Notre Dame de Paris

It’s the undisputed star of all the great Parisian monuments. With more than 12 million visitors per year, the symbol of Medieval Paris is also sure to take your breath away. It’s the most visited monument in the capital. Just 15 minutes from the Hotel Perreyve, passing by the Place de l’Odéon and Boulevard Saint-Michel, Notre-Dame Cathedral stands majestically by the Seine. Over 850 years ago, one man decided to build the greatest cathedral in France in the very centre of Paris on the Île de la Cité. This man was Maurice de Sully, Bishop of Paris in 1160, and he would spend his life focussed on this project.

The western façade, with its large doorways adorned with statues, its rose window around 10 m in diameter, and its two north and south towers reaching 69 m from the ground are still highly impressive. Inside, discover the central nave, a masterpiece of symmetry and sobriety and filled with a heavenly, almost otherworldly light. The 33-meter vault, supported by imposing pillars, seems to defy the laws of gravity.

This masterpiece of Gothic architecture, heavily damaged during the French Revolution, was the object of a 19th century restoration project led by architect Viollet-le-Duc. Victor Hugo’s “Notre-Dame de Paris”, the story of the kind gypsy Esmeralda and the forlorn hunchback Quasimodo and which takes place in and around the cathedral, is believed to have played a key role in the renovation.

Today, countless visitors come to admire the windows, towers, spires and gargoyles. They can equally discover the Treasury of Notre-Dame, and climb the towers to enjoy a panoramic view of Paris.