Christmas in Paris
 

Hello group,
I will be in Paris 7Dec-15Dec, will there be alot to do at that time, and will the city be in full X-mas mode.

Owen

waz there last year at that time and was underwhelmed by the Christmasy decorations, etc. Best to me was at the large department stores by the Opera - Galeries Lafayette and Au Primtemps next door - elaborate window displays featuring moving fairy-tale characters like Cinderella, etc. Mobs of folks there - seems very popular. Otherwise a dud IMO.

anyone with a more positive answer?

What do you mean by a lot to do? You're a tourist, so all the monuments will be open. The church concerts and other local social events will go on. The Christmas markets will be open. Do what one would normally do when visiting Paris. And be thankful the crowds will be so much less.

Yes, what exactly are you looking for that you want in relation to Xmas mode? They have some street decorations, which are usually all up by first week in Dec., and you have some store windows. What else is there? I just don't understand what people are expecting for this religious holiday. There is nothing more than that in the large city where I live in the US. There will probably be some Christmas-related concerts in some of the churches (choral music) or even performing venues. There are usually a few Christmas markets around Paris, also, to sell stuff, if you want that kind of thing (eg, the area in front of the Pompidous, place Nation or Bastille or Bercy Village). They often have some special thing around Hotel de Ville, it seems. One year they had some digital image thing, and they have a skating rink there (not sure when it opens, but probably by then). There is a creche inside Notre Dame.

Our family was in Paris for Xmas 2004. We stayed in the 6th. They had lots of touristy booths up selling roasted chestunuts, churros (can you believe this is not Mexico!), aprons, sweaters, etc. for Xmas theme. There is a midnight service at Notre Dame, but you wont be there for the actual holiday. I believe we heard some singing groups in park. Take warm clothes, we froze in late December!

We have been in Paris around those dates a few times and found it delightful. Yes, there is plenty of Christmas activity but it is more understated than you may be used to if you are from the US. The department stores do decorate their windows and aisles, usually have a seasonal department with Christmas ornaments and the like (be forewarned that prices tend to be hgher than in the States, but you can find some really nice things). Other businesses often display some sort of decoration as well, and you may see some street decorations in places. One thing that you might want to check out is the Christmas markets where they sell a variety of things usually intended to be given as gifts. There are several around town and you will usually see posters on the Metro. One of our "finds" was boxes of nice chocolates wrapped for gift giving at Auchan (of all places!) that were priced very reasonably.