In August 1923, after a refreshing holiday at the seaside in England, James and Nora Joyce booked into the Hotel Victoria Palace at 6 Rue Blaise Desgoffe in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.
Hotel Victoria Palace still exists. It is located on a side street off Rue de Rennes, a shopping street in the Montparnasse-Rennes quarter, close to the Boulevard du Montparnasse.
It is close to the Jardin du Luxembourg, and the restaurants on the Boulevard du Montparnasse where James Joyce frequented: Le Dome, La Rotonde, Le Select, and La Coupole. Further down the boulevard is the La Closerie des Lilacs restaurant. It is also close to the Dingo Bar at 10 Rue Delambre.
It is also close to Café les Deux Magots at 6 Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés and the Café de Flore at 172 Boulevard Saint-Germain.
For shopping, it is near the Le Bon Marché River Gauche at 24 Rue de Sevres.
The Joyce family stayed here for over a year from August 1923 to October 1924.
James Joyce Paris Residence: Number 6 out of 18.
Photographer: Martina Nicolls