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Paris, France + Add a trip
It's Friday 2:00am in Paris
Tips for Paris
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Matt suggestsCentre Pompidou has free wifi
Added December 12th 2007Rambuteau metro
There are lots of nice places to sit and work around the Pompidou - the cafe, the big leather chairs, or even crosslegged on the floor in the corridors if you need to borrow a power socket (there are a few scattered around, and nobody seems to mind you using them).
There's free wifi throughout the building. You need to fill in an online form, and it's limited to 90 minutes, but very useful.
www.centrepompidou.fr -
Bill suggestsTea in Paris
Added December 4th 2007multiple locations
Mariage Frères is one of the best tea importers and blenders in the world, and operates several very nice tea-rooms in Paris, with French-style tea service, beyond their principal business of selling tea.
www.mariagefreres.com -
Boris suggestsTipping norms
Added December 10th 2007bistro, café, restaurants, bars
In France, a service charge of 15% is usually included and indicated as "service." A little extra is however welcome for good service.
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marco suggestsMarché Les Enfants Rouge
Added February 9th 2008rue de Bretagne
Check out this little market. It has nice food, but especially a bar that serves delicious vine for cheap prizes. Only during the week end.
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Siobhan suggestsLadurée
Added December 27th 200721 rue Bonaparte - 75006 Paris
There are a few Ladureé tea rooms - one on the Rue Royale and one on the Champs Elysées. But there is one on the Rue Bonaparte in the 6th arrondissement which is just gorgeous and there is more room inside for customers.
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David suggestsTipping norms
Added January 29th 2008bistro cafe restaurants bars
re Boris's comment about tipping norms.
Everywhere in France, the cost of service is included in the bill, by law.
A small additional tip may be appreciated but is not expected.
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Claire suggestsBike for fun
Added June 5th 2008Evening/night
Bonjour!
www.velib.paris.fr
I have been living in Paris for about 8 months now, and I really got to "feel" this amazing city ... the day I jumped on a Vélib :)
What I recommend you: evening/night rides, anywhere - just forget about taking a cab to go back home - and go gO GO !! -
Vanessa Carolina suggestsCool off during the summer
Added December 27th 2007Ligne 8 - Station Balard
Parc Andre Citroen - a beautiful park with cold water jets that refresh your youthful spirit and wash off your bad mood due to the heat! It wasn't particularly hot when I went, but the experience was excellent! Just take your bag with snacks, beer/wine and music to have a great time. Best of all, you can give your pocket a rest, because it's free. If you want to ride the hot air balloon, though, it's about 10 euros.
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Alexander suggestsA beautiful international bookshop
Added February 25th 200837 Rue de la Bucherie, on the Left Bank opposite Notre-Dame
Shakespeare and Company first opened its doors in 1951. For over fifty years, the bookshop has housed numerous writers and hosted readings by published and unpublished authors. Upon entering, you will find yourself in a place Henry Miller described "A wonderland of books".
www.shakespeareco.org
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Getting There
Automobiles
Parking can be a challenge, and expensive, but if you want to rent a car your best bet is a hire car is from Hertz go to www.hertz.co.uk as Smithcard members get a ten per cent discount; simply quote '635230' when you reserve the car.
Planes
A taxi from Charles de Gaulle airport to the centre costs about €50; buses run regularly into town at a fraction of the cost. RER/TGV trains run from CDG to Gare du Nord every 15 mins from 5h30-23h30 and take 35 mins.
Trains
There are six main stations in Paris, all of which are central and link to the underground system. See www.sncf.com/indexe.htm.
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Local Knowledge
Dialing
France: 33. Paris: 1.
Reads
Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire; A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens; A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway; Paris: Capital of the World by P L R Higonnet; Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell; Perfume by Patrick Süskind. Three to Kill by Jean-Patrick Manchette; The Shoe Queen by Anna Davis.
Do go / Don't Go
Paris grinds to a halt in August, the national holiday. We love springtime, when the blossom is out.
Cuisine
Still-walking steak; croque monsieur; chèvre salad.
Taxis
Can be hailed in the street if you're more than 100 metres from a rank (these are all over Paris and have phones if no taxi is waiting). From about €8 you can get a multi-trip ticket (Paris Visite) for Métro, buses and trams.
Tipping
In bars, leave small change amounting to about ten per cent. Restaurants usually state service compris; but it is polite to leave change.
Currency
Euro.
Packing
Sunglasses, silk scarf, cigarette-holder. Map - the taxi drivers can be uncertain sometimes.
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Worth Doing
Arts
The Louvre (www.louvre.fr) houses some of the world's most famous art (open late on Mondays and Wednesdays; closed Tuesdays and some holidays). The Musée National d'Art Moderne is on level four of the Pompidou Centre (www.centrepompidou.fr). Musée National Picasso Paris is in an old house in the Marais, and is full of the artworks Pablo couldn't bear to part with; the venue is as alluring as the art itself (www.musee-picasso.fr), also the case for Musée d'Orsay, a converted train station (www.musee-orsay.fr).
And...
Crazy Horse on Avenue George V (www.lecrazyhorseparis.com) is a cabaret performance in a small theatre where drinks are brought to your seat, meaning you never have to tear your eyes from the semi-naked burlesque dancing girls. Bonheur at the legendary Lido Theatre on Avenue des Champs-Elysées (www.lido.fr) is another kitsch cabaret show that can be lots of fun.
Shopping
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré is one of the city's famous long streets full of designer boutiques; our favourite is Colette, a celebrated lifestyle shop with fashion, books and a café. There are lots of shops, cafés and restaurants in the Marais and Latin Quarter. Porte de Clignancourt market is a fleamarket for clothes and antiques, open Monday-Saturday until 19h. Or arrange to have a selection of Parisian vintage pieces brought to you by Ooh La La! (ring +33 684 765 865 ahead of your trip for details).
Viewpoint
Crowded but irresistible, the Eiffel Tower is open 09h30-23h; from mid-June to end August, 09h-midnight. If that doesn't take your fancy, how about the 200-year-old Arc de Triomphe, one of France's most iconic monuments and the epicentre of city-planner Baron Haussmann's star of boulevards; it's worth clambering up its many internal stairs to peer down the Champs Elysées and enjoy pleasingly photogenic panoramic views of the city. Open daily, 10h-22.30h (23h in summer), excluding 1 January, 1 May and 25 December. Tickets cost €8 and must be bought 30 minutes before closing.
Something
Visitors can now make an excursion to the beach without leaving the city, thanks to the palm-tree-lined white sand of Paris Plage, a summertime addition to the right bank of the Seine (near the Pont Neuf and Hotel de Ville).
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Diary
21 June La Fête de la Musique - the start of summer sees streets lined with stages for live bands. May-June French Open tennis championship (www.fft.fr/rolandgarros/en). June-July Paris Jazz Festival - free concerts in the Parc Floral at weekends. 14 July Bastille Day. August- September Open-air classical music festival, in the Parc Floral every weekend.
