Paris is overflowing with festival preparations and activities for its visitors and Parisians as well. Plus, for this Holiday and Christmas season, the whole family and friends can enjoy the sights, the sounds, the smells and the taste of Paris during this special time of the year. From one delightful venue to another, the magic spirits of Christmas will be fed with joy and hot cocoa drinks!
If you don’t know yet how to plan your stay in Paris during the festive season, here are a few suggestions you should check out with your loved ones. As lights shine brighter in the dark, it is better to do most of those Christmas activities in Paris in the early evening.
A Christmas visit of Paris should start at the Grands Magasins such as Galeries Lafayette and Printemps to admire the mechanical dancing marionettes, the light decorations, and singing dolls in magical windows displays. All the ingredients are in place to slowly take adults and kids into a magical world with this Paris illuminations tour by van!
Take a walk on the Avenue des Champs Elysées, slalom between the decorated trees with colorful lights, and stop in front of luxurious brands’ front boutiques on Avenue Montaigne.
Galleries Lafayette in 2018
5 mins from the Ave des Champs Elysées, you will reach: La Magie de Noël (The Magic of Christmas market) in the Tuileries Garden. It was kwown before as The Champs-Élysées Christmas Market – the largest and most famous Marché de Noël in Paris – at the famous boulevard. This year the market will be reborn, after being closed last year. Discover the market with its new name and its new location next to the Louvre. Don’t forget to take advantage to also visit the Louvre Museum with all its mysteries!
After, wander in the Christmas Village of Paris located on the Champs de Mars. With more than a hundred little cottages, the village offers traditional products from France and its neighboring countries. It is a real European village!
With all of that walking, you ill sure need a break. The Notre Dame (or Saint Germain) Christmas Market is full of some traditional yummy French specialties from Mandiant, to mulled wine. There is a large selection for every taste! This kind of adventure is even better with your family, a visit of a Christmas market in family is a great start to enjoy this festive season!
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One activity that is trendy right now to do in Paris with kids, is a Sweet and Chocolate tour! It is a fun and ludic way to be able to taste French’s treats and to discover the lovely neighborhood of Saint Germain des Prés.
And if you are more into baking and making your own pastries, that is fine too, because many baking classes propose to create your own seasonal pies. You can take a Private Pastry Class in the worldwide capital of gastronomy!
Not far from there, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the “Eiffel on Ice” will welcome the adventurous ones who want to slide to the top! No need to bring your own ice skates, you will be able to rent some on the spot.
If you are in Paris between December 16th and January 9th, don’t miss at the Grand Palais their “Le Grand Palais des Glaces” which is the largest indoor ice rink in the world! Yeah, it is only that. Plus, we have heard that there will be a giant bear ice sculpture in the middle of the rink and an incredible light show. Book your ticket in advance to make sure to have your spot on the ice rink!
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It is known that Paris is not an exotic place with exotic animals, but this here those majestic and endangered animals decided to gather in the city to shine bright like diamonds. To see them, you can take your family for an evening stroll at the Jardin des Plantes to admire their very first light festival named “Espèces en voie d’illumination“. Since November 16, 2018, to January 15, 2019, they invite all dreamers from 6 p.m. to 10:45 p.m to celebrate with them those creatures and raise awareness.
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Another cool thing to go watch if you want to be taken in another world with funny animals and magical decorations, it’s “Le Roi de Singes” circus show. All the way straight from China, Les Etoiles du Cirque de Pékin, from December 8, 2018, to January 20, 2019, will perform in Paris at the Cirque Phénix. Follow the adventures of this playful monkey and his supernatural friends!
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After seeing what’s going on in Paris for Christmas and if you are still around on the New Year’s Eve (Réveillon in French), Paris will bless your whole family and friends at the Arc de Triomphe with music and projections ?
