Flying time is about one hour Local laws and etiquette Travelling times: London to Paris by Eurostar takes 2hr 15min. Telephone code: from abroad, dial 00 33, then leave off the zero at the start of the 10-figure number. Most Paris numbers start with 01 mobile phone numbers start with 06 numbers beginning 08 are special-rate numbers, ranging from 0800 freephone to premium-rate calls Office du Tourisme de Paris: (00 33 1 49 52 42 63 ), 25 rue des Pyramides, 75001 ParisĮmergency services from mobile phone: dial 112 The basics For passports and most other visitor services, contact the consulate at 15 rue d’Anjou (same telephone number) rather than the embassy Essential informationīritish Embassy/Consulate: (00 33 1 44 51 31 00 ). Le Royal Monceau Raffles is a contemporary take on the ultra-luxe palace-grade hotel, with Philippe Starck-designed décor and fusion food offerings from Nobu Matsuhisa, as well as rotating art exhibits and a stylish 'concept store'. The hotel is on Avenue Hoche, one of the roads radiating from the Arc de Triomphe on Place de l'Etoile. There is one in Parc Montsouris in the 14th arrondissement – make it your mission to track down some more. You'll find some water fountains across the city that offer natural Parisian sparkling water. You don’t need to be staying at Paris’s most expensive five-star addresses to get a feel for them: try a drink at Bar Hemingway at The Ritz Paris or a tipple with a view at Le Rooftop at The Peninsula Paris. Try the jazz brunch (all-you-can-eat indulgence and live music: a winner) at La Bellevilloise and climb to the top of Parc de Belleville for Eiffel Tower views.
For more contemporary tastes, there’s plenty of exploring to be done in the less tourist-trodden outer arrondissements – from arts venues on the sloping streets of Belleville to the boutique hotels and reinvented dive bars of Pigalle.Įxplore our interactive map below for all the local highlights, and scroll down for our suggested day-by-day summary of the best things to see and do.įor further Paris inspiration, see our guides devoted to the French capital's best hotels, restaurants, nightlife, bars, things to do, free things to do and shopping. Those looking to explore the city’s rich heritage can spend long afternoons getting lost in the Louvre or wandering the Musée d'Orsay, or ducking in and out of Paris’s countless historical churches (many of which were reinvented as Republican temples after the Revolution). But though the city wears its history – of monarchy, revolution, revolt and artistic innovation – with characteristic style, it is also increasingly looking to the future and outwards to the rest of the world. Source: Flickr / / and are the property of their owners.The uniform sandstone of the Haussmann buildings, the abundance of gilded historic monuments, and the glimmering Seine and its elegant bridges have arguably made Paris the most recognisable and romanticised cityscape in the world. WWI couple, England, sometime between 1914-1918 I wonder if those quotation marks imply what I think they do, by the look on their faces, I would say they do” On the back was written… Aunty Mary and her “friend” Ruth, 1910. “A friend of mine found this old photograph in a shoe box in his Grandmother’s attic. It is also a reminder that homosexuality has been around since the beginning of mankind and is not something which can be legislated back into the closet. It is a testament to the early pioneers of the LGBT movement who have made the world a more accepting and compassionate place for everyone today. The following is a photo tribute to gay couples from the late 19th century and first half of the 20th Century. Vintage Gay Love: A Look Back At The Early Gay Pioneers in Photos