The 2025 Paris summer is best spent outdoors in piazzas and parks. Piazza-style (public square) gatherings and verdant green parks and gardens will be full of activities and summertime fun.
Here’s a sample of the best locations in 2025 Paris summer:
Dolcevita sur Seine (The Good Life on the Seine)
‘The Good Life’ on the Seine at the Lutece Arena in the 5th arrondissement (the Latin Quarter) will host a mini Italian festival from 4-8 July 2025 with open-air films, Italian snacks, and cultural exchanges.
Kiosques en Fête (Party Kiosks)
‘Party Kiosks’ will have free performances, music, and theatre in hidden squares and parks.
Les Bibliothèques Hors les Murs (Libraries Outside the Walls)
‘Libraries Outside the Walls’ features Paris libraries that pop up in parks for free storytelling and book-lounging.
24/7 Green Spaces
Over 140 parks are now open all night during the hot weather and are perfect for stargazing, reading, or evening picnics.
Paris Summer # 3: Best places to watch Tour de France finale in Paris.
The final stage of the world’s best road cycling challenge – the Tour de France – is the road to Paris. The Tour de France cyclists will sprint into Paris on 27 July 2025.
The entire 112th edition of the event is from 5-27 July 2025 in 21 stages from Lille to Dunkirk to Toulouse to Montpellier and around France, finishing in Paris (see the map and details at the official Tour de France website).
When the cyclists arrive in Paris, the Champs-Élysées is not the only location to consider when watching the cycle race. Here are some insider picks for the best views and vibes:
Montmartre (18th arrondissement): Cyclists face a leg-burning ascent through narrow cobbled streets with electric crowd energy and views over the city.
Rue Caulaincourt: A calmer alternative near the Montmartre cemetery, perfect for close-up shots.
Place de la Concorde & the Louvre: Iconic backdrops, multiple passes, and maximum spectacle – but the crowd will be huge.
The Grand Finale: Champs-Élysées with giant screens, fan zones, and award ceremonies.
Insider Tip: Arrive early, bring water, and follow @ParisMaVille for live updates and crowd-sourced photos.
Paris Summer # 2: Sun, samba, and urban beaches in July & August.
Paris Beaches are back. Yes, urban beaches. The Paris Plages (beaches) are back with the rhythms and colours of Brazil. From 5 July to 31 August 2025, three main sites transform into tropical escapes: 1) the Bassin de la Villette (with zip lines and water games), 2) the Canal Saint-Martin (with terraces and art), and 3) the Seine riverbanks (with food markets and beach volleyball).
The highlight will be the Brazil-France 2025 cultural season with block parties, samba dancers, DJ sets, outdoor film nights, and Brazilian food right in the heart of Paris.
Whether you’re watching a batucada parade or sipping a coconut cocktail by the river Seine, this year’s Paris Plages is a multicultural summer party not to miss.
What to Pack:
Beach towel, sunscreen, and dancing shoes.
Appetite for acarajé, brigadeiros, and fresh juice.
Paris Summer # 1: Yes, you can swim in the Seine this summer – Paris returns to the river.
After a 100-year hiatus, the Seine is officially open for swimming in summer 2025. Thanks to a 10-year investment tied to the Paris 2024 Olympic legacy, Parisians and visitors alike can now dip into the iconic river at three specially designed sites: 1) Bras Marie (Paris Centre), 2) Bras de Grenelle in the 15th arrondissement and 3) Bercy in the 12th arrondissement.
Each spot offers lifeguard-supervised swimming, changing facilities, showers, and sunbathing zones. For the adventurous, Grenelle even offers kayaking with a view of the Eiffel Tower. Safety is key: water quality is tested daily, and swimming is permitted when conditions are optimal.
With historical roots dating back to the 18th century, this return to the Seine is both symbolic and celebratory.
Quick Facts:
Open daily from July 5 to August 31.
Free and accessible (age restrictions apply).
Don’t forget your swimsuit (but no swim caps required!).
Bienvenue to Martina’s French Ways — a corner of the site where I share the little rituals, objects, and routines that shape my writing life here in Paris.
A Glimpse of Paris
With no visits out of the periphery of Paris, I’ve turned towards nature – such as the botanical garden called the Garden of Plants (Jardin des Plantes). It’s always a location on my “to-visit” list because the extensive grounds include museums, an Art Deco hothouse (winter garden), a Mexican greenhouse (with cacti), a labyrinth, indoor and outdoor exhibitions, and even a small zoo (menagerie).
It has an iris garden and an alpine garden, with almost everything else in between. The museums include the Gallery of Paleontology and Comparative Anatomy; the Gallery of Botany; the Gallery of Mineralogy and Geology; the Laboratory of Entomology (insects); and the Grand Gallery of Evolution.
Fool’s Gear by Dylan Nigh (2025) – I’ve started reading Fool’s Gear: A Completely Devastating Thing I’ll Probably Do Again. It’s a motorcycle travel memoir from Wilmington, North Carolina, to San Diego, California, taking the U.S. army officer through mountains and deserts. He manages to pepper the book very nicely with literature references, such as the works of Dante Alighieri, James Joyce, and John Steinbeck – which I thoroughly enjoyed.
For me, there’s something very satisfying reading about real-life motorcycle journeys – it must be the mix between freedom and vulnerability. They make me think of the Australian movies Stone and Mad Max, and other motorcycle movies like Easy Rider, Every Which Way But Loose, and The Motorcycle Diaries! (Pick up a copy here.)
Small Pleasures
I like to have a letter opener and I received a wonderful wooden one from a friend. It’s from the Frida Kahlo museum in Mexico, so it has special significance for me. I love the vibrant colours of the bird design – it’s difficult to lose! (Find a similar one here.)
In My Writer’s Bag
I like the Frida Kahlo letter opener because it matches my vibrant Australian passport holder with the image of a South American toucan and an Australian cockatoo. Yes, I’m a bird fan! (Find a similar insect one here or giraffe one here.)
Paris Details
If you are in Paris, the Galeries Lafayette on the Boulevard Haussmann is an interesting up-market department store to visit – the biggest chain in Europe. Even if you don’t shop, it’s worth going just to look at the interior domed ceiling. It’s stunning – and so too is the panoramic view of Paris from the rooftop.
The Haussmann flagship store was built in 1894 in the art nouveau style, and it was renovated in 1912 with a 43-metre (141 feet) Neo-Byzantine dome.
Postcard From Paris
I’ve chosen a postcard photograph from one of the bridges across the Seine in Paris. On my morning run, one of my routes is across the river. The morning that I took the photograph, the weather forecast was 34C, so I headed out at six o’clock to avoid the heat and the people.
The sun was just rising and it gave me a perfect mirror-image effect – with the Eiffel Tower as the main feature. I never tire of seeing the Eiffel Tower. (Find merchandise of the Eiffel Tower postcard here.)
Part 5 of my Audio Series: If Paris Were My Lover – now available.
Read by the author …
If Paris Were My Loveris available as a 6-part audio series – read by the author (myself) – on my Substack exclusive for paid subscribers.
Part 5 is available now with Chapters 24-29.
If Paris Were My Lover began as a question about how deeply a place – a city – can shape us. It became a book, and now, it’s a voice. My voice.
I’m sharing the audio version of this intimate story, chapter by chapter, across six special podcast episodes exclusively on my Substack, The Stories in You and Me.
My Substack The Stories in You and Me can be accessed for free. HERE. You can become a free subscriber or a paid subscriber (for USD $5 per month). The Audio Series is available to Paid Subscribers.
Join me on The Stories in You and Me, where Paris awaits you, not just to be seen, but to be heard.
REVIEWS
5.0 out of 5 stars Seilachan boy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 May 2025
Gorgeous and visceral adventures in Paris, guaranteed to have readers salivating for their next visit to the most romantic city in the world. Take a breath and dive into this book. Wonderful.
5.0 out of 5 stars EVA
Reviewed in Canada on 11 March 2025
The book weaves a mesmerizing tale of self-discovery, longing, and the magic of fleeting moments, making it a must-read for lovers of literary fiction and romance. The author’s writing is rich with emotion, painting vivid scenes that linger in your heart long after the final page. If you adore Paris, romance, and beautifully written storytelling, this book is an absolute must-read. Highly recommended for anyone who dreams of love, adventure, and the intoxicating allure of Paris.
Labyrinth Hill, Paris: a spiral ascension to a gazebo.
Labyrinth Hill is a knoll or hillock, small and round, with a spiral walking path to the top. Formally known as Labyrinthe de Buffon (Buffon Labyrinth), the spiral ascension – slow and steady, and not steep or arduous – was initially designed as an early form of a meditative garden design. No rush, no shortcuts. As you ascend, the path lined with high hedges, just like a labyrinth or maze, offers a changing perspectives of the Paris botanical garden, trees, rooftops of Paris, and finally a looming gazebo.
It is easy to imagine scholars and strollers from centuries past making this climb, pausing to reflect, sketch, or simply breathe. At the summit, the Gloriette de Buffon (Buffon Gazebo) offers shade, stillness, and a quiet reward for your gentle ascension.
Peak blooming season in the Garden of Plants, Paris.
This morning, I wandered through one of Paris’s most enchanting places: the Jardin des Plantes (the Garden of Plants), and I’m still carrying the scent of roses with me.
Set in the heart of the 5th arrondissement, this isn’t just any Botanical Garden – it is a living museum, a sanctuary of biodiversity, and a piece of French history. Here’s why the Jardin des Plantes deserves a place on your must-visit list.
10 Documents That Shaped France – featuring the Oath of the Tennis Court and Notebooks of Grievances.
From royal decrees to revolutionary manifestos, ten documents made history in France.
While piecing together a 2,000-piece “Histoire de France” jigsaw puzzle by Les Jolies Planches, I realized something truly special. This wasn’t just a visual timeline of famous French figures and battles; it was scattered throughout with replicas of France’s most influential written documents, cleverly placed between the faces of kings, queens, and revolutionaries.
I added a few other important documents to total ten documents, seen across centuries, that show how France was shaped, not just by power, but by principles — and how the act of writing helped forge a republic, a nation, and eventually a union, the European Union.
If you’ve ever wanted to trace the entire history of France from prehistoric firelight to modern-day République, but didn’t know where to begin … I suggest starting with a 2,000 piece jigsaw – in French.
Headfirst into history, I finished the jigsaw puzzle titled “Histoire de France” by Les Jolies Planches (The Pretty Boards), a 69 cm x 98 cm visual timeline bursting with emperors, revolutionaries, queens, kings, and inventors. And let me tell you: assembling this history lesson piece by piece was one of the most joyful and oddly profound learning experiences I’ve had in a while.
The puzzle maps out French history in a playful, serpentine timeline that winds its way from the Paleolithic period (500,000 years ago!) through Gauls, Gallo-Romans, Capetians, and Napoleon, all the way to the 20th century and the birth of the European Union. It is both historically accurate and delightfully illustrated, with bold portraits.
While assembling the centuries, I realized:
The Franks and Merovingians had glorious moustaches!
I’d forgotten how important Charlemagne was in shaping early Europe.
There were multiple French revolutions — and multiple Republics!
Seeing Napoleon alongside Robespierre, Louis XVI, and Lafayette gave me much more context.
I had not placed Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) in relation to the Valois dynasty, until now.
The Capetians and Carolingiens sound like pop bands, but they ruled for centuries and shaped the French monarchy.
The process of constructing this puzzle was more than just sorting and assembling pieces; it was a tactile act of storytelling. Sitting with a cup of tea, connecting kings to queens, wars to treaties, artists to eras, slowly … the whole of France came into focus.
It made me appreciate:
– How intertwined French history is with European and global history.
– That so much changed within a single lifetime (especially from 1789 to 1870).
– How approachable history becomes when you’re literally piecing it together.
This puzzle wasn’t just a relaxing hobby; it was a hands-on history lesson, a Parisian pilgrimage across the centuries, and a surprisingly effective way to absorb the rich, complex story of France.
This jigsaw is a wonderful gift for anyone moving to France, teaching French, or looking for an offbeat way to explore French heritage (available here).
Piece by piece, it becomes addictive. You may even begin talking to Charlemagne, as I did, by the time you reach the last little cardboard piece of the puzzle.
