Free audio walk in Paris
The 8th Arrondissement Walk
- 85 min
- 5.1 km
- 12 stops
- Free
Starts at 107 Boulevard Malesherbes
About this walk
This walk explores the northern part of the 8th arrondissement, just above the Champs-Élysées. You’ll pass elegant boulevards, discover grand architecture, and enjoy the refined atmosphere that defines this district. A compact route with a touch of Parisian prestige. The route begins and ends at the same location.
The stops
Walk them in order; each story plays when you reach its pin.
- 1Stop 1
Pont Alexandre III
This bridge was built with one strict rule: it could never block the view.
Read the story - 2Stop 2
The Grand Palais
Two palaces, four rival architects, and a German tank that nearly burned it all down — this building has lived more lives than most cities.
Read the story - 3Stop 3
Petit Palais
The man who designed this building didn't even win the competition — and yet what he built became one of Paris's best-kept secrets.
Read the story - 4Stop 4
Place de la Concorde
The square you're standing on is soaked in more blood, more history, and more secrets than almost anywhere else in Europe.
- 5Stop 5
Hôtel de Crillon
Behind this palatial facade on Place de la Concorde lies a building that has witnessed royal piano lessons, a Nazi occupation, and one of literature's most famous acts of dish-washing.
Read the story - 6Stop 6
Hôtel de la Marine
This building has witnessed crown jewel heists, secret listeners behind fireplaces, and the last Nazi surrender in Paris, all behind the same elegant facade.
Read the story - 7Stop 7
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré
This street began as a muddy track lined with vegetable gardens, and somehow became the most powerful two kilometers in the world.
Read the story - 8Stop 8
Élysée Palace
The official residence of the French President has a past so scandalous, so deliciously improper, that it makes the current political dramas look rather tame.
Read the story - 9Stop 9
La Madeleine
This church took 85 years to build, survived Napoleon's ambitions, and once made a grieving crowd wait two weeks because of a velvet curtain.
Read the story - 10Stop 10
Boulevard Haussmann
This boulevard is named after the man who demolished an entire city to build it.
Read the story - 11Stop 11
Musée Jacquemart-André
Behind this grand façade lies a love story, a legal battle, and one of the most personal art collections in all of Paris.
Read the story - 12Stop 12
The Champs-Élysées
One boulevard has witnessed both the darkest humiliation and the most joyful liberation of a city, sometimes within the memory of a single lifetime.
Read the story
Ready when you are
Walk The 8th Arrondissement Walk with ROODS.
12 stops through Paris, about 85 minutes. Open ROODS in your browser, walk to the first pin and the story plays.
- Stories on a map, with narrated audio
- Walk at your own pace, stop where you like
- Runs in your browser. An app is optional.
