10 Things to Do in Paris in Summer

During the summer, Paris adds to its many attractions a range of activities that make the most of the fine weather to enjoy life on the streets. For visitors, this is a wonderful time of year, as many Parisians traditionally leave the city for their holidays and the atmosphere tends to be more relaxed.

Summer temperatures in Paris invite you to enjoy the city’s parks and stretch the day well into the night. The French capital helps to make the days longer with a wide-ranging cultural programme dominated by outdoor events.

I’m sure that when you planned your summer getaway to Paris, you didn’t expect to have the chance to go to the beach. You almost certainly planned a trip to Versailles from Paris to enjoy the summer sun, but the French capital has much more to offer.

For the past few years, the city council has been organising ‘Paris Plages’, an event that runs throughout July and August to make the most of the good weather.

During this period, Paris transforms the river embankments into authentic river beaches, complete with sand. The areas where the event takes place fill with Parisians who set up their parasols and sun loungers amongst the palm trees.

Paris Plages isn’t just about enjoying a day at the beach right in the city centre; there are also numerous activities for adults and children. You can find everything from children’s workshops to food stalls, as well as canoe trips, board games and exhibitions.

Practical information

• Where it takes place: Paris Plages is held in several different areas. The first is the Parc des Rives de Seine, stretching from the Pont des Arts to the Pont de Sully on the right bank of the river. From here, you’ll have views of Notre Dame Cathedral, the Musée d’Orsay and the Louvre. Another area well worth a visit (especially if you like swimming) is the Bassin de la Villette, situated on the Quai de Loire of the Canal de l’Ourcq. Finally, the Trocadéro Gardens have been added to the venues for this event.
• Opening hours: the beaches at the Parc des Rives de Seine are open daily from 10am to 6.30pm, whilst those at the Bassin de la Villette are open from 10am to 10pm on weekdays and from 10am to midnight on Saturdays and Sundays.

One of the most beautiful gardens in Paris, the Tuileries, comes alive in summer to the delight of children and many adults alike. If you’re in the city during this time, I recommend taking a stroll around the fair that’s set up there.

During the two warmest months, the gardens host a fair featuring around 60 attractions, ranging from ghost trains to a hall of mirrors, as well as early 20th-century-style carousels and activities such as air rifle shooting.

If you’re visiting Paris with children, they can also take part in games such as duck fishing, bounce on trampolines, have a go at climbing for the first time or whizz down the giant slide.

I can assure you that, even if you’re not travelling with children, you’ll enjoy a stroll along the main avenue. You can let yourself go and treat yourself to an ice cream, Parisian crêpes, candyfloss or a hot sandwich.

This trip down memory lane can be made complete if you fancy having a little picnic in the gardens. There could hardly be a more relaxing experience in the French capital. To enhance that feeling, the organisers have decided that the fair will have no background music.

Practical information

• Opening hours: the fair opens at 11:00 and the rides remain open until 23:45 (weekdays) or 00:45 (Fridays, Saturdays and the eve of public holidays).
• Prices: entry to the fair is free, but you will need to pay for each attraction.

The Canal de l’Ourcq area also celebrates the arrival of summer with activities for all ages. If you visit, you can enjoy workshops, take a short cruise, attend concerts and many other events, such as open-air cinema or street art.

For quite some years now, the Bassin de la Villette has been gaining prominence during the city’s summers. Located in the 19th arrondissement, this former hub of river trade has become one of the liveliest areas in Paris when the good weather arrives.

Among the most popular activities are the boat trips that take place at weekends in July and August. Some of these short cruises, covering 10 kilometres, offer different themes so that everyone can choose the one that appeals to them most.

Practical information

• When it takes place: it usually starts around 6 July and runs until the last week of August.
• Price: entry to the fair is free, although there is a charge for the activities.

Usually held at the beginning of July, Museum Night is a fantastic opportunity to visit the best museums in Paris.

Not only is entry free all night long, but there are also various special exhibitions, workshops and all sorts of entertainment on offer. In recent years, some innovative and interesting digital formats have also taken centre stage.

During the evening, you can sign up for various guided tours offering a different perspective to those available during the day. You can also enjoy musical performances in the vicinity of the museums.

The highlight of the Parisian summer (and of the whole country) is the celebration of France’s national holiday on 14 July. On that day, the capital hosts a packed programme of festivities and cultural events to commemorate the famous Storming of the Bastille, which marked the start of the French Revolution.

If you are lucky enough to be in Paris on that date, you must head to the Champs-Élysées to watch the lavish military parade that winds its way along the avenue. Don’t forget to look up to see what could be described as a veritable aerial ballet.

Few things are as spectacular as the impressive fireworks display at the foot of the Eiffel Tower itself at night, accompanied by a special concert. Ideally, you should watch it from the lawns of the Champs de Mars, but the fireworks are visible from much of the city.

Outside the Champs-Élysées, 14 July is also celebrated. Throughout the day, an impressive number of events take place at various locations. Also worth noting is the Louvre Museum’s initiative to allow free access to its permanent collections.

A 14 July on the Seine

As I have mentioned, there are many spots in Paris from which to watch the 14 July fireworks, but few offer an experience as spectacular as doing so from a boat.

On that day, special cruises on the Seine are usually organised which, as well as offering dinner in a romantic setting, allow you to admire the fireworks display from a different perspective. Honestly, if you can do it, it’s one of the activities you shouldn’t miss.

It’s well known that Paris is one of those cities where resisting the shop windows is particularly difficult, especially when it comes to luxury brands found in the most spectacular shopping arcades.

It’s only the rather high prices that stop visitors to the city from returning home with a large number of bags full of goods, but this drawback can be significantly reduced if you travel in summer.

From early July until the end of August, Paris hosts the so-called “soldes”, the summer sales. During this period, you can find discounts ranging from 30% to 70% off the original price. Furthermore, these discounts tend to increase over time and can reach up to 80% by the end of August.

If you want to make the most of your trip to Paris to shop for luxury brands, I recommend visiting Galeries Lafayette or Printemps, two places that are well worth a visit in their own right for their beauty, especially at Christmas in Paris. In both shopping centres, you’ll find fashion clothing and accessories at much more affordable prices.

Another tip for making the most of these sales is to visit the outlet centres. The most striking is La Vallée Village, which specialises in luxury brands.

One of the highlights of the Parisian summer is the finish of the Tour de France. The world’s most important stage cycling race always concludes its route in July (the date varies depending on the year) in an unrivalled setting: the Champs-Élysées.

Cycling enthusiasts, or simply those who want to enjoy the colourful atmosphere of this event, can position themselves along any section of the route. Normally, the peloton rides from the Place de la Concorde to the Tuileries, passing through the aforementioned Champs-Élysées.

On that day, too, the whole of Paris dresses up to welcome the cyclists, with music playing in many of its corners.

If you’d like to emulate these hard-working cyclists a little, though not on the same day, you can book one of the most enjoyable tours of Paris, which takes you through the city’s streets by bike.

One of the most interesting things to do in Paris at night if you’re visiting in summer is to go and see the sound and light show known as La Nuit aux Invalides.

The venue is the National Palace of Les Invalides, a complex built in the 17th century to house French soldiers after they had laid down their arms. This palace is one of the most visited attractions in Paris, both for its undeniable architectural value and for housing Napoleon’s tomb.

Every summer, the palace courtyard hosts a magnificent sound and light show with themes varying according to the season. The Church of the Dome, located within the same complex, is also frequently illuminated by candles.

Practical information

• Dates: from the first week of July to the last week of August, Tuesday to Saturday. In July, the show starts at 10.30 pm, whilst in August it begins half an hour earlier.
• Price: prices vary, ranging from approximately €5 to €25.

The sheer number of festivals held in Paris throughout the summer makes it practically impossible to choose just one. If you check the calendar in advance, I guarantee you’ll find one you like, whatever the date. Here are the most interesting ones:

• European Young Talent Festival – perfect for classical music lovers. Throughout the summer, these concerts are held in the Marais district, featuring the most promising young musicians.
• Paris Jazz Festival: the fabulous gardens of Parc Floral are the venue that hosts the city’s most important jazz festival every summer.
• Opera en Plein: if opera is your thing, you can’t miss any of the concerts held between June and September. This festival doesn’t have a single venue, as you can find performances in various locations across the Île-de-France region.
• Open-air cinema: although there is a wide range of options, I particularly recommend the Silhouette (Short Films) festival. Screenings take place at various locations in the 19th arrondissement, including its parks.

Although some terraces can be visited at other times of the year, including in winter in Paris, there’s no better time than summer evenings.

As well as the permanent terraces, the city fills with temporary venues, such as the so-called rooftop bars. Here you can enjoy the fine weather with unrivalled views of the city, almost as if you were gazing at the views of the Eiffel Tower.

On these open-air terraces you can also have a drink and relax after the long days of sightseeing that are typical in Paris:

• Le Perchoir opens every summer on the terrace of one of the capital’s most centrally located department stores, the BHV Marais. The only problem is its popularity, which makes it difficult to find a seat.
• Gare d’Austerlitz: this train station also has a wonderful summer terrace where you can spend the evening, and it’s very easy to get to by metro.
• La Javelle, right on the banks of the Seine, next to André Citroën Park. There are usually live performances, and nearby there’s a great selection of food trucks for a bite to eat.
• Le Jardin Municipal, situated in the inner courtyard of the Crédit Municipal de Paris bank, in the Marais district.

As is the case during the rest of the year, temperatures in Paris in summer can be a bit of a surprise. Consequently, many days dawn with a fairly chilly breeze or even rain.

However, the general trend during this season is for warm weather. Maximum temperatures usually range from 24°C to 30°C, although in recent years there have been several heatwaves with increasing frequency, causing temperatures to reach as high as 40°C.

As night falls, the temperature cools slightly to around 15°C, which encourages people to head out onto the streets and enjoy the terraces and the nightlife.

It is inAugust in Paris that the highest temperatures of the whole year are reached, which, combined with high humidity, can lead to some short-lived storms. My advice is to always check the weather forecast before planning your daily itinerary.

It’s no secret that the peak season in Paris is during the summer months. This means a huge influx of visitors, as we mustn’t forget that the French capital is the second most visited city in the world each year.

This huge influx means longer queues to enter the main tourist attractions, making it all the more important to buy tickets that allow you to skip the queues at places like the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre Museum.

Another point to bear in mind is that Parisians tend to go on holiday in August. The city then seems to be left in the hands of tourists, which creates a rather curious feeling.

Prices for flights, hotels and other tourist attractions rise significantly during the summer. To try and save money (without missing out on anything), you can always use a few little tricks, such as looking for restaurants a little further away from the main tourist attractions.

You could also swap restaurants for the city’s parks for a day and enjoy a lovely picnic in one of them.

Booking flights and hotels well in advance usually means lower prices, so start looking as soon as you’re sure you’re going on the trip.

Getting hold of the Paris Pass, the city’s best-known tourist card, can also be a good way to save money. With it in your pocket, you’ll get significant discounts on entry to many of Paris’s attractions, such as the Arc de Triomphe and several of the city’s best museums.

For the past few years, the Paris Pass has no longer included a pass for the Paris Metro, so it might also be a good idea to get one of those that offer savings on each journey.