dunia123

Returning to Paris in late May for a week for what is probably my 7th or 8th trip. My husband & I love the city, and start to get itchy if we've gone too long without a visit. In any case, I'd love some ideas for perhaps less well known places to visit or things to do. To give some context: we like walking & hiking, museums (art, history, etc.), good food & wine, cooking, history, etc. We're not big shoppers, but like to window shop a bit, usually in smaller stores. On previous visits, we've been to: Louvre (multiple times), Orsay (multiple times), Nissim de Camondo, Jacquemart-Andre (but only for lunch...), Sacre Couer, Rodin, Carnavalet, Picasso, Institut du Monde Arabe, Notre Dame, Ste. Chapelle, the Catacombs. We've wandered the streets and the various markets. We've also been to Chartres as well as Versailles.

We've lined up a wine tasting dinner already, as well as a quick trip to Strasbourg to visit a friend. I think my husband has requested visiting the sewers. Any thoughts for other opportunities I've overlooked? Thanks in advance!

tuscanlifeedit

In November we visited St. Denis, and it was remarkable. The tombs of the kings and queens of France, in an ancient building.
http://saint-denis.monuments-nationaux.fr/

Have you been to the Bastille food market?

St Ouen flea market?

Village St. Paul?

I would highly recommend the Musee Marmottan if you haven't been there, and Orangerie. There is usually a wonderful photography exhibit on at the Jeu de Paume.

We like to make the most of our return visits to Paris with visits to temporary exhibitions. This year we hit so many, including Pompeii House, and an Etruscan exhibit, as well as several temporary art and photo exhibits.

We have all been to the convention center in Paris for a big antique auto show; I now always check to see what's on at the convention center.

How about the parks?

And Reims? Great cathedral and champagne, if that is to your taste.

Hope this helps.

cw

On my list for next time is to walk the Promenade Plantee. I would recommend going back to the Jacquemart-Andre to visit the collection. I also enjoyed the Guimet museum, which is for Asian art, and it can be easily combined with the Branley.

The small exhibit area of the Bibliotheque Nationale--not the new one but the old one near the Palais Royal is free and their collection there, while not large is far-reaching and interesting. It's a quick stop.

Michel_Paris

St Denis
Catacombs
Marmottan
Covered Passages
Inside Eiffel tour
Paris Walks tour..perhaps chocolate
Reims
Promenade Plantee
Arene de Lutece
Cluny
Salsa dancers at outdoor sculpture museum
Pere Lachaise cemetary
Chapelle Expiatoire
Live auction on Drouot street
Luxemborg Gardens

Michel_Paris

Napoleon's tomb
Boules players in front of. Military museum
Pont des arts, with the padlocks
Tour of Opera Garnier..then coffee at Cafe de la Paix
Parc Monceau (balloon ride?)
Fat bike/segway tour
One of many farmer's markets

Michael

Parc André Citroën in the 15th is interesting with its modern greenhouses and designs for private space.

You might want to get the following book by the Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre: <u>Parc et Jardins de Paris...<i>à pied</i></u> which offers 23 walks through Paris.

AGM_Cape_Cod

Several other museums to consider:
Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie-we didn't get to go inside but the outside and the park around it is cool
Musée National des Arts et Métiers- this museum has some really interesting exhibits and the
Musée de la Musique- if you are interested in musical instruments you will love this museum. They have instruments that I have never seen or heard. The audio guide is a must.

FrenchMystiqueTours

La Mouzaïa:

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...2&page=1#89471

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...ad=3608&page=1

Parc des Buttes Chaumont is right next to La Mouzaïa. Walk from here up the pretty street rue de la Villette and at the end of the street cross a street or two to get to rue de la Mare and down this street and right on rue des Envierges to the roof of the Maison de l'Air head to get one of the best views of Paris. Continue down rue du Transvaal, rue des Couronnes and pick up the pretty street rue des Cascades. At the end take a left and look on your left for Cité de l'Hermitage, a slice of old time Paris up a little alley. Go around the corner and see the equally pretty Cité Leroy.

La Campagne à Paris:

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...ad=3627&page=1

From this neighborhood walk down rue de Bagnolet and take a left on the pretty 18th century street rue Saint-Blaise. Take a left on rue Vitruve and a quick left into one of the prettiest little hidden gardens in Paris. Walk in the opposite direction on rue Vitruve to rue Alexandre Dumas and on your right see one of the most amazing art deco churches in Paris, Eglise Saint-Jean Bosco.

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89g...Bosco_de_Paris

Take a left on rue Planchat and another left on rue des Vignoles, a really pretty street with a few great, hidden restaurants and a café/library/bar with cool artwork. There are a couple of old timey Paris alleys with gardens on your right and on your left is Eden Bio, an eco-friendly public housing development designed by a noted architect:

http://www.smarturb.org/index.php?#article:93

Use your eyes and ears and you'll see a few more interesting nooks and crannies to discover in this neighborhood. You'll see a lot of interesting eye candy on the walks I mentioned that I haven't discussed for the purpose of brevity.

tdk320n

BOOKMARK

Gina_07

bookmarking

gomiki

Michael_Paris, could you tell me more about the live auction?

Merci!

nytraveler

A couple of things:

Definitely visit the Musee Cluny - really fascinating
Have you visited the Invalides?
What about other day trips - Giverny?

Michel_Paris

I had just left Galeries Lafayette. My main hobby is french historical documents. One of my dealers was on rue Drouot. While headed there, I remembered that Drouot auction house is there. So I looked around and found where auctions are held and walked in. At that time, there was an on-going auction of antique violins..so I sat in for 15-30 minutes.

gwan

I'll second (third) Cluny - liking medieval stuff helps a lot, obviously, but even if you're not wildly enthusiastic, the lady and the unicorn tapestries are worth seeing. The baths were closed when I was there (a couple of years ago), so can't comment on them.

I'm surprised you haven't put the Pompidou down, since you seem to like art a lot. It's a fabulous collection. Personally I found les Invalides a bit boring, but each to their own. If you like military stuff, then I'm sure it's fine. I really enjoyed Jacquemart-Andre on my last visit, just the right size to enjoy without getting exhausted. I also visited the Petit Palace last time, which was nice enough, without being (imho) a must-see.

Has anyone been to the Musee Gustave Moreau, by the way? It featured briefly in the fabulous French TV series Engrenages/Spiral which I was watching the other day, and I vowed I should go see it next time I get the chance (well, I'm actually going to be in Paris this weekend, but I'm going to St Denis instead, so the time after). But I don't actually know anything about the artist or the museum other than that it looked lovely on TV (and I looked at the website, but of course that's only ever a pale imitation).

avalon

The Museum of the Resistance fighters < Jean Moulin and of MArshallLeclerc atop the Gare Montparnasse and the garden are of great interest.http://www.museums-of-paris.com/musee_en.php?code=308 And the garden is a nice place to rest your feet. There is a new museum in Meaux , a short train ride, The Musee de le Grand Guerre. It ust opened .We will be visiting it next month on our 30th or so trip to Paris so I'll post about it when we return.Do check out the Richard Lenoir market on Thus and Sundays at Pl de Le Bastille. IMO the best market in Paris. Also the flea market at Port de Vanves is always on our list . There is also a book and document market neqrby, also on week-ends

PatrickLondon

Musée Cognacq-Jay, round the corner from the Carnavalet (and it's free).

valtor

Maybe my trips report for visits in Paris and near Paris will give you some ideas:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...utumn-days.cfm

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...e-may-2007.cfm

CYESQ

Le Cordon Bleu offers half day cooking classes.

We are going in March and I've made reservations for a one-man comedy play called How to be a Parisian in One Hour. Everyone says it's a lot of fun.

tarquin

Musee des Arts Decoratifs (part of the Louvre but separate entrance and exhibitions)

Micheline

If you stand with your back to the Pantheon and look left you will see clusters of brides and grooms in front of a city hall.They are waiting to be called in for their civic wedding ceremony. I like taking pictures of the brides in their gorgeous outfits. Some are in wedding gowns and many are wearing beautiful designer suits.