The avenues alongside Champ de Mars and the pretty streets that cross them are the stuff of dreams! Far from the old vegetable gardens which occupied the Grenelle plains under the Ancien Régime, this magnificent garden extending nearly twenty-five hectares has a charm unlike any other and has been an attraction for Parisians and tourists for more than two centuries.
This is where many of the festivals and celebrations took place during the French Revolution and the Empire period. Until the 1930s the universal exhibitions that succeeded one another in Paris were held here with all their buildings and events (the Eiffel Tower of course being the most imposing witness). And just as the Champ de Mars is the ideal space for great popular concerts, the famous 14 July fireworks display is also held here.
Despite all this jubilation, the streets and buildings surrounding the Champ de Mars are oases of calm and elegance, sometimes with garden-level floors opening directly on to the park. Paul Morand and Sacha Guitry lived in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. François Mitterrand spent his last days here. And the immortal Edmond Rostand, father of Cyrano, also decided to settle near Champ de Mars.
At the foot of the "iron lady" – it’s not possible to feel more Parisian!
Local life:
Just like the Luxembourg gardens, there are a thousand things to do when you live near the Champ de Mars. The children have a real paradise of greenery, with its squares, games, kiosks, sand pits and of course its Punch and Judy show. Adults have a wonderful place for a run at any time of the day or night (Champ de Mars is not walled in). And then there is the immediate proximity of the shops and (numerous) restaurants on rue Cler and Motte Piquet. Drinking coffee at Le Suffren, eating at Père Claude or more the refined dishes at La Gauloise are among the joys offered by this elegant quarter.
Don’t miss:
Get up very early in the morning before the sun to go and sit in the most secret heart of the Champ de Mars, on a bench. There, with half-closed eyes, watch the sun rise on Paris. A simple, uncomplicated spectacle, but one that makes the heart of the city beat in unison with yours.
