New Year's Eve in Paris: what to do

Are you spending New Year’s Eve in Paris, the city of love? There is no better way to celebrate “Saint-Sylvestre” than heading off to some vibrant and local street parties along the Champs Elysée, taking an enchanting boat tour along the Seine, or dancing the night away in one of the famous clubs in Montmartre. “Le Réveillon du Nouvel An” brings light, laughter and best of all - the promise of new beginnings! If you’re lucky enough to be celebrating in Paris this year, here is your definitive guide on what to do as the clock strikes midnight…

In Paris, there are three popular places in the city to rejoice in the arrival of the New Year. With this guide you can either decide to follow one suggested evening guide, or you will have the ability to mix-and-match whatever takes your fancy the most and create a custom-made plan for you and your friends. One thing’s for sure, everything I have planned for you includes Paris’ finest alcoholic beverage - champagne! Without further ado, let’s get into my three evening guides for spending New Year’s Eve in Paris!

1. New Year’s Eve on a budget: your cheap, cheerful and local option at the Champs Elysées

My first proposal for you on your magical Parisian New Year’s Eve celebrations is joining the local masses in their carefree festivities along the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. First things first, we all know the French love their food, so you should head off to a lovely local French bistro. Try some of the local favourites like foie gras, oysters, snails or smoked salmon. There are hundreds of adorable low-key places to have your intimate dinner for less than €20 per person. Or search for a boulangerie, like this one a previous Erasmus student has written a raving review about. Most places, intimate or fancy, will have special New Year’s Eve menus with a wide selection of reasonably-priced three-course meals. These are perfect to warm your insides before stepping outside into the crisp Parisian air to watch the light show.

Speaking of the lights, dinner will begin a little later on this day than the rest of the year, with restaurants filling up after around 9pm. You will have maybe two hours or so before you need to buckle your belts back up and find your place to watch the show. Last year (the start of 2018), some 600, 000 people gathered along the avenue with their flasks of “vin chaud” (mulled wine) and their thick socks, ready to bring in the New Year. There are many great places from here where you can see the light show projected onto the Eiffel Tower, but I think the best option by far would be to head up to the top of the avenue and experience the event occurring at the Arc de Triomphe. This event usually begins around 11pm and includes an intense and spectacular display of dazzling lights and music. Some even expect fireworks to be introduced after New Year’s Eve 2018! From this point, you will be able to celebrate with the hundreds of thousands of people there with you as the clock strikes twelve. Don’t forget to make lots of noise! It is believed that making the loudest noise possible during the transition to the New Year will ward off any unwanted spirits from threatening to take hold of the city.

After the light show and the 12 chimes of midnight, you can follow the NYE parade down the avenue and enjoy local street parties, personal fireworks shows and a variety of local bars and clubs along the way. At this point, dancing the night away could also be an option at any of the more popular and larger clubs like Batofar, Nouveau Casino, or REX Club. Remember, entrances will be ticketed, so reserve your tickets beforehand!

2. Sophisticated and romantic evening at the Eiffel Tower

How could I not include an evening plan for the city of love that didn’t include romance? Of course, you can still do this with your friends too, if the previous option seems too crowded for you. Again, let’s start with the traditional New Year’s dinner. The Eiffel Tower has two restaurants inside it: the 58 Tour Eiffel (a chic Brasserie at floor 1) and Le Jules Verne (Grande Cuisine Restaurant at floor 2). Pre-booking a meal here is not as expensive as you may imagine, especially if you go a little earlier before the dinner rush, it can be around €39 for two people - that’s only €19, 50 each for a three-course meal, with champagne of course! If you actually prefer to skip the meal and head straight onto the drinks, there is a Champagne Bar at floor 3. You could go here for one drink of posh champagne at €13, or just take a trip up there without eating or drinking. It is truly a special experience with some of the world’s best views laid out in front of you - and lit up for the most special day of the year!

After you soak all of this up from inside the beautiful restaurants, you can head back out to the green park at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the Champ de Mars. You can set down your blanket and continue drinking your champagne, or pull out a pre-made flask of vin chaud if you’re a little cold. It’s likely to be barely above freezing at this time… So bring your coats and gloves! There are usually less people here and it is more relaxed, but when the clock strikes 12 once more, the noise is just as loud! Watch the Eiffel Tower display its classic light show at midnight and bask in the glorious Parisian atmosphere. Walk just 10 minutes to revel in the glory of the beautiful city lights even more on a night-time illumination cruise along the Seine from €15 each. Spend the first hour of the New Year gazing at the lights and start your new beginning in the most romantic way possible, gliding along the river with champagne in your hand. Contrary to popular belief, mistletoe is not just a Christmas thing - especially in France. Kissing under a sprig of mistletoe is the classic New Year’s tradition celebrated throughout France and one that you must take advantage of on this beautiful boat ride!

PS: Public transport is free on the night of NYE, so if you are ready to slip your dancing shoes on after this romantic getaway, hop on the metro and go to any of the bars or clubs I mentioned in the first option.

3. Spectacular views of the city at Montmartre Hill

If neither of the previous two evening plans tickle your fancy, or you just want to get in line early for the Cabaret shows, Montmartre Hill is for you! Assuming the skies are clear, a hill-top spot by the Sacre-Coeur would be the perfect place to get panoramic views of this gorgeous city. You may even spot some personal firework shows from up here! Laid back and littered with bars, clubs and pubs, Montmartre will be the party destination on this particular night of the year. Go to a cabaret show at the Moulin Rouge Cabaret, or go to some bars and pubs to explore the neighbourhood of Montmartre. Grab a quick bite to eat before heading out partying, or pick an all-inclusive evening and have everything sorted for you for the entire night. There are so many types of these party deals, this is a particular one from a club in Montmartre:

From 9pm to 5am you can have access to a private fireworks show, a luxury all-you-can-eat buffet, a cocktail buffet, access to a giant dancefloor, gardens and views of the city all for €59 per person. If you think about it, transport is free and that deal includes your food and drinks and fireworks celebrations for the night… Not a bad deal! Of course, you can always bring the spirit of England with you to Paris and do a traditional and simple pub crawl! You will meet plenty of Parisian spirit anywhere you go on Montmartre Hill, and you will probably encounter a couple of street parties to join in with too!

Make sure you dress up for any New Year’s Eve activities or events. As you know, as well as being the city of love, Paris is the fashion capital of the world… so make sure they love your outfit! Another typical Parisian thing to snack on during this particular celebration are things called “papillottes”, which are little chocolate sweets with maybe praline, ganache, nougat, or hazelnuts inside! There are white chocolate ones, dark chocolate, and even ones with a fruity inside. There is a joke on the inside of the wrapper of each one, so have fun reading these out with your friends and try out your French accent!

That concludes my three evening plans to bring you into the New Year in style! Getting the chance to experience hundreds of thousands of Parisian locals shouting “Bonne Année! ” as the clock strikes 12 is truly an incredible moment, whether you’re in the middle of the crowd at the Champs Elysées, at the romantic foot of the Eiffel Tower, or looking out on the city from Montmartre Hill. Each of these three areas of Paris offer something different for you to do on NYE whether you want to dance, eat, party or sit and watch the world go by.

I hope you have the best celebrations ever and enjoy your Erasmus in Paris. If you would like some more information about Christmas and NYE in Paris, check out this post.

If you are arriving before this special night, remember you can book your new home in Paris before you even arrive. Erasmusu has a huge variety of options from living in a room in a shared flat, University Halls, or a studio apartments to spend your year abroad in.

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