Arc de Triomphe, Paris

From the top of Paris’s 1,64ft-high triumphal arch (reached by 284 stairs—there is an elevator for those with limited mobility or young children only, but even then there are still some unavoidable stairs), facing east gives you a straight-shot view down the Champs-Élysées to place de la Concorde, the city's largest square. Facing west it's another straight shot to the Arc de Triomphe's modish mirror image: the skyscraper district of La Défense's 1989-built Grande Arche (which does have a full elevator—and some pretty awesome views of its own). First-time visitors are frequently baffled as to how to actually get to the Arc de Triomphe, which was built in 1836 to honor Napoleon’s 1805 victory at Austerlitz, although it remains one of the top things to do in Paris. The Arc is now surrounded by the world's busiest roundabout, the Étoile. Do not, repeat, do not battle the traffic. Take the stairs to the pedestrian tunnels (not connected to metro tunnels), which deliver you safely at the base of the arch. 

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