Share your "off the beaten path" experiences in Paris

We just did Pere Lachaise, I would definitely call it off the beaten path--different. Tip on Pere Lachaise: don't get off the metro at Pere Lachaise metro station, because you'll be walking uphill the whole time. Ride one more stop to the Gametta metro station, then walk 2 blocks to the cemetery--and your entire itinerary (if you follow Rick's Pere Lachaise tour) will be down hill. It's hilly in the cemetery.

It's even better than New Orleans cemeteries, which we toured (well, one) a few months ago.

But Marais (above post) I would say is not off the beaten path, worthwhile, but not off the beaten path.

Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/france/paris/sights/parks-gardens/parc-des-buttes-chaumont

Parc Monceau was a wonderfully unexpected pleasure.

Montmartre cemetery, almost as interesting as Pere Lachaise but quite a bit smaller.

I also liked walking along the Canal St Martin and the Basin de la Villette area.

Promenade Plantee

Swimming in one of Paris' many wonderful municipal swimming pools. Some have very cool art deco/art nouveau decor.

I took the #69 bus and the entrance to Pere Lachaise was right as I got off the bus.
I enjoyed wandering around looking at the old monuments and looking up all the famous folks who are buried there.
I usually go to cemeteries where ever I go in Europe.
I also really enjoyed the bus ride across Paris - just relaxing and looking at the City.
(I was there in late Feb. of this year)
You can read about the #60 bus in the RS Paris book or the France book. It runs from the Eiffel Tower to Pere Lachaise.

We did several this year...Musee Marmatton Monet, Nissan de Camondo, Parc Monseau, Pere LaChaise Cemetery. We also stumbled across a flea market after exiting the Catacombs & bought some lovely little apertif glasses & a book on Musee de Orsay. It was such fun browsing. Also went to Galleries Vivienne which was totally uncrowded & fun. The gardens at Palais Royal too. Enjoy Paris!

@worlinbetween - we wanted to go to Frenchie as well and will be in Paris in two weeks. We weren't surprised though that we weren't able to get a reservation. The restaurant was featured in an Anthony Bourdain episode so it is a must visit for many Americans. :-)

I think the best overlooked tourist site in Paris (well it is just over the border but it is on the metro) is St. Denis It is the first gothic church in Europe and holds the tombs of the Kings of France. The kings were pretty much trashed during the revolution but the tombs remain. You can see one of our trips here:
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2010/10/26/confronting-mortality-at-st-denis/

Another overlooked spot although nowhere as fabulous is Musee Albert Kahn gardens at the #10 metro stop St. Cloud/Bologne. Promenade Plantee is off the beaten track and enjoyable, but not as beautiful as the Luxembourg Gardens or Tuilleries or as impressive as Butte Chaumont.

Or you can just go to the end of a metro line and fine your own mysteries.

We took several Paris Walks with their guides. It costs 12 euros a person, but we had 2 hours of interesting tidbits, historical perspective, rambling in neighborhoods we wouldn't have found on our own, restaurant and shopping recommendations and more.

This is a wonderful thread! My husband and I will be in Paris at the end of July and want to do more then just see the tourist sites (we've already decided to skip a few and give us a reason to visit again :) )

worldinbetween: would you mind posting the link to that article again? I can't seem to open it :/ and would love to read it!

I also agree that St Dennis is one of the best less known/visited sites. I was glad that I visited before doing all the research on the city of St Dennis.

The area in comparison is quite seedy.. which could be felt right away after existing the metro station. When I told my Parisian friend that I visited and liked St Dennis, he looked shocked and warned me about the area. Well.. sometimes ignorance is a bliss.. I'm glad I went and it was a memorable experience. I highly recommend it.. with a caveat that it's better not to travel there alone.. :)

Another vote for the Marmottan musuem. If you like Monet, then this museum is for you! It's fabulous. It's in the 16th arr and wandering around this neighborhood is wonderful too. The Jardin des Plantes is also a nice park to explore.

Here's the article:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/06/01/travel/Work-and-Play-Silicon-Sentier-in-Paris.html?_r=0
It's definitely a different area off the beaten path though it's in the center of town.

A couple blocks away is the heart of the Indian shop and restaurant community in Passage Brady.

Another one is the Marche St. Pierre, the traditional fabric district, at the foot of Montmartre, with fabrics and notions from around the world. Incredibly beautiful fabrics and trims.

Thank you!!!

My late husband was an urban planner so he loved the Pavillon de l'Arsenal, which is the Paris centre for architecture and urbanism. It is free to enter, is interesting in a low-key fashion and never, never crowded. A nice way to spend an hour or so before you take a cruise on the Canal St Martin.

The Marmottan Museum is a good one to go to before you go to Giverney (as well as the better known Orangerie, of course).

We rented a rowboat in the bois de Boulogne and had a blast! I saw nobody there who did not strike me as French. Really a lot of fun.

There is an occasional brocante in a nearby parking lot and we found some treasures there.

The Royal Tombs in the Basilica of St Denis are very moving, and without crowds.
Great stained glass too.

Batobus. http://www.batobus.com/en.html An inexpensive way to get up and down the Seine with a great view of the city slipping by. All of the expensive mass-tourist boats you see... same route! Nice to get 20-30 minutes off of your feet too, cause Paris is a walking city!

Batobus, Marmottan, Promenade Plantee, St-Denis, Parc Monceau. Also the Chateau and Bois de Vincennes just east of the Peripherique, easily reached by Metro.

And for a bird's-eye view, including of the Eiffel Tower, the much-maligned but high-rising and uncrowded Tour Montparnasse. It's ugly but from the top it's invisible!

I only discovered rue Montorgueil in the 2nd last year (Mo: Sentier; Petits Carreaux exit) but this is a shopping street where you will see more French residents than tourists and is a nice walk with lots going on in the shops and cafes. One of the oldest patisseries in Paris, Stohrer (since 1730), is located here and the rue ends at St. Eustache and Les Halles. Highly recommended.

Just as we started this year's trip I began reading Cara Black's "Murder in/at ..." books (Aimée Leduc Series). Each takes place in a specific part of Paris. I'm reading these in "Kindle" format, which lets me select/highlight each street or place name as I come across it in the story, and then switch to Google (maps and/or Wiki) to learn more about each place. Of course, that slows down the story reading quite a bit but I found the Paris info. at least as interesting as the story itself!! At this point (only through book 6 of the series) I'll need more than a too-short week in Paris to check out the various things I've tagged.