This was our last cathedral on our list and we saved the best for last. Cathedral was beautiful but the history of the royal families buried there was fascinating.
What a fascinating place just drenched in history. Saint Denis is important for two reasons, it’s architecture is the birth of the Gothic style and it was the burying place of French royalty as far back as Dagobert and Pepin the Short! We're talking 5th century AD here!
During the French Revolution the graves were plundered for the lead in the coffins, but the funerary images were kept and bones were restored to their graves when the Bourbons were restored. The crypt is especially creepy as it contains many empty sarcophagi and dim lighting.
Be sure to pay the admission to the royal tombs and do get the audio guide which is excellent. It is very easy to take the metro to within a couple of blocks of the church.
I visited the cathedral which seemed so out of place in comparison to the local area.
I took time to walk in and around the building, and walk around the local market to see the locals and I found a little stall with boxes of macrons, for a good price!
You can also walk over to the St Denis cemetry which is one stop before the Cathedral on the Tramway 1 (if your into that kind of stuff).
My highlight was seeing the people in this neighbourhood, doing life. Stepping out of the tourist districts.
I really love to visit cathedral and look for architecture. This cathedral was one of the best I had visited until now. Cant' afford to miss.
If you’ve been to Westminster Abbey in London and seen the tombs of English royalty and other important personages, this is the French version. You can reach it via the Paris metro (north edge of the city). There is a modest admission fee, and for a few euros more, you can get an English audio guide. You can easily spend a couple of hours here on a tour of French history. Tombs range from the seventh century to Marie Antoinette and beyond. Highly recommend.
