Plaisir Things to Do

Just 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Paris, Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a splendid escape for a sunny afternoon. The Chateaus and its gardens are a reminder of the magnificent times under King Francois I. The castle is now home to t... more

 Real Travelers who've been here

Rebec1303 said

… anything about Le Château de Versailles here is your one sentence history lesson again:  Louis XIV… continue reading »

The National Museum of Port-Royal des Champs offers a personal experience of a place that has helped to make France what it is today. The 30-hectare (74-acre) site that once held the abbey of Port-Royal des Champs, founded in 1... more

The collection and exhibits of the Musée Fournaise are devoted to the history of impressionism, as befits its location on the Île des Impressionnistes. It is housed on the upper level of the Maison Fournaise, originally a 19th-... more

Between 1928 and 1931, Le Corbusier built this stunning villa for the businessman Pierre Savoye just outside of Paris. Considered a masterpiece of the twentieth Century, the white walls and stark lines of the building combine t... more

This castle is one of the best examples of French Baroque architecture, and the most well-preserved building designed by famed architect of the 17th Century, François Mansart. The interiors reflect the elegant symmetry that was... more

The Church of Saint-Symphorien was built between 1764 and 1771 on land owned by Louis XV. Lofty windows let sunlight stream into the nave, lined with rows of Doric columns on either side. Paintings, low-relief carvings, statues... more

Saint Geneviève herself was born in Nanterre around the year 420, and grew up in the town. Legend tells of miracles she performed here, including curing her mother of blindness with well water (the well is also an important par... more

In the summer of 1743, the king of France placed the first stone of what would become the Cathédrale Saint-Louis, which holds guests under the warmly lit arches of the nave to this day. The elegant architecture is symmetrical a... more

This church, serving the towns of Noisy-le-Roi and Rennemoulin, lures visitors from much further afield with events like gospel concerts as incentive. Saint Lupin was the first bishop of Noisy-le-Roi during the Gallo-Roman period. more