Paris is a city of landmarks: the River Seine, great towers and domes, plazas and avenues.

Finding your way around Paris is easier if you are familiar with at least some of these landmarks.

You'll see them from the many places in Paris from which you can enjoy panoramic views of the city: the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Sacré-Coeur and more. You'll also see some of these monuments as you look down avenues and streets, or across open spaces.

In terms of transportation from one place to another, and finding a place you want to go, Métro stations are the way. With nearly 400 stations, there is sure to be a Métro station near your destination.

In each station is a detailed plan du quartier (neighborhood map) showing not only streets, but also significant buildings, with their names. Study the plan du quartier before you leave the Métro station and you'll be on your way straight to your destination.

We'll always tell you the arrondissement, but we don't want you to have to learn a boring governmental system just to get around.

Note that many Paris streets change names as they make their way through the city. (For example, the avenue that is named rue de Rivoli on the west side of the Saint-Paul Métro station is named rue Saint-Antoine on the east side of the station—same street.) If you come to a street corner and don't see the street name you expect, look on the opposite corner.

Here are some landmarks and districts you should know:

—Right Bank: if you're cruising downstream in a boat on the River Seine, the right (north) bank of the river in the middle of the city is where you find the Louvre Museum, the Jardin des Tuileries, Avenue des Champs-Elysées, the Opéra Garnier, the classy boutiques along the rue du Faubourg St-Honoré, and, in general, the traditionally higher-status part of town.

—Left Bank: on the left (south) bank are Place St-Michel, the Église de St-Germain-des-Prés, the Panthéon, University of Paris (Sorbonne), the Latin Quarter, and much of the city's student lifestyle.

— Latin Quarter: the area around the University of Paris (Sorbonne) where Latin was spoken in medieval times.

—Place Saint-Michel: the center of Left Bank life, where boulevard Saint-Michel meets the Seine, and everyone meets in front of the fountain. Lots of inexpensive restaurants nearby!

—Île de la Cité: just north of Place Saint-Michel, the larger of the two islands in the Seine in the middle of Paris, it holds the Cathedrale de Notre-Dame, Sainte Chapelle and Conciergerie.

—Île Saint-Louis: smaller of the islands, a charming, quiet residential neighborhood with some good restaurants, cafés and shops.

—Île-de-France: not an island at all—the region around Paris.

—Place de la Concorde: grand square at the eastern end of the avenue des Champs-Élysées and western end of the Jardin des Tuileries.

—Place Charles de Gaulle-Étoile: broad plaza at the western end of the avenue des Champs-Élysées, with the Arc de Triomphe at its center.

—Place de la Bastille: broad plaza where the Bastille prison once stood, now with a monumental column at its center and the modern Paris Opera to one side.

—Le Marais: once a swamp, then (and still) the Jewish quarter, the district east of the Hôtel de Ville with narrow streets, little shops and cafés, lively nightlife, artists and the gay community.

—Montmartre: the hill topped by the iconic basilique du Sacré-Coeur, with artist-filled Place du Tertre and, at the bottom of the hill, the nightclub and sex-shop district around Place Pigalle.

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