Not only does Paris hold a number of world-renowned tourist attractions, but it also is a city with a strong entrepreneurial and creative spirit—a location with a storied past and a promising future. While there will be some tourists who come to Paris to follow their favorite sport and support the Olympic athletes, there will also be some visitors who prefer to escape from the Olympic atmosphere and the omnipresent consumption of an international travel destination and explore another side of the city. The authors hope to offer new ways to discover and experience Paris. These proposed routes, concepts, and services are often inexpensive and non-mainstream. They invite participants to become actively involved citizens, to question the city model of Paris, and to create alternatives to the existing panorama.
In 2024, Paris is set to experience a year like no other. The city of light will be welcoming the top athletes from all over the world as they compete in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Being awarded an Olympic Games offers a unique opportunity for the host city to show a side that is kept away from the increasingly homogenized language of urban branding. In this article, each author makes a proposal of how to visit and explore Paris from their personal experiences, reflecting multiple views of local expertise and taking into account both the must-see popular sights and the hidden gems that are off the beaten path.
Purpose of the Guide
Paris has no shortage of sightseeing destinations. Hundreds of guidebooks, thousands of webpages, and maps are published on paper or online in an attempt to guide visitors around the city’s must-see sights, famous landmarks, and hidden gems. Paris in 2024 aims to add to this vast treasure trove of information with curios and thoughtful itineraries highlighting lesser-known aspects of the city: off-the-beaten-track attractions, visits to atypical venues, quirky anecdotes, and insider tips to allow Paris enthusiasts – both first-time and frequent visitors – to walk, jump, trot, or roll around the city in 80 tours or less! While the information in this guide is regularly updated and revised, the best approach to reading and using Paris in 2024 is to concoct tailor-made visits tailored to individual tastes, whims, and seasons.
Why Visit Paris in 2024?
Discover Paris’s most lovingly cherished sites and hidden gems. Olympic visitors in 2024 will have an unparalleled opportunity to explore a Paris that has been specially prepared to receive them, the loved and familiar city sites, as well as new, hidden, and avant-garde destinations, such as the urban Vineyard of Montmartre.
Explore history taking place before your eyes. As was the case with the 1924 Paris Olympics, the event marked an important period in the city’s history and culture. The years leading up to the 2024 Olympics will certainly be filled with events, building projects, improvements in infrastructure and more – a perfect opportunity for tourists interested in visiting the French capital.
As in 1924, 2024 promises to be a special year for Paris. The enduring allure of Paris and the anticipation of becoming the world’s focus during the Olympic Games often results in a desire to visit the city during such times. Here are just a few other reasons to visit Paris during your Olympic journey in 2024:
Historical Landmarks
La Conciergerie On Île de la Cité, in Paris, you cannot avoid the Conciergerie. This beautiful fortress used to be the former royal palace, which was later transformed into a prison. The most famous female of which was captured here: Marie-Antoinette. Since the French Revolution, La Conciergerie has become quite the attraction and it now has been reorganized as a national monument. After visiting the Notre-Dame basilica with its treasures, follow the secret passageways and learn exciting details about the early lives of the Kings of France. Definitely a must!
Museum of the Great War at Meaux Merely 25 minutes from Paris, at the foot of the beautiful cathedral of Meaux, is the Museum of the Great War. The architecture itself is already very impressive, but inside this fortress, the history behind World War I comes alive remarkably well through a variety of collections on display. Here you will surely learn about the battles known as the Marne and the Tannenberg in an illustrative way. Make sure you give yourself a couple of hours to fully appreciate this more recent part of our history!
Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower-inspired Waldorf Astoria, Champagne bar on the first 360 view, 58 brasserie at 58 meters, expensive yet posh Jules Verne at 125 meters with its lunch-time window tables facing Notre Dame and Grand Palais: unless you have money to splash around, you shouldn’t particularly fancy the idea of dining at the Eiffel Tower. Instead, combine your tower visit if not with typical Parisian patisseries and baguettes eaten at picturesque Champ de Mars or skyscraping hideaway Flour (with organic-friendly spot-cafe. Animal-made butter included), then go teething (cool if you come with kids) at grass-and-water Mirabeau Centre, but with Metre 87 or Vins des Pyrenees located a few blocks from less crowded, less touristy and beautiful Issue Le Saint Recollets.
This is a no-brainer and a must when visiting Paris, though it’s still worth mentioning and marking. Dispose yourself to queues or buy skip-the-line tickets online. The stunning panoramic view from the top is just worth it if you don’t suffer from acrophobia.
Louvre Museum
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When you visit the museum, you can expect to see a vast collection of works spanning from ancient civilizations like Egypt, Rome and Greece, as well as medieval European writings and the arts of Islam. The museum has so much beauty tucked away within its walls, with famous artworks like the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, the Burghers of Calais, Liberty Leading the People, and various stories by masters like Vermeer, Ava, Delacroix, and Rembrandt, you’re in for an artistic delight. If that’s not enough for you, the museum’s distinctive glass pyramid sculptures, grandiose façades and wide interior, featuring the museum’s construction merge together into visual magic. Although the Louvre is magnificent, it is so huge that it is difficult to see everything in one day, so plan to see what you want to see.
As the world’s largest museum and a historic monument in Paris, France, the Louvre is undoubtedly one of the grandest establishments of its kind on the planet and is home to over 35,000 artworks. The Louvre was originally a fortress built in the late 12th century under Philip II, and the modern structure still reflects its past. It is open from 9 am to 6 pm each day and is the most visited museum in the world, welcoming 8.3 million people each year. The collection is divided among eight departments: Egyptian Antiques, Near Eastern Antiques, Greek, Etruscan Antiques, Roman Antiques, Islamic Art, Sculpture and European decorative arts, Paintings, Prints and drawings, and History of the Louvre and Collections.
Culinary Delights
La Maison du Chou While the history of the chou à la crème stretches back years, the concept of manufacturing them in a shop that has just enough room for the person in the back to stand and allow a collective of customers to order the next fresh batch is pretty recent. Cue the master butcher who renovated an old buvette and decided to embark on a challenge with his wife (a fashion photographer who ended up switching gears and getting a CAP in pastry arts): to find the perfect choux à la crème recipe and serve up batches at a high kilo rate.
Le Beurre Noisette If you’re hoping to catch buttermaster Thierry Brabant in action, arrive at lunchtime, as he multitasks between the kitchen and the dining room mornings and evenings. His wife and partner in the business, Sylvie, takes over at lunch, serving an all-female crowd on their break from the stores in the neighborhood. If you don’t spot Brabant behind the tiny bar when you arrive, take a good look around the dining room, where he also tends to have his hands full. His creativity is on display both on the plate and in the pan: He’s forever experimenting with new dishes and methods, and his thankful customers make a point of keeping him grounded and letting him know which creations they want to see again.
French Cuisine Overview
The French themselves do not go to “top” restaurants. Most of the Parisians get off work, grab a quick baguette with ham, play volleyball with the children in the park, and then think about going to the restaurant. So most likely, the best cooking will be in a small, modest little place, regardless of its location or decoration. The best way to eat well is either to go home with a cook or take a look at establishments in your neighborhood. Another feature of Paris is that it is still possible to eat very well for much less than almost anywhere else in the world, simply because there are so many places that serve delicious bistro food all over the city. The French usually order three courses if they eat in a restaurant. They see this as normal and do not view it as a sign of excessive gluttony. The French also limit their diets for dearer foods rather than drink or very large portions. Order accordingly.
The French take their food very seriously. French gourmet tours to the country’s favorite vineyards, classes in creating the perfect macaroon, and of course, dinner for hours remain at the top of the world’s travel charts. However, despite the general tourist lure of Paris, it is very possible to have a very bad gastronomic experience here. The trick is to know what to expect, where to look, and most importantly, what to avoid. However, prices are high here, and unfortunately, it happens that even after spending huge amounts of euros in a restaurant, a tourist still leaves not very satisfied with the quality of the food or the level of service. Only then does the tourist remember that an expensive institution must be sought out in all respects, not only by its prices and its internal or external beautiful appearance.
Top Restaurants in Paris
Some of the top-rated restaurants in Paris include Restaurant Guy Savoy for typical French, Sushi B in the Marais if you like Japanese reasonably priced, La Crèperie de Josselin for authentic crepes at a very reasonable price, Chez George for typical Parisian atmosphere, and Un Dimanche à Paris for a world-famous chocolate and pastries. Of course, when in Paris, you must spend time at a café once or even five times throughout the day. In any neighborhood, especially the touristy ones, you will find a café and brasserie after café and brasserie. If it is nice, people simply sit outside, drink a coffee, a Perrier, or a verre du vin. And, of course, when you are there, you must also choose at least one croissant aux amandes – a light almond croissant filled with hot almond paste. If you are a fan of escargot or coquillages, there is no end to restaurants that specialize in these dishes.
Typical French cuisine combines rich flavors and regional recipes with the best in wine and cheese. When contemplating your itinerary of sightseeing in Paris, it is also very important to plan your eating options. Generally, top-rated, Michelin-starred restaurants require a reservation well ahead of time. But, with approximately 3,000 restaurants in Paris, there are truly choices for everyone. From Thai to Senegalese, kosher to vegetarian, the restaurant scene in Paris caters to all gustatory preferences.
Off the Beaten Path
Jaures is really a non-touristy gem. And it’s a good example of the spirit of this walk inspired by one of the best sellers of Stylist Magazine. If there are no great monuments to discover in our speed walk of the non-touristy Paris, they can rejoice because each district benefits from the charm and charm that Parisians love so much for their capital! The ranges of Saint-Martin or Tokyo Eat at the contemporary art museum of the centennial and temporary exhibitions of the Grand Palais, it is difficult to guess that the capital’s big leagues are only a stone’s throw away. However, all these places are less than a quarter of a century old! This neighborhood was partly created for the Universal Exhibition of 1900 and its urban development continues after the war. Since then, it has been adorned with a multitude of treasures that you can explore by walking in the middle of buildings that have retained their Haussmann and Art Nouveau finery. And if it is known for its shopping streets, its pavilions and other bars-coffees, the Faubourg Saint-Denis is also that and these little known addresses have different flavors of cosmopolitanism.