Perched high on a hill overlooking bustling downtown Paris, the village-like area of Montmartre is easily one of Paris’ most-loved neighborhoods. Topped by the beautiful Sacr□-Coeur, the area boasts a myriad of cobbled streets thronged by street artists, musicians and traditional cr□pe stalls ‘round every twist and turn.
Unsurprisingly, Montmartre is a mecca for creative types, and numerous artists over the years made the area their home. After meeting your guide, learn about some of these legendary French artists while you walk around this vibrant district, seeing the places where they lived, worked and painted.
Hear of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, one of the greatest Post-Impressionist painters of his time, who moved here to study, and Dutch-born Vincent Van Gogh, who found the area to be a treasure trove of subjects to paint. Henri Matisse was another of the area’s legendary residents, who lived here in his early days as a struggling artist.
As your guide talks about the highs and lows of the artists’ lives in Montmartre, weave your way through the streets to reach the Sacr□-Coeur. Walk through this 19th-century basilica, admiring its golden mosaics and intricately designed bronze doors, before stopping outside to enjoy the best panoramic views over Paris.
While Montmartre is widely considered to be Paris’ most bohemian neighborhood, it isn’t as well known for its wine! Astonishingly, the area is home to the city’s last surviving vineyard. Learn all about this little-known place while following your guide off the tourist trail and through the doors of two of Paris’s oldest bistros. As you sit down to enjoy a tasting of various fine wines, you’ll be served a plate of charcuterie (cured meats) and learn from your guide about the grape varieties, local soil and wine production of this fascinating enclave of Paris.