If you wish to know the place the locals in Paris actually hang around — and aren’t afraid to enterprise past the same old vacationer haunts and classy hotspots – take a look at among the metropolis’s hottest “third areas”, often known as tiers-lieux.
What are Tiers-Lieux?
The definitions fluctuate as a lot because the areas themselves, however typically these “third areas” are someplace between dwelling (first house) and work (second house). Whereas many are created for particular actions or open solely to members, on this article I’ll be speaking in regards to the casual, hybrid areas, normally community-run, the place folks of all backgrounds can hang around with mates, work on their laptops, eat brunch, catch a dwell live performance, store at a thrift market, discover ways to backyard, take a yoga class, or take part in public conferences.
Those in Paris (and France typically) are normally situated in public buildings that aren’t at present in use, akin to former faculties, empty authorities places of work, empty tons, or deserted warehouse areas. They typically home native non-profits, neighborhood teams, humble start-ups, and inexpensive co-working areas, along with areas open to most people. Don’t count on something flashy or cutting-edge. These areas are both donated or offered at a sponsored price by the native authorities, normally for a set interval which will or might not be renewed, so there needs to be a “public good” on the middle of any tiers-lieux challenge. The main focus is on being inclusive, accessible and inexpensive for the whole neighborhood, to not be commercially worthwhile. The vibe is commonly bohemian, eco-friendly, laid again. The buzzwords you’ll hear are different, upcycling, round financial system, working collectively, locavore, zero-waste, and “inventive options to save lots of the planet” (or possibly simply the neighborhood).
Tiers-lieux all have a barely totally different crowd relying on their location and sort of occasions open to the general public, however they entice numerous younger Parisians and households with youngsters in strollers, in addition to activists, idealists, and artists. Sure, you’ll in all probability spot a couple of Bobo’s, but additionally Parisians sporting shorts and flip-flops (or no matter makes them snug). These should not locations to see and be seen, or lovely spots to report your subsequent viral reel. But when the ultra-processed, luxurious shopper playground that a lot of Paris has develop into will get you down, these tiers-lieux are the antidote.
Tiers-Lieux to Go to In and Round Paris
Académie du Climat
2 Place Baudoyer, 4th
Open Monday-Tuesday 9am-9pm, Wednesday-Saturday 9am-midnight.
Housed within the former City Corridor of the 4th arrondissement, the Local weather Academy is basically a spot for younger Parisians to be taught, change and take motion for the local weather, however open to everybody. If you happen to’re simply curious, it’s ideally situated proper within the middle of Paris, so it’s simple to simply pop in to relaxation your toes within the backyard courtyard (they name it the “orchard”), browse the library or the newest picture exposition, or go to the bottom ground canteen (“la buvette”) for a vegetarian meal or only a espresso (open Wednesday-Saturday 11am via midnight).
If you happen to actually wish to take a look at your French, be part of of their packed weekly program of upcycling workshops, conferences and debates, movie screenings, enjoyable occasions like stand-up comedy nights or karaoke, or moderated “Café Climat” discussions the place you possibly can take part within the conversational matter of the day or simply pay attention. All occasions are free, though some require you to register on the web site if house is restricted.
Enjoyable Truth: I bought married right here within the Salle des Fêtes in April 1999.
Les Arches Citoyennes
3 Place de l’Hôtel de Ville, 4th
Solely open to the general public for particular occasions and artisan markets.
This is without doubt one of the latest tiers-lieux, housed in a former hospital administrative constructing throughout from Metropolis Corridor (Hôtel de Ville), now a piece house for 450 neighborhood teams, artists, and artisans managed by Plateau Urbain. They’re open a number of occasions every month for cultural occasions and crafts markets. The second Marché de Créateur·rices is that this Saturday, September thirtieth from 11am-7pm, with 50 stands within the courtyard promoting clothes, ceramics, jewellery, drawings, candles, photographs, dwelling décor, and different crafts. Free entry. Examine their Instagram for normal updates about upcoming occasions.
Césure
13 rue Santeuil, 5th
Open Tuesday 11am-3pm, Wednesday-Friday 11am-midnight, Saturday noon-midnight.
Césure is a tiers-lieu opened final 12 months within the former Université Paris-III Sorbonne-Nouvelle campus, an infinite Nineteen Sixties-era complicated throughout from the Jardin des Plantes. Now it’s a neighborhood middle offering inexpensive working house for 200 resident artists, artisans, non-profits, start-ups, and social companies for 2000 college students from 5 totally different universities. The cultural, academic, and inventive program contains indie movie screenings, literary gatherings, performs, activist conferences, artisan markets, arts exhibitions, curler discos, festivals, dance occasions, cabarets, live shows, DJ units, public radio broadcasts, studying workshops, and pupil initiatives.
Just like the Académie du Climat, the packed program tends to enchantment to budding social and environmental activists and college students, however is open to everybody. Exterior of occasions which may curiosity you, there’s not a lot to see in addition to the canteen (serving lunch Tuesday-Friday noon-2pm and brunch Saturdays noon-3pm), which shares a big house with an Emmaüs Campüs charity store (open Wednesday-Saturday noon-7pm; donations welcome), and an out of doors terrace. There’s additionally a bar open throughout night occasions. Césure solely has the suitable to occupy the campus till the top of 2024, when it’ll lastly endure long-awaited renovations.
Enjoyable Truth: I taught English Presentation Abilities for third-year Communications college students on the Sorbonne-Nouvelle in 2015, and have been having fun with the candy mint tea from the Mosquée de Paris tearoom down the road since I used to be a pupil myself again in 1995.
Floor Management Gare de Lyon
81 rue du Charolais, 12th
Open Wednesday-Thursday noon-midnight; Friday-Saturday noon-1am; and Sunday noon-10:30pm
This has been one in every of my go-to locations since 2018 for consuming out in a big group, since there are a dozen totally different meals vans (in summer season) and eating places within the meals court docket to select from, loads of house to take a seat (though it fills up by 8pm on weekends), and it’s enjoyable to browse the little outlets (books, classic upcycling, vinyl information, CBD merchandise). There’s a pinball recreation room, a board recreation room, and a formidable lineup of free occasions: artwork expositions, DJ dance nights, yoga classes, dwell live shows, drag exhibits, artwork workshops, and the same old “conferences and debates” on the urgent problem du jour. Particular shout out to La Résidence, the restaurant at Floor Management the place the menu is created and ready by refugee cooks from world wide.
It’s a fantastic place to seize a chunk after visiting the close by Viaduc des Arts and Promeande Plantée. It’s kid-friendly within the daytime so that you’ll see numerous younger households, however within the evenings it attracts a reasonably cool crowd of East Paris locals (extra streetwear than stiletto). Not like most nightlife locations in Paris, it’s not costly or snobby. There are 4 bars open evenings through the week and all day on the weekends, with native beers and pure wines. They even have beer and sangria by the pitcher, nonetheless a rarity in Paris (cups are reusable, you’ll get a deposit again while you return them).
Enjoyable truth: It’s also possible to entry Floor Management straight from the Gare de Lyon Prepare Station; I’ve written the exact instructions – with photographs – in my 2019 article about visiting Floor Management.
Bercy Beaucoup – Plant B – La Javelle
5 Boulevard Poniatowski, 12th
Plant B is open Wednesday-Friday 1-7pm, and Saturday 11am-7pm. La Javelle is closed for the winter.
This tiers-lieu on the southern fringe of the 12th arrondissement includes a spacious, open-air guingette referred to as La Javelle, with dwell music, and an out of doors bar and pizzeria. As a result of it’s all open air, it’s solely open April-September. Nevertheless gardeners can go to the second house at Bercy Beaucoup, Plant B, which is a neighborhood backyard alongside the outdated Petite Ceinture rails, beekeeping hives, a composting middle, a second-hand backyard boutique, and the “Rotonde”, a neighborhood workshop house internet hosting occasions year-round.
Getting there: the closest public transport is correct throughout the road, the tram 3b’s Baron Leroy cease; you would additionally stroll from behind Bercy Village (metro 14 ours St-Emillion) by taking Quai de Bercy and up a steel staircase to the marginally dodgy-looking (however high quality within the daytime) passage main between the warehouses to the Boulevard Poniatowski (you possibly can see it on Google maps).
Les Amarres
24 quai d’Austerlitz, 13th
Open to most people Thursday 6pm-11:30pm, Friday 6pm-1am, and Saturday 11am-1am, and the 1st Sunday of the month for brunch noon-3pm.
Les Amarres is a tiers-lieu proper on the Seine (24 quai d’Austerlitz, thirteenth) that homes a refugee welcome middle on weekdays, and a café-bar-concert house open to most people Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Managed by Sure We Camp, there’s a “buvette” refreshment bar-canteen serving Franco-Syrian bar meals and light-weight snacks, and a hearty Syrian brunch each Saturday and the primary Sunday of the month from noon-3pm (on-line reservations beneficial right here). The bar serves selfmade, native, natural, and artisan drinks (beer, wine, juices, and comfortable drinks from €3-8). The primary space serves as an occasion house, eating room and stage, and there’s a fantastic little open-air terrace out again with tables overlooking the Seine.
Weekly occasions (free and open to everybody) embrace crafts markets, dwell music and DJ live shows, artwork expositions, arts workshops, movie screenings, open mic nights, and lots of spherical desk occasions and conferences addressing problems with social justice, the surroundings, and inclusion.
Insider Tip: It’s simply down the marina from the lime-green « truc vert » often known as Les Docks – Cité de la Mode et du Design, which has sadly emptied out apart from the style faculty, Wanderlust nightclub, and a Café Oz on the highest ground. Head the opposite path and move below the elevated metro to Quai de la Photograph, as a substitute, for drinks and leisure alongside the Seine.
Fondation GoodPlanet – Domaine de Longchamp
1 Carrefour de Longchamp, Bois de Boulogne, sixteenth
Open Wednesday-Friday noon-6pm, Saturday-Sunday 11am-7pm
Positioned within the Domaine de Longchamp, a 19th-century mansion on 3.5 hectares within the bucolic Bois de Boulogne, the GoodPlanet Basis is the creation of the world-famous French photojournalist Yann Arthus-Bertrand, devoted to elevating public consciousness on environmental points and environmental safety. It’s a non-profit basis that depends on donations and sponsors, so not technically a tiers-lieu, however it acts very a lot in the identical spirit because the others on this listing (albeit with a extra elegant surroundings within the prosperous western fringe of Paris). You possibly can inform from the opening hours that it’s a family-friendly house, and lots of the workshops and occasions are for fogeys and/or their youngsters, however after all all are welcome.
The mansion hosts every kind of images and artwork expositions, common movie screenings, and themed weekends specializing in environmental or social justice matters: “From natural to nuclear, from press freedom to refugees, from honey harvesting to moral trend, from essentially the most playful to essentially the most crucial, all the themes of our time have their place.” All the occasions are free, though the lessons and workshops typically require you to register for a spot. On the grounds you’ll discover a juice and snack truck, a bar on weekends, sustainable meals workshops, excursions of the vegetable backyard and beehives, a ebook shed, and an out of doors live performance house.
Getting there: Accessibility is a bit difficult by public transit, because the closest metro/RER is Porte Maillot station, then both a taxi or bus 244 to Longchamp-GoodPlanet (don’t strive strolling it). Think about combining it together with your go to to the Fondation Louis Vuitton or the Bagatelle Gardens, that are additionally within the Bois de Boulogne.
Le REcyclerie
83 boulevard Ornano, 18th
Open noon-midnight (till 2am Friday-Saturday, till 11pm Sunday); usually open each day, however at present closed Monday-Tuesday (in line with their socials).
This well-established tiers-lieu is within the former Ornano Station of the Petite Ceinture exterior Porte de Clignancourt metro station (you may see it in your strategy to the St-Ouen flea market). There’s a locavore café-canteen open for lunch and dinner (no less than 50% vegetarian, no reservations), an city vegetable farm with bees and chickens open till 5pm, an Atelier de René the place you will get assist repairing small objects (or borrow the instruments to do it your self when you’re a member) open till 6pm, and a cultural program that promotes sustainability, creativity, and “being a greater shopper.”
There are sometimes upcycled, artisan, classic, or crafts markets on the weekend, particularly in December to advertise “accountable and moral Christmas procuring” and open-air cinema in summer season. I like the views over the outdated Petite Ceinture practice tracks from the large home windows of the REcyclerie (and the terrace in nicer climate), however so does everybody else: get right here early if you would like a desk. If the house evokes you, think about signing up for one of many free guided excursions – in French – on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4pm, register right here.
Insider Tip: Whereas the folks you’ll cross inside are largely Parisian hipsters and pleasant activists, preserve an in depth eye in your telephone and different belongings when going to or leaving the REcyclerie, as pickpockets and fraudsters are sadly fairly frequent across the Porte de Clignancourt metro cease (this isn’t the place to be sporting fancy jewellery).
La Cité Fertile
14 avenue Edouard Vaillant, Pantin
Open each day from midday, till 6pm Monday-Wednesday, till 1am Thursday-Saturday, till 10pm Sunday. Hours could change, all the time verify the present week’s agenda on their web site.
This tiers-lieu in a disaffected warehouse complicated simply exterior Paris could also be a bit scruffier than you’re used to seeing within the metropolis, with a little bit of a squatters’ vibe. However it has a welcoming environment that pulls numerous younger Parisians and households, much like Floor Management. When it opened in 2018 it was supposed to simply final for 3 years, however they’re nonetheless going sturdy, internet hosting festivals, classic markets, live shows, zero waste workshops, yoga classes, karaoke nights, and (no less than in years previous), a magical Christmas market with an enormous play space for teenagers.
There are a number of bars, each indoors and out of doors, a canteen with thrift store furnishings, pétanque courts, varied out of doors seating areas, a neighborhood backyard, beer brewery, and co-working house. Upcoming occasions embrace the entire World Cup Rugby matches proven on a giant display with meals vans, and a Planète Résilience competition the primary week of October with an moral trend present and upcycling workshops.
Getting there: Though your Google maps could inform you to take metro line 7 to Quatre Chemins or line 5 to Hoche, the stroll from these stations isn’t actually appropriate for vacationers (even French ones). Take RER E to Pantin as a substitute, which is way nearer (and also you’ll see the Cité Fertile from above as you cross the bridge), or a taxi/Uber after darkish.
Some Different Tiers-Lieux to Examine Out
Digital Village, 21 rue Albert, 13th. Co-working, bar-café with festive completely happy hours, exposition house, and pupil housing close to Place d’Italie.
Poinçon, 124 ave Générale Leclerc, 14th. A community-focused bar-restaurant-live music and tradition house in a former Petite Ceinture practice station, run by the identical group as La Bellevilloise.
Hasard Ludique, 128 Avenue de Saint-Ouen, 18th. Near the REcyclerie, one other former Petite Ceinture station now housing a full of life café-restaurant, dwell music house, vacation market, and workshops. Out of doors seating alongside the outdated railway tracks.
Jardin 21, 12/A Rue Ella Fitzgerald, 19th. A former nineteenth century orchard remodeled in 2018 right into a inexperienced, cultural and festive tiers-lieu on the banks of the Ourcq Canal within the Parc de la Villette.
Kilometre25, 8 boulevard MacDonald, 19th. An open-air live performance and clubbing house (not free) below the périphérique open weekends till 7am, Could via October. Additionally has an artwork gallery, meals truck, and ten nighttime outlets the place you will get tattoos, piercings, second-hand garments, classic information, a haircut, or nail artwork between DJ units.
