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Scubabartek
Scubabartek
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4 out of 5
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3
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La Defense

  • July 17, 2007
  • Rated 3 of 5 by rufusni from Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
La Defense

La Defense has become the financial district in Paris, as the city planners refused any more tall buildings in the city centre. However, it's an interesting place to catch the metro out as there are fewer tourists out here and less crowds. The open space is a pleasant change from the famed narrow streets in the centre, and there are lots of sculptures spotted across the main plaza.

The most distinctive element is the Grande Arche de la Defense which is twice the height of the Arc de Triomphe and four times that of the Arc de Triomphe de Carrousel which lie in a line that create the grand axis of Paris. It is possible to go up the arch, however, the views of Paris are good at its base so save your money.

There is also a large shopping centre - Quatre Temps, which is one of the largest shopping centre in Europe with over 250 shops over several levels. The complex also has a cinema and several restaurants. Auchan, a hypermarket is a giant supermarket selling food, clothes, stationary, homewares, and anything else you can imagine, and it has cheap prices and is a great place to pick up some gifts to take home like jams, biscuits and other french specialities. The shopping centre is were many Parisiens come to shop so its a good chance to see life in. Its also a good place to pick up bargains in what can be an expensive city. The shopping centre open from 10am to 8pm with the hypermarket being open from 9am to 10pm, and the restaurants and cinema remaining open to 11pm.

La Defense is at the end of metro line 1, with two stops - Esplanade de la Defense and La Defense. The la Defense metro station is part of a larger transport complex with buses and RER trains as well in this large station, which has several shops, cafes, and bakeries.

The area can provide good hotel options sometimes with good deals, but note the address as some can be further out of La Defense into places like Coubevoie. plus there are plenty of places to eat as well. However, in the later evening when the shopping centre closes and the offices have emptied, it can become a little eerie and quiet with less people about.

From journal Exploring Paris

Walking to La Defense

  • March 10, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by friendodot from Los Angeles, California
We were staying in an outer arrondissment near La Grande Jette in the northwest corner of the city, near the Seine. We took off on our quest to find La Defense, which is a huge building/monument and business center built on the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. It's very impressive and a must-see when you're in Paris. We had to cross the river, since it's just over the Seine. We decided to cross at the point where we could access La Grande Jette, which was the setting for the painting by Seurat ("A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jette"). There's a lovely park which helps you envision what it might've been like when Seurat was there. We then climbed onto a bridge and then over to the other side of the river. It was late November, but because of the walk, I was sweating. We weren't exactly sure where were going, but we moved in the general direction and got lost a bit. We stopped at a bakery to rest and then tried to make our final assault, walking south, parallel to the river. We eventually came upon a series of freeways and overpasses that blocked our way. Luckily, we find some stairs and climbed over a wall and got onto a walkway. The walkways led to the development around La Defense. It was a spectacular sight, definitely worth the walk. Looking west, we could see Arc de Triomphe several miles down, since La Defense was built to be in line with it. We found a Starbucks which actually served us coffee in real mugs and settled in for a rest. Then we found there was a huge American-style indoor mall next to the monument. After shopping and looking at the monument some more, we took the subway back into the city center. This was definitely my favorite hike of the trip.

From journal Paris during Thanksgiving

Editor Pick

La Defense

  • October 20, 2000
  • Rated 4 of 5 by Scubabartek from Warszawa, Poland
La Defense

If there is any downside of vacation in Paris, it is the fact that after a few days exploring museums, castles, galleries, operas and so on... you might experience what I termed a culture burn-out. This place is a good cure for it. Located on the outskirts of Paris, La Defense is in the middle of Parisian business district. It is really an oddity to look at, this empty cube 40-stories high. You can take an elevator up to the top floor where you get a pretty good view of Paris.

Surprise, surprise! There is an art-gallery on the top floor!

From journal Paris - so much to see, so little time

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