Last weekend, my Mum and I did something a little bit special. We went to stay at the Palace of Versailles for the night (post coming soon)! But not content with just 1 night in Paris, we added a day on to explore Montmartre, an area in the north of Paris famous for its beautiful streets, cosy cafes, and magnificent Basilica.
So to start getting the Blog in the festive spirit, I’m pausing my Croatia posts, postponing my Thailand posts and taking us straight to a Christmassy Montmartre. Let’s go!
I hadn’t been to Paris in years – 23 years in fact – yet somehow I now have 3 trips across the channel booked within the next 9 months. This was trip number 1, and we pulled in to Paris’ Gare du Nord late on a cold December evening after taking the Eurostar from St Pancras.
That gave us a full day the next day to enjoy Montmartre. We started our day in the picturesque Place du Tertre, where the shops and Christmas decorations were at their finest. We ate an amazingly tasty crepe in Au Petit Comptoir for a leisurely breakfast, and watched the world go by.
After breakfast we strolled around the streets of Montmartre. We particularly enjoyed Rue du Chevalier de la Barre and Rue des Saules, which was home to an absolutely beautiful local ceramics shop where we bought some Christmas decorations (though we passed on the frog’s legs at Grenouilles).
During the Belle Epoque era (1870s-1910s), many artists lived and worked in Montmartre. Renoir, Utrillo, Dufy, Picasso, Modigliani and others all lived here at some point during that time, and it means that the area has a really artsy feel. I feel like I have a sort of connection to this era, as one of my ancestors was in Montmartre during this time, so probably was part of this culture. It was nice imagining what it was like, and the sort of life they’d have lived.
We continued our stroll to the Sacré-Cœur itself. The Basilica is located at the summit of Montmartre, overlooking the entire city. I didn’t realise but it is the second most popular tourist destination in the capital after the Eiffel Tower!
The Basilica was built in the late 1800s, as part of Paris’ complete redesign during the 1800s. Most of the city was demolished and rebuilt in the now well known and identifiable Parisian style. I hadn’t really appreciated until this visit how the entire city had been rebuilt in one go – very ambitious, and I can’t even begin to imagine how that project was managed successfully!
Inside the Sacré-Cœur, the mosaics and domes were impressive, and I loved some of the displays. There was a beautiful little nativity set up and a Sports area celebrating the Rugby World Cup in 2023 and looking to the Olympics in 2024.
After that, we continued our walk around the area and headed to La Maison Rose, one of the most famous cafes in Paris, thanks to Utrillo’s famous painting of it. We then continued down the hill and Rue de l’Abreuvoir, past Le Moulin Blute-Fin, one of Montmartre’s remaining original windmills and made famous by Van Gogh’s paintings.
We finished up our day exploring the area at the world famous Moulin Rouge, before enjoying an amazing dinner at Restaurant Le Saint Regis where I tucked in to ricotta stuffed chicken, a tarte Tatin and a tasty cocktail. After a long day exploring, we collapsed in to bed ready for our next adventure in Versailles.
What did you think of Montmartre at Christmas? It’s nice to start feeling in the festive spirit, and even though I don’t get as excited about Christmas as I used to, it’s still such a special time of year to enjoy. Thanks for reading – stay safe and happy travelling!
Barney Travel Technologies
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