Paris at Christmas recommendations
 

Please let me know what are the can't miss sights and activities in Paris between Christmas and New Years. Planning on seeing Galeries Lafayette and some Christmas markets (which ones?). What else should DH and I plan to see and do?

Christmas in Paris is so so beautiful. One thing I love is that every neighborhood seems to do it's own lighting decorations. So my advice is to get out into the neighborhoods and explore.

Of course the Champs Elysee to the Louvre is a lighting extravaganza (and there is a Christmas Market from Franklin Roosevelt circle to Place de la Concorde) and Avenue Montaigne is my favorite. But don't miss out on the little neighborhoods.

Take in an opera at Opera Garnet. It's beautiful and festive.

Well, I have 3 trip reports that will spell it out....but I will mention a few things here:

Consider a concert at Ste Chapelle or a church like St Germain des Pres
A glass of Champagne at Galleries Lafayette while checking out the decor
Place Vendome at night
So many shops have wonderful windows but always fun to see what chocolate figures will be in the windows of Patrick Roger
Get Berthillon ice cream and eat in the park behind Notre Dame...we had snow for our ice cream picnic and it was magic!
The shoppers on rue Faubourg St. Honore

Have a great time...Paris is wonderful at Christmas!

Most people go to the Champs Elysees market and call it a day. They are all basically the same but this one seems to tick everyone's boxes because it has the look everyone expects. Hope it snows but it might not. All of Paris is pretty at Christmas. Go look in all the windows in the ritzy part of town.

Well, at the risk of bursting the bubble, I've found the stuff at the CE Christmas market to be China-made tourist tat, with one or two notable exceptions.

Go for the fun atmosphere, the (mostly junk) street food and some mulled wine.

Just don't expect much in the way of quality merchandise. True Christmas markets are to be found in Germany and Alsace, not Paris.

Take a ride on the Ferris wheel at the Place de la Concorde.

Walk around and enjoy the incredibly imaginative and beautiful shop windows.

Stop and enjoy a vin chaud.

Christmastime in Paris is magical.

Thanks ever so much! You all have me very eager for my trip!!!

Just one caveat. Be certain to make a dinner booking for Christmas Day. There will be relatively few local restaurants open during the day, and it has been our experience that dinner without a booking is difficult to find on the 25th.

My experience of Christmas markets isn't extensive but what I've seen is mostly as Haapgoin describes. Still good fun for the mulled wine and atmosphere.

Any recommendations for restaurants on Christmas Day - perhaps some that use regular menu instead of special pricey ones?

Well, it was not inexpensive but in comparison to a big to do like Le Cinq, we enjoyed lunch at Cafe Marly overlooking the pyramid at the Louvrw. I think we got omelettes and salads (and Champagne), but sitting outside overlooking the Louvre was so enjoyable.

Most restaurants won't advertise their holiday menus until sometime in mid to late November, but there will be a lot of places to choose from which just do business as usual.

If you want something festive and reasonable, all the big brasseries will be open, the decor is wonderful, and the atmosphere is always fun, even if the food might not be Michelin-quality. The important thing is that you'll eat well and have a good time celebrating with lots of others - French as well as tourists. Brasserie Lipp, Bofinger and Mollard are good choices.

Otherwise, there are 3 restaurants run by Christian Constant on rue Saint Dominque - all good, all open during the holidays, only one requires reservations and has a pricey holiday menu.

If you trust review sites, pick a few places and go to La Fourchette where you can do dummy reservations for many restaurants, just to see what's open.

Thanks so much - glad to know there should be plenty to pick from without going to a big name and expensive place. The brasseries sound like fun - and Café Marly does too!

Christmas 2014 for ideas: http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...is-2014?page=1

You'll be fine. You will also see the city start to come back to life as Christmas Day goes on. Christmas Eve is a bit more dead as many places close mid afternoon.

Kerouac, looking at all your pics has me getting excited to be in Paris at Christmas! Can't wait!

Lots of places stay open until at least 19h30 on Christmas Eve - especially food and wine shops. This is one of the busiest days of the year (NYE is the other) and everybody needs something at the last minute for a gift or a fancy meal. Regular stores keep regular hours, too. Christmas Day is when things get off to a slow start, opening around noon, if they open at all.

St Germain des prés, Luxembourg garden and les champs elysees...

Christmas and New Year's Eve are the biggest revenue generators of the year for delis (traiteurs) and most of the other food shops. I am kind of strange, so I am the kind of person who would stock up on wonderful things and have a feast in my hotel room on Christmas eve (and then go out and soak in the Christmas atmosphere of the city).

Obviously it is nice to have a wonderful meal in a romantic place, but that depends on your pocketbook. Expect to pay about 10 times more than if you buy things yourself.

I agree with the very strange recommendation from kerouac.

At Christmas and New Year's, many restaurants offer special menus that might not be at all what you think of as traditional French food - and they will cost much more than you probably want to spend for something you would enjoy eating. It's all about the razzle-dazzle...

On the other hand, you can go to a cheese shop or a supermarket with a large cheese counter, and have a cheese platter made up to take with you. You can go to an open air food market and find lots of good things - pates and dried sausages, foie gras in jars/tins, even fresh oysters shucked and packed on a disposable platter. Wine, bread, pastries, chocolates are everywhere, and inexpensive disposable plates and utensils are available in supermarkets. All of this for everyday, normal prices that anyone can afford.

The weather is always cold enough so that you don't need refrigeration if you'll be eating in a few hours. If longer than that - or there are leftovers - many hotels have minibars, and there is always the option of putting things in a plastic bag and securing it to the outside window ledge, where it will be perfectly fine. Lay a newspaper on the floor or on your bed and voila - la vie boheme!

Yesterday's paper said that Jean Dujardin will flip the switch to illuminate the Champs-Elysees on 18 November this year.