Winter is here and it's time to celebrate the festive season! Christmas is the time when you want to do something special with your partner, family or friends, and what could be more inspiring than a Yuletide break in Paris? For Christmas, the capital takes on an added charm and invites you to enjoy its illuminations, its markets and its famous decorated shop windows. Treat yourself and your loved ones by spending the end of the year in Paris!

 

Christmas lights shine brightly

All the streets of the capital are given their Christmas decorations at the beginning of December, adorning themselves with their beautiful light garlands. The City of Light always deserves its name but never more so than at the end of the year, when its loveliest monuments and districts are absolutely dazzling. Come along and see the magnificent Place Vendôme, that symbol of luxury, jewellery and prestigious living, with its elegant fir tree and sparkling illuminations. The Champs-Elysées is, of course, not to be missed, as it will make you think that a constellation of stars has descended to Earth.

 

The festive enchantment of Christmas windows

Faithful to tradition and typically Parisian, the windows of the capital’s world-famous department stores are transformed into places of enchantment that enrapture young and old alike. Printemps, Galeries Lafayette and Bon Marché compete with all the ingenuity and imagination at their command to create the most poetic, dreamlike and adorable display windows. Toys move, gift-wrapped parcels abound, lights sparkle, and enchanting Yuletide worlds of fairy-tale wonder come to life before your amazed eyes. The skill and creativity of the artists and designers who make this magic happen will astonish you.

 

Christmas markets, festive flavours

They can be found on the Quai Branly, the forecourt of La Defense, the forecourt of the Gare de l'Est or around the Gare Saint-Lazare. With their scents of cinnamon, gingerbread, roasted chestnuts and candied fruit, the Christmas markets bring you all the flavours of the Christmas holidays. Mulled wine, pretzels, Christmas decorations, spicy biscuits and handcrafted jewellery are among the items on offer at the Parisian Christmas markets, to get you into the spirit of the occasion. Come and do your Christmas food shopping or go in search of all manner of small gifts for your loved ones, while enjoying the festive atmosphere and conviviality of these traditional markets.

For your Parisian Christmas break, opt for a welcoming, comfortable, chic and centrally located hotel. The Hotel l'Interlude meets these criteria with ease. Nestled in the 12th arrondissement, between the Place de la Bastille, the Gare de Lyon and the banks of the Seine, the Hotel l'Interlude welcomes you for a perfect stay.

 

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For more information:

- Christmas Windows
- Christmas Markets

Photo credit : © Jean-Pierre Dalbéra - Flickr

 

Hotel L'Interlude, a 3-star hotel in the heart of the 12th arrondissement