it may be synonymous with romance, Paris holds quirky secrets that only add to its appeal. Here are 10 interesting facts about Paris.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6563,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[607,619,762],"tags":[834,767,835,765,833,832,768,763,1267,764,766,836],"class_list":{"0":"post-5270","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-culture","8":"category-out-of-town","9":"category-paris","10":"tag-day-trip-to-paris","11":"tag-eiffel-tower","12":"tag-eurostar-to-paris","13":"tag-facts-about-paris","14":"tag-london-to-paris","15":"tag-london-to-paris-eurostar","16":"tag-louvre","17":"tag-paris","18":"tag-paris-things-to-do","19":"tag-things-to-do-in-paris","20":"tag-visit-paris","21":"tag-visit-paris-in-one-day"},"yoast_head":"\n10 interesting facts about Paris you (probably) didn't know | Evan Evans Tours<\/title>\n<meta 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