It runs for 2 kilometers (1.25 miles) through the 8th arrondissement in north-western Paris, from the Place de la Concorde in the east,to the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, location of the Arc de Triomphe.



Its full name is "Avenue des Champs Elysees". The Champs Elysees is known in France as La plus belle avenue du monde ("The most beautiful avenue in the world"). With rents as high as $1.50 million a year for 1,000 square feet of space, it remains the 2nd most expensive strip of real estate in the world after New York City's Fifth Avenue.

The Champs Elysees was originally fields and market gardens, until 1616, when Marie de Medici decided to extend the garden axis of the Palais des Tuileries with an avenue of trees.

As late as 1716, Guillaume de L'Isle's map of Paris shows that a short stretch of roads and fields and market garden plots still separated the grand axe of the Tuileries gardens from the planted "Avenue des Thuilleries", which was punctuated by a circular basin where the Rond Point stands today; already it was planted with some avenues of trees radiating from it that led to the river through woods and fields.

By the late 1700s, the Champs Elysees had become a fashionable avenue; the bosquet plantings on either side had thickened enough to be given formal rectangular glades (cabinets de verdure). Queen Marie Antoinette drove with her friends and took music lessons at the Place Louis XV.

Because of the high rents, few people live on the Champs-Elysees the buildings tend to be occupied by offices. The splendid architecture of the grandiose "Champs Elysees" is admired by many people.

The Champs Elysees, because of its size and proximity to several Parisian landmarks such as the Arc de Triomphe, has made it the site of several famous (and infamous) military parades, the most famous of which were the march of German troops celebrating the Fall of France on June 14, 1940 and the subsequent entrance of Free French and American forces into the city after its liberation on August 25, 1944.

While walking among the gardens and tree-lined promenades one could even encounter an open-air marionette theatre for children, a French tradition popular through the ages.

Hand in hand with its prime location is its reputation as a premier shopping destination and the avenue is lined with cinemas, cafes and upscale speciality shops. Finally, the avenue is one of the most famous streets for shopping in the world. Benetton, the Disney Store, Nike, Zara, continental Europe's largest Gap and Virgin Megastore as well as Sephora occupy major spaces.

Traditionally home of luxury brands, the Champs Elysees confirms its world class appeal as a prime real estate location: it has lately seen the opening of new big upscale shops such as the biggest Louis Vuitton department store in the world, which even hosts an exhibition room, and Adidas opened as well in February 2007 its largest store in the world in a wonderful old, classy building. Nike has done the same on the south side of this famous avenue by opening its largest European concept store known as "Nike Paris".