Please sign in to post.

Ballet/Opera in Paris

I'm taking my wife and granddaughter to France for 11 days in May (inc travel) with at least five nights in Paris. My GD in into music, art, drama and dance and would like to see ballet or opera while there, preferably ballet. Have any of you done this on previous trips to Paris or have any knowledge of where to find these events. If so, any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated. What is the appropriate attire for them? Dressy, casual, etc.? I had not planned to take dressy clothes but can if necessary.

Also, the best area to stay in Paris. We are looking for a 2–3-bedroom apartment as opposed to getting two rooms at a hotel. On other trips to Europe, we have typically rented houses, apartments, townhomes and even a farmhouse and enjoyed shopping at local markets for food to cook some of our meals where we stayed. We have been to France before, but this is our GD's first international trip, a HS graduation present for her. She will turn 19 while in Paris. Thank you.

Jim

Posted by
8542 posts

Get an account with Paris Opera which runs both the Garnier, where ballet is performed, and the Bastille Opera where most operas are performed. We go to a lot of operas at the Bastille (3 this fall in our month there) and love it, but I suspect what you want to experience is the gaudy Garnier opera house and that is a good venue for ballet. Look at the schedule and see what is scheduled for your time in Paris. Book as soon as the tickets are available. The web site indicates when that is. It is months before your trip. You have to have an account to buy tickets; the tickets go on sale first thing in the morning in Paris which is the middle of the night in the US. If it is popular the less expensive tickets will be gone quickly; stay in the on line queue and be ready to pounce when your turn comes up.

We like to dress up a little for the opera; my husband wears a black blazer that he travels with and I wear some sort of dressy top that I throw on over my basic black slacks and top. Dressy casual is fine.