Things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris start with settling into a charming apartment rental or chic boutique hotel, taking in the stupendous white-domed Basilica of Sacré-Cœur and breathtaking panoramic vistas of Paris, embarking on arty ambles around Montmartre’s picturesque streets, doing a French cooking class, discovering multicultural neighbourhoods, and browsing Paris’ famous flea markets.
The French capital’s 18th district is home to three of the most iconic attractions in Paris, the hilltop multi-domed Sacré-Cœur Basilica (above), some of the most gobsmacking views of Paris from its steps, and the historic Moulin Rouge cabaret, currently experiencing a resurgence in popularity.
So it’s no surprise that the charismatic neighbourhood of Montmartre-Pigalle, the heart of the 18th arrondissement, has a reputation for being touristy. Indeed, if you travel the metro to Anvers and walk up Rue de Steinkerque, passing souvenir shops and ice-creameries to get the Funiculaire Gare Basse to Sacré-Cœur, it’s hard to imagine otherwise.
It’s understandable that after taking in the sweeping views of Paris and splendour of Sacré-Cœur you might want to linger for longer near the Basilica. But if you don’t stray far from Place du Tertre’s caricature artists and the creperies, Irish bars and tourist restaurants selling ‘Crepes Pasta Burgers’ between Rue du Chevalier de la Barre and Rue Norvins, you’re not going to experience the local side of Montmartre.
To do that, avoid the congested tourist zone, take in the views from Sacré-Cœur early in the morning before the tour groups arrive or after they’ve gone in the evening, and do as the locals do in Montmartre. In the mornings, shop the bakery, butcher’s and fishmongers before the tourists clog the streets, explore off the beaten track Paris during the day, and dine in classic old-school spots in the evening.
The beauty of Montmartre, which for us is one of the world’s most fascinating neighbourhoods to explore, is that while it’s home to iconic Paris sights, you don’t have to go far to get off the tourist trail and find bistros, cafés and bars tucked down lanes and squeezed between sushi spots that are popular with local residents.
Things to Do in The 18th Arrondissement of Paris – Where to Stay, Eat, Explore
These are some of the best things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, starting with checking into a charming apartment.
Check Into a Charming Montmartre Apartment
One of the first things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris is settle into a charming apartment in Montmartre, a chic bohemian location that fascinates and seduces, as much as it delights and dismays. It’s a captivating area that, with a population of artists, bohemians and travellers, little old ladies and ladies of the night.
On the lower slopes of Montmartre that creep up the hillside from Boulevard de Clichy – home to the Moulin Rouge, one of Paris’ most popular attractions – and Boulevard de Rochechouart are buzzy bars, nightspots, and vintage furniture and bric-a-brac shops, while the tiny parallel doglegged streets of Rue des Abbesses, Rue des Toire Frères and Rue d’Orsel are lined with bistros, bakeries, and boutiques.
Higher still, on the top of the hill of Montmartre is the stupendous cathedral of Sacre Coeur, and the crowded tourist-heavy lanes centred on and around Rue Rustique. On the slopes on the other side of the hill are lovely, quiet, tree-lined streets of elegant old apartment buildings in a local neighbourhood that sees few tourists.
If you love to cook, an apartment with kitchen is a must, even if it’s a compact kitchen. Terence managed to cook up a storm in the petite kitchen of the pretty Montmartre apartment we stayed at for two weeks, including an aromatic Côte de boeuf and Dauphinoise potatoes, Pierre Gagnaire’s suggestion.
Montmartre is home to some of Paris’ best pattisseries and bakeries – or rather, boulangerie (bakers), fromagerie (cheese shop), charcuterie (delicatessen), boucherie (butchers), and poissonnerie (fishmongers), which are much more fun to shop at than a supermarket.
There are also loads of local markets selling beautiful fresh French produce and ingredients nearby, each market operating on different mornings of the week, so the opening days and times before heading off to do a market shop.
The bustling Marché Barbès (Barbès Market) which will transport you to North Africa and the Middle East, is a 15 minute walk from Place des Abbesses, the heart of Montmartre. Marché Ornano is a 20 minute stroll away; Marché Ney is a 25 minute hike, not far from the Marché aux Puces, Paris flea markets; while Marché de Joinville, on the border of the 18th and 19th near the Bassin de la VIllette is a 45 minute trek from the centre of Montmartre.
Note that most apartments in Paris are accessed by stairs, so check how many flights there are when you book if that’s a problem. Our apartment was located on the top floor of a sixth floor building. It was a long way up but an excellent workout. Watch the video of our trek downstairs!
Learn About Montmartre Arty History on an Art Themed Amble Around Montmartre
Joining an art themed guided walking tour around Montmartre is one of the best things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. We took an amble around arty Montmartre with artist Marie Theres Berger, who became our Local Knowledge Paris expert sharing her insider tips.
Our walk began near Metro Abbesses, where Marie Theres described how Montmartre grew from a small village outside Paris to the residence of artists and bohemians in the early 1900s who were attracted by the picturesque scenery and low rents, and took us through settings depicted in countless paintings by artists such as Toulouse-Lautrec and Utrillo, and starred in movies such as Moulin-Rouge and Amélie.
Artists such as Picasso and Modigliani lived and painted in the art commune, Le Bateau-Lavoir, and like Braque and Renoir kicked back with at open-air dance halls like Moulin de la Galette that flourished in the gardens of mills that once dotted the hilltop. Toulouse-Lautrec opened the most famous cabaret of all, the Moulin Rouge, because he had wanted to paint professional dancers (who doubled as prostitutes).
Our stroll took in Montmartre Cemetery, where notable Parisians are buried, such as Zola, Stendhal, Degas, and Truffaut; Rue Durantin, once a rundown street now very fashionable; a grand 18th century folie, a weekend home of aristocrats’ escaping Paris, where Renoir once lived; artist studios (including her own); quiet public gardens and parks of locals walking dogs and reading books.
Master Macaron Making in a Paris Cooking Class in Montmartre
Visiting one of the world’s great gastronomic capitals and not doing a Paris cooking class is like going to Siem Reap and going to Angkor Wat. Doing a French cooking course is one of the best things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris and was a given for us. But what kind was the question.
As it was ‘the season of the macaron’ when we based ourselves in Montmartre, and every visitor to was going gaga over macarons, salivating over the sugary confections in the windows of Ladurée and every other good pâtisserie in Paris, Terence decided to find out what all the fuss was about and sign up for a macaron making class in Montmartre.
Terence did a private class at the Cook’n With Class cooking school in Montmartre, with the goal of learning how to master the art of making the macaron, although the cooking class was a pastry-making course that normally included ice-cream, biscuits, fresh pastry, and tarte tatin, and a macaron-making lessons.
Although the intimate school is ran by Frenchman Eric Fraudeau, who has worked with the best – Joel Robuchon and Alain Ducasse – Terence did his pastry-making class with Italian-born Pino Ficara, who moved to France with his family when he was young, but trained in New York at the Institute of Culinary Education.
Terence loved the class – you can read his entertaining minute by minute rundown of the cooking class here – as it wasn’t demo-style but was a hands-on cooking class. For him, it’s one of the world’s best cooking classes. Terence loved the fact that he felt like he was working in the pastry department of a commercial kitchen! That pace and precision might not be for everyone. If that’s you, check our Get Your Guide, which has loads of other French cooking classes in Paris.
Discover the Cosmopolitan Heart of the 18th District
One of the best things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris is explore the cosmopolitan neighbourhoods of Clignancourt and Barbès. They’re just a ten-minute stroll from Sacré Coeur and Rue des Abbesses, but world’s away culturally and socially from the lives of the affluent white Parisians residing nearby on the butte (hill) of Montmartre.
Boulevard Barbès and the surrounding streets have a vibrant North African-cum-Middle Eastern vibe, lined with cluttered shops with names like ‘Bazar Orient’, African women’s hairdressers specialising in elaborate wigs and hair extensions, and telephone ‘boutiques’ advertising cheap calls to Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Mali, Senegal and so on.
Strolling these streets, I felt like I was back in the Middle East and North Africa. I discovered this neighbourhood on a guided walking tour with a tour guide and scholar specialising in French immigration and the changing face of Paris. Unfortunately she’s no longer offering that tour and lives in another country, but you explore the neighbourhood on a self-guided stroll.
Start at the open air market street of Rue Poulet, where Muslim butchers display halal meat, pastry shops sell sweets from the Maghreb (Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco), and fruit and vegetable shops boast spices and herbs more commonly associated with African and Middle Eastern food than French.
Walk along Rue des Poissonniers, where textile shops are crammed with stacks of bold-patterned fabrics, music shops blare Rai and Bollywood music, and travel agencies display deals for African, Middle Eastern and Asian packages.
Don’t miss nearby Marché Barbès or Market Barbès, just a 15 minute walk from Place des Abbesses, which will transport you to a bustling Middle Eastern or North African market, which sprawls beneath the railway tracks and Barbès Rochechouart station. It’s one of my favourite local markets in Paris.
Get Your Kicks at the Moulin Rouge in Paris
A night getting your kicks at the Moulin Rouge in Paris’ red-light district, Pigalle, at the base of the butte de Montmartre is a must-do experience for many travellers as the nightly long lines on Boulevard Clichy attest.
On our art walk around Montmartre, artist Marie Theres described the first cabarets held in tents that Toulouse Lautrec had painted in the leafy gardens of the old mills that once dotted Montmartre. We caught a show as we were curious to see if there was any resemblance between Toulouse Lautrec’s Moulin Rouge and the modern-day spectacle.
The Moulin Rouge played a pivotal role in the history of Montmartre. Opened in 1889 by Joseph Oller, the Moulin Rouge is regarded as the birthplace of the French cancan, the exuberant dance where rows of healthy-looking girls in petticoats scream and shriek and vigorously kick their long legs high into the air.
The cancan made only a brief appearance in the Moulin Rouge show we saw and not until the end the cabaret. For the most part, the risqué revue was a cross between French cabaret, early burlesque, a Las Vegas extravaganza, and a Eurovision song contest, which will satisfy lovers of kitsch. The Moulin Rouge show is lots of fun. You can read more about it in our review of the Moulin Rouge here.
Please do let us know if settle into Montmartre on your Paris trip and if you have suggestions for local things to do in the 18th arrondissement of Paris please leave your tips in the comments below.
