Things To Do in Châlons-En-Champagne & Paris Vatry Airport Layover Ideas

It's Paris! So, if you have a layover, be sure to get out and see something of interest with any time you have on your layover.

Eiffel Tower

Sacré-Cœur

Sacré-Cœur (La Basilique du Sacré Coeur de Montmartre), is the wedding cake-white church rises visibly above the northern parts of Paris. The striking building, with its towers and white onion dome (83 m high), was built in the years between 1875 and 1914 on the birthplace of La Commune. The view over Paris from the dome and from the square before it (200 m above sea level) is unsurpassed, apart from that enjoyed at the Eiffel Tower (50 km on a clear day). For the athletic traveller there are stairs from several directions to the top of the hill; otherwise there is also a funicular which runs every few minutes during the daytime from Place St. Pierre. Follow the signs that say "Funiculaire De Montmartre". Beware that the guards don't like it if they catch you taking pictures inside and will even yell "No photo!" and chase you down if they see you with a camera. Also, beware of this scam: along the lower steps leading up to church, groups of mostly young men gather and reach toward you with a small string, offering to loop it round your finger. Attempts to brush them off will often be met by claims of "No, this is for the church." They will then demand money for the bracelet they make for you, offering it "at a discount".

 

Père-Lachaise Cemetery

Probably the most visited graveyard in any Western city, the vast Père-Lachaise features literally thousands of often elaborately-decorated graves separated by narrow lanes and avenues. The roll-call of famous burials includes: Chopin, Champollion, Sarah Bernhardt, Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde, Delacroix, Bizet, Proust, Balzac, Colette, Molière and Jim Morrison of The Doors. Free.

Musée d'Orsay

The Musée d'Orsay is housed in a former Beaux-Arts railway station (completed in 1900 for the Exposition Universelle, later saved from demolition and converted to its present use). This rambling, open-plan museum is home to the works of the great artists of the 19th century (1848-1914) - Impressionists, post-Impressionists, and the rest - that were formerly displayed in the Louvre. This is perhaps the most spectacular collection of European impressionism in the world-- breath-taking rooms full of Manet, Renoir, Monet, Van Gogh, and many others. Impressionist represent the biggest draw, but there is much more to explore.

Shopping

As always, make sure you leave plenty of time to get back to XCR Paris Vatry International Airport in time for your connecting flight. Enjoy your transit city rather than whiling away the time leaning up against your luggage in the departures lounge.