529 - Join Us in France Travel Podcast

Categories: First Time in Paris, Honeymoon in France, Paris

[00:00:00] Annie: This is Join Us in France, episode 529, cinq cent vingt-neuf.

Bonjour, I’m Annie Sargent, and Join Us in France is the podcast where we take a conversational journey through the beauty, culture, and flavors of France.

Today on the podcast

[00:00:31] Annie: Today, I bring you a trip report with Katherine Butler from France Voyager. Join us as we uncover romantic vacation ideas in Paris, from hidden speakeasies and scenic walks to unparalleled honeymoon trips.

Catherine’s delightful anecdotes and expert recommendations make this an unmissable guide for anyone planning a romantic getaway in the City of Love. Don’t miss this episode, it is full of great suggestions.

Thank you Donors and Listeners

[00:01:02] Annie: This podcast is supported by donors and listeners who buy my tours and services, including my Itinerary Consult Service, my GPS self-guided tours of Paris on the VoiceMap app, or take a day trip with me around the Southwest of France in my electric car.

You can browse all of that in my boutique: joinusinfrance.com/boutique.

Patreon supporters get new episodes as soon as they are ready and ad-free. If that sounds good to you, be like them, follow the link in the show notes.

The Magazine Segment

[00:01:33] Annie: For the magazine part of the podcast, after my chat with Katherine today, I’ll discuss how to get medical care in Paris and France in general, should you catch the flu, which is going gangbusters right now, this January in France.

Or maybe you’ll have an accident that requires medical care. This question comes up all the time, and there’s a phone number you should save in your contacts, and a webpage you should bookmark.

Introducing Katherine

[00:02:09] Annie: Bonjour, Kat Weiss Butler and welcome to Join Us in France.

[00:02:13] Katherine: Bonjour, Annie. Thank you for having me.

[00:02:15] Annie: It’s wonderful to talk to you. So you actually do a blog and a podcast, several blogs and one podcast so far.

[00:02:25] Katherine: Yes, it’s a lot.

[00:02:27] Annie: Yes, it’s a lot of work. So your blog is Francevoyager. com

[00:02:32] Katherine: Mm hmm.

[00:02:33] Annie: And your podcast is the World Wide Honeymoon Travel Podcast. So you’re into the honeymoons type of thing.

I assume you’ve had your own, or have you had lots of honeymoons?

[00:02:45] Katherine: Well, we had our like actual post wedding honeymoon. We did three weeks in Southeast Asia for that, but then we have many honeymoon-esque trips that we do around the world, both to write about it and talk about it, but just also because we want to go and do these things as well.

[00:03:01] Annie: And you know, it’s something that we’ve talked about on the podcast a little bit, but it’s true that Paris gets a lot of interest from honeymooners. And so that’s a wonderful topic to talk about.

Romantic Honeymoon Ideas in Paris

[00:03:12] Annie: So I’m going to ask you to begin with share some great honeymoon ideas, like for people who are going on a honeymoon in Paris, what are some romantic things that they can do while they’re in Paris?

[00:03:25] Katherine: Oh, goodness. So many, so many choices. I mean, of course, there are so many that are kind of like the stereotypical, seeing the Eiffel Tower at night, doing the Seine River cruise. But there are some also really unique ideas as well, such as along in the 5th Arrondissement, the little mini amphitheaters along the Seine, where they do the tango dancing, you can go and do a little tango there.

Just going up to Montmartre is a beautiful place and just strolling around. I personally love the Rue de l’Abreuvoir. I may pronounce it wrong.

[00:03:57] Annie: Rue de l’Abreuvoir. Yes, you and everybody else in the world, Rue de l’Abreuvoir.

[00:04:00] Katherine: It’s gorgeous. Yes, of course.

[00:04:02] Annie: Yeah.

Parfume shopping in Paris. Parfume making class.

[00:04:03] Katherine: And of course, there’s lots of shopping and things that you guys can do. I personally like the idea of perfume shopping together, I think that that’s a fun place, and Paris is, I mean, France has got tons of perfume, but Paris specifically has perfume shops anywhere and everywhere, especially in places like Le Marais, and you can go perfume shopping together.

I think that’s a lot of fun to do and kind of pick out your signature scent. Or even take a perfume making class at the Musée du Parfum over in Opera. Those are really great places. Of course, you’ve got to check out the main, like the museums, and the monuments and the, you know, all of that stuff is, of course, quite popular.

And then, of course, the dining scene in Paris is quite popular as well. There’s, you know, three Michelin star restaurants if that’s what you want to do on your honeymoon and you want to splurge. There’s just regular, really delicious brasseries and restaurants and things like that, that you can go to just depending on what you want to try.

I just think even just wandering the streets of Paris is just a fantastic way to really get to know the city and enjoy it. Because each neighborhood is so different and it’s got its own little personality that you can enjoy.

Exploring Parisian Parks and Picnics

[00:05:11] Katherine: And another big thing would definitely be making a picnic in a park somewhere, of course.

One of my favorite parks is actually Parc des Buttes-Chaumont

[00:05:19] Annie:Yeah.

[00:05:20] Katherine: A cute park, it’s more local, it’s got some hills and stuff, it’s got like a cave, it has a temple on the top of the hill, and this beautiful pond with like ducks and geese and stuff, and plenty of places to just sort of lounge around and have a picnic. And it’s a little bit quieter and a little less busy than like Jardin du Luxembourg or the Tuileries and stuff like that.

[00:05:38] Annie: Yes, it’s also a little bit out of the way. So, for people who only have a few days, perhaps stick to the parks closer to the city center, or the closest one to where you are staying. I mean, they’re not all quite as scenic as Parc Monceau or Parc des Buttes

[00:05:55] Katherine: hmm.

[00:05:56] Annie: but they all have somewhere very nice where you can have a picnic.

And of course the picnic by the Eiffel Tower is a classic. People like to do that.

[00:06:06] Katherine: I mean, you haven’t been able to do that most of this year with the Olympics and stuff, so hopefully they clear out all the fencing and everything soon.

[00:06:12] Annie: It’ll come back. It’ll come back. Hopefully, by the time this episode is released all the clear out of all the Olympic venues will be done. Yeah.

[00:06:22] Katherine: Yes, and of course going to the sidewalk cafes and stuff, I mean, I think there’s just so much to do based on your own tastes for your own romantic honeymoon in Paris.

[00:06:32] Annie: What makes a good honeymoon or romantic getaway, I think is not to get too, how should I put this nicely? Try not to get too crazy about the list.

[00:06:46] Katherine: Yes.

[00:06:47] Annie: When you are in Paris, there are wonderful cafes, restaurants, brasseries, parks, everything else that are going to be really pleasant.

And I think some, maybe honeymooners might have the feeling that, oh, this is my one chance to go to Paris, so I have to see all of these things. You can do that, you can plan a lot, but if you do that, at least be careful to not be zooming around all over the city.

Pick a neighborhood and stay in that neighborhood for the day. And in that neighborhood, you know, even the neighborhoods that are not like, well, Montmartre, is very popular. There’s a lot of people, I wrote a tour of Montmartre, it’s a Voicemap tour, where I kind of have you start off the beaten path because everybody does it in the same circuit.

If you just follow the crowd, you will see the same thing as everybody else. And Montmartre just has a lot of beautiful stuff. So, I think it might be worth for you to do a little bit of research or use a tour like mine to just keep you, keep going in the areas that are not as, like where not everybody goes, you know.

Because you’ll have a better time.

But as far as not, don’t sweat the small stuff, like you will find a place to eat.

[00:08:12] Katherine: Yes. Whether you have a reservation or not.

[00:08:15] Annie: Exactly. I mean, you might not get your first choice, but you’ll get your second, or third and it’ll be fine. Anywhere you go, you know, you don’t need to go to a wine tasting. Any cafe you go to, if you would like a glass of wine, just order a glass of wine. Anywhere will serve you a glass of wine of any color you want.

You know, it’s really simple. Those are the things you should not worry about. Because they’re everywhere. Same with the croissant and the bakeries and stuff. There are people who just get obsessed with, oh, I have to have the best one.

[00:08:48] Katherine: Yeah. Try them all. Go to a bunch of them.

[00:08:50] Annie: Yeah, exactly, go to a bunch of them.

That’s exactly what I say.

[00:08:53] Katherine: See which one’s the best on your own.

[00:08:55] Annie: See the best on your own. There’s hundreds of them. So, actually that’s the most common business in Paris is a boulangerie pâtisserie. They’re everywhere.

[00:09:08] Katherine: Yeah, truly. That and it feels like a pharmacy is everywhere as well.

[00:09:11] Annie: That’s true.

[00:09:12] Katherine: Pharmacie Pâtisserie.

[00:09:14] Annie: Yes.

That’s very true.

Christmas Markets and Seasonal Events

[00:09:17] Annie: So in the list you sent me, you mentioned Christmas markets. Of course, if you go in December, Paris has some wonderful Christmas markets. The Grand Boulevard area, so the Galerie Lafayette is a beautiful part of Paris to walk around at Christmas time. Very busy sometimes, but the Printemps store is also beautifully decorated.

It’s marvelous. And there are a bunch of smaller Christmas markets all over the city in the parks, you know, things like that. Do you have a favorite that you like to go to?

[00:09:53] Katherine: I, well, actually, if you go out to La Défense, that’s a quite fun one. And La Défense is kind of a lesser visited place for tourists because it’s, I mean, it’s the business district. It’s got the tall skyscrapers that they push to the edge of the city, you know, and so it’s very modern looking. And it does have a modern kind of Arc de Triomphe.

And that’s where, at that base, the esplanade in front of it is where they have the biggest Christmas market in Paris. And it’s, you know, it’s not like The Alsatian Christmas markets that look super cute and charming with all the architecture, but it has lots of great food, there’s music, it’s got some lights.

[00:10:28] Annie: Younger people as well. You know, if you are in your 20s or 30s, La Défense is a good place to go because it’s the business district, there are younger people who are working there.

[00:10:39] Katherine: Exactly. And again, you still have this beautiful view of the modern day Arc de Triomphe out there, which actually runs like a straight line from, you know, the original Arc de Triomphe you can see, so that’s pretty cool.

[00:10:51] Annie: Yeah, so it’s Grande Arche de la Défense is what it’s called. And yes, it is one of the monuments on the Paris historical axis, which incudes the Grande Arche, the Arc de Triomphe, the Luxor Obelisks, also the statue of Louis the XIV by the Louvre. That’s straight line. All of this.

And they did this because they wanted to show off that they could do a straight line miles away.

You know, and now, because this was under Louis XIV that they decided on all of this. And back then it was hard to, they didn’t have GPS, okay? How do you do a straight line over that big distance? They showed off they could do it.

[00:11:33] Katherine: And they did it.

[00:11:34] Annie: And they did it.

Yes, and it’s still good.

[00:11:36] Katherine: Another good one is of course in the Tuileries, they have their big Christmas market as well with the ferris wheel and there’s some rides for kids and stuff, but there’s lots of like booths to get like a raclette or a glass of champagne or something like that, which is a lot of fun.

You can go and hang out and walk around that Christmas market as well. So those are the two ones that I’ve been to and enjoyed a lot. The last time I went to Paris around the holidays, I think it was right before the one next to, in the Saint Germain area, that was right before that one opened.

But that’s another one that a lot of people like. And then, I think it’s Rue des Abbesses in Montmartre. There’s another Christmas market around there that I really wanted to check out, but it just wasn’t open when we were there at the time.

[00:12:21] Annie: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you will also find one, on a little park right by Notre Dame. I mean, they do a lot of different ones. There used to be one on the Champs Élysées. It’s not there anymore. I’m not sure if it’ll ever come back.But yeah, there was one. I think the vendors got tired of the cheap stuff being sold at the Christmas market.

They’re like, this is the Champs Élysées, it has to be expensive and fancy.

[00:12:51] Katherine: Yes, yeah, but there are definitely some Christmas markets around the city if you want to come, especially for your honeymoon or just romantic getaway around the holiday season. But yeah, like you were saying earlier, I think the prettiest part is walking along where the Galeries Lafayette and like the Printemps are.

I really enjoy going up to the rooftop of Galeries Lafayette around that time of year because then you get this huge view of the city with all the lights.

[00:13:13] Annie: Definitely.

[00:13:14] Katherine: It’s just absolutely stunning, especially if you’re going around sunset, which is like 4pm that time of year.

[00:13:19] Annie: Right. So yes, it’s, it’s early. Yes. It’s early that time of year. So, you know, all of these things that we mentioned are in different parts of the city. So, I don’t want you to get the idea that you can go around to all of these things, that’s not a good way to do it. If you want to explore the Grand Boulevard area with the Galerie Lafayette, then go to the Opera, which is also in that area.

You know, stay in that area. Don’t like, whew, all over, like, you’re not a bird. You can’t do it that fast.

[00:13:50] Katherine: Yeah, you don’t want to try to see it all and then not really see anything, you know, so you kind of have to take your time in the different arrondissements of Paris.

Fete de la Musique, 21 June

[00:13:59] Annie: And you also mentioned for people who visit in June, we have the Fete de la Musique, which is excellent. That’s on June 21st every year.

[00:14:08] Katherine: Yes. And that, yeah, that is just a sort of a dance the night away, sort of celebration of summer. And yeah, I mean, there’s lots of music and dancing and stuff, so you can enjoy that as a couple together.

[00:14:21] Annie: Right. And if you want to look for, what advice do you give people who want to look for events, like look for live music, look for things like that?

[00:14:31] Katherine: What advice? I mean, Google is free. Well, yeah, I mean, there’s lots of helpful information out there that list exactly when dates are for things. But I will say for things like the Christmas markets, those are always going to be at least, at the very least, the beginning of December through, like, before Christmas.

And then, you know, Fete de la Musique is going to be during summer solstice, so that’s when that’s going to be, you know, Bastille Day, or the Fête Nationale is going to be July 14th, and stuff like that. But other things you’ll have to look up, I think it was the Harvest Festival in Montmartre, where they have the grapes and the wine and stuff from the one vineyard in Montmartre is going to be released, and they have other events that tends to change throughout the year, or throughout that month.

[00:15:14] Annie: Yeah, so that one in Montmartre, it’s a once a year thing, they sell, I mean, the wine there is not great. You don’t buy it for the wine, you buy it for the bottle.

The people are bottle collectors want one, because they only make maybe 500 bottles, and they are sold at a very high price because it’s a charity.

It helps, I can’t remember, I talked to the vintner, it was a few years ago, I don’t remember what he told me it was for, but it’s an annual event, it’s nothing like harvest, normal harvest. It’s more like a Disneyland type of harvest.

[00:15:49] Katherine: Yeah, because they have other things going on around there too, during the festival that they’ll have like performances and things like that. Yeah.

And some wine tasting.

[00:15:57] Annie: Yeah.

It’s a festive moment. The places I like to look for live events and things, of course, Google, there’s Time Out in Paris, that’s pretty good. Paris Secret, ah, I can’t remember, then, Paris Je T’Aime, that’s a good one where it’s the tourist office of Paris and they list things that are relevant to whatever week or month you are visiting. So always go to these. And of course, look around in the Metro. They advertise a lot of things that will be of interest to, you know, if you want to go out.

The Temples of Love Paris

[00:16:29] Annie: Let’s see, then you talk about the Temples. The temples of love that they have in Paris.

[00:16:35] Katherine: Yes.

Yeah, I mean, one of them is actually in the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, that is the Temple du Sybille. So it’s not an actual Temple of Love, but it looks like it. And it’s on the top of the hill that you can go and see and check out. I believe the other one is in Bois de Vincennes, there’s the lake there,that has the Temple of Love there.

And then also if you go out to Versailles, and especially to Marie Antoinette’s the Petit Trianon, that’s where you can find the gardens and the other love temple. And that’s a very popular place for couples, especially the one of Versailles, because that one’s going to be the most well known of the love temples.

[00:17:14] Annie: And it would be fantastic if you went in late spring, early summer when there’s the most flowers, you know. I don’t think going to Versailles in January or February will be that enchanting because, you know, gardens are dead, very few people, you know, that’s good for a jog.

[00:17:37] Katherine: And if you want actually just go to Versailles without as many crowds, like going inside of the chateau itself, and you don’t want to go in the summer, it’s like swamped.

[00:17:45] Annie: Yeah. It is very busy, it has a big park, if you go in the summer, there’s room for a lot of people.

[00:17:51] Katherine: Even Grand Trinon and Petit Trinon are a lot less crowded than like the chateau itself and the gardens immediately next to the chateau, like right in front of it or behind it.

[00:17:59] Annie: I’m reading a book about Marie Antoinette. And one thing that surprised me is that they explained that she wanted the Petit Trianon and the Grand Trianon to be assimple and plain as possible for the time, because she was tired of all the fuss of Versailles. And it’s true that they are much less decorated and opulent as the other parts of the château.

But I didn’t realize it was Marie Antoinette that wanted it that way.

[00:18:31] Katherine: Yeah.

[00:18:31] Annie: It’s pretty cool.

All right.

Photo Spots and Hidden Gems

[00:18:33] Annie: You mentioned in your notes, the Canal Saint Martin, I’m not sure I love that.

[00:18:39] Katherine: Oh, I like Canal St. Martin.

[00:18:40] Annie: Okay. Okay. Okay. Explain why. Sell it to me.

[00:18:44] Katherine: Okay, well, first of all, it’s quite large. I mean, it’s a big canal, so it’s not like there’s one, there’s maybe not so great of areas, but there are some better areas to it. So especially near the Jardin Wilmen, or Quai de Valmy, those are some better areas. I like walking around there. I like having picnics there. Those areas are a little bit nicer to go to in the Canal St. Martin area. There’s also lots of cafes and bars and restaurants in the area that you can go to and check out.

Yeah, and it’s a lot less crowded than other places, like again, the Tuileries and Jardins du Luxembourg and things like that. So, I personally like going to Canal St. Martin.

[00:19:18] Annie: So, it’s a little bit out of the way as well. It has locks, you might see the locks in action, I did several times. You have the little passages, so it’s the wrought iron passerelle over the canal. If you watchedAmélie Poulin, there’s one point in the movie where she’s skipping stones and she’s doing it from one of the passerelle of the Canal Saint Martin.

It’s a nice place for photos. I think when you’re on a honeymoon, you probably want to take a lot of photos.

[00:19:49] Katherine: Yes.

[00:19:50] Annie: So hire a photographer, is an excellent idea.

[00:19:53] Katherine: Yes. That way you get actual professional photos that you can have together. I also wouldn’t necessarily trust setting up a tripod and taking a photo with your iPhone. There’s a lot of pickpockets out there and I could just see someone quickly when you’re not looking just run off with that.

[00:20:06] Annie: It’s possible. It’s possible. You know, I wrote a Eiffel Tower tour that includes a lot of the best photo shots around the Eiffel Tower with the Eiffel Tower in the background. And I, so I’ve spent, you know, two weeks going back to the Eiffel Tower every single morning because I would go early in the morning to go when there were fewer people. And I always ran into professional photographers and couples, and I wrote the tour in, I can’t remember if it was January or February, but it was cold and the ladies were always frozen. So they always had this big coat that they would take off at the last second to be in their wedding dress.

But you have to go early.

[00:20:54] Katherine: Yes.

[00:20:55] Annie: Right at sunrise, and it is absolutely gorgeous, I mean the sunrise by the Eiffel Tower, it’s glorious. If you want to do that without a professional photographer, if you have a selfie stick, bring a selfie stick and something to set it off.

[00:21:12] Katherine: A spouse with a long arm.

[00:21:13] Annie: Yeah.

[00:21:14] Katherine: That’s what we do.

[00:21:15] Annie: With the Eiffel Tower, you need an awfully long arm.

[00:21:18] Katherine: That’s very true.

[00:21:19] Annie: I think a selfie stick helps if you’re going to try and do that. And then there’s a bunch of spots right around Camoens is one of them,Avenue de Camoens, I can’t remember, or Rue de Camoens, I’m not sure.

It’s all in my tour, but I don’t remember all the spots.

[00:21:32] Katherine: Rue De l’Université, that’s a popular one.

[00:21:34] Annie: Rue De l’Universite at the bottom, yeah.

Yeah. I mean, it’s the Eiffel Tower, you can’t go wrong with that. But also if you want really beautiful photos, well, take a tour of the Opera House, for instance, because it is gorgeous.

It’s gorgeous in there. Like, it’s more beautiful than Versailles, because it is newer than Versailles. It’s in that same style, but it is opulent and beautiful. And you have this beautiful staircase, you know, you can justpose and, and do some fun things. Another one that you sent to me is on the Colonnes de Buren, so it’s a photo of you and your husband on the Colonnes de Buren. I like that.

[00:22:13] Katherine: Yeah, I think that’s a fun photo spot, you see a lot of people on Instagram with those photos, of course, at the columns. But yeah, I think that’s a cute spot to take couples photos. My husband and I do that every time we go. We think that’s always a lot of fun.

[00:22:25] Annie: Yeah, yeah. And I mean, you don’t need to, you don’t necessarily need to dress up like the one that you sent me of the Colonnes de Buren, I mean, you dress like everyday dress, but it’s lovely.

It’s lovely. And you can see the columns in the background, so this is near the Louvre. That would be something you do when you’re visiting the Louvre area, the Colonnes de Buren.

Also, you could go, if you are bookish, you could go into the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, and take a photo with Bibliothèque Richelieu in the back. It’s very cool.

[00:22:58] Katherine: Even going to the Louvre, like outside near the pyramid and where some of those, the fountain areas are, especially do it either early morning or after the Louvre is closed, because then you don’t have all the crowds and people and stuff. And you can actually get some really fun angles and poses that look like there’s really nobody in there but I think that’s a really cool spot to take photos of course, as well.

[00:23:18] Annie: And do, I don’t know when you’re going to be there, so look at sunrise and sunset time in Paris on those days. Because if you show up somewhere to take your photos at sunrise or sunset, depending on where you are exactly, you will have way better photos during the Golden Hour than any other time of the day.

Now, obviously, if you’re on a honeymoon, maybe you don’t want to get up at five in the morning to be in front of the, I mean, the people who go in summer, you have to be there really early. Sunrise is really early, you know, but it’s worth it because these are photos of your wedding, like, you know, special.

[00:23:57] Katherine: Yeah, and you’re right, a lot of people will either come with their wedding dress and take photos or just take, you know, wear nice clothes and do that for their honeymoon as well.

The Crowded Spots of Paris

[00:24:07] Annie: Yes. And from the Pont Bir-Hakeim, this is also near the Eiffel Tower, so on the Pont Bir-Hakeim you have this beautiful statue, that was a gift of I think the Dutch to France. It’s called La France Renaissante or La France Renaissance, I’m not sure, it’s in my tour of the Eiffel Tower, but from that statue, so you stand in front of the statue and you have the Eiffel Tower behind you.

Gorgeous, gorgeous.

[00:24:38] Katherine: There’s so many good Eiffel Tower spots all over place, like Pont d’Iéna.

Pont d’Iéna yeah, that’s good.

[00:24:44] Annie: But everybody goes to Pont d’Iéna.

[00:24:46] Katherine: But in the morning, I mean, they go everywhere all these spots now, now with all these blog posts up, everyone’s going to the, like, Rue de l’Université used to not be as crowded years ago, now it’s like, I just went a couple months ago, and it was just jam packed with people, I mean, it was the middle of the day, but, yeah.

[00:25:02] Annie: Yeah, no, it’s… it’s true. That’s the thing that’s kind of sad. Everybody wants to go to the same places. So, it’s good and it’s bad. Because there are so many beautiful places in Paris. You don’t all need to have the photos in the same place. But that’s just, that’s how I feel.

[00:25:18] Katherine: Yeah, I was even going to say, when you were talking about the Eiffel Tower and seeing that, I really like seeing the Eiffel Tower from Montmartre, not from the Sacré Cœur, because you can’t really see it there, but if you keep walking past to, like, Square Nadar, keep walking there, or even just, there’s so many places, because Montmartre is on the hill, there’s so many little, like, areas where you can spot it.

There was one time I remember finishing up dinner and walking out and there was the Eiffel Tower and it was lit up and it was sparkling because it was on the hour and I was like well this is magical and delightful and I was not expecting it because I’m up in Montmartre but because it’s up on that hill you get so many great viewpoints, and places where there aren’t anybody else looking at the Eiffel Tower. And so that’s really cool to go and check out as well.

[00:26:02] Annie: Yeah, that’s true. And yes, the Eiffel Tower sparkles on the hour every hour after sundown.

So you have to, again, you have to know when sunset is, where you are, when you are going, and it sparkles for five minutes. And then it’s off for the rest of the hour until the next hour.

[00:26:18] Katherine: Yeah, and I want to say it shuts down at like, I think most of the year it’s like 11:45 ish. And then in the summertime, it’s like one o’clock in the morning because the sun doesn’t set until like 10. So it really only gets like a few times to sparkle before it’s done for the night.

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Cocktail Bars and Speakeasy Bars

[00:26:36] Annie: You mentioned a few cocktail bars that you like. Tell me about those. I never go to cocktail bars, so please tell me about those.

[00:26:42] Katherine: Oh, I love a good cocktail bar, especially like a speakeasy type bar. I really like Caster Club and that’s sort of in the Odeon area, like the Saint Germain area. That’s a really cute bar. It’s just, you know, it’s got the dim lighting, they’ll make like custom drinks for you, you can order off the menu, they’ve got some fun music playing in the background, so kind of your classic cocktail bar, but it’s sort of a little bit hidden.

I really like No Entry, which is… it’s, oh gosh, what’s the famous Big Mama restaurant that all the influencers go to, because it’s like got the, like the aesthetic, it’s near Montmartre, it’s in the Pigalle area.

Okay, I’m going to look it up. I’ve been to one in Toulouse and I was not impressed, so I didn’t… so… Mama Shelter, you said? No.

You know the Big Mama group that does all the Italian restaurants around the city? I’ll look it up.

Oh, Pink Mama.

[00:27:28] Annie: Ah, Okay.

So, Pink Mama is a fun place, huh?

[00:27:32] Katherine: Well, it’s a popular place. No, the bar though, there’s a speakeasy at Pink Mama. So Pink Mama is this very popular Italian restaurant, it’s wherelike all the big influencers and everybody goes there because it’s got this like Instagram aesthetic to it for sure, and it’s like decent Italian food.

But there’s a bar there that’s actually really cool called No Entry and you have to go to, you go in the basement and it’s literally looks like a freezer door and it says No Entry on it. And you open it and then that’s, it’s a speakeasy in there and that’s really cool.

Lots of great drinks there as well. Yeah, that’s another like fun cocktail bar that you can go to while you’re there. I believe there’s also, I haven’t been to this one, this one’s on my list, but Candelaria, it’s like a taco shop, but then it’s a taco shop in the front, and you can go and like enjoy the tacos there, and then you go through a door and it’s a speakeasy in the back as well.

So there’s some fun speakeasies you can go to around Paris, which are a lot of fun, have some good music, some ambient lighting, and then just delicious cocktails.

Exploring Le Marais and Vintage Shopping

[00:28:26] Annie: Candelaria is one that you could go to either when you are in the Marais area, exploring the Marais area, it’s on the north end of the Marais, or if you are heading out to the Canal Saint Martin. Yeah, probably, probably I would do it if I’m in the Marais, because it’s not an obvious line to Canal Saint Martin.

[00:28:47] Katherine: And you can do, I mean, yeah, you could literally spend the whole day in Le Marais. That’s where you can go perfume shopping and just lots of great shopping, there’s some good museums in that area. Yeah. Tons of museums. You’ve got some great cafes and restaurants and then, yeah, go grab some cocktails at Candelaria.

Yeah, the Marais is really a big area. The Centre Pompidou is there, butit’s going to be closing for five years, but there are many other great museums there. There’s a Picasso Museum, there’s, let’s see, what else is there? The archives.

There’s Archives, which is fun, yeah, because that’s free.

[00:29:21] Annie: And you enter into a fun, old French Hotel Hotel Particulier, which has some archives. Of course, there’s the Carnavalet Museum is also there.

[00:29:31] Katherine: The Paris History Museum. Yeah. I always get that one confused where they’re at with that and the Cluny Museum, which I love a Cluny Museum.

[00:29:39] Annie: The Cluny Museum is closer to Notre Dame, yeah, the Saint Germain area. The Cluny Museum is very close to Shakespeare and Company. If you’re going to be exploring the Latin Quarter, you start at Notre Dame, you go to Shakespeare and Company, and you go to the Cluny, or you take my tour and it’ll just navigate you there.

[00:29:59] Katherine: Exactly.

[00:30:00] Annie: Because there’s a lot of stops along there. It’s a beautiful, beautiful area.

Vintage Shopping in France

[00:30:04] Annie: You like vintage shopping.

[00:30:06] Katherine: I do.

[00:30:07] Annie: Okay, I don’t do any of that, so tell me about that.

[00:30:09] Katherine: Well, again, in Le Marais, with the great shopping, there’s tons of good vintage shopping that you can just kind of pop in and see different vintage shops. They have some that are fancy and have like old, like vintage designer goods if you have that kind of budget, because it’s not like they’re like dirt cheap $1 Louis Vuitton bags there.

They’re still really expensive, especially because they’re vintage.

But there’s also great places that just have like older clothing that’s fun. And I think that’s a lot of fun to go vintage shopping. I mean my husband and I do that here in Cleveland. So yeah, it’s a great place to pick up clothes together and try on different things and see what you like.

Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen.

[00:30:43] Annie: You mentioned the Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen. I did a whole episode about it. There’s some tips on how to get there, not to run into… because Saint Ouen is not the fanciest area of Paris. Right, so let me see…

[00:30:58] Katherine: You have to kind of walk through some okay areas. I mean, I’m… I don’t know, I’m from Cleveland, so I’m just like, I was like, Saint Ouen was like, ah, it’s fine. But..

[00:31:08] Annie: Yeah, but not everybody’s from Cleveland.

[00:31:10] Katherine: Yeah, but yeah, I know that I took the metro up there because it’s quite far. It’s north. It’s pretty far up there, but you can get there via metro and then you do kind of have to walk through an area and then you’re surrounded by vintage shop after vintage shop, selling anything from like old records, to art, to furniture, if you’ve got that in your budget and you can ship that home.

[00:31:31] Annie: Yeah. So episode 332 of the podcast was all about this. And if you want to go to the Saint Ouen flea market, exit at the Garibaldi metro station, rather than the Porte de Clignancourt metro station, which is where Google is going to send you. So, just choose to get off at Garibaldi, it’s a much better experience.

Also, the Saint Ouen market is only open Friday nights, Saturday and Sunday, I think.

The rest of the week it’s closed.

[00:32:02] Katherine: Yeah, or has like limited hours maybe some of the days.

[00:32:05] Annie: Yeah. Check the hours.

[00:32:07] Katherine: It’s a really fun place to go around and walk around, even just to peruse, you know, if you like vintage things. Or if you want to pick up a few things.

[00:32:15] Annie: Sure. Yeah. If you have the budget, it’s great. This is not a cheap place.

[00:32:18] Katherine: I mean, there’s some stuff that’s not too terribly bad, like if you’re going to pick up some old records or, you know, some old things like that, postcards, that sort of thing, but then if you’re like, oh my gosh, this, look at this 19th century couch or something.

[00:32:32] Annie: Vintage mirror, or frame, or you know… they cost a lot, they are not cheap.

[00:32:40] Katherine: But yeah, that’s a cool place to go and wander around together as a couple.

Musée des Arts Forains

[00:32:43] Katherine: I would say, also, I was going to throw out one of the museums, I think this is a playful fun date idea, it’s the Museum of Fairground Arts. And I know that they do have, most of the tours are in French, so if you know some French, that’s helpful.

But they do have stuff for non French speakers. They do have some leaflets and things like that that you can do. And then at the end of the year, they actually have a little festival where it’s the only time of year where it’s open, where you don’t need a guided tour.

And this is really cool because you get to actually, it’s a museum, but you also get to, it’s so interactive, you can actually play the fairground games and ride the rides from the turn of the century fairground stuff. And I went and did this, and it was so fun, and I think this is a really fun date idea in Paris, just because it’s very playful, you get to play games against each other, you can go ride on some of the rides together, and I think that’s a really cool, unique setting, and it’s out in Bercy.

[00:33:36] Annie: Yes, in Bercy. It’s called Les Musée des Arts Forains, and we did an episode about it. It was episode 467. And at Christmas time, if you go between Christmas and New Year, that’s the only time they do this, as far as I know, it’s open to the public all the time, and all the rides work, all the machines work.

Whereas the rest of the time, a few of the rides work and a few of the machines work, but not most of them. And it is just in French.

[00:34:06] Katherine: And you have to do the tour.

[00:34:07] Annie: When I went, obviously I speak French, but there were some people in the group that didn’t speak French and the guide would kind of do a brief summary of what he was talking about. A beautiful place, it’s pretty good for photos as well.

[00:34:19] Katherine: Yeah, because I think that they rent it out for private events as well throughout the year.

I think people do weddings there or events and things as well.

I’m sure that that would be an epic wedding spot.

[00:34:31] Annie: Yes oh yes, that would be very nice to do it there. If you go, even if you don’t go at Christmas time, I think it’s worth a visit. It’s really whimsical and really just very, very different. It’s not what people think about if they go to Paris.

[00:34:47] Katherine: Yeah, I went during just, I just took a tour. You book it online. I speak some French, so I was able to kind of get by with it, which was nice. But yeah, they do kind of help out the people that don’t speak French as well. They try to either, you know, give you a brief or give you a leaflet to look at.

But I mean, it all translates the same as far as riding the rides and playing the games. So you still get to do that. You get to, it’s a lot of fun to get to do together. And I think that’s a really fun date idea for couples to do in Paris.

[00:35:12] Annie: And there’s also a nice mall, there’s a kind of a mall nearby if you want to get some food, there’s a park nearby, so it’s like Musée des Arts Forains, then the mall, then the big garden, I can’t remember what the garden is called, but I’ll find it.

[00:35:29] Katherine: Yeah. Is that close to Bois de Vincennes?

[00:35:31] Annie: Yeah, it’s in that part of the city, ah, c’est le Parc de Bercy is what it’s called, yeah, the Parc de Bercy is the name of the park there. On one side you have the Parc de Bercy, on the other side you have the Musée des Arts Forains, and if you’re in that area, you could have a meal at Le Train Bleu, the fancy diner.

[00:35:49] Katherine: Yeah, in the train station.

[00:35:51] Annie: Yeah. It’s at the Gare de Lyon, and it’s, you know, it’s very nice. La Coulee Verte, so the, kind of the train tracks walk is there. That’s more for families though, I mean, it’s fine if you want to do it as a couple, but it’s, lots of people go with their young kids.

[00:36:09] Katherine: I think it’s a fun stroll.Yeah, it’s, so the former Vincennes Railway, and it goes between the Viaduct des Arts, and basically goes towards the Bois de Vincennes, and it’s about 2.9 miles, so you can go for a run or a walk, depending, I don’t, my husband and I are runners, so we would just run it, but it’s a cool, it’s cool, and it actually inspired New York City’s High Line, in Chelsea.

So I think that’s a really cool, and that’s also a very popular date night, date spot to kind of walk around in Chelsea and New York City, is the High Line. So yeah, it’s very similar to that. And yeah, I think that’s a cool walk that you can do in Paris outside of going to the parks and walking along the Seine, especially I, yeah.

Again, like one of my husband and I favorite things to do in Paris is just walking along the Seine, especially in the morning when it’s more quiet and just kind of seeing the city wake up and just walking along the Seine, strolling together, getting in to enjoy just kind of that peace and quiet of the morning.

[00:37:04] Annie: If you walk between the Jardin des Plantes and the cathedral, Notre Dame Cathedral, it’s lovely along there, you know, on both sides, it’s different things, but it’s very nice along there, just right along the river.

[00:37:19] Katherine: Yeah. And if you just keep walking along like, I did a run one time, I was training for a half marathon and I did a run from the Pigalle area where I was staying down to like where the Eiffel Tower was, and so that was even fun because I ran along the Seine and stuff and you can like, go along and then there’s the Eiffel Tower and it’s, you know…

Again, another great viewpoint that’s not going to be crowded is along the Seine near the Eiffel Tower. At least in the morning, it’s not very crowded compared to like, Rue de l’Université or Champ de Mars or Trocadéro that’s going to be swarmed with people.

Cooking Class

[00:37:47] Annie: Yeah. Yeah. You mentioned take a cooking class, which is a good idea if you enjoy that.There’s some that are very short cooking class and that, I mean, to find those you would find to on Get My Guide, Get Your Guide or whatever, Viator.

They have a list of them. Do you have a favorite?

[00:38:05] Katherine: I’ve done the macaron making class, and that was fun because I always felt really intimidated by that and so getting to actually make them and be like, okay, it’s not as crazy as I thought it was going to be. But it was yeah, it was really cool. It was at a chef’s home, which was cool.

And she just taught us how to make different macarons. And it was, it was a really cool experience to get to do that.

[00:38:25] Annie: One that I’ve enjoyed is calledPause Dej, which means Pause Déjeuner. So it’s like your lunch break and it’s at l’Atelier des Chefs. It’s in the Marais. And so you kind of reserve that and you go, you cook for half an hour, you have a chef that’s going to show you some techniques.

I mean, it’s pretty basic, okay? He’s going to show you how to hold your knife right, how to chop right, how to, you know, where you can fillet your chicken or whatever. And then you cook it and then you sit and eat it. So it takes about half an hour. But the macaron, I like the macaron idea because that, that takes some technique to make some macaron.

I’m not very good at it. I haven’t practiced very much because I can just buy them anywhere I go. I’m in France.

[00:39:08] Katherine: Yeah. And they have like croissant making classes as well and stuff like that. Like it’s crazy. So if you want to like, if you’re more of a beginner and you two are just learning how to cook together, then maybe it’s sort of a beginner class would be a great idea and you want to get some of the French cooking techniques perhaps.

But yeah, if you want to up your game, maybe challenge yourself a little more, do some macarons or even a croissant making class. I’ve made croissants just on my own before and it was a stressful experience to say the least. It took me at least, I think it took almost three days from start to finish.

[00:39:36] Annie: Yeah.

[00:39:37] Katherine: The whole time you’re just hoping that the butter doesn’t melt.

[00:39:40] Annie: Yeah. No, I think there’s… look, I wrote a cookbook. I wrote a pandemic cookbook because I was bored during the pandemic. It is called ‘Join Us at the Table’. And I stayed away from difficult things like making croissant because that takes, I mean, you know, pastry chefs in France, they go to school for three years.

They get used to handling butter, and cream, and flour. There’s some technique to this. And if you just follow a recipe, it’s not going to be as good.

[00:40:10] Katherine: Yeah, it can be really, it can be very, very tough to do.

[00:40:13] Annie: Yeah, It’s difficult.

Musee de la Vie Romantique

[00:40:16] Annie: Another thing you mentioned is visiting The Musee de la Vie Romantique. Very nice.

[00:40:22] Katherine: And it’s, so it’s not necessarily a museum about romance. It’s technically about that time period with romantic painters, because it was owned by Ari Scheffer, Dutch artist, Ari Scheffer, the house was, and then he has harps and he used to host famous, you know, he had like a salon where he hosted like, Eugene Delacroix, which is a famous, Romantic painter and stuff like that.

George Sand, like lots of people like that, but you can go through the house and it’s got works from him and his contemporaries. But I think it, it’s a cute museum. I really enjoy it. But the real fun thing there is the tea room right next door to it. It’s in this beautiful courtyard. You can go and have a tea or a coffee and a pastry together and it’s just, it’s like got little trees and it’s just like a peaceful little place in the city to go and check out and just have a nice like quiet afternoon together.

We can chat and catch up and have some tea, and a pastry, and stuff and definitely check out the museum while you’re there as well. It’s very nice.

But yeah, the tea room is a really lovely spot to go during your time in Paris.

Romantic Cafes and Hot Chocolate Spots

[00:41:21] Annie: So another great place I like to go for a quick drink or tea or something is the Petit Palais.

So, this is by the Champs Élysées. It’s actually between the Élysées Palace and the river, and it is absolutely stunning. For people who are not into museums, it is free, most of the exhibits, they sometimes have special exhibits for which you have to pay a little bit, but it’s a world class museum that’s free, and it has a marvelous café area.

So, there you go. Beautiful gardens, just lovely.

And for the Olympics, they went all out with the flowers. Oh, it was stunning.

But the Petit Palais is a favorite. So if you’re in the area of the Champs Élysées, definitely stop by the Petit Palais. I think it’s romantic because it’s gorgeous and you can take beautiful photos.

[00:42:22] Katherine: Architecture, the flowers because it’s in the garden in the Petit Palais, which is gorgeous, yeah. I would also say speaking of cafes, I, something that we really enjoy doing is finding the best hot chocolate. You got to determine which is the best hot chocolate in Paris. And yeah, I think what we really like to do, and my husband has different ones, I personally like Carrettes, I like the one at Place des Vosges because it’s not as crazy as the other one, but it’s just beautiful because Place des Vosges is stunning, it’s the oldest park in Paris, or the oldest square in Paris, I believe.

And it’s just, the architecture around it is stunning, it’s a gorgeous park on its own, but the Carrette there is just a beautiful place, it has this thick, creamy, delicious hot chocolate, and it comes with this big, huge thing of whipped cream, you can have with it. So I really enjoy that for getting that at breakfast time, getting a little hot chocolate and a pastry for breakfast. My husband loves Les Deux Magots. So that’s a famous literary cafe that’s in Saint Germain, it’s gorgeous as well. And he loves the hot chocolate there, the ancient hot chocolate.

So we’ll try that there. And then of course, you’ve got to go to Angelina, which has spots all over, I feel like, but, I know there’s one close to the Louvre. That’s where I went to last time.

[00:43:30] Annie: That’s the original location, yes.

[00:43:33] Katherine: Yeah. And that is also well known for their hot chocolate, as well. So I challenge people to like, Oh, if you want to find the best hot chocolate, why not try them all? Or not try them all, but try those and see which one is the best one. And I really, I will say the atmosphere at Les Deux Magots and Carrettes are better than Angelina, I would say.

And I think their hot chocolates are better, honestly, but…

[00:43:53] Annie: Agreed.

[00:43:54] Katherine: …those are good spots to go and chill and hang out together.

[00:43:57] Annie: Angelina is just way too busy. Too many people. Like, you will wait two hours just to have a drink. Like, oh, I’m not that motivated.

[00:44:04] Katherine: And Les Deux Magots is just, it’s such, I mean, of course, it’s quite popular, it’s the famous cafes with Hemingway and all of that went there, but the people watching there is just fantastic because it’s on that sort of busy boulevard and corner there, and there’s just such great people watching.

So you sit outside and you can just sort of watch the world go by as long as you want to, and sip your hot chocolate. They’ve also got good coffee, and maybe have a pastry and just sort of slowly enjoy your breakfast together.

[00:44:31] Annie: If you take my tour of the Saint Germain des Prés area, I take people to many more beautiful spots in that neighborhood, because this is one where it’s small streets, little back alleys, things like that, it’s absolutely gorgeous. So, we’ve been talking a long time, we have to stop, Kat, but you, in the file you sent me, you mentioned several restaurants that you enjoy, so I will list them in the show notes, and also hotels that you like, and some with view to the Eiffel Tower. I haven’t stayed at any of them.

I mean, Relais Bosquet et Gustave. I haven’t stayed at it. Have you stayed there?

[00:45:09] Katherine: Which one was it?

[00:45:10] Annie: So you mentioned for Eiffel Tower views, Hôtel Relais Bosquet.

[00:45:14] Katherine: I have not stayed in that one’s on my list of staying at, but I’ve stayed in so many Paris hotels. I actually have a blog post on France Voyager about where to stay in Paris and I’ve stayed in almost every single one of those hotels. Some of them are a bit pricey.

[00:45:26] Annie: Yeah.

Yeah.

[00:45:27] Katherine: If money was no option, this is the one I would stay at, but…

[00:45:30] Annie: The Shangri La, The Shangri La.

[00:45:32] Katherine: Yeah, can’t stay there. That one’s pretty pricey. I would, I think that if money were of no object, I think Maison Suquette would be stunning. It’s just got this Arabian, Napoleon sort of architecture, and it has like a hamam and a spa, and it just looks very, it looks just beautiful. Both, you know, just the interior decorations, the salon, and the rooms and stuff.

If I, that’s a five star hotel, that one I’m looking at staying on to, like, I’m going back to Paris in February, and I was looking at that one, it’s like a little bit cheaper in the off season.

[00:46:01] Annie: Sure.

[00:46:02] Katherine: But yes, some great ones. I personally, my husband and I recently stayed at Hotel Odeon Saint Germain. That one’s a good one.

It’s actually got quite a lot of space in those rooms, which is sort of like rare in Paris, but it’s a cute, cozy room. I also really like Hotel Atmospheres. I’ve stayed there a lot. I also really like staying there both with my husband, but also when I travel with my in laws and my parents, where like their knees aren’t so great.

So they’ve got like elevators, they’ve got the walk in showers, but also it’s a cute hotel. It’s in the Latin Quarter, and it has like beautiful views. You can just open your window and see the beautiful views of the boulevard below. Yeah, and then I also really like Hotel Saint Marc, which is close to the opera area, and that actually you can rent out the spa, like, hamam area, privately.

So that’s a really great spot for a honeymoon if you want just like to spend an hour together. They have a pool area with the jets, they have a hammam steam room, and you can rent that out at the hotel. And they also have beautiful rooms, and it was a stunning bathroom when I stayed there as well.

So those are some really good hotels that are also pretty affordable, if you don’t want to splurge on the five star hotels when you’re in Paris, because those get and add up fast. They’re very expensive sometimes, but yeah…

[00:47:11] Annie: Fantastic. So I’ll list all of those and you can also find them onFrancevoyager.com as well.

[00:47:18] Katherine: Yes.

[00:47:19] Annie: All right. Well, happy listening to the worldwide honeymoon travel podcast, everybody!

[00:47:26] Katherine: Yeah.

[00:47:27] Annie: And thank you so much for talking to me, Kat. You’ve been very lovely and I wish you many, many wonderful trips to France.

[00:47:34] Katherine: Oh, thanks. It’s been great talking to you, too.

[00:47:37] Annie: Merci beaucoup.

[00:47:39] Katherine: Merci.

[00:47:40] Annie: Au revoir.

Thank You Patrons

[00:47:47] Annie: Again, I want to thank my patrons for giving back and supporting the show. Patreon supporters get new episodes as soon as they are ready and ad-free. Please be like them, follow the link in the show notes. Patrons get more exclusive rewards for doing that, you can see all of that at patreon.com/joinus.

And a special shout out this week to our new Join Us in France champions, Brenda Ray, Susan Gilbert, and Liz from New Zealand. And to all my current patrons, it is wonderful to have you on board in a community of travel enthusiasts and Francophiles who keep this podcast going.

And to support Elyse, go to patreon.com/ElysArt.

I won’t read any new reviews of my VoiceMap tours today, but if you listen to this episode as soon as it comes out, I’ve just arrived in Paris and I’ll be updating my Ile de la Cité Notre Dame tour. It will be ready next week.

I’ll also explore Paris, of course, try new restaurants, go to places I haven’t seen yet. It’s always fun to spend time in Paris and my focus is going to be on Notre Dame de Paris, which I’m really excited about.

Podcast listeners, of course, get a big discount for buying these tours from my website directly: joinusinfrance.com/boutique. I am still offering itinerary planning sessions. I use a service called Calendly to book my appointments, and they sent me a recap for 2024.

Last year, I booked 169 meetings, and the Bonjour planning service was the most popular. And June was my busiest month. I’ll warn you right now. I’ll block out at least two weeks in June 2025, because I want to go on a cruise. And it’s my birthday, and my anniversary, and it’ll be right after my daughter’s wedding, and the bootcamp. So I’ll need some time off. Don’t leave it till the last minutes. You can see all the details and how it works, or book it at joinusinfrance.com/boutique.

And if you’re looking for the Amazon affiliate link, go to joinusinfrance.com/Amazon.

Emergency Medical Care in France

[00:50:06] Annie: Okay. Let’s talk about how to get medical care in France. First of all, the emergency number in Europe is 112. That’s the equivalent to the American 911 that

everybody knows about because of movies and things like that. So 112 is a Europe wide number. They can speak English as well as many European languages. 112 is what you call for any emergency. They can get the fire brigade, the police, the ambulance, et cetera.

For medical emergencies only, anywhere from France, you can also dial 15 from any phone. But I’m not sure how that would work from your American cell phone, but it will work from your hotel phone, but that’s only for emergency situations, so you can do 112 or 15 if you just need medical stuff.

SOS Médecins

[00:50:58] Annie: Now, what to do if you’re in Paris and you catch the flu, or you need to see a doctor for any reason? Paris has a service called SOS Médecins that offers medical emergency services and unscheduled general medical care 24/7 in Paris and in the surrounding departments of the Ile de France. When you call them, they make an assessment.

They may do a house call. They often do that. Or recommend that you visit one of their doctor’s offices. They have offices in the 3rd, 13th and 15th arrondissement. To reach them on the phone, you call plus 331 4707 7777. So that’s five sevens in a row. 311 4707 7777.

Prices are a little bit higher than regular doctor’s visit in France and you do pay more for a weekend or a night house call, but generally it’ll cost you less than a hundred euros for the visit.

You can book an appointment online as well. Browse to sosmedecins.fr/EN. And then it’s all in English. I’ll put a link in the show notes, of course.

What if you’re not in Paris? We have other groups doing SOS Médecins type of services, they call themselves SOS Médecins or something of the sort.

You can type SOS Médecins and the name of the town where you are in your browser. Many French cities have a service like that. For example, in Toulouse, it’s sosmedecins31.org.

So they use the department number. In Bordeaux, if you want it to extrapolate, maybe it would be sosmedecin33.org. Well, it’s not.

In Bordeaux, it’s sosmedecin-bordeaux.com. So they have a com, in Toulouse they have a org, in Paris they have a .Fr, clearly they didn’t coordinate when they bought their domain names. But if you search for SOS Médecins, most cities have one.

Maison Médicale de Garde

[00:53:20] Annie: All over France we also have what’s called Maison Médicale de Garde, these are doctor’s offices that stay open late and on weekends. They take turns doing that. And to find out who does that near you, talk to a pharmacist. That’s the on call kind of doctor’s office. I think it’s the same in the US. Don’t they take turns? I’m not sure. And anyway, we also have Australia, New Zealand, we have people from all over the world listening to this podcast, but Maison Médicale de Garde is the ones that are going to be open late and on weekends.

Any pharmacy can assess you and recommend what you need to do. Do you need to go to the ER? Are they going to help you find a local doctor?

They can recommend something that’s appropriate for your need.

Dental Help

[00:54:08] Annie: What if you need a dentist because you broke a tooth or get a sudden dental abscess? That’s a little bit trickier, but I suggest you go to the nearest dental office and see if they can patch you up, fit you in between two appointments or something, until you get home.

I’m sure many dentists would do that, you might have to wait till the next day or something, but hopefully you could get in somewhere.

French people make medical appointments using a platform called Doctolib, but that’s designed for people who are here long term. Many French doctors on Doctolib do not take any new patients, or they won’t give you a first appointment until a month or two later, so it’s really not a very good way to find a doctor who can see you today or tomorrow, unless you have a relationship with that doctor, but clearly, if you’re just visiting, you don’t, so it’s not the right way for you.

If you’re staying in a hotel, they probably know a doctor who can make house calls, talk to the concierge, and of course, you can always go to the emergency room, but, I mean, if you’re bleeding, maybe yes.

If you think you broke something, yes. But if you just have a flu, I don’t think the emergency room is the right place for that.

Overall, if you’re feeling unwell, do see a doctor, even if you have to pay full price with no insurance, it will be cheap compared to what you would pay in the US. I realize many of you are listening from Canada or Australia or England, where medical care may not be as expensive.

But hey, if you’re sick, get some help, okay? We have lots of doctors and they’re quite competent and many of them speak English, not all of them, that’s the advantage of looking on DOCTOLIB because there you can see which doctors say they speak English. So, that might be something you want to look at to make your choice.

My thanks to podcast editors Anne and Christian Cotovan who produced the transcripts.

Next week on the podcast

[00:56:12] Annie: Next week on the podcast, an episode with Steve Weaver about how to fall in love with France beyond Paris. So much to talk about there.

And remember, patrons get an ad-free version of this episode, and I hope that if you can’t become a patron, at least you listen to the ads.

Don’t skip them. Skipping ads is evil.

Thank you for listening, and I hope you join me next time so we can look around France together. Au revoir.

Copyright

[00:56:40] Annie: The Join Us in France travel podcast is written, hosted, and produced by Annie Sargent, and Copyright 2025 by AddictedToFrance. It is released under a Creative Commons attribution, non-commercial, no derivatives license.

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Transcript for Episode 529: Hidden Gems for Romantic Getaways in Paris