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Christmas Day in Paris

Will any place be open for a traveler on Christmas Day? We arrive on Christmas Eve and have plans for a Réveillon dinner that evening. But where is one to go, or eat, on Christmas Day when everything is closed? Will any churches will have great music on Christmas morning? Will any hotels be serving meals on that day?

Posted by
1329 posts

There's always SOMETHING open. There will be plenty of online resources with a list of restaurants open. TheFork.com is also a great place to look.

Posted by
13800 posts

What area are you staying in?

Posted by
5 posts

Beautiful. All booked for December apparently. Taking reservations for January only.

Posted by
868 posts

We will also be in Paris on Christmas Day. We have lunch reservations at Le Terrasse du 7eme, a restaurant which has received positive reviews on RS. For dinner, we have reservations at Market.
We will wander around Montmartre in the morning and also visit Sacre Coeur. We visited on Christmas Day a few years ago and there were many there--it was elbow to elbow. The mass and singing were beautiful. I think that Montmartre will be somewhat lively --we'll see. The Jacquemart-Andre Museum is open on Christmas Day. We have tickets for the Eiffel Tower on Christmas Day, too. You might find this link helpful--https://www.parisinsidersguide.com/christmas-in-paris-france.html. You need to reserve meals, etc. asap, though.

Posted by
1726 posts

For Christmas some restaurants will be closed, many others will be full for dinner and most will charge insane prices for a Christmas meal.
However you can still try the typical and very Parisian large traditional brasseries which are generally open 7/7, have a typical decor , traditional French specialties, and probably a special Christmas menu.

Two of the most famous are quite close to your accommodation (near the Opéra Garnier)
"Le Grand Café Capucines"

https://www.legrandcafe.com/en/

"Le Café de la Paix"

https://www.cafedelapaix.fr/en/

An also very well known "la Brasserie Mollard" north of the Opéra Garnier, near the Galeries Lafayette:

http://www.mollard.fr/?lang=en

Another famous brasserie near Les Halles, even closer to rue du Nil than the previous ones:
Le Pied de Cochon (open 24/7)

https://www.pieddecochon.com/en/

Bon appétit!

Posted by
5 posts

We had a wonderful time in Paris on Christmas Day, because so much was open. Unlike the U.S., where everything is closed on Christmas while Americans play couch potato watching TV all day, Parisians and French visitors on their holiday were outdoors, strolling the sidewalks. We attended Mass at St Eustache, with its grand organ and beautiful choir. While offices and banks and most museums in Paris were closed, many cafes and brasseries were open for business and we didn't need reservations. We strolled the banks of the Seine and watched the Eifel Tower light up at night. A very memorable day, with plenty for us to do.

Thanks to being tipped off by the Rick Steeves team, we had made reservations well in advance for our Christmas Eve (Reveillion) dinner. Smart move.

Posted by
9460 posts

Thank you for coming back to report your experience !