La Défense, Paris

About La Défense

La Défense is a business district west of Paris, in the communes of Puteaux, Courbevoie and Nanterre. It's Europe's largest purpose-built business district: 61 high-rises, about 2,800 companies and 200,000 workers, and the headquarters of major French banks and corporations. The first buildings went up in 1958, followed by several generations of skyscrapers.

It sits at the western end of the Historical Axis of Paris, a ten-kilometre straight line that starts at the Louvre, runs along the Champs-Élysées through the Arc de Triomphe and ends here at the Grande Arche. Traffic is hidden underground, leaving a broad pedestrian esplanade on top.

What to see

• The Grande Arche — a hollow cube 110 metres high.
• The arch rooftop — a viewpoint over the Historical Axis.
• The skyscrapers — Tour First and other glass towers.
• Sculptures — works by Calder, Miró and others in the open air.
• The CNIT — the district's first building, with a vast concrete vault.
• Quatre Temps — one of France's largest shopping centres.

The Grande Arche

La Défense's symbol is the Grande Arche, a giant hollow cube about 110 metres wide, high and deep. The Danish architect Johan Otto von Spreckelsen and engineer Erik Reitzel designed it after a competition launched by President François Mitterrand, as a modern Arc de Triomphe: a monument to humanity and humanitarian ideals.

It opened in July 1989, for the bicentenary of the French Revolution. It's turned 6.33 degrees off the axis because of the metro and road beneath it, echoing the angle of the Louvre at the other end. A tensile 'Cloud' canopy hangs in its void, and since 2017 its rooftop has had a viewpoint, a restaurant and photojournalism exhibitions, with the whole axis visible to the Louvre.

Skyscrapers and art

Towers of several generations rise above the esplanade. The tallest is Tour First, 231 metres high, among the tallest buildings in the region. Around it gleam bank and corporate towers, along with the 1958 CNIT with its huge triangular concrete vault, the district's first building.

La Défense is a true open-air museum of modern sculpture, with dozens of works on the esplanade, among them Alexander Calder's red Stabile, Joan Miró's bright figures and Takis's light signals by the water. Wandering between them is fun for adults and children alike.

Shopping, the arena and events

At the foot of the Grande Arche is the Quatre Temps shopping centre, opened in 1981, with about 220 shops, 48 restaurants and a 24-screen cinema, one of the most visited in France. Next to it is the Paris La Défense Arena, Europe's largest indoor arena, hosting concerts and rugby.

La Défense has seen spectacular events: on Bastille Day 1990 the composer Jean-Michel Jarre staged a concert here with projections on the Grande Arche and towers, drawing two million people. Festivals and concerts fill the esplanade in summer, and a Christmas market in winter.

Tips for your visit

Allow an hour and a half to two hours for La Défense and the Grande Arche rooftop. Start on the arch steps, where the whole axis to the Arc de Triomphe opens up, then walk the esplanade towards the river, taking in the sculptures and towers.

La Défense combines easily with the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées, all on one metro line. It shows what Paris looks like today rather than in the 19th century.

Have lunch at Quatre Temps or a café on the esplanade. At weekends some restaurants that serve office workers are closed.

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Nearby and on the way

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1 h 45 min · Timed ticket, book ahead · 41 min walk

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How to do it right

• Weekends are quieter.
• Arch rooftop for the axis.
• Towers at sunset.
• Metro 1, 15 minutes.

Questions