The Marais: the art de vivre of old Paris

There are neighbourhoods one passes through, and others one inhabits, if only for an afternoon. The Marais, straddling the 3e and 4e arrondissements, belongs to the second kind. Spared the great avenues cut through Paris in the 19th century, it has kept its narrow lanes, its uneven cobblestones and its old façades: the whole art de vivre of old Paris, told in a low voice for four centuries.

It is a district of contrasts held with elegance: a mansion from the Grand Siècle stands beside a contemporary art gallery, a hundred-year-old bakery faces a designer boutique. Here is how to savour its art de vivre, hour by hour, without missing any of what gives it its soul.

The mansions and the place des Vosges

The Marais owes much to stone. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the aristocracy built its homes here, those hôtels particuliers whose carriage doors still open onto cobbled courtyards of rare stillness. You push some of them open at random along a walk, and the noise of the city falls silent at once.

The heart of the district remains the place des Vosges, the oldest royal square in Paris, completed in 1612. Its rose-coloured brick arcades, its central garden and its benches in the shade of the lime trees make it an ideal place to pause. It is also where Victor Hugo lived, his house still open to visitors.

• Early in the morning, the place des Vosges is almost deserted: the best moment to photograph it.
• Stroll along the rue des Francs-Bourgeois and the rue de Sévigné for one beautiful façade after another.
• Look up: wrought-iron balconies, carved mascarons and slate roofs hide above the shop windows.

Where to find galleries, design and designer boutiques?

Over the decades, the Marais has become one of the playgrounds of Parisian fashion and design. The art galleries cluster around the rue de Saintonge and the rue Charlot, in the upper Marais, where you move from a photography show to a ceramics studio in a few steps.

For shopping, the district blends great houses with young designers, concept stores with antique dealers. People come here as much to buy as to look, so polished are the windows and so inventive the names.

• The upper Marais (north of the rue de Bretagne) for galleries and cutting-edge design.
• The rue Vieille-du-Temple for designers and handsome storefronts.
• The marché des Enfants Rouges, the oldest covered market in Paris, for a midday food stop.

Why is the rue des Rosiers unlike anywhere else?

No visit to the Marais would be complete without the rue des Rosiers and its surroundings, the historic heart of the Parisian Jewish quarter. There you breathe an atmosphere of its own, made of small synagogues, bookshops and generous cooking gladly eaten standing, on the go.

This is the address for falafel shared while walking, but also for Central European bakeries, pastrami and poppy-seed pastries. On Saturdays some shops close for shabbat: a Sunday or a Thursday will leave you more choice.

Which museums and hidden courtyards should you discover?

The Marais is also a district of museums, and not minor ones. The musée Picasso, set in the splendid hôtel Salé, and the musée Carnavalet, devoted to the history of Paris, are worth the trip on their own. Both offer, as a bonus, gardens and courtyards where you can catch your breath between two rooms.

Between visits, the pleasure of the Marais lies in its cafés and its discreet courtyards. You settle on a terrace on the rue de Bretagne, you read in the calm of a patio found behind a porch, you take the time for a hot chocolate when winter sets in.

• In mid-afternoon, favour the small streets of the south (Barres, Ave Maria) for the golden light on the stone.
• Push open the porches: many inner courtyards are accessible during the day.
• A café terrace here is as good as a lookout: the Marais is watched as much as it is walked.

What to do in the Marais in the evening?

When day falls, the district shifts its rhythm without losing any of its charm. The streets fill, the terraces come alive, and you move naturally from a drink to a dinner. The Marais ranks among the liveliest neighbourhoods in Paris after dark, with a particular softness on spring and summer nights.

To enjoy it without rushing, choose one area and stay in it: the rue Vieille-du-Temple and its surroundings for the buzz, the quieter southern lanes for a dinner in a low voice. The district suits the wanderer as much as the night owl.

Time of day	Where to go	What you savour there
Early morning	place des Vosges, southern streets	the symmetry of the arcades, almost deserted
Late morning	marché des Enfants Rouges, rue de Bretagne	a gourmet pause between beautiful facades
Afternoon	upper Marais, rue de Saintonge and rue Charlot	the galleries and the ceramics studios
End of day	small southern streets, mansion courtyards	the golden light on the stone

Caring for a pied-à-terre in the Marais

To live in or own a property in the Marais is to be attached to a neighbourhood that asks for attention: old buildings, sometimes narrow access, dense street life. A dedicated concierge who knows the quartier, its shopkeepers and its rhythms makes all the difference, whether it is watching over a pied-à-terre between stays or preparing the arrival of loved ones travelling from afar. At French Realty, that time is billed simply, by the hour, so that your Parisian property stays worthy of the neighbourhood around it. That is the spirit of the bespoke concierge service, and all these subjects are gathered in the Journal’s Art de vivre category.

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