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Catacombs Paris

If you start to get a little bored with sipping French wine and wandering around art museums during your time in Paris, why not check out a tourist destination that is a little more... unusual? Sure, Paris boasts the gravesites of many great French men and women (in Pere Lachaise Cemetery, the Pantheon, and Napoleon's Tomb), but the Paris Catacombs are a distinct departure from these grandiose burials.

In late 18th century Paris, rapidly filling cemeteries became a source of filth and disease. The City Council was pressured to remove the bodies to a more remote location. Their solution? Put them underground! Today the catacombs hold the remains of about six million people, their bones lining the walls of the twisting corridors, arranged in beautifully macabre patterns. The catacombs have long fascinated visitors to Paris and have been regularly open to the public since the mid-19th century. During World War Two, the tunnels were even used by the French Resistance.

Tours of the Catacombs leave several times daily, although the number of visitors on any one tour is limited. The Catacombs are also occasionally closed due to flooding and other safety issues.