Paris
Where to stay 9
The Peninsula Paris – the Majestic, restored to its original purpose
The Peninsula Paris: the 1908 Hôtel Majestic on avenue Kléber, restored over four years, with 200 rooms and the two-Michelin-starred L'Oiseau Blanc…
L'Hôtel, Paris – twenty rooms and Oscar Wilde's last address
L'Hôtel on rue des Beaux-Arts in Saint-Germain-des-Prés: the former Hôtel d'Alsace where Oscar Wilde died, now twenty rooms by Jacques Garcia and a…
Prince de Galles, Paris – an Art Deco courtyard on avenue George-V
Prince de Galles, Paris: André Arfvidson's 1928 hotel on avenue George-V, restored by Pierre-Yves Rochon, with its mosaic patio, 159 rooms and Akira…
Saint James Paris – a château in the city, once a balloon field
Saint James Paris: the 1892 Thiers Foundation mansion in the 16th, now 48 rooms, a library bar, a Guerlain spa and Bellefeuille, with a Michelin star…
Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris: the art hotel on avenue Hoche
Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris: a 1928 hotel redesigned by Philippe Starck, with 300 artworks, a gallery, a 99-seat cinema, Il Carpaccio and…
Hôtel de Crillon – the royal palace at Place de la Concorde
Hôtel de Crillon in Paris: Gabriel's 1758 palace where France recognised the USA, a hotel since 1909, restored with Lagerfeld suites and reopened in…
Le Bristol Paris – a hundred years on Faubourg Saint-Honoré
Le Bristol Paris turned 100 in 2025: the largest garden of any palace hotel, a rooftop pool facing Sacré-Cœur, three-star Épicure and its own flour…
Ritz Paris – the story of the hotel on Place Vendôme
The Ritz Paris opened in 1898 behind a Louis XIV façade on Place Vendôme: César Ritz, Escoffier, Chanel's thirty years, Hemingway's bar, the 2016…
The Palace Hotels of Paris – the history behind the city's grand establishments
The stories behind the Paris palace hotels: the Ritz, Crillon, Le Bristol, Plaza Athénée, Le Meurice, George V, Shangri-La, Cheval Blanc and Lutetia.
Where to eat 9
The best pâtisseries in Paris: from Stohrer's rum baba to Ladurée and Pierre Hermé
Where to eat pastry in Paris: Stohrer, the city's oldest pâtisserie, Ladurée's tea rooms and macarons, Pierre Hermé on rue Bonaparte and Angelina's…
L'Ambroisie at Place des Vosges – a classic in a new chapter
L'Ambroisie in the Marais: Bernard Pacaud's temple of French classicism, three Michelin stars from 1988, now two under new chef Shintaro Awa. What to…
Le Cinq at George V – Christian Le Squer and Brittany in a gilded frame
Le Cinq at the Four Seasons George V: Christian Le Squer's three-star, Breton-rooted cooking in a gilded Louis XVI dining room off the Champs-Élysées.
Septime in Paris – the restaurant Bertrand Grébaut leaves behind
Septime on rue de Charonne proved a Michelin star could come with bare wood tables. Founder Bertrand Grébaut died in July 2026; the star remains.
Kei in Paris – Kei Kobayashi, Nagano and French cuisine in three stars
In 2020 Kei Kobayashi became the first Japanese chef with three Michelin stars in France. Inside Kei on rue du Coq-Héron, by the Louvre and Les…
Arpège in Paris – Alain Passard and the gardens behind three stars
Alain Passard swapped meat for vegetables from his own gardens and kept three Michelin stars. The story of Arpège on rue de Varenne, three stars…
Paris restaurants with three stars in the Guide Michelin 2026
All nine Paris restaurants with three Michelin stars in 2026, from Arpège and Kei to Le Cinq, Épicure and Le Pré Catelan – and why L'Ambroisie fell.
Paris's great cafés and brasseries – eight addresses with history
Eight classic Paris cafés and brasseries: Café de Flore, Les Deux Magots, Le Procope, Lipp, Café de la Paix, Angelina, Chartier and Le Train Bleu.
Plénitude in Paris – Arnaud Donckele's sauces by the Seine
Plénitude at Cheval Blanc Paris won three Michelin stars in its first year. Arnaud Donckele's sauce-led menu, 26 seats and a view of the Seine.
Itineraries 8
The covered passages of Paris: a walk through the glass-roofed arcades
A walking route through the covered passages of Paris: Galerie Vivienne, Galerie Colbert, Passage des Panoramas, Jouffroy and Verdeau, with where to…
A day at Versailles from Paris: the palace, the gardens and the Trianons
How to spend a day at Versailles from Paris: the Hall of Mirrors at opening, Le Nôtre's gardens, the Grand and Petit Trianon and the Queen's Hamlet…
Saint-Germain-des-Prés – the literary heart of the Left Bank
Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris: the church from 558, the existentialist cafés, Musée Delacroix on rue de Furstemberg, the galleries and Le Bon…
Montmartre at dawn – a morning walk before the city wakes
A dawn walk through Montmartre in ten stops: Abbesses, the Bateau-Lavoir, Moulin de la Galette, the vineyard, Place du Tertre and Sacré-Cœur in…
Jardin du Palais-Royal – Richelieu's garden and Buren's columns
The Jardin du Palais-Royal in Paris: Cardinal Richelieu's garden, the 1780s arcades, Le Grand Véfour, the noon cannon, Colette's benches and Buren's…
Le Marais – the nobility's old quarter and Paris's oldest square
A guide to Le Marais in Paris: Place des Vosges, Hôtel de Sully, Musée Carnavalet, the Picasso Museum and rue des Rosiers, open even on Sundays.
Île Saint-Louis and Île de la Cité – a walk across Paris's islands
A three-kilometre walk across Paris's two islands: townhouses on Île Saint-Louis, Berthillon ice cream, Notre-Dame, Sainte-Chapelle and Pont Neuf.
48 Hours in Paris – a classic itinerary, stop by stop
Two days in Paris: Palais-Royal, Monet's Water Lilies, Place Vendôme and the Palais Garnier, then Île Saint-Louis, Notre-Dame, Saint-Germain and…
What to see 10
Hôtel de la Marine: inside the royal palace on Place de la Concorde
A guide to the Hôtel de la Marine on Place de la Concorde: the restored 18th-century apartments, the gilded salons, the loggia view and the Al Thani…
Grand Palais and Petit Palais: the 1900 palaces of Paris, restored
How to visit the Grand Palais and Petit Palais in Paris: the restored glass nave, art fairs and exhibitions, the free Petit Palais collection and its…
Les Invalides, Paris: Napoleon's tomb beneath the golden dome
A guide to Les Invalides in Paris: the golden Dôme and Napoleon's tomb, the Musée de l'Armée, the soldiers' church and how to plan your visit.
Musée d'Orsay, Paris: how to see the Impressionists well
How to visit the Musée d'Orsay in Paris: the station building, the fifth-floor Impressionists, Van Gogh, Manet and the best times to go without the…
Jardin du Luxembourg: the Paris garden that Parisians keep for themselves
A guide to the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris: the Medici Fountain, the Grand Bassin and its toy boats, the orchard, the queens' terrace and where to…
Musée Marmottan Monet: the Paris museum where Impressionism got its name
A guide to the Musée Marmottan Monet in Paris: Impression, Sunrise, Monet's late water lilies, Berthe Morisot, the 1985 theft and how to plan a calm…
Musée de l'Orangerie – Monet's water lilies in the two oval rooms
The Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris: how Monet designed the two oval rooms for his eight Water Lilies, the Walter-Guillaume collection and how best to…
Jacquemart-André and Nissim de Camondo – Paris's private palace museums
Two collectors' mansions near Parc Monceau: Jacquemart-André's Italian art on boulevard Haussmann and the Camondo house, closed for works until 2030.
Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection in the old wheat hall in Paris
The 1767 wheat hall in Les Halles is now the Pinault Collection, with Tadao Ando's concrete cylinder beneath the dome. Its history and how to visit.
Musée Rodin in Paris – The Thinker, The Kiss and the garden
Musée Rodin in Hôtel Biron on rue de Varenne: The Kiss, Camille Claudel's room, Rodin's Van Goghs and a three-hectare garden with The Thinker.
Where to shop 3
The grands magasins of Paris: a guide to the great department stores
A guide to the great department stores of Paris: Galeries Lafayette's dome, Printemps, Le Bon Marché and its food hall, and the restored Samaritaine.
Place Vendôme – the jewellers' square in Paris
How Place Vendôme became the world's jewellery address: Boucheron's sunny corner in 1893, Chaumet since 1907, Van Cleef & Arpels, the Ritz and the…
Avenue Montaigne and Faubourg Saint-Honoré – shopping in Paris
Paris's two luxury shopping streets: avenue Montaigne in the Golden Triangle with Dior and Chanel, and Faubourg Saint-Honoré with Hermès since 1880.
