Paris is one of my favorite cities in the world. I’m not sure about your traveling habits, but when I go to a new city I have to see EVERYTHING, because who knows when I’ll be here again!? My husband, on the other hand, wants to take things more slowly and really get a feel for the city. Our traveling styles are the exact opposite from each other which has added a few extra bumps to our travels in the past. We’ve been to Paris a few times now and I’m grateful that I’ve always been given free reigns to explore how I want. Until our most recent trip in October I’ve explored the city with a plan in hand, scoping out the best routes to all the places I just had to see. On this trip I was able to be more laid back, and instead of just hitting the most popular places I got to see some of the less well known attractions the city had to offer. If you’re looking for a different view of Paris, I hope you’ll consider exploring these hidden gems.
I’ve seen this area listed on several “must see” lists, but I ignored it… I was more interested in visiting specific things like the Eiffel Tower and the Sacré-Cœur Basilica. Now that I’ve been, I’m sorry I waited so long to explore it. I’m adding it here because I’ve talked to a lot of other travelers who’ve had the same experience. Even thought the area is well known, I overlooked it for even more well know sites, and I bet some of you have done the same. The name comes from the Latin language, as the area has been associated with higher learning all the way back to the Middle Ages when Latin was the language of learning. It’s located in the 5th arrondissement and it’s know for it’s food, books stores, and trendy vibes.
You’re going to run into a ton of restaurants while exploring, and the owners/servers often position themselves at the restaurant entrance and try to get you to come in an eat. The menus are almost always in the window so you can see what that specific restaurant is offering. We ate at a greek restaurant, and then we asked the server for the best creperie around. He directed us to Chez Suzette, which really was amazing. If you do nothing else in this area, I recommend you make at least one stop at a creperie.
UNLIMITED STEAK AND FRIES. Do you really need any more information to entice you to visit?
This is actually a chain of restaurants which all serve absolutely delicious unlimited steak and fries. The steak is covered with a green sauce and the servers just come around to your table with steak “refills” on a platter and fill your plate up when it gets empty; They ask for your steak preference once and remember it for your whole meal! Fries are refilled the same way, and let me tell you that a platter full of fries headed to my plate is my definition of heaven.
It’s definitely not what I think of when I think of a French restaurant, but it’s been around for along time and it’s as popular as ever. You do need to get there early to avoid a long wait, and don’t be surprised if they have to move a table or two around so you can squeeze into your seat – the location we went to was pretty large, but there were just so many people that it made for very close quarters.
The food here is good but not the best I’ve had in Paris. What you really come for is the entertainment.
On the main floor you can have dinner and enjoy some very good live music. If you want more of a show, you should seek out the basement level medieval vault. They have a full bar and you can order food down there as well, but the entertainment is a full blown cabaret, and the performers are AMAZING.
The restaurant has been in business for decades and the list of people who have performed here is extensive and includes people like Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, John Coltran, Bill Coleman, and Dizzy Gillespie. Be aware that the music is loud, the crowd is lively, and the space is small. Shows start at 9pm, and I recommend you get there earlier rather than later to be sure you have a seat. Food takes a while to make it to you, but the drinks don’t (and there’s a bar right outside the vault if they aren’t coming fast enough). Entry into the cabaret is 20€ on weekdays and 25€ on weekends, and the shows go “until dawn”.
Paris is an ancient city and there are a lot of ruins to explore if that’s your thing. You can take a tour to highlight these places and if you’re going to something like the catacombs, a tour is the only way to do it. There’s a Roman amphitheater in the middle of Pairs and you don’t need any type of tour to see it. In fact, it’s been made into a public park, so entry is free.
The entryway is a little hidden, but it’s a fun find when you do notice it. About a third of the amphitheater is intact and there are even benches in the middle of it to relax. The domed rooms under the stairs were holding rooms for animals, which I thought was very cool. I also liked that you could see modern apartments towering over the ruins, just because the juxtaposition between old and new fascinates me.
The Coulée verte René-Dumont (or Promenade Plantée)
The Coulée verte René-Dumont (also called the Promenade Plantée) is a section of old railways that was turned into a long walking park. Much of the park is raised, so you get some very good views of the city. The start of the walking park is in the 12th arrondissement and it goes from the Bastille/Viaduc des Arts to the Jardin de Reuilly.
We had a hard time finding the entrance because it’s not very well signed. The beginning of the trail is built on the Viaduc des Arts very close to the Bastille. You’ll need to go up some stairs to get to the raised entrance, and it seems like there are several different staircases you can take along the Avenue Daumesnil. We got lost so we stopped for some coffee and directions at one of the cafes in the Viaduc des Arts. You can do shopping for artisan created good in this area as well.
We walked the almost 3 mile trail from beginning to end and I was blown away by how separated it felt from the bustling city. Huge stretched of it were completely surrounded by trees and the raised portions were beautifully designed and covered in vegetation. We went in October so there weren’t many flowers out, but it seems like it would be stunning during the spring. This blog post has some great pictures of the walking garden and the views you’ll be able to see. Here’s a map of the trail itself (the light green is the elevated portion and the dark green is lower than the surrounding streets), and this website does a great job of further explaining the Viaduc des Arts and The Coulée verte.
Paris has so many stunning museums and gardens and you’re really not going to go wrong visiting any of them. The Jardin des plantes is the main botanical garden in France, and it houses 4 galleries of the French National Museum of Natural History along with a small zoo. It does cost a small amount to go inside any of the Natural History galleries, but it’s very cool if you’re into nature or history.
The park itself is very large and there is no cost for admission. If you like art deco, don’t miss the Winter Greenhouse – of course, it’s a cool space even if you’re not into architecture! We loved the flowers and the greenery of the outside gardens, but my favorite part was stumbling onto little structures like this garden shed, which might be the most adorable shed I have ever seen:
I’m not sure how many years you’d need to spend in Paris to see everything there is to see, but I do know you won’t regret spending time seeing any of these hidden gems. Happy traveling!