The best Christmas markets in Paris this season are the Champs-Élysées market, back on the avenue after a long absence, and the Notre Dame market in Square René Viviani. Both are free to enter, and this guide adds a warm meal to go with each. The Christmas lights at La Défense, which has its own metro station, make a third outing of their own.
The Champs-Élysées Christmas market
The Champs-Élysées market has returned to the avenue itself, so the stalls stand on the avenue des Champs-Élysées rather than tucked away in a park or a square. For sitting down to a proper meal after the stalls, stay near the Arc de Triomphe end of the avenue.
L’Aventure is a theatrical dining room a few steps from the Arc de Triomphe, and the room expects you to dress up. The menu is French with Japanese touches: langoustine tartare with caviar, say, or wagyu grilled over binchotan charcoal. If you plan to stay on for the club downstairs, book a late table.
L'Aventure
Hours: Mon–Fri 07:30–02:00 · Sat–Sun 08:00–02:00
Address: 4 Av. Victor Hugo, 75116 Paris, France
The Notre Dame Christmas market
The Notre Dame market is held in Square René Viviani, on rue du Fouarre. It carries the name of the cathedral, and it pairs well with a warm meal in the Latin Quarter afterwards, once the cold has set in and you want to sit down to eat.
Le Grenier de Notre-Dame is a short walk from the cathedral in the Latin Quarter. For decades it has cooked vegetarian, fully organic food, working with the same network of small producers the whole time.
Order the assiette végétarienne composée and let the kitchen decide; they build it from whatever arrived that morning. The natural wine list is fairly priced for the neighbourhood.
Le Grenier de Notre-Dame
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:00–14:30, 18:30–22:30 · Sat 12:00–22:30 · Sun 12:00–22:00
Address: 18 Rue de la Bûcherie, 75005 Paris, France
Christmas lights at La Défense
The Christmas lights at Paris La Défense are a display, not a market. La Défense has its own metro station, and the lights are worth a separate trip instead of being squeezed in after a market and a meal. Go after dark, when they are at their best.
