In a nutshell: The capital. Chic, classy, awash with world-class sites. Unmissable.

Don't miss: The Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Marais, the Basilica of Saint-Denis

Key matches: The Final, Semi-final and opening ceremony

When it comes to travel, it is generally better to do more. To go further. And yet, when the place you are travelling to is Paris, it is easy to stop and say “This will do”. France is a vast and fascinating country, full of exciting cities, glorious scenery, splendid culture and fine food. But its capital is a little of all of this, in one stylish bundle. This is not to say you should not see as much of France as possible. But if your only experience of it – whether during Rugby World Cup 2023, or in wider life – is the bright lights and busy streets of its most important city, you won't be disappointed. Paris is France, and France is Paris.

The only question mark about it is the one at the end of the next sentence. Where to start?

Almost certainly, with the obvious. There can be tendency to talk of exploring a city beyond the clichés. But clichés become clichés for a reason – popularity. And Paris will always argue (with full justification) that its clichés are better than anywhere else's. True, you have seen them in a thousand images – the gleaming shopping strip of the Champs Élysées, the leafy paths of the Jardin des Tuileries, the Gothic majesty of Notre-Dame (currently under repair after the fire which enveloped it in 2019, but no less incredible under scaffolding), the epic domes of the Sacré-Cœur basilica, on the top of Montmartre. But to head to Paris, and not see them, would be to miss much that makes the city special.