70+ Paris recommendations
From Tiki bars to imposter truffles – A list of unforgettable spots to add to the itinerary
A few friends are going to Paris in the coming months, so I figured it’d be good to get my recommendations and thoughts down in one place sooner rather than later.
My Google Saved Places list has all of the best spots, so I’d recommend downloading that to your Google Maps app so you have a reference as you’re walking around.
That list of Saved Places should act as a bit of a compass for how to orient your day – the way I like to use these lists, is I’ll decide what general part of town I’d like to visit anchored around a key activity (like going to the Louvre), and then try to choose a lunch and dinner spot near that key activity.
I always like knowing that where I’m going to eat for the day will be exciting, so if I need to book a reservation, sometimes I’ll be sure to lock down a place I’m really thrilled about, but otherwise if you’re solo traveling, you often can bum a spot at the bar without a reservation.
The full list has over 70 places on it, so this writeup will only scratch the surface. Many of the places on the list have notes with comments of what to expect, and a few places on the map (not in this post) are temporarily closed, so be aware that this isn’t a completely evergreen post. Stuff changes for better and for worse.
Before you go to Paris
Look at the weather and bring a raincoat. It will probably rain while you’re there. I was surprised to find out it rains a lot there.
Download the Google Saved Places List to your phone if you haven’t already.
Download an offline map of Paris to your phone in Google Maps. Tap your profile, tap "Offline Maps”, and “Select Your Own Map”.
Download the offline package of French in Google Translate. You may need it at some point, so good to have on-hand.
Potentially buy an international SIM card if you’re going to be in Paris for a while. Get unlimited data – you don’t want to be rationing your data. I usually go with Maya Mobile’s ESIMs.
Start to do French on Duolingo if you have the appetite for it. You don’t need to know French, but it’ll be much more fun if you can understand a little bit of it.
Download the Rick Steves Audio Europe App. Then download the Historic Paris and The Louvre walking tours beforehand.
Tell people that you’re going! You may be surprised to cross-paths with other people who live in Europe or friends that may be visiting at the same time. A lot of people pass through Paris throughout the year so you may be surprised to find out who you can rendezvous with.
If you’re into nightlife, download Shotgun and look up some cool events that you can go to. When I went, Shotgun was what all the cool kids were using to find the underground events. Resident Advisor is also a great app to have on-hand.
Download the Lime app. Hate to say it, but since the Parisians idiotically voted to get rid of shared e-scooters, you’ll have to stick with e-bikes. I tell people that the Parisians originally hated the Eiffel Tower too, so it’ll only be a matter of time before e-scooters are back.
Generally, I’d prioritize doing more historic stuff first (like the Louvre and Rick Steves’ historic audio walk) because it will give you more context for the places you’ll wander by at random times during your trip.
You will have to buy a ton of little tickets for the subway, so buy a big pack and keep them away from things that could de-magnetize or you may be in trouble when you may or may not try to creatively get past the tollbooth.
Restaurants
There are just too many restaurant recs on my list, so I’ll try to hit some of the easy notable ones to prioritize:
Cafe du Coin – Probably my favorite restaurant in Paris. Cafe du Coin serves a prefix ~25 EUR creative mediterranean three-course meal that is modern, seasonal, and exceptional. It’s unpretentious, yet on-par if not better than many of the higher end spots around Paris. I couldn’t recommend this place enough, especially for the price. Do not make the mistake that my friend Samir made and go off-hours. Try to go for lunch or dinner, otherwise you’ll have to settle for pizza as the kitchen preps for the main service.
Poulette – A great start to a trip to Paris – Ask the waiters for recommendations on what is hip and new. Laure (my bartender) wrote a ton of recommendations down for me for the best croissants, cocktail bars, and other delicious spots. You will likely need a reservation for this place if you’re traveling with a group, otherwise you can try asking at the door, or sit at the bar if you’re a small crew.
PITANGA – A really tasty Brazilian Spot with great cocktails. I think I found it on the Michelin Guide. It’s not extremely popular, but the food is great.
Breizh Café – Get a classic French crepe. You can expect to wait in line for a bit on more popular days, but the buckwheat batter crepe is a great breakfast / brunch option. You can swing by the Musée National Picasso-Paris afterwards to see some Picasso stuff.
Pink Mamma – A very instagrammable spot, but a good lunch pasta option on the way up to the Montmartre neighborhood / Sacré-Cœur. You may have to wait in line a bit, but the food was tasty.
Les petites bouchées – a small plates spot that my friend Juju showed me. Bring a friend and split a bunch of options!
Bars
Danico makes exceptionally good drinks. When I was there they had a “dinner” list of drinks, where each cocktail is supposed to be a course of a meal. So you could get a more savory appetizer cocktail or a sweeter “dessert” cocktail. The bartenders know their stuff here for sure. If you’re not into adventurous drinks, don’t embarrass yourself by coming here and ordering a beer.
Dirty Dick is a super authentic tiki bar and a great place to start a night, especially because you don’t have to tip and there isn’t tax, you can get on a great level after just one and a half of whatever they serve. There are also other cool bars in the area that are worth scoping out but be sure to swing by the Mulin Rouge in its full evening glory, you debaucherous creature of the night.
Museums and Historic things with a capital H
The Louvre – duh you gotta go see this. You don’t need to see the whole thing though but budget a good block of time to not only get into the place (you’ll need tickets for your time slot), but to battle the masses of people that will certainly be trying to take photos of everything they see. EVERYTHING they see.
The Rick Steves’ audio tour of the Louvre is really great. It will also take you through the most notable things and keep you from getting lost in some of the less notable parts of the museum.
The Mona Lisa is cool, but don’t waste time in the selfie-get-up-close line. Just go to one of the sides, snap a selfie with as much of it as you can in the background, and move along.
Musée de l'Orangerie – Features Monet’s waterlilies. I didn’t get to see this, but I look forward to one day going.
Musée d'Orsay – Another museum I didn’t have time for, but definitely worth going. Rick Steves also has a walking guide for this.
The Centre Pompidou – The inside-out building that houses a bunch of modern art and has super cool views of Paris. It’s right next to Glace Bechir, where you can grab some ice cream depending on the time of day.
If you don’t know what to do, walk around and listen to Rick Steves’ historic audio guide. It’s really good.
Later in the afternoon it can be nice to stroll to the Notre-Dame and people-watch there before going to happy hour. Rick Steves also has an audio guide talking through the Notre Dame’s façade.
Parks
Place des Vosges – A great place to bring a six-pack of 1664 beer and hang out with friends and people watch. It’s this perfectly geometric and very well-manicured park that isn’t horrendously touristy. On the way out, swing by the Cour et Jardin de l'Hôtel de Sully to see some more gardens.
Champ de Mars – The park that lays in front of the Eiffel Tower. Definitely worth walking through enroute to the Tower.
Treats
Dunes Blanches Chez Pascal Paris Marais – Just amazing cream puffs. Those chefs make a killing on light, fluffy cream puffs that are top-notch. Buy a bunch and bring them around to Place de Vosges if you aren’t feeling a beer.
Glace Bechir – This ice cream shop rolls everything in crushed pistachios and the quality is really good. I especially liked their pistachio flavor.
Cédric Grolet Opera – The Instagram famous pastry chef makes these wild “fruits” that are just really fancy big chocolate truffles with filling on the inside. If you get there close to when they open you won’t have to wait in line for too long, and while they are expensive, they are very tasty.
Other stuff to do
Walk up to Sacre Coure and have an espresso and people-watch, then stroll down the steps / hang out while overlooking Paris.
Visit the area south of the island that the Notre Dame is on. Rick Steves’ walking tour will take you through it, but it’s old and vibey and while it is very touristy (don’t buy any food in this area), it really feels like you are walking through history.
Take a Lime bike through the city. BUT be careful that you pay attention and don’t do it while drunk because the streets are very unforgiving for a misplaced wheel. I mistook a raised concrete divider for a painted line and crashed very hard while trying to cross it on a rainy night.
Go take part in Parisian nightlife – Do not ever spend a “night in” while you’re visiting. Even if you go for a stroll, you’ll find something to remember.
This took almost four hours to put together and I’m almost at the email length limit, so I’ll have to wrap here. If you have any recommendations to add, please comment them below, otherwise if you enjoyed this post or would like me to write up more breakdowns of other cities I’ve visited, please “like” this post. I have plenty of other lists to share, including Milan, Rome, Athens, Madrid, Barcelona, Tokyo, and Mallorca.
Adieu, et bon voyage!
Just in time for my trip! Thanks Daniel 🙏