Quiet Corners of the 8th and 9th: Monceau to the Romantics, a Self-Guided Paris Walk
2h. 2.2 miles. From Cite Odiot, 26 rue Washington to Musee de la Vie romantique.
Two steps from the Champs-Elysees, Paris turns residential and calm: a hidden lane behind a carriage door, the follies of Parc Monceau, and the garden squares where Chopin and George Sand lived. A walk through the Paris of the Romantics, without a single queue.
The local move
Finish with tea in the rose-covered courtyard cafe of the Musee de la Vie romantique. Locals treat it as a secret garden; most visitors to Pigalle never learn it exists.
Best time to go
Weekday mornings; Cite Odiot and Square d'Orleans are residential and calmest before lunch.
When to avoid it
Sunday afternoons, when Parc Monceau becomes the neighborhood's living room.
The stops
Cite Odiot
A hidden residential lane with gardens, tucked behind a carriage door at 26 rue Washington, off the Champs-Elysees.
Tip: It is private but the gate is often open in the day; look quietly from the entrance if it is not.
Parc Monceau
The most romantic park in Paris: a rotunda, a colonnade by a pond, fake ruins built for a duke's pleasure garden.
Tip: Enter by the gilded gates on boulevard de Courcelles and head left for the colonnade, the prettiest corner.
Chapelle expiatoire
A neoclassical memorial chapel in a silent garden square, built where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were first buried.
Tip: Open Thursday to Saturday afternoons; the surrounding square Louis XVI is free and always calm.
Square d'Orleans
An elegant private square of arcaded courtyards where Chopin lived at No 9 and George Sand at No 5, a few doors apart.
Tip: Entrance at 80 rue Taitbout. Weekdays the door is usually open; step in respectfully, residents are used to pilgrims.
Cite de Trevise
An ornate 1840s garden square with a fountain, hidden between rue Richer and rue Bleue, silent even on weekdays.
Tip: Combine with a pastry from rue Cadet market street, two minutes away.
Musee de la Vie romantique
The green-shuttered house of painter Ary Scheffer, where Sand and Chopin visited, with a rose garden cafe.
Tip: Free permanent collection, closed Mondays. The garden cafe is the point; come before 5pm.
About these walks
This is one of the free self-guided Paris walks written by the Chic Trip team, locals who plan and book full Paris trips for American travelers. Get our free insider Paris guide at chic-trip.com/free-paris-guide, or have us plan your whole trip at chic-trip.com/paris-travel-planner.
