Paris - Je t'aime!
How I experience my favorite city in the world—walking, wandering, looking at art, and lingering whenever something beautiful catches my eye.
Paris is my favorite city in the world.
The architecture, art, fashion, food, gardens, beautiful shop windows—and yes, even the attitude—get me every time.
But the Paris I want to share isn't really about sightseeing. It’s about experiencing the city.
I walk. I wander through Saint-Germain. I stop to look at art. I browse beautiful shops. I sit in a garden. I have a glass of wine. And then I walk some more.
After many visits, I’ve realized that the best of Paris often happens between the things I’ve planned.
Walk & Wander
My number-one Paris recommendation is simple: walk.
One of my favorite routes starts at Place de la Concorde and follows the Seine to the Musée d’Orsay. It’s a gorgeous stretch—the river beside you, magnificent architecture all around, and plenty of reasons to get distracted along the way.
Saint-Germain and the Marais are made for wandering too. I don’t map every stop. Have somewhere you’re eventually heading and take the long way there.
Paris is very good at rewarding a detour.
Place de la Concorde
Walking through the Jardin de Tuilleries
Art & Beauty
At the Musée d’Orsay, I head straight to the 5th floor for the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists. Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cézanne, Van Gogh—if you don’t have hours to spend at the museum, this is where I’d go.
Nearby, L’Orangerie is worth visiting for Monet’s monumental Water Lilies alone. The enormous canvases wrap around the curved rooms, creating one of the most immersive art experiences in Paris.
And then there are the gardens.
The Jardin du Luxembourg has a symmetry, beauty and timelessness that I find irresistible. Find a chair, sit beneath the trees and people-watch. You could stay for hours.
Sometimes doing very little is the best way to experience Paris.
Jardin du Luxembourg
L’Orangerie
Shop, Eat & Drink
I could happily spend an afternoon shopping in Paris.
Le Bon Marché is wonderful for fashion, beauty, home and design, while La Samaritaine is worth visiting for the architecture as much as the shopping. And I can happily wander Rue Saint-Honoré and Avenue Montaigne, popping into designer shops along the way.
When it comes to food, I don’t think every meal needs to be an event. Have the fabulous dinner, but also have the neighborhood bistro lunch or stop somewhere simply because it looks inviting.
For something sweet, Pierre Hermé and Berthillon are two I return to.
For a proper cocktail, Les Ambassadeurs at Hôtel de Crillon is hard to beat. And I equally love the opposite—a little wine bar in the 6th, a glass of wine, something small to eat and nowhere else you need to be.
Stay Somewhere Beautiful
I’m perfectly happy being grand in Paris.
Four Seasons Hotel George V, Hôtel de Crillon and Hôtel Plaza Athénée are three hotels I know and would happily return to.
I’m deliberately not giving you a long list of fashionable hotels I haven’t stayed in. These are the ones I know.
Why I Keep Coming Back
I’ve traveled to many extraordinary places, but nothing has displaced Paris.
It’s the whole thing—the architecture, art, fashion, gardens, food, café culture, and the sense that beauty is woven into everyday life.
And I like the rhythm I fall into here.
I slow down. I notice more. I wander.
I linger over lunch. Look at art. Browse without necessarily buying. Sit down for a glass of wine because the table looks inviting.
And I inevitably leave with somewhere I didn’t eat, something I didn’t see, and another street I wanted to explore.
All the more reason to return.
Paris, je t’aime.