Please comment on my Paris off-the-beaten-path rough itinerary
 

I have arranged my "must sees" for this trip as follows:

Wed. arrive midday in "my" neighborhood, Batignolles. Settle into apartment. Explore neighborhood, including church, square and food/floral shops.

Thurs. Explore Belleville.

Fri. Explore St. Denis, including the basilica. End up in Montmarte to explore both touristy and non-touristy area. Try to catch the sunset and city lighting up for the evening from this area.

Sat. Attend the street market ("bio mkt") in Batignolles; explore parts of 11th arr.

Sun. Walk the Canal St. Martin from north to south. Explore Le Viaduc des Arts.

Mon. Visit L'Orangerie

Tues. Day trip...perhaps Giverny? (Have seen Versailles and Fountainbleau previously.)

Wed. Last day. No plans.

Would love your comments. Any blatent errors? Will shops and cafes in the areas I've chosen be open on the days I plan to be there? Would you shift things around for some reason? WILL GLADLY ACCEPT ALL OTHER SUGGESTIONS FOR OFF THE BEATEN PATH DESTINATIONS! Thanks.

Monday you can do more than the Orangerie since it's a small museum and won't take much time. Walking through the Tuilerie Gardens would be a wonderful addition to the itinerary.

Here are the off the beaten path things I did on my last trip:

- Gobelins tapestry tour (2 hours - in French only).
- Medieval concert at the Cluny - included with admission ticket but you have to ask for a separate concert ticket. Fridays at 12:30 and Saturdays at 4:00. The museum is great but not off the beaten path.
- Delacroix Museum - small; tucked away just by Furstenburg Square.
- Bourdelle Museum (sculpture).
- Post Office Museum - there was one wall of all the French stamps and they were beautiful.
- Mosque and tea garden behind it.
- Val de Grace Church (limited opening times).
- Jewish Museum.

I had the Dapper Museum in the 8th on my list but never got there.

You might want to check out church concerts.

Have you been to Paris before and want to do other than the usual things?

Thanks for your input, Adrienne. Yes, this will be my 6th trip to Paris. Although I certainly have my favorite places, I'm determined to try all new things!

If you can't make it to Giverny, you should go to the Musee Marmottan in the 16th arr. It has the world's largest collection of Monets (Giverny just has reproductions, although, of course, it has the "original" gardens). Another fun option for a day trip would be to take the TGV to Reims and tour some of the large Champagne houses. The Surrender Museum (where the Germans surrendered in WWII) is also worth a visit, as are Chagall's stained glass windows in the cathedral and the Art Deco architecture in the city.

If you haven't been to it before, the Musee Carnavalet is fun to visit - it's a museum of the history of Paris and someone who has visited it a lot likely would enjoy looking at the scale models of neighbourhoods at different points in time in the city's history.

Go to the rose garden, Bagatelle, in the Bois de Bologna. PJK

Thanks PJK! The Bois de Bologne is on my must do list, but I neglected to put it in my itinerary. Done!

Frogoutofwater (great name!), I haven't really researched day trips yet, but Reims seems to offer a lot...art, history and great champagne! I am also considering something in the Loire Valley or Normandy. Thoughts on these?

Iregeo, Just curious...what apartment are renting? We were at the Truffaut last year.

Iregeo - When I stayed on rue de Rome in the Batignolles, I went to a nice little modern art exhibit at the 17th Arr. Mairie building on rue des Batignolles.....maybe you can see if anything is going on when you're there.
Enjoy!

celiaane, I'm renting the same one. so looking forward to it. any advice?

I think this looks great, but I agree seeing the Orangerie will only take an hour or two, so you can fit in a lot more that day.

Have you been up the Tour Montparnasse? I didn't do that until my umpteenth trip to Paris, and now I love it.

And yes to the Musée Marmottan. And the Jeu de Paume, too.

I love that you're visiting Belleville and St.-Denis. You might also think about a short train trip to St-Germain-en-Laye. I really enjoyed our day (well, half-day) there.

But yes, this is all good.

Thank you St. Cirq. What should I not miss in Bellville and St. Denis?

While you're walking along the St. Martin canal, detour a block east to visit St. Louis hospital (I can't remember the exact street name, but you can see it from the canal, in the area of the locks). It was built in 1607, and has never been renovated. If you're lucky, you can go past the gate house and into the courtyard. It'll make a pleasant diversion on your walk.

Les, does that mean I need to hone my flirting skills?

Iregeo, I wish it were that simple.
The first time I stopped by, the gates were open, and I was able to walk through the main gate (the gatehouse area, where there were some places for cars to park), and through the second gated archway into the courtyard.
When I came back on another day with my wife, both gates were locked. We probably could have gotten into the courtyard by walking around the hospital and trying a back entrance, but the complex is large, and we didn't want to take the time.

Iregeo great off the beaten track but if you adjust Belleville day to Friday.I think that is market day. Wonderful local market not touristy at all. I stay in the 11th and love that area. Enjoy

nicerue 50, thanks for the heads up about the Belleville market day.

About the 11th...I am completely unfamiliar with the area. What do you suggest to get a real flavor for the neighborhoods?

Irego, There are so many people with way more Paris experience than I on this board that I will leave the itinerary to them.

On the apartment itself, we were very pleased with it. The thing we especially liked was that it was not difficult to use the sleeper sofa. You could pull it out without moving anything, etc. It is very nicely decorated and a great variety of tour (and other) books is available.

Enjoy!

You might want to wander around Auteuil (I think it is pronounced "oh-toy-ee"). It has wonderful residential buildings, many of them historic works by famous architects. We also enjoyed (today) walking along Rue Montorgueil, with its many food-related shops and eating places.

Hi Iregeo..a few of the places I enjoy in the 11th are.evening stroll down bldv Belleville.turns into Menilmontant.cafe on left Chez Zig Zag, low tables or straw mat sitting on side of street.glass of wine and olives merniated in tarragon oil. and watching the sites.also Ediith Piaf musee 5 rue Crespin-du-gast. Walking from Bastille up rue Roquette. Very good inexpensive restaurant near Bastille. Relais du Massif Central, 16 Rue Daval.open lunch and dinner. Blanqutte du veau excellent. 11th has a great mix of ages and ethnic. Bastille on Saturday artist where market is.Lots to see and enjoy. We'll be there in July for Bastille day.

Very nice list!

I don't know much about Belleville but I had bookmarked this link on Paris markets for my trip in a couple weeks.
So if you're interested in markets - here's plenty of info.
http://www.v1.paris.fr/EN/Living/markets/markets.asp

I personally loved Giverny but I really like gardening & Monet's paintings. If you choose to go, get there first thing in the morning. It gets very crowded by later in the morning.

Have a wonderful trip.

I spent a Saturday in St Denis a few weeks ago. I loved it- things were bustling and very lively. There was an Arabic wedding at the Hotel de Ville with live musicians outside on the square- another poster who went to St Denis on a Saturday also ran into a wedding, so Saturday might be a good day to tour the Basilica and then walk around town. The men are all going to stare at you in St Denis, and some may ask you to take their picture with your camera (not recommended) but it's a lot of fun to explore the streets that radiate down from the Basilica.

For Belleville, both the Blue Guide and the Michelin Green Guide have a detailed walk for the area. I wanted to go to Belleville on my trip, but unfortunately ran out of time.

I love the things you have planned, and all the time you left unplanned. Sounds like a lovely trip.

Hi
It's a pity that you don't have more time,cos. Lorraine is worth a visit.

Metz - “City of Light” due to its magnificent illuminations which highlight the stunning architecture of the ancient buildings and churches.

And Nancy with Cordeliers church, 18th century cathedral, and the 17th century Notre Dame de Bon Secours. The Place Stanislas “The golden square” is the town square, with the statue of Stanislas pointing to the North, and definitely a must see place.

Or you could stay at one of the old authentic castles in Lorraine. The castle Hattonchatel Chateau is from the 9th. and the 16th. century. It's own by the company ritz-resorts.com

Deyrolle - 46 rue du Bac, 75007

You aren't likely to run into many tourists toting their Fodor's or Michelin Guides in this spot. So I'd say it fits your requirement for an "off-the-beaten-path" destination.

I think Deyrolle is still closed- they had a big fire in February.

Parts of Deyrolle have opened in the last few weeks.

You also done the covered passageways?
The Chapelle Expiatoire is a seldom mentioned nice little visit. Built over the site where Louis XV1 and Marie Antoinette's bodies were placed after being guillotined (before moved to St Denis)

Jacquemart-Andre?
Arene de Lutece?

There is a tour (my sister took it) of the Guimard buildings in the 16th(he designed the classic Metro entrances).

Some ideas I plagiarized from another site :( .....

For music lovers, check the churches. The Val de Grâce church in the Fifth Arrondissement, for example, offers a free classical music and organ concert at 7 p.m. on the first Saturday of each month; the Madeleine Church in the Eighth Arrondissement offers free organ and choral concerts two or three Sundays a month at 4 p.m.

For the last 10 years, a group of hard-core dancers have gathered on the Seine every evening from mid-May through September. They do the tango, salsa and rock-swing. Free lessons start at 7:30 p.m. (a hat for tips is passed), followed by dancing until midnight. It all happens at Square Tino Rossi at 9, quai St.-Bernard in front of the University of Paris at Jussieu just a few steps from the Cathedral of Notre-Dame (“Paris Danses en Seine,” tangoargentin-eric.site.voila.fr/page3.html).

(I've seen them while taking Seine River cruise and wondered who they were)

The iconic restaurant Taillevent has one of the best wine cellars in the world, and every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. it offers a free tasting. Visit the www.taillevent.com and click on “Les Caves Taillevent,” then “Nos Prestations” and then “Les Dégustations” for information (in French only) on the schedule and theme of the tasting.

Do you have to make reservtions in advance to go to Tailllevent on Saturday's, or can you just show up? It sounds like a lot of fun. Is it every Saturday that the restaurant is open?

Thanks.

Hi Iregeo

Last month we walked Le Viaduc des Arts and really enjoyed seeing so many outlets for creative skills.

We walked the gardens above the viaduc (where the train line used to be) in one direction, and returned at ground level. It's a lovely way to see another aspect of this beautiful city. There are quite a few points along the way where you can ascend/decend to change levels.

We took a couple of hours to do the walk, but didn't get all the way to Vincennes.

Happy travels, Di

I know I have a minority view, but I just wasn't that thrilled by the Marmottan. And I also wasn't crazy about the Muette area nearby...next to the Place du Trocadero, it's the most heavily touristed spot in the 16th.
However, if you do want to see all the Monets, make sure they're not on loan somewhere. Monet paintings do log a lot of miles at exhibitions around the world.

Far more interesting (to me) was the Asian arts museum (by Iena metro stop). It has an excellent collection, esp of Korean art, which tends to be overlooked in other museums (as their collections are usually dominated by Chinese and Japanese art). The Guimet makes an interesting sidebar to the Impressionist collections in Paris museums (and at Giverny), as the Impressionists were fascinated and influenced by Asian art. Monet himself was an avid collector of Asian prints.

http://www.guimet.fr/-English-
http://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1695861.html

This is a wonderful list. I keep going back to it and cut and paste many of the terrific ideas into my Paris file.

Keep it up Fodorites!!!