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BELOW MY TOP 40++ CHEAP ADRESSES IN PARIS !!
I made this small guide for you to find out good, unusual and cheap addresses to avoid the usual traps.
It’s places i like to hangout in with friends. I also included some addresses to work in a quiet environment for free, as well as usefull ressources in case you came to do some art related stuff.
Oh, and if you need the map of the arrondissement, you’ll find it here
Let me know if you see any adjustments to do in those recommendations, and please share me yours ! And please don’t mind my bad english writing uuuuurk
HOPE YOU’LL ENJOY YOUR STAY !!
bises, yves
~
last update 27/02/2025
Some extra tips:
Careful with pickpockets
The myth about Parisian pickpockets is true. Never leave your bags unattended in a bar/café/party— and not only if you look like a tourist (I did get my computer stolen while having a drink with some friends in a quiet bar on a fancy street, rrrr). One piece of advice: most places in Paris now accept card payments, don’t bother with cash.
Go east
Just never hang out in the west side of Paris. It’s empty, it’s boring, it’s bourgeois, and it’s empty, you’ll actullay find nothing but tourists. Which means, if you go, pickpockets will find you too. In this area, I barely ever went except for visiting the Palais de Tokyo, the most important contemporary art center in Paris (but the ticket is quite expensive, so I haven’t included it here). All the artistic things are happening in the east. choose your side 🙂
Ask for the price first
As prices can rise really high in some restaurants (e.g., €12 for a cola… pfff ridiculus), it’s usual to ask for the price of your drink *before* you’re ordering to avoid salty suprises .
Don’t go to tourist-area cafés and restaurants
How to spot them: english flags on the menu and american tourists inside (lol). Don’t go—it’s usually a trap! You can probably find a cheaper brasserie if you walk 5 minutes into some less fancy streets.
Oh and don’t go to café around train stations, waiters are super mean there and quite expensive.
For transport
I recommend using the public bike service, Vélib’. It’s the worst way of transport but still better than all the other ones. (I used it for 9 years—it doesn’t work well, but it’s cheaper, more convenient, and more fun than taking the metro or the taxi.)
If you want totally free transport, just prepare yourself a fake address to give to the metro police if they catch you without a ticket. Don’t pay on the spot—just say you’ll pay once you receive the fine. 🙂
Mister good beer
In this app, you can find for the cheapest beers in the bars around. (you’ll need to install the app on your phone (doesnt works on your phone)
Free art
Forget about lining for hours to visit the Louvre. There’s a lot of free museum, and some of them are really cool and deserted! You can find the list of free museums here. Some are free only during the first sunday of the month. there’s also extra gratuity for people under 26 as well as for students, artist living in france and job-less people. If you don’t fit in the requirement, you can try bargaining at the entrances saying you don’t have money and they’ll probably give you the discount as many employees of museums are often artists as well 🙂
