WHAT’S NEW
To encourage Parisians to walk around and fight rising air pollution by ditching their vehicles, carfree pedestrian zones are cropping up all over the city — especially near the river Seine.
Enjoy walks on the arty left bank, which was transformed in 2013 when a stretch was pedestrianised from the Musee d’Orsay museum all the way to the popular Quai Branly museum near the Eiffel Tower.
And from next year, you’ll be able to walk down a three-kilometre car-free stretch of the Seine’s right bank — past Notre Dame cathedral, the beautiful island Ile Saint-Louis and end up at the beautiful blooms of Tuileries gardens.
If you want a break from Paris’ classical beauty, head to the once-gritty suburb of Pantin, which has been dubbed the “Brooklyn of Paris”. Its derelict, graffiti-covered warehouses by a canal have been taken over by galleries and artists, turning it into the hippest place in the City of Light.