When family and friends want to explore Paris, Courtney Traub takes them to the Champs-Élysées district and feels like a tourist again in the city she calls home. With the iconic Napoleon-commissioned Arc de Triomphe at the west end, the tree-lined shopping district is popular with film directors who want to indicate the action has moved to Paris.

“The avenue itself is over 200 feet wide, so you feel kind of dwarfed walking down it, and the perspectives are magnificent. At the same time, all the pomp tends to make people feel glamorous,” said Traub, editor of the About.com Paris Travel website and travel guide. “I always think of a sunglass-wearing Jean Seberg clutching an International Herald Tribune in the 1960s French film Breathless. It’s a very cinematic place.”

That popularity, however, does have its downside. “Smaller shops simply can’t afford the rent anymore, so it’s been occupied by major, global retail chains,” Traub said. Alongside major luxury boutiques, shoppers can peruse the racks of Zara, H&M, Sephora and Nike. While some might find this dilutes some of the district’s charm, it does add a dose of diversity to shoppers’ options.

For a classic Champs-Élysées experience, hire a personal assistant to carry your bags and stick to high-end shops. With options including Cartier, Hermes, Louis Vuitton and Chanel, that won’t be difficult.

“In an ideal world in which I had an unlimited budget, I’d gladly raid the concept store, LE66 Champs-Élysées,” Traub said. “They present everything so beautifully and have amazing collections — clothes, but also lovely home items and objets d’art.”

LE66, 66 Ave. des Champs-Élysées, offers footwear, accessories and ready-to-wear departments boasting elite French and international designers. The concept store infuses high-end fashion with cutting-edge music and art. Featured designers, such as Acne, Helmut Lang and Givenchy, are carefully selected.

Cafés and bakeries abound along the avenue, waiting to offer visitors a more literal taste of Paris.

Traub’s favorite spot is Ladurée, 75 Ave. des Champs-Élysées. Every morning, the bakery and tearoom’s pastry chefs create crispy, round cakes with soft ganache filling. Every year, Ladurée creates a new flavor — a perfect excuse to return to the Champs and this bright, romantic tearoom. Les macarons aren’t Ladurée’s only temptation, of course. The other pastries, chocolates and sweets are also works of art.

With a colorful bouquet of shopping bags in tow, head off the boulevard to the Four Seasons Hotel Georges V, 31 Ave. George V, to find sanctuary in La Galerie. Sip Champagne amid Flemish tapestries and 19th-century furnishings; a pianist plays every day starting at 3 p.m. providing background music perfect for watching the stream of walking objets d’art — fellow, often haute couture-clad, patrons. In summer, La Galerie serves lunch, cocktails and dinner in the courtyard from 12:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Another slightly-off-the-beaten-path favorite: lunch at Michelin three-star Pierre Gagnaire, 6 Rue Balzac. “Otherwise, I’d avoid the main avenue, as it’s mostly chain restaurants that aren’t very good,” she said. “Explore the side streets.”

About.com Paris Travel
Champs-Élysées Paris
Four Seasons Hotel Georges V
Ladurée
LE66 Champs-Élysées
Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau