Paris · a walk guide
The Eiffel Tower to Trocadéro walk, done properly.
A self-guided walk from the École Militaire to the Trocadéro, Paris
Most people do this in reverse and in a hurry: Metro Trocadéro, the photo, down the steps, across the bridge, queue for the Tower. Walk it the other way, from the École Militaire, and it becomes one straight line through 270 years, with the Tower growing in front of you the whole time. Six sights, two and a half kilometres, about two hours if you read the plinths.
The route, in order
- École Militaire and Place Joffre Start at Metro École Militaire. Louis XV's school for poor noblemen, Napoleon's alma mater, and Marshal Joffre on horseback. Turn round for the full length of the Champ de Mars with the Tower at the end.
- Monument des Droits de l'Homme Walk up the eastern side of the Champ de Mars. The 1989 pavilion shaped like an Egyptian tomb is the thing everyone walks past. Don't.
- The Champ de Mars lawns Not a stop, but the classic head-on view. Picnic here if the weather is on your side; the bakery and ice cream are a block east on avenue de la Bourdonnais.
- Pont d'Iéna Pass under the Tower (no ticket needed to walk beneath it) to the bridge. Four stone riders, five arches, one Prussian who wanted it blown up. Our free puzzle stop is here: fifteen minutes, no sign-up.
- Fontaine de Varsovie Cross the river and climb the Trocadéro gardens past the long water mirror and its water cannons, all built for the 1937 fair.
- Chaillot esplanade The photograph. Two curved wings and the whole Tower in one frame, by design. The museums inside are the rainy-day plan.
- Place du Trocadéro and Marshal Foch Finish beside Foch, who is looking straight back down the line at Joffre. Metro Trocadéro is on the square, and so are the cafés.
When to walk it
- Morning, before ten, for the thinnest crowds on the Champ de Mars and the best light on the Tower from the Trocadéro side.
- Late afternoon works too, and ends at the Trocadéro for the hour-on-the-hour sparkle after dark.
- Every sight is outdoors and free; nothing closes, nothing needs a ticket. The Tower itself is optional and needs a timed ticket if you go up.
- Flat except for the Trocadéro steps; pushchairs can use the garden ramps.
Where to eat
- Maison Bergeron 1900 bakery facing the Fontaine de Mars, at the start · closed Sundays
- Moustache Artisan Glacier Breton ice cream a block off the Champ de Mars
- Carette Trocadéro Tea room on the square at the finish: macarons, thick hot chocolate
- Café du Trocadéro Terrace on the square with a straight view of the Tower
- Café de l'Homme Inside the Palais de Chaillot, terrace facing the Tower; book for dinner
All of these and more on the Paris trail map.
Make the walk a game
This route is the spine of our Paris puzzle walks. Seine Clearly turns the six sights into six calibration tests for an AI that has read everything and seen nothing; Paris, Probably is the same walk for two, as a guidebook you correct together. Both are opening soon. The Pont d'Iéna stop is free today.