CHAMPS ELYSEES, First Part

Now continue along the pedestrian walkway. There are many theaters and cultural places among the various neoclassical buildings in this first stretch.

The first of these, a few steps ahead on your right, is the Théatre de la Ville, commissioned by the famous Baron Haussmann in the mid-1800s and standing on the site of the old “Café des Ambassadeurs”. The Espace Pierre Cardin also replaced the former “Café des Ambassadeurs”, which was given this name because it was a favourite place for meetings and discussions between foreign ambassadors who lived in the nearby Place de la Concorde. Beside the theater is the Pavillon Gabriel, the former “Alcazar d’été”, a well-known café and music venue, and next to it the Pavillon Ledoyen, occupied by the famous historic restaurant of the same name. The attractive facade of this building with its multicolored columns is best viewed from avenue Dutuit on your left.

At the next junction, again on your left, looking out on Avenue Winston Churchill and after the statue of Clemenceau, you will see the Petit Palais, which currently houses the Museo delle Belle Arti, and in front of it the Grand Palais, both built for the Esposizione Universale - the World's Fair - in 1900. The imperious Palais de l'Industrie once stood here, a colossal building that Napoleon III designated to accommodate not only previous world's fairs in 1855, 1878, and 1889, but also various events, including public ceremonies and equestrian events.

After the junction with Avenue Marigny and after you've passed the statue of General De Gaulle on your left, you can now see the new Théatre Marigny on the right, built towards the end of the 19th century by Charles Garnier, who also designed the Opera.

FUN FACT: the "Panorama National" once stood where there's now roundabout in the middle of the avenue; in the late 1800s it was turned into a pioneering Ice Palace that lasted almost 100 years. The Théatre du Rond-Point now stands in its place, the only theater in Paris that puts on productions exclusively by living playwrights, by order of the theater's new management!