Parc des Princes

Parc des Princes – tickets for the loudest ground in Paris

The Parc des Princes is a building you recognise before you read the name: 47,929 seats in a closed ring of pre-stressed concrete ribs, designed by Roger Taillibert and opened in 1972. No running track, no gap, one continuous upper tier — the design is over fifty years old and acoustically still beats anything built since.

Virage Auteuil and Virage Boulogne

The two curves have names, and anyone buying PSG tickets should know the difference. The Virage Auteuil holds the organised support — flags, capos, tifos; this is where the noise comes from. The Virage Boulogne opposite is the second curve, with its own and older history. The side stands are calmer and give you the better view of the football — the curves give you the experience.

A stadium in the city, not on its edge

Unlike most large European arenas, the Parc des Princes sits in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, at Porte de Saint-Cloud, right on the boundary with Boulogne-Billancourt. That changes the whole trip: no shuttle bus to an industrial estate, but a metro station at the door and a real neighbourhood around it.

Next door stands the Stade Jean-Bouin, home of the Stade Français rugby side, and a few minutes further on the Bois de Boulogne begins. Roland Garros is also within walking distance — if you are in Paris anyway, both fit into one weekend.

Before kick-off

Around Porte de Saint-Cloud you find genuine Paris brasseries rather than stadium catering. Two are close enough to walk: Les Deux Stades on Avenue du Parc des Princes, around 250 metres, and Aux Trois Obus at the metro station itself, around 550 metres, with a terrace onto the square.

One practical note: Paris eats late, but on a matchday the terraces around Porte de Saint-Cloud fill up well before kick-off. If you want a table, go early.

Getting there

Metro line 9 stops at Porte de Saint-Cloud, a few hundred metres from the ground; line 10 terminates at Porte d'Auteuil on the other side. From Châtelet in the centre allow around 25 minutes. Driving is not advisable — the Périphérique runs directly behind the stadium and there is virtually no parking.

From Charles de Gaulle airport allow a good hour, from Orly around 45 minutes.