Say NO to the Eiffel Tower

Say YES to the Sacré Coeur

A New York Times article I found on Valentine’s Day in Paris suggested that nothing was more romantic than watching the Eiffel Tower light up on February 14th. Significantly less romantic are the hawkers, the crowds, the pickpockets and the endless flashing cameras. The Sacré Coeur is a better option all-round I think, with the most beautiful sweeping views of Paris below, including the Eiffel Tower. Bring a picnic and a bottle of wine and listen to the buskers perform on the steps.

On your way up the hill be sure to stop off at the Clos Montmartre on rue des Saules – a tiny vineyard of 2000 vines that dates all the way back to 1933 and whose 800 annual bottles of wine sell for shocking amounts of cash (in aid of charity) every October. It’s a far cry from the souvenir sellers of Champs des Mars.

The garden of Musée Rodin

Say NO to the Louvre

Say YES to Musée Rodin

Paris is bound to busy around Valentine’s Day and when Paris is busy the Louvre is thronged. Save your Louvre visit for another day on your trip and opt instead for the lovely Musée Rodin, a beautiful manor full of art by sculptor Auguste Rodin and his mistress Camille Claudel. With such works as The Thinker and The Kiss it makes for a romantic afternoon of wandering – not to mention the serene gardens where you’ll feel a world away from the hustle and bustle of the Champs Élysées. You may recognize it from Woody Allen's recent hit, Midnight in Paris.

To save time queuing book tickets online here.

Say NO to Le Jules Verne

Say YES to La Cabane À Huîtres

Oysters are a natural aphrodisiac you know...

Dinner reservations for February 14th are a nightmare so if you don’t have one yet, you would want to get on it. Le Jules Verne, the restaurant on the second floor of the Eiffel Tower (and leagues more affordable but less appealing than Altitude 95 on the top floor) is a popular choice for those that want to pop the question on Valentine’s Day. We much rather something a little more understated though, something a little more authentic and homey.

Our top Valentine’s Day dinner choice therefore is La Cabane À Huîtres on rue Antoine Bourdelle in Montparnasse. With only a few tables it’s tricky to get a reservation at the best of times (phone 01 45 49 47 27) but if you can manage it, it’s worth every pain. The owner has his own oyster farm from which he stocks the kitchen. Drop by for a few oysters, foie gras and whatever else is on the fixed menu and wash it all down with specially chosen wines paired to every dish. A much more romantic option than the overdone Eiffel Tower or every tourist’s favourite, Frenchie.

Say NO to Musée D’Orsay

Say YES to Musée de la Vie Romantique

What could be more Romantique?

Romance is in the name of this small Montmartre museum, although it’s less a collection of roses and chocolates than a restrospective of the Romantic Age of art and literature. This is where George Sand lived and entertained her circle of esteemed friends – Delacroix, Victor Hugo and Chopin to name but a few. Today it is a beautiful old manor house, one of the city’s famed hôtel particulier offers an opportunity to step into Paris’ golden age. When it’s open, drinking tea in the garden is one of the city's loveliest experiences.

Say NO to the Champs Élysées

Say YES to Père Lachaise Cemetery

So a cemetery may not seem on first glance to be the most obvious choice for a Valentine’s Day date but hear me out. This isn’t just any cemetery – this is the cemetery where Oscar Wilde’s tomb is covered in lipstick kisses, where Jim Morrison’s grave is scattered with roses and where France’s own real life Romeo and Juliet are buried side-by-side. Héloise was a beautiful and intelligent young lady and Abélard was the philosopher who tutored her and fell in love with her mind as much as her fair complexion. They married secretly but were torn apart by her uncle and Abélard castrated for a misconception.

Spare a kiss for Oscar Wilde

In a letter to his love Abélard once wrote: “You know, beloved, as the whole world knows, how much I have lost in you, how at one wretched stroke of fortune that supreme act of flagrant treachery robbed me of my very self in robbing me of you; and how my sorrow for my loss is nothing compared with what I feel for the manner in which I lost you.”

Whoever said romance was dead? For details on our Famous Graves tour of Père Lachaise see here.