When in Paris and tired of the hordes of tourists at the Louvre or Eiffeltower, take a metro to Corvisart Station! Here you will find Paris’s best hidden gem, without masses of tourists to bother you.
Walk through the passageway under the apartment building just outside of the station, climb a lot of steps, and then you’ll find yourself on top of the 63-meter-high hill La Butte aux Cailles. Here you will experience a completely different part of Paris with hardly any tourists.
The perfect day in Butte aux Cailles
Stroll around the lovely and quiet streets in a village-like atmosphere, and that in the middle of Paris. Have a coffee or a beer with the locals in Le Diamant, the brown café on the Rue des Cinq Diamants.
Then admire the great street art on the walls of the neighborhood. Next to this, some wonderful small graffiti and artworks can be found surrounding the street signs.
Top it off with a lunch at the red and white checkered tables at Chez Gladines, an easygoing place that serves Basque specialties from the southwest of France. Make sure to get there before 1 p.m. as the place fills up quickly – you’ll be surrounded by French-speaking locals!
After this great experience, make your way to the big Place d’Italie. On Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays you might stumble into the end of a market on Boulevard Auguste-Blanqui (7 a.m-2.30 p.m.). If not, you can also go for some shopping in the big Italie 2 shopping center. After which you can catch metro back into the center, from Place d’Italie.
Read our other blog posts about unexplored places in France!
Written by Kiki Alpherts