In short
- What’s there: the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, the Philharmonie and the Parc de la Villette.
- Location: northeastern Paris, north of the 20th arrondissement.
- Tickets: both parks are free; the Cité des Sciences and the Philharmonie tour need a ticket.
- Food markets: eight, including two covered markets open until the evening.
- Restaurants: just one recommendation, and there are neighborhood cafés along the canal.
- Who it suits: families, music lovers and anyone looking for Paris without the tourists.
- Walking itineraries: two pass through the arrondissement, and none takes place entirely inside it.
The 19th is the arrondissement where Paris looks least like Paris, and that’s exactly why I like it. There are no Haussmann buildings and no royal monuments, but there are two huge parks, a canal, and cultural institutions on a scale you won’t find in the city center.
On the practical side, this is the best arrondissement in Paris for families with kids: a huge science museum, a park with cliffs and caves, and eight food markets. When it comes to restaurants, I have just one recommendation.
So before we set off, here’s what you’ll find on this page: first the hotels and apartments I recommend in the arrondissement, then the attractions one by one, the restaurants, the eight food markets with their days and hours, and finally the walking itineraries.
Recommended hotels in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
The 19th is one of the cheapest places to stay in Paris, and it suits travelers coming with kids or for a conference at La Villette. If you’re not sure what’s right for you, answer three questions and I’ll pick from my recommendations:
My personal pick
Which hotel in the 19th is right for you?
One short question, and I will pick out of the places I already checked and wrote about on the site the ones that fit the trip you are planning.
One moment, I am going over my recommendations to find what fits you…
Prefer to go through all my recommendations yourself, with photos and details on every hotel? See my page of recommended hotels in the 19th.
Recommended apartments in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
With eight markets and two covered markets open most of the week, an apartment with a kitchen is the obvious choice in this arrondissement. Here too, you can let me choose:
My personal pick
Which apartment in the 19th is right for you?
One question about the area, and I will filter the apartments I checked and wrote about on the site. The apartments I recommend directly get booked very fast, so I added excellent Booking.com apartments that I hand-picked for my readers.
One moment, I am going over my recommendations to find what fits you…
Want to go through all the apartments I recommend, with photos and details? See my page of recommended apartments in the 19th.
Attractions and museums in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
These are the sites I recommend in the 19th, and two of them are free.
-
My top pick
Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
In my opinion, the most beautiful park in Paris, and it was built on a garbage dump and gypsum quarries.
The park opened in 1867 for the World’s Fair, on the site of an abandoned gypsum quarry that also served as a dump, close to the old Montfaucon gibbet where criminals were hanged. What’s left of all that is the dramatic part: a cliff about thirty meters high with caves, a waterfall, a suspension bridge and a round temple at the top. From the temple you can see Montmartre.
-
Great with kids
Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
The largest science museum in Europe, and in my opinion a full day out with kids.
The building was originally meant to be a huge slaughterhouse hall supplying meat to all of Paris, but by the time it was finished, refrigeration had made it obsolete, and it stood empty for years. In the 1980s it was converted into a science museum. Next to it is La Géode, a mirrored dome with a dome cinema inside. It’s worth checking in advance which areas are open, because the place is huge and parts of it close for renovation in rotation.
-
Music
The Philharmonie and the Musée de la Musique
Jean Nouvel’s building, with a collection of historic musical instruments inside.
The Philharmonie, designed by Jean Nouvel (born 1945), opened in 2015 and is home to the Orchestre de Paris. Fewer people know the Musée de la Musique in the neighboring wing, with about a thousand instruments on display from the 16th century onward, among them violins by Antonio Stradivari (c. 1644-1737). Musicians regularly give short performances on the historic instruments in the galleries, and they’re included in the ticket.
-
Free admission
Parc de la Villette
The largest park within the city of Paris, with themed gardens and plenty of room for kids to play.
The park was built in the 1980s on the site of the old Paris slaughterhouses, and it’s dotted with red pavilions (the “follies”) that work as landmarks. In summer, the open-air cinema festival shows films on the lawn for free. Next to La Géode, a decommissioned navy submarine, the Argonaute, is moored on dry land, and you can go inside.
More attractions in the 19th worth knowing about
These are places I haven’t written a separate article about yet, but if you’re exploring the arrondissement, it’s worth knowing they’re there:
| The place | Address | Why stop there |
|---|---|---|
| La Géode | 26 avenue Corentin Cariou | A mirrored dome with a dome cinema inside, right next to the Cité des Sciences |
| Bassin de la Villette | Between quai de la Seine and quai de la Loire | The largest artificial body of water in Paris, with cafés along the water and kayaking in summer |
| Rotonde de la Villette | Place de la Bataille de Stalingrad | An 18th-century tollhouse from the toll wall designed by Claude-Nicolas Ledoux (1736-1806), now a bar and restaurant |
| Canal Saint-Denis and its locks | Along quai de la Marne | The meeting point of three canals, and the locks operate in full view of anyone walking by |
| Conservatoire national supérieur de musique | 209 avenue Jean-Jaurès | The Paris Conservatoire, with free student concerts |
| Le Centquatre (Le 104) | 5 rue Curial | An arts center in the former municipal funeral service building, with dancers and street performers rehearsing in its halls |
Tours and activities in the 19th you might enjoy
Show me more activities in Paris
And if you’re looking for attractions in other arrondissements, my Paris attractions page brings them all together in one place.
Restaurants in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
In the 19th I have just one recommendation, and I’m not going to fill this section with names I haven’t checked. That said, along the Bassin de la Villette and the canal there are dozens of cafés and restaurants that cater to the locals, and in my opinion that’s the place to sit on a summer evening.
| The restaurant | Type | Address | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Au Bœuf Couronné | On my radar | 188 avenue Jean Jaurès | A long-established steakhouse from the slaughterhouse days, and it’s on my radar |
Looking for restaurants in other arrondissements? My recommended restaurants page is organized by cuisine and by arrondissement, and I have more in the neighboring 10th arrondissement and 11th arrondissement.
Food markets in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
There are eight food markets, and two of them are covered markets open most of the week until the evening. The outdoor market hours come from paris.fr, and the covered market hours from the 19th arrondissement town hall.
| The market | Address | Days and hours | Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marché couvert Secrétan | 33 avenue Secrétan | Tuesday to Thursday 8:30–19:30, Friday and Saturday 8:30–20:00, Sunday 8:30–14:00 | Bolivar |
| Marché couvert Riquet | 42 rue Riquet | Tuesday to Saturday 8:30–19:30, Sunday 8:30–13:00 | Riquet |
| Marché Place des Fêtes | Place des Fêtes, around square Monseigneur Maillet | Tuesday and Friday 7:00–13:30, Sunday 7:00–14:30 | Place des Fêtes |
| Marché Villette | Boulevard de la Villette, between numbers 27 and 41 | Wednesday 7:00–13:30, Saturday 7:00–14:30 | Belleville |
| Marché Joinville | Corner of rue de Joinville and rue Jomard | Thursday and Sunday 7:00–13:30 | Crimée |
| Marché Jean-Jaurès | Avenue Jean-Jaurès, between numbers 145 and 185 | Thursday 7:00–13:30, Sunday 7:00–14:30 | Ourcq or Porte de Pantin |
| Marché Crimée | Rue de Crimée, between numbers 236 and 246 | Tuesday and Friday 7:00–13:30 | Crimée |
| Marché Porte Brunet | Avenue de la Porte Brunet | Wednesday 7:00–13:30, Saturday 7:00–14:30 | Danube |
Besides these eight, paris.fr lists a market at Rosa Parks (Wednesday 10:00–20:00, Saturday 7:00–14:30). On my markets page you’ll find my recommended markets in the rest of the city.
Walking itineraries in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
I don’t have an itinerary that takes place entirely in this arrondissement, but two of my itineraries pass through it.
Want all the itineraries I’ve written, by arrondissement and by theme? My Paris walking itineraries page brings them all together.
The next step in your trip
The sensible way to do the 19th is to start the morning at the Cité des Sciences with the kids, head out through the Parc de la Villette and finish at the Buttes-Chaumont for sunset. To the west is Canal Saint-Martin and the 10th arrondissement, and to the south Père Lachaise and the 20th arrondissement.
And if you want to be ready for anything, my complete Paris guide brings together everything I’ve learned. Have a wonderful trip, and don’t forget to climb up to the temple at the top for me.
