This mini guide highlights what to see and where to go in the 19th arrondissement
If you’ve ever been on the sidewalks of Paris then you know just how crowded they can be. At times, you can hardly walk, especially during peak season (May & June, and September & October). On certain streets, like Rue de Buci, or the area in and around Place de Tertre, in Montmartre, it can literally feel like a mosh pit. If you want a break from the crowds, the 19th arrondissement is one of the best non-touristy areas to explore. It’s in the top northeast corner of Paris, just above the 20th arr. Gentrification has picked up significantly in this neighborhood and it’s bursting with lively diversity. You will see working class families, young professionals, artists, and students dotting the sidewalks. In this blog post I’m going to tell you about some of my favorite things in the 19th arrondissement, including parks, museums, waterways, and a trendy little hilltop village. If you’re still searching for accommodations you can check out my Guide to Boutique Hotels in Paris.
The 19th arrondissement is known for its vast green space, particularly Parc de la Villette. It is one of the largest parks in Paris at 135 acres, third only to the two massive forested parks on the city’s edge (Bois de Vincennes and Bois de Boulogne). It’s situated along Canal de l’Ourcq on the northeast side of the waterway. If you walk north along Canal Saint-Martin you will run into it.
I usually add directions at the end of my posts, but for this one it’s more about the journey than the destination, so I’m going to start with directions first. If you like to walk, you can get there without getting on the metro, the walk is doable from the 18th, 9th, 3rd, 10th or 11th. Round trip is between five and eight miles, depending on which arrondissement you’re coming from. If you’re coming from the 3rd arrondissement, which is the back side of the Marais, you can pop right into the 10th and start walking along Canal Saint Martin. Most of Canal Saint-Martin is in the 10th and it is a glorious place to walk, it can get a little crowded when it’s warm outside and the crowds are mostly locals. This canal will lead you right up to the the Basin de la Villette. This wider part of the canal is where you will see people swimming and boating in the summer time. Parc de la Villette is further up past the basin, on the east side of Canal de l’Ourcq. The map below shows just how close everything is in Paris. If you don’t want to walk too many miles you can take metro lines five or two to the Jaures metro station which will put you right at the beginning of the basin. Canal Saint-Martin will be behind you. Once you pass the basin the canal changes to Canal de l’Ourcq, which is where the Parc de la Villette lies.
I like to walk on the east side of the waterway because it’s prettier and less industrial. The area on the other side of the basin, mainly around the park Jardins d’Éole and Port de la Chapelle, can be a little rough and I definitely wouldn’t walk through there at night, especially if you’re a woman walking alone. It’s probably okay during the day, but I usually to stick to the west side. This area is also one of my favorites for running in Paris. It’s actually a mecca for runners, especially those wanting to get some distance in. You can stay along the water or veer in and out of the many tree lined tree lined paths that link back up to the main path along the water. There are meadows and themed gardens to walk through, like the garden of shadows, a bamboo garden, the garden of of sand dunes, and the garden of Islands, which is a series of little islands surrounded by various plant life. It can be easy to miss these mini gardens because they blend in seamlessly with all the other flora.
In this area you will also see the Carrousel Jules Verne, and to the east, a little further from the water is a large hall called Grande Halle de la Villette that is used for trade fairs, music festivals and exhibitions. Nearby is an indoor playground called Little Villette that includes a lego wall! This is a fun place to check out if you have kids. It’s only open from 2:30-6:30 on weekends but it opens during the week during school holidays. Further down the path there is an outdoor gym called Jardin des Voltages. This is one of the largest outdoor gyms in Paris, so if you want to get a few pull ups in on your walk this is a great spot.
The west side has more businesses and buildings but there is still a path along the Canal l’Ourcq. I have ventured over to that side to check out some of the things over there, like the park with a giant dragon, called Jardin du Dragon, and the Bubble Planet Immersive Experience, which are both great if you have kids. There is also an Omni-Max theater called La Géode.
One of the coolest things on the west side is the giant shopping mall called Boom Boom Villette. This mall is modern and beautiful, full of shops and eateries. It’s definitely worth checking out as it has a plethora of fun activities to enjoy. There is an arcade with an indoor i-fly wind tunnel, an escape room game, trampoline park, laser tag, and bowling. As for food, you can also find just about anything you’re looking for here. There’s a giant food court that includes trendy fare like smash burgers, sushi, French street food, Vietnamese street food, healthy gourmet salads, theres even a vegan option called Soya. There aren’t a lot of museums in the 19th but the two main ones are located in the park. The Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, the largest science museum in Europe, is on the west side of the canal and the Musée de la Musique, which has one of the biggest collections of musical instruments in the world, which is on the east side of the park. You can find all of the places mentioned here in Google or Apple Maps, including the all of the gardens, making it easy to navigate your way through the area. If you are going to the Boom Boom mall at night, I would cross back to the other side of the canal and walk back into central Paris along Canal Saint-Martin, as it is a safer route at night. I know women who live in Paris who walk and take the metro in this area at night and say it’s not a problem, but me, I wouldn’t get on the metro here, at Jaures or Stalingrad. I would walk back along Canal Saint-Martin, to Place de la République and then catch the metro there to wherever I was going.
Park de la Villette was designed by the famous architect Bernard Tschumi. His vision included the large red cube shaped structures, referred to as the red follies that you see all through the park.
Another park that is great for walking in the 19th is Parc des Buttes Chaumont. This park is also very large, about 60 acres, making it just slightly larger than Luxembourg Garden. The trek here is up hill, and once inside the park the paths wind up and down over various hills. If you’re looking for a good glute workout, this is it. You will notice right away the park was designed with a natural feel, creating a more whimsical and wild space.
There is suspension bridge that’s fun to walk across, and you can get some lovely views of the Paris rooftops. If you’re afraid of heights don’t look down!
One of my favorite things about this park are the vintage green benches scattered throughout. They look like they’ve been here for a hundred years. If these benches could talk I can only imagine what tales they would tell.
Parc des Buttes Chaumont is only a half mile from Basin de la Villette, so if you’re feeling ambitious you could potentially hit both parks on the same day. The Père Lachaise cemetery is in the 20th arrondissement, but it is only a mile and a half from Parc des Buttes Chaumont, so you could also easily add that to this itinerary.
Last but not least, an area you might want to check out in the 19th is Belleville. The neighborhood actually stretches from the 19th into part of the 20th. At one time Belleville was its own separate village on the outskirts of Paris. Similar to Montmartre it was annexed into the city when Baron Haussmann expanded Paris under Napoleon. At the time it was full of artists, musicians, immigrants and revolutionaries. Edith Piaf was born and raised here before she became famous, you can see a plaque that marks her birthplace at 72 Rue de Belleville.
Again, the journey here matters more than the destination. If you’re going to go you want to make sure you walk up Rue de Belleville. I like to get onto Rue du Faubourg du Temple at Place de la Republique (easily reached from the 3rd, 10th or 11th) and just keep walking. Rue du Faubourg du Temple turns into Rue de Belleville. In addition to the hills, there are other reasons I love the walk up to Belleville. There’s a lot to see along the way, but it’s vastly different from central Paris. Once you cross over Boulevard de la Villette you’ll be on Rue de Belleville, and you’ll notice there’s not many tourists. Here you’ll see local Parisians just going about their day. There’s not as many families in this part, but there are some. You will see a lot of young people in their 20’s and 30’s, as well as many elderly people. You can definitely feel a bohemian vibe once you start getting closer to Belleville. Hip, ultra-trendy bars dot the streets in this area, and if you’re comfortable mixing in with the younger crowds, I highly recommend stopping for a drink. Combat (open everyday 6-2:00AM) and Kissproof (open everyday 6-1:30AM) on Google), both on Rue de Belleville, are two of the more famous ones.
Belleville is not as expensive as the more central Paris neighborhoods, young chefs, artists and entrepreneurs are drawn to the area by the affordable rents, but costs are rising as the area becomes more desirable. There are boulangeries, fromageries, huîtreries, wine shops and everything else you’d expect to find in a little Parisian neighborhood, but with prices that are much more reasonable than in the core tourist areas. I absolutely love this little hilltop neighborhood but it might not be for everyone. It’s not as glamorous as some of the other neighborhoods in Paris, it’s much grittier, but very rich in culture, diversity and everyday Parisian life. There’s a lot of really cool street art to see on the sides of some of the buildings on the way up the hill, so be sure to look up while you’re walking. When you get to the top of the hill you get a not so little surprise, the stunning Neo-Gothic Saint-Jean-Baptiste church.
If you keep walking, just past the church you’ll come to a little sub-neighborhood called Jourdain. This is a quieter and more family-friendly part of Belleville, with a close-knit community vibe. There’s a lot of greenery in this area along with high-end shops like Yves Rocher, Ernest & Valentin, and Chocolaterie Chapon. If you’re looking for a great lunch or dinner spot here Soces is definitely the place for Parisian ambiance and high quality food. Located at the top of the hill in the Jourdain neighborhood, they are open for lunch and dinner Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and just dinner on Wednesday and Thursday, they are closed Monday and Tuesday. As far as Belleville goes, I’ve walked in this area a lot during the day, and I always feel perfectly safe. It’s probably safe to walk here at night too, but I personally don’t do it if I’m alone because I like to be extra cautious, but if you’re with other people you shouldn’t have any problems. I haven’t stayed in either of these arrondissements yet but am hoping to soon.
If you’re interested in exploring other arrondissements outside of the core tourist areas then be sure to check out my Neighborhood Guide to the 17th arrondissement as well as my Insider Edit to a Hidden Side of Montmartre .
I’ve recently discovered the ticketing site Tiqets and it’s an amazing one stop shop for pretty much everything you want to see and do in Paris especially if you’re wanting to hire a guide. For basic entry tickets, for the Louvre for example, current rates are around $25 per person and you should purchase these from their direct site. I tell people to use Tiqets for guided tours, where you’re paying a little extra for the guide. These guides are experts in their field and well worth the extra money. The first time I went to the Louvre I had no idea where I was going, I kept backtracking and wandering around in circles, even with the map, it’s very confusing because it’s so huge. The guide knows the museum inside and out and they know all about the artwork, they can take you where you want to go and tell you what you shouldn’t miss. You can find guided tours on their site for things like Père Lachaise Cemetery as inexpensive as $20. You can buy curated experiences here but also the $27 Eiffel Tower tickets which can be an option if your dates are sold out on the towers direct site.
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