Is there a specific dress requirement at Notre Dame in Paris?

The only requirement is that visitors use common sense, the same common sense which would be expected from them when visiting ANY place of worship.

I think the OP was asking if you had to cover shoulders & thighs like at the Vatican.

There isn't a dress code to my knowledge. That said, I haven't seen anyone in Notre Dame in halter tops but I have seen shorts.

"I think the OP was asking if you had to cover shoulders & thighs like at the Vatican".
I know. I was just questioning the OP common sense. What would he/she wear in his/her local church?


"There isn't a dress code to my knowledge".
I know, there is just common sense.


"That said, I haven't seen anyone in Notre Dame in halter tops but I have seen shorts".
Just because you have seen/not seen them doesn't mean they are appropriate. Notre Dame is a church before being a place visited by tourists. Real people live in Paris and worship there.

Notre Dame is the property of the French state (like 99% of the other religious edifices). Therefore, the dress code is not at all like in Italy. However, do not wear a bikini.

Notre Dame is the property of the French state (like 99% of the other religious edifices). Therefore, the dress code is not at all like in Italy. However, do not wear a bikini.

Totally irrelevant. The French state owns the building, the catholic church manages what happens within it i.e. does the day-to-day running.

Just because I ask a question does not mean I have no common sense. I am going on a 16-day trip to France with two pieces of carry-on luggage. This is my first question to Fodor's, and frankly I am disappointed at the responses regarding my common sense.

Not irrelevant at all, Pvoyageuse. Religion has been kept in check in France since 1905, and any rules in contradiction with the laws of the republic are null and void. Therefore, the French government sets the dress code in French churches in the end, not the purveyors of crypto spiritual mumbo jumbo.

Dear k_d_f, your question is both reasonable and appropriate, and I'm glad you asked.

While I do not believe that there is any "official" requirement, custom dictates that modesty be observed in churches, which I understand to mean that one doesn't wear highly revealing clothing (halter tops, short shorts) therein. I carried a pashmina scarf in Paris that I used as a cover-up when I wore tank tops in churches there, just as I would here in the United States. Happily, it took up almost no room in my luggage and purse. Bon journee!

"Common sense" in some cultures is to cover women from head to toes.
in some places of worship people take of their shoes and wash their feet.
There is no reason to
be rude if someone asks a perfectly legitimate question.

My Methodist church in San Antonio, Texas, does not care if I wear a sleeveless top to church. So it might be possible that I would not know that, in Italy, a church would refuse me entry for wearing the same top. So it isn't a stupid question, and is instead, a THOUGHTFUL question.

Welcome, k d f l. It wasn't a stupid question at all.

Fodor's can be a wonderfully helpful place. But you have to develop a thick skin. Or just learn to ignore the curmudgeons!

not a stupid question at all. i have the same question myself, as i plan to wear spaghetti strap sundresses in paris later this month. glad that someone asked!

When you are visiting Paris, dress to impress. You can get away with khakis and a cotton top. Dress it up with a scarf. Perhaps leave the tennis shoes at the hotel and don a comfortable more dressy pair of walking shoes.

Personally, I am appalled by the dress standards here in the US for those who go to church. Many times girls especially look like they are going to a luau or the mall. It's a house of worship that garners some respect and I feel that casual clothing is not appropriate.

You'll feel better about yourself if you dress up a bit.

There is another reason for dressing very conservatively at this and the other famous Paris churches. The area immediately outside is considered "Ground Zero" for panhandlers, pickpockets and the angelic looking gypsy children who can strip a Rolex in a split second. Be respectful, use common sense...and all will be well.

I think Dior would be very appropriate for Notre Dame, St. Laurent for St. Sulpice.

Savannah, I don't feel bad about myself at all.

I'm not implying that you feel bad about yourself. Wear whatever you want; I won't lose sleep over your apparel choices in Paris. It's just that you are going to an institution that is historically signifcant. Personally, I don't think a nylon tracksuit or Levis or tennis shoes are appropriate for any house of worship. Unless the tennis shoes are necessary for medical reasons. You're visiting a country and a city where people take great pride in their appearance and their style of dress. I think people should embrace that tradition when they visit.

I think it's a reasonable question. I once said to a poster here the 'Wear what you would wear at your local church' phrase, only to be told that at his church everyone wears shorts and t-shirts! So, what is right or wrong varies.

I got annoyed by my boyfriend tugging a shawl round my shoulders with no explanation when we went to a wedding in the UK, when I was wearing a dress with spaghetti straps. No-one would have cared in any of the CofE churches I'd been to before so I'd assumed it would be ok at any UK church. Afterwards he explained that at this particular church it was not 'seemly'.... I wish he'd told me before I'd bought the outfit!

I'm sure that, even with only carry on luggage, it's possible to dress respectfully for a visit to Notre Dame. For sure, you'll see anything and everything on tourists. I've never seen anyone turned away.