Paris (France) is divided into twenty arrondissements municipaux, administrative districts, more simply referred to as arrondissements. These are not to be confused with departmental arrondissements, which subdivide the larger French departments.
The number of the arrondissement is indicated by the last two digits in most Parisian postal codes (75001 up to 75020). In addition to their number, each arrondissement also has a name, often for a local monument. For example, the 5th arrondissement is also called “Panthéon” in reference to the eponymous building. The first four arrondissements have a shared administration, called Paris Centre.
The twenty arrondissements (French: “rounding”) are arranged in the form of a clockwise spiral (often likened to a snail shell), starting from the middle of the city, with the first on the Right Bank (north bank) of the Seine.
In French, notably on street signs, the number is often given in Roman numerals. For example, the Eiffel Tower belongs to the VIIe arrondissement while Gare de l’Est is in the Xe arrondissement.
Due to suburbanization, the population of Paris has gradually shifted outward, with only two arrondissements still growing.
TOP 10 most touristy arrondissements
1st arrondissement (Louvre, Palais Royal, Île de la Cité, Tuileries Garden, etc.)
4th arrondissement (Centre Georges Pompidou, Hôtel de Ville, Île Saint-Louis, Notre-Dame, etc.)
5th arrondissement (Musée National d’Histoire Naturelle, Musée de Cluny, Panthéon, etc.)
6th arrondissement (Jardin du Luxembourg, Odéon-Théâtre, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, etc.)
7th arrondissement (Hôtel des Invalides, Musée d’Orsay, Palais Bourbon, etc.)
8th arrondissement (Arc de Triomphe, Grand Palais, Avenue des Champs-Élysées, etc)
12th arrondissement (Lyon railway station, Bastille Opera House, Fortress of Bercy, etc)
16th arrondissement (Boulogne wood, Louis Vuitton Foundation, Palais de Chaillot, etc.)
18th arrondissement (Montmartre, Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Moulin Rouge, etc.)
19th arrondissement (City of science, Philharmonie, Parc de la Villette, etc.)
Others
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