The Best Time to Visit Paris
Light, crowds, and the case for going in February.
The first answer to 'when should I visit Paris?' is almost always May or September. The weather is mild, the parks are full, and the city looks like every photograph you've ever seen of it. The second answer — the better one — depends on what you want from the trip.
May to early June
Long evenings, chestnut blossom, terraces full. The classic answer. Book early; this is when the city is most expensive.
September to mid-October
Arguably better than spring. The light turns golden, the rentrée brings a serious cultural season — new exhibitions, fashion week, theatre — and the crowds thin after the first week of September.
February — the underrated month
Cold but rarely freezing, half the tourists, museums almost to yourself, and the cafés take you seriously. Hotels are at their cheapest. Bring a coat and a book.
Paris in February is the city it always wanted to be: a little melancholy, almost yours alone.
When to avoid
August, mostly. Many small restaurants and family-run shops close for the month; the city empties of Parisians and fills with bus tours. Christmas week is beautiful but expensive and crowded.
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