When to visit Paris

If you want to skip the crowds in the city’s streets and museums, time your visit during shoulder season (fall) or in winter, from December through February or early March. Fall in general is one of the best seasons to visit Europe because school is back in session and vacation has wrapped up, so fewer people are traveling – and the weather is typically nice. As the heat slowly subsides, you’ll be left with cool days that don’t require you to be as bundled up as, say, early spring. With a light jacket and scarf, you can sightsee around Paris and take advantage of free entry and attractions like the Nuit Blanche all-night art exhibition that turns the city into a museum, or European Heritage Days, when cultural sites not normally open to the public allow visits or tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower offer behind-the-scenes access to the machinery of its historic lift.

While there are fewer tourists in winter, days are short – the sun rises after 8 am and sets by 5 pm each day. Weather is somewhat unpredictable in early winter – it could be crisp, cool and sunny or rainy, and as the season goes on, the chill (and rain) factor goes up. (December is the rainiest month, if that helps with your planning.) But this is also when you’ll be able to enjoy attractions like Christmas markets (mulled wine or chocolat chaud should help warm you right up!) and admire celebrities, designers, and the myriad of street style convening during Fashion Week.

Planning a trip around a school holiday is how the French decide on their vacations, and each season runs like clockwork. But when summer rolls around, Parisians skip town for the sea or country homes. This is when tourists come in droves to soak up the monuments and cafés, sightseeing until the sun goes down, which, in summer, could be nearly 10 pm. The city receives more than 30 million visitors a year, and a good chunk of those come when the weather is at its best, but if you have a more flexible calendar, time your visit closer to the fall, when the foliage starts shifting with the seasons and the lines at museums and monuments begin dwindling. This is also when you’ll find better flight and hotel rates – and won’t have to worry about a lack of air-conditioning when the sweltering summer temps get to be too much for you and the kids.

Pro Tip: Summer is soldes (sale) season, and every shop from supermarkets like Monoprix to department stores like Le Bon Marché and Printemps offers significant discounts.

Given the number of public holidays, Paris has no shortage of celebrations. The highlights of the year center around the summer solstice, when Fête de la Musique takes over the city’s streets and musicians post up on nearly every corner. Another major highlight: Bastille Day (la fête national), on July 14, when the largest military parade makes its way along the Champs-Élysées, the Place de la Bastille transforms into an enormous street party, and fireworks erupt off the Eiffel Tower around 11 pm. Summer is one celebration after the next, with Paris Pride parades extending from Tour Montparnasse to Place de la Bastille at the end of June; the Roland Garros (French Open) tennis tournament and Tour de France; music festivals like Rock en Seine, We Love Green, and Lollapalooza Paris; and Paris-Plages, when the banks of the Seine become the ultimate beach party. Of course, the city never fails during the holidays, and the illuminated streets add extra sparkle to a New Year’s Eve celebration.

Pro Tip: A cruise on the Seine is one of the best ways to celebrate Bastille Day and take in views of the fireworks without dealing with crowds.