ssander

There is a good chance we will be in Paris April 30-May 4 (arriving by Eurostar from London mid-morning Monday April 30 and leaving for London after dinner Friday May 4) this year.

What, if any, will be the effects of May Day celebrations in terms of transport, attractions, hotel availability, etc.

Thanks.
SS

kerouac

All national monuments and museums are closed, as are municipal museums. The city will not be more crowded than usual. As a Parisian, I have noticed that the number of tourists coming to Paris is balanced by the number of Parisians leaving Paris on such occasions. As long as you have a hotel reservation, you are fine.

Transportation will operate on the usual holiday/Sunday schedule.

In the old days, just about all shops were closed, but that is finished. Now places like Monoprix or the department stores are open on May 1st.

Don't forget to buy <i>muguet</i> from the ubiquitous vendors on every street corner. This brings good luck throughout the year.

Here's a small report on the sale of muguet from two years ago: http://tinyurl.com/7ajmavy

kerouac

Oh, my mistake -- this was just last year!

ssander

Thanks, Kerouac, for your fast response.

We're taking our sons and their wives -- who work (so they're not so flexibile with time -- and we want it to be a good experience.

We're considering moving it one week earlier (if they can do it). I assume the weather is the more unpredictable Paris spring weather. (Our previous trips have all be in mid to late May with great weather.)

SS

Nikki

Kerouac, times flies when you're having fun.

I think being there for the muguet vendors sounds like it might just be worth keeping the itinerary.

Ackislander

There will be demonstrations/parades/manifs/speeches in the Republique area but not elsewhere in our experience.

The rest of this applies to other holidays as well. We have spent Mayday, Armistice Day, and whatever the religious holiday early in May in Paris, and all were similar.

Because transportation operates on a weekend schedule, it will be crowded and slow-ish. Some bus routes won't run.

Parks will be packed, but this is not a negative since you will have a real opportunity to see what real French people do on their holidays. I recommend Luxembourg and Montsouris for two somewhat different experiences.

Bakeries may be open briefly early, but pretty much everything else for shopping will be closed, except the tiny neighborhood convenience stores mostly operated by immigrants, and their hours will be more limited than usual.

The French seem to take their parents and families out for celebratory meals on holidays, particularly lunch, so expect restaurants that are open (and many will be closed) to be packed. Cafes will be open but most seem to open late. If you are staying in a hotel, holidays are one of the times when you may want to have your breakfast at the hotel.

A great day to walk around and see the city without having to worry about the sights!

Michael

May Day is a perfect day to walk around with relatively little traffic. There may be riot police in choice locations, and one might run into demonstrations.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57623310709181

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57623429262296

kerouac

The march organized by the trade unions might be particularly interesting this year, since May Day falls between the two rounds of the presidential election.

Ackislander

I tried to find the action last time I was in Paris on May Day, also between elections. No luck, except for some of the crowds in the Parc Montsouris were on their way to a big Segolene Royale rally at a stadium near there. Lots of banners and signs and walking in ranks, but a singularly well-behaved group.

If I were a foe of capitalism, I would want to march down the Champs Elysee. Nobody there. They weren't on the Rue de Grenelle either, but there were plenty of the Republican Guard. No demonstrators at the Senat, nothing but happy crowds at the Luxembourg. I think I saw the next day that whatever action there was took place up near Republique, thus what I wrote previously.

kerouac

Most marches go from République to Bastille and then, if the march is big enough, to Nation.

Michael

The right wing march goes from the Opéra to the statue of Jeanne d'Arc near the Place de la Concorde.

kerouac

Read that as "extreme right wing" -- it's the National Front.

djkbooks

There will be plenty open and much worth doing, so no need to completely revise your dates/plans.

What could be better that just and wamdering all over? It's not your ONLY day in Paris, for heavens sake...

You might want to use that day to visit the Eiffel Tower, take a Foxity tour, a self-guided walk through one of the neighborhoods...

ssander

djbrook...

If it were just my wife and I, we'd love it, since it would be our fifth visit...but two of the kids (I say 'kids' but they're in their thirties) have never been there, and, with only four days, a more "normal" (is that possible?) day would seem better.

That being said, if we can't go a different week, it'll still be a great trip.

SS

kerouac

I saw in the paper that the huge renovation of Place de la République starts today, which makes me think that the marches might not be starting from there for the various events this year. I think the work is going to last at least two years, because they will be turning a large chunk over to pedestrians, and it will no longer be a huge traffic circle, because there will be no vehicles on the northern side.

harvmatic

My husband and I will be in Paris during the first 2 weeks of May and we would love to see any parades/marches etc. Will there be parades on May 8 (Armistice Day) also, and will most national monuments and museums be closed also ?
Since most museums are closed on May 1, does everybody head off to Disney, or is it a day to visit with family etc... I love the idea of seeing the "real" Paris.

Ackislander

I am going to guess but can't prove that those who leave the city are pretty much from the class that owns a country property, whether a cottage or a chateau. The working class stays around for the parades.

There is another public holiday, a religious one, early in May, maybe the second week, with all the closings, family lunches and picnics that I described last year. Sorry I can't remember the name but I am just off a plane three days after my original flight was cancelled by the Blizzard and even it was an hour and a half late.

kerouac

"Everybody" does not go to Disneyland. If the weather is nice, there are family barbecues, movies to see, walks to take both in Paris and out of it and the Bois de Boulogne and the Bois de Vincennes for a stroll or a Vélib ride. The trade union march is always fascinating on May Day -- and a great occasion to stop at food trucks for authentic greasy fried sandwiches.

On May 8th, tons of things will be open except for banks and post offices... There will be an insignificant (for most people) event at the Arc de Triomphe, as there is for any military comemoration.

MaineGG

The 14 City of Paris museums are closed on May 8. These include the Carnavalet, Victor Hugo's house, the Petit Palais, the Cognacq-Jay Museum.

For a complete list, see:
http://www.paris.fr/loisirs/collecti...411_port_22999

danon

I am arriving in Paris in the early afternoon on May 1st.
Where do parades usually take place...what time?
Worried about traffic disruptions.
thanks