44-hectare hilltop cemetery in the 20th arrondissement, opened in 1804 as Paris's first garden cemetery. Now the resting place of Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Édith Piaf, Jim Morrison, Balzac, and 300,000 others. Part necropolis, part sculpture park, part peaceful woodland walk.
Location
Belleville, Paris
Map
Insider Intel
Pick up a map at the entrance and wander the cobblestone paths without an agenda. The tombs are architectural monuments — Gothic chapels, Art Nouveau sculptures, overgrown family vaults. Oscar Wilde's tomb (lipstick kisses behind glass), Chopin's monument, and Jim Morrison's grave (perpetually surrounded by tourists) are the big draws, but the anonymous 19th-century sepulchres are more interesting.
Weekday morning for solitude. Autumn when fallen leaves cover the paths. Open daily 8am-6pm (5:30pm winter). Avoid rainy days when paths become muddy.
Opened in 1804 on the grounds of a Jesuit retreat. Initially unpopular because it was far from central Paris; authorities moved famous remains here (Molière, La Fontaine) to attract burials. Now Paris's most visited cemetery. The Communards' Wall (Mur des Fédérés) marks the site where 147 communards were executed in 1871 — a pilgrimage site for the French left. Père Lachaise is vast and genuinely peaceful despite the famous graves. Bring a map or download one in advance; the layout is labyrinthine.