Tag: eiffel-tower

Recently, a few people have reached out to ask for my recommendations when they are coming to visit Paris. With 2.5 years under my belt of living here, I definitely have some favorite things to see and do. 

In honor of turning 25 yesterday, here are my top 25 recommended things to do during your visit to Paris: 

During All Seasons –

• Atelier des Lumières: This is one of my favorite ‘museums’ in Paris. They have various artists in different seasons that will be displayed in this big room on the walls, floors and ceilings. It’s encaptivating, with music playing around you and the art filling the space and moving across the room. You can easily sit there for an hour or two, mesmerized by the work or even people-watching. 
• Le Louvre at night: I recently went to the Louvre on a Friday evening (18h30) and it was so much fun. The Louvre is much quieter at night and there were even moments where I was alone in different rooms! It was so cool and made exploring this endless museum all the more exciting. 
• Speakeasies: Paris has so many hidden bars and speakeasies. While I certainly have not been to them all, two of my favorites are Lavomatic and Candelaria.
• Galeries Lafayette rooftop: This is an expensive department store in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. While shopping here is not on my list of affordable activities, going on the rooftop is free and certainly worth the visit! 
• Brocantes: Paris has so many brocantes, or flea markets, all over the city. Even when not buying or searching for something specific, just browsing through the markets can be such a fun way to spend a few hours while here. The application vide-greniers has a list of upcoming markets or a simple Google search would provide options, too.
• Thrift shopping: Especially for younger people, thrift shopping is a great way to find new, affordable clothing items. Le Marais district in Paris has several thrift stores, and sometimes you’ll even find designer pieces!
• Luxembourg Gardens / Rue Mouffetard: In the 5th arrondissement you can explore the Luxembourg Gardens (jardin du luxembourg) and even picnic in nice weather. About a 10-minute walk away is one of my favorite streets in Paris, rue Mouffetard, a cute street on a hill filled with places to eat crêpes. 
• Performances: I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention all of the opportunities there are to see live performances in Paris. The art scene is so vibrant in Paris between the more well-known performances like the Opera to all of the small theatres and venues you can attend for the performing arts. A definite must-do!
• Sacre Coeur: This basilica sits on top of the Montmartre hill in Paris in the 18th arrondissement. Climbing up to the top of the hill, not only does Sacre Coeur offer one of the best panoramic views of Paris, but it’s another beautiful church to see on the inside. For 7 euros, you can also climb around 300 steps inside Sacre Coeur to see the view from the very top! 
• Bateaux Mouches: While in Paris, I would absolutely recommend taking a boat tour of the city, especially at night. This is certainly one of the most touristy things to do in Paris, but worth it to have a different perspective and views from the water. 
• Eiffel Tower twinkling: The tower twinkles each night starting when it gets dark – every hour on the hour until five past (ex. 21h00 to 21h05)! I believe it stops around midnight. I’ll never get sick of this!
• Cabaret in Pigalle: The Pigalle area in the 18th arrondissement of Paris is known for cabarets, particularly the Moulin Rouge. It certainly is a pricey activity, but it’s a show people come to see from across the globe and would definitely make for a fun night out. 
• Notre Dame: I am so excited to do this. Notre Dame caught fire in 2019 and has just reopened this past week to the public. Tickets are hard to come by, but I’m hoping in the early new year I’ll be able to go!

Seasonal activities-

Summer:

• Picnic on champ de mars (behind the Eiffel Tower)
• Wine on les quais de la Seine (the platforms along the Seine river)
• Musée Rodin – a beautiful museum with a park outside
• Parc Monceau – one of the most beautiful parks in Paris!
• Parc des Buttes Chaumont – another huge park to visit or picnic at
• People watching on a terrace along Canal Saint-Martin – join the Parisian locals along Canal Saint-Martin in spring and summer
• Versailles – I’d recommend visiting the Palace of Versailles in the spring or summer because in addition the palace itself, the gardens are so beautiful!
• Paris Longchamp – Each spring, the Paris Hippodrome has horse races, on the course called Paris Longchamp. People go to place bets on the horses, and you can find 15 euro tickets to go and watch.

Winter:

• Galeries Lafayette glasswalk – Every winter holiday season, the Galeries Lafayette puts up a giant Christmas tree, with a glasswalk out to the tree on an upper level. If you sign up a few days in advance or wait in line on the day of, you can see the tree up close (as long as your not scared of heights!)
• Refuge des Fondus or make your own – When in France you have to try cheese, and in the winter having fondu is one of my favorite activities to do with friends. My favorite restaurant for this is Le Refuge des Fondus, a place in the 18th arrondissement. Otherwise, when my mom came to visit we made fondu from home which was also not too hard and very fun.
• Lumières en Seine – Just outside of Paris in Saint-Cloud, there is a Christmas light walk that really gets you in the holiday spirit. A great place for photos, I really have enjoyed doing this in the past.
• Tuileries Fête Foraine – In the Tuileries garden (jardin des tuileries) there is a festival that happens from November to January each year, filled with rides, food and shopping vendors. While some people avoid this festival due to the crowds, if you find the right times to go it can be a great activity. It’s a great place to try French classic winter foods (raclette, tartiflette, croziflette, aligot, etc.) and of course, the hot wine (vin chaud).

Those are my top 25 – If you’re coming to Paris, let me know if you do any of these recommendations!

Until next week 🙂