Grand Palais, Paris, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

The Grand Palais is a glass-roofed exhibition hall in Paris, built for the 1900 Exposition Universelle and still one of the city's great venues for art, fashion and large events. It stands at Place Clemenceau in the 8th arrondissement, close to the Champs-Élysées and facing the Petit Palais.

The story behind it

The Grand Palais was raised for the world's fair of 1900, which showcased French art and industry to the world. Its builders paired a monumental stone facade with a huge vault of iron and glass, a daring combination for the time. The building has hosted exhibitions, shows and sporting events ever since.

In recent decades its great central hall, the Nave, has become a favourite stage for fashion. Chanel has long presented its ready-to-wear collections there, which ties the palace to the story of Gabrielle Chanel's Paris. The building was also renovated ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games. A short walk away on the Champs-Élysées side of Place Clemenceau stands a bronze statue of Charles de Gaulle, unveiled in 2000. De Gaulle left for London in June 1940, rallied French resistance by radio and later served as president from 1959 to 1969, when he shaped the Fifth Republic.

What to look for

• The vast glass roof and its iron framework are the signature feature of the building, and they are easiest to appreciate from the street as the light changes.
• The stone facade has a long colonnade, and its decoration shows the confident taste of 1900.
• Sculpted bronze chariot groups crown the corners of the roofline, so look up as you approach.
• The bronze statue of General de Gaulle stands close by, and it makes a good pause before you continue along the avenue.

Tips for your visit

• Allow about 20 to 30 minutes to see the exterior and the surroundings, and much longer if you go in for an exhibition.
• Whether you can enter depends on what is on, so check current opening hours and the programme before you go.
• Morning or late afternoon light flatters the glass and stone, and the crowds around the Champs-Élysées are lighter early in the day.
• The Petit Palais, the Pont Alexandre III and the Tuileries gardens are all within a short walk, so this is an easy stop to combine with a longer stroll.

See it on a quest

Coco Chanel's Paris brings you to the Grand Palais on foot as one stop of a longer route through the area. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle in what is in front of you. Since Chanel shows have filled the Nave for years, the fashion theme fits the building well. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.

Historical Paris: Occupation & Liberation Story takes a different angle on the same streets. You walk the route at your own pace, hear about each stop as you reach it and solve a puzzle on the spot, with no guide and no group to join. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.