Paris Left Bank : a Local's Favorites
Paris Left Bank : a Local's Favorites
Cousine Germaine
Available for hire
Paris's Left side is often overlooked... and it should not be!
So here is a map to help you find all the good spots of this side of the Seine: the best places to eat, visit, party or rest, and many little stories on the way 📚
Come discover the other face of Paris! I'll promise, you'll never look at it the same way ✨️
About me 👀
I am a French girl that moved on the Left bank 10 years ago... and never left! All the infos you'll find here, I patiently assembled while wandering around the neighborhood, with my family and friends or alone.
Don't forget to download Thatch app to access full features and to save this map to make it your own!
If you want more help to plan your Parisian trip, I'd be happy to help ;) Find all my custom services at the end of the map! 🗺
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Ten monuments to visit
Panthéon
@louisebaudouin
my lucky charm in Paris! Located up the montagne Sainte-Genevieve, it is a very important French monument, where all great men and women are remembered. You also have the most amazing view from up here !
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Sorbonne University
@louisebaudouin
One of the oldest university in the world, the Sorbonne is located in the middle of the Latin Quarter. It is an ensemble of buildings from different periods, everyone more beautiful than the other !
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Val-de-Grâce
@louisebaudouin
A very underrated monument in Paris! Built in the XVIth century, it is a museum, a church and a military hospital, really worth a look 👀
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Church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés
@louisebaudouin
Located on a very famous place in the 6th arrondissement... but very often overlooked! It is one of my favorite church in Paris, with unique paintings and a deep blue ceiling: really worth it!
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Hôtel des Invalides
@louisebaudouin
Even if you don't go inside, this golden dome is a must-see for me! It just never gets not incredible to admire 🤩
this huge and very dense museum is dedicated to the french Army, from the Ancient Age to the most modern wars. I am a true pacifist, but I can still get lost in here for hours, learning how the most important battles were fought and admiring details on the uniforms. Of course, you shouldn't miss the very majestic cathedral where stands Napoleon's tomb.
Side note: a kid-friendly museum, with lot of interactive videos and good explanations. The audioguide is worth the price for them
Little historian knowledge: the museum is actually call an "hotel", because it has been build for hosting the wounded soldiers of Louis XIV, in 1671. At that time, it was almost the only building in this neighborhood, and people could see it from very far away.
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Tour Eiffel - Parc du Champ-de-Mars
@louisebaudouin
Of course, I had to mention it. But, I highly recommend NOT to got upstairs, because it is not the best view of Paris. I prefer the view for the Montparnasse Tower for example
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BNF Library (François-Mitterrand)
@louisebaudouin
A very modern unexpected monument in Paris, with a beautiful esplanade and view of the Seine. Around it, the neighborhood is also worth a walk if you want to discover another face of Paris.
Behind its massive structure and cold aspect, it is a nice and peaceful place to study, read the one book you could not find anywhere else and discover high-quality exhibitions and lectures
If you look at it from afar, you'll see it looks like four open books 😉
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Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris
@louisebaudouin
Probably one of my favorite places in Paris! This international campus offers calm and peaceful gardens, buildings of different architectural styles, and students from the whole world, assembled in a spirit of peace and learning. It always gives me the feeling of traveling through time and space...
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Montparnasse Tower
@louisebaudouin
The best view on Paris! And, if I can give you a quick tip: have a cocktail in the restaurant up the tower to see the sun set. You can enjoy the view on the Eiffel Tower and all of Paris, in a luxurious location
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Where to eat
Café le Reflet
@louisebaudouin
A little student coffee decorated with movies' posters, where to lunch or work in a friendly atmosphere 🥪
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Glaces Glazed
@louisebaudouin
Original flavors of very good ice cream, just next to the Garden of Plants 🍨
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Babil
@louisebaudouin
the loveliest place to have a drink close to Notre-Dame! I've been several times, and it always has been the nicest experience, with a funny waiter, very good service and amazing products
french cheeses, charcutery and wines
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Mille & Un (Boulangerie, Pâtisserie, Salon de Thé)
@louisebaudouin
An original bakery in Paris, that mixes French and Korean influences in very good sweet and salty recipes
To try: black sesame flan 🍮
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Bonjour Jacob Saint Germain Coffee I Magazine I Vinyl
@louisebaudouin
A nice coffeeshop to go to grab a nice coffee to go, or sit and enjoy one of the numerous magazines they offer here. Their cookies are a really nice treat too ;)
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Bouillon Chartier
@louisebaudouin
The one and only place to have a truly authentic French dinner 🍷 cheap and flavor-full French specialities, a beautiful Art Nouveau room, and quick waiters, every element is there for a memorable night.
My best advice not to wait (there is no reservation): come for the second part of the service (around 9:30PM)
The only problem: there are almost no options for vegetarian diet.
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Le Bac à Glaces
@louisebaudouin
Probably the best ice-cream I've eaten in Paris, really worth the price. The hardest part will definitely to choose your flavors 😋
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Riviera Fuga
@louisebaudouin
A very nice and refined restaurant on a boat, where to lunch or dinner, close to the Champs Elysees. It feels like ocean side, the food is tasty AND beautiful, and the service is impeccable. It is my n°1 recommended place for a long fancy date...
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L'atelier saisonnier Paris 13
@louisebaudouin
Come for the week-end bottomless brunch, with only homemade food, and so many salty and sweet options! You'll enjoy it with your family and/or friends, as if you where at home!
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LE B.A-BA
@louisebaudouin
Recommended to me by one of my friends that lives in the neighborhood, they have a very good menu and a nice vibe
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La Felicità
@louisebaudouin
To party, drink or eat, it is always a good idea to go to la Felicita! The vibe is nice, cosy and welcoming, with several atmospheres depending on where you choose to sit. Very good Italian products also!
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Wonderland Patisserie
@louisebaudouin
A unique bakery in Paris, that offers very tasty and highly decorated cakes in a nice atmosphere. The recipes change often, and you must try their little chocolate snacks...
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Café Bohème
@louisebaudouin
My go-to place in the neighborhood, I always want to order the full menu, and I am never disappointed. I especially love their cocktails and desserts!
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Crêperie Plougastel
@louisebaudouin
One of the best creperies of this Brittany neighborhood, high quality for the price, and they serve sweet and salty crepes all day long
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ONOUL Coffee Shop & Korean products
@louisebaudouin
A nice and very peaceful Korean coffee, ideal for a friendly date or a snack after a long walk. The owner is the sweetest person on earth 👼
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PANADE
@louisebaudouin
An pretty bakery with very original recipes at a good price, I'm always surprised when I arrive and happy when I leave :)
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Boulangerie Paris & Co Convention
@louisebaudouin
A nice adress to know in this neighborhood, they have good bread and nice patisseries (and their cookies are gigantic)
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Where to rest
Jardin des Plantes
@louisebaudouin
A very nice garden-museum that exhibits all sorts of plants and flowers, depending on the season. It contains several Natural History museums and a nice labyrinth (with a mysterious building in the middle 🤫)
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Luxembourg Garden
@louisebaudouin
One of the most pretty garden of Paris, and a very nice example of the "French Garden", with an amazing view from the Senate Palace to the Observatory. Don't miss the Medicis Fountain and look for the small Statue of Liberty 👀
It has been created in 1612 by the queen Mary of Medicis, with the palace built in the center of it.
It has inspired a lot of writers, including Victor Hugo, Charles Baudelaire and Ernest Hemingway, that all lived around it and dreamed around its fountains... For example, this is the place where Marius fell in love with Cosette, in Hugo's Miserables.
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Esplanade des Invalides
@louisebaudouin
the favorite meeting point of Parisians as soon as the weather is good enough! And probably one of the prettiest point of view of Paris, with the bridge Alexander III and the Invalids
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Parc-de-Montsouris
@louisebaudouin
probably my favorite park in Paris 🌿 it is huge, calm and green all year long. It is full of little secrets places, and you should definitely have a pic-nic here during a sunny day!
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Parc Georges-Brassens
@louisebaudouin
a secret park that only locals use, it welcomes a old books flea market several days a week
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Bonus
If you want to discover the Left bank in a different way, I offer in person and self-guided tours, around literature, history and culture.
My self-guided tours:
"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a movable feast." 🎉
Hemingway, writer of the Lost Generation that he is, has lived the grand bohemian life in Paris, during his twenties. His experience of Paris has changed his life, for it is where he discovered his writing style and met some of the most inspiring people of his time: Gertrude Stein, Francis Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce and Ezra Pound, among others...
With this guide, you'll be able to explore Paris with Ernest Hemingway, at your own pace: the places where he lived, his favorite restaurants and cafes, the homes of his friends, and the neighborhoods that inspired him....
Hemingway arrived in Paris after his marriage with Hadley, when he was 21 and a young unknown reporter for a Chicago newspaper. He left the city 6 years later, after his divorce, and he had become a famous novelist with his first novel The Sun Also Rises 🌞
This extensive guide contains:
- 30 places and their history
- the complete and precise itinerary to go from one place to another
- pictures, books extracts and many anecdotes to explain the importance of each place 📚
- some historic, architectural and cultural notes, to help you appreciate the neighborhood you will see along
- a reading list of books to continue your journey...
The tour is approximatively 7 km long, and can be done in around 3 hours of walking, or more if you like to take your time. I strongly advise you enjoy the journey and stop at some of the restaurants listed on the way 🍽️
About me 👀
I am a French girl that moved on the Left bank 9 years ago... and never left! I adore reading and walking (I like to do both at the same time, much to my mother's apprehension). I studied literature and history and patiently assembled all the details I give you here, by searching and reading a lot.
If you interested in living full-on curious and peaceful literary tours during your Parisian stay, I host private customed tours around Paris. I'll be happy to count you in one of them! 🥐
And if you want more help to plan your Parisian trip, I'll be honored to help ;) you can find all my custom services at the end of the map! 🗺
Don't forget to download Thatch app to access full features!
Accessibility • 50+ • Family • Groups • Couples • Adventure • Architecture • Slow Travel • People & Culture • Sustainable/Eco • History
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My in-person private tours:
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cousine Germaine
Available for hire
Hi there, your favorite French cousin here, to help you around Paris and have a lovely stress-free experience of the city! I am a Parisian for almost eight years now, and would absolutely consider myself a Left bank fan. I'd be happy to share my knowledge of this neighborhood and help you plan a perfect Parisian trip :)
I'm a historian, a tourist guide and a food lover, so I have a lot a recommandations and stories to tell.
I also love to travel around, so you may find some tips and guides for other countries here and there...
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