Looking for the best Christmas lights, decorations and a cool open bus tour in 2024/2025? Are you going to Paris for Christmas? That means enjoying beautiful Christmas lights & illuminations, decorations, skating rinks, delicious mulled wine and roasted chestnuts while you stroll through the best Christmas markets in Paris 2024/2025. From mid-November it is Christmas in full swing in Paris with twinkling lights and decorations in the streets. A number of sights and museums are closed on certain days during the Christmas holidays in Paris. So be sure to check their website and buy your tickets in advance. Some restaurants are also closed between Christmas and New Year. The restaurants that do remain open are therefore very busy.
What are the best things to do in Paris at Christmas 2024/2025? Where can you find the most beautiful Christmas lights (+ bus tour) and illuminations, the best Christmas markets and decorated windows of the famous department stores in Paris? Pull out your scarf and gloves and discover 5 of the best activities to do during Christmas in Paris. From skating in Paris to window shopping in the famous department stores. Be sure to opt for the Christmas lights open bus tour.
• Fun to do: Tickets Paris Seine River Cruise by Bateaux Mouches (1h) →
• Christmas Tour with discount: Tickets Paris Christmas Lights Open Bus Tour with Tootbus (1h30) →
Book your tickets via the link above for the Christmas Lights hop on hop off bus tour in Paris with a 5% discount with the code PARIJSCHRIST5 (offer until December 31, 2024)
1. Christmas lights, illuminations and decorations in Paris 2024/2025 (+ open bus tour!)
Every year Parisians and tourists look forward to the start of the beautiful Christmas lights and decorations in Paris. From November to early January you can find the most beautiful Christmas lights in Paris on the Champs-Élysées, the avenue Montaigne, Place Vendôme, the Montmartre district and Bercy Village. The most beautiful passages in Paris are also worth a visit during the Christmas period.
Enjoy the magical atmosphere of Paris during the Christmas season on a 1.5-hour open-top bus Christmas tour. You will pass some of the most beautiful highlights in Paris with beautiful illuminations. There is an audio tour interspersed with Christmas songs while you enjoy a hot drink.
• Christmas Tour with discount: Tickets Paris Christmas Lights Open Bus Tour with Tootbus (1h30) →
Book your tickets via the link above for the Christmas Lights hop on hop off bus tour in Paris with a 5% discount with the code PARIJSCHRIST5 (offer until December 31, 2024)
2. Visit the best Christmas markets in Paris 2024/2025
Especially in the evening, the Christmas markets in Paris are one of the highlights of the Christmas period in Paris every year. Wooden chalets, cozy Christmas lights and an enchanting journey to the land of Santa Claus. And so it’s time for chocolate, chestnuts, mulled wine and ice rinks. Furthermore, of course, nice Christmas decorations, good food and there are also various attractions for children. From the Christmas market in Montmartre to the Christmas market at Notre-Dame in Paris.
• Read also: 7x Best Christmas markets in Paris 2024: dates & hotels →
3. Put on your skates in the heart of Paris (dates 2024 to be confirmed)
During Christmas in Paris, several (outdoor) ice rinks are traditionally placed at several locations where you can enjoy skating. The most famous skating rink is at Jardin des Tuileries (Christmas market near the Louvre). Until a few years ago you could also skate in front of the Hôtel de Ville in Paris, but for ecological reasons this is no longer possible. Tip: take your gloves with you, because they are mandatory everywhere and handy to brave the cold.
Where and when you can skate in Paris 2024/2025?
– Le Grand Palais des Glaces – Ice skating under the glass roof of the renovated Grand Palais: from December 13, 2024 to January 8, 2025 (CONFIRMED)
– Skating on the roof of the Grande Arche: December 2024 – January 2025 (TO BE CONFIRMED)
– Rooftop ice rink of Tour Montparnasse: February 2025 (TO BE CONFIRMED)
4. Go window shopping in the famous department stores
The windows of the most beautiful luxury department stores in Paris are impressively decorated during the Christmas period and there is a new theme every year. Be sure to visit Galeries Lafayette where you can admire a gigantic Christmas tree under the central dome. Other nice department stores to admire the Christmas decorations include Le Printemps, Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche and BHV Marais.
Opening of the Christmas windows in Paris department stores 2024/2025 (new dates not yet known)
– La Samaritaine | From November 8, 2023 – Theme: L’univers magique de Charlie et la Chocolaterie
– Bon Marché Rive Gauche | From November 10, 2023 – Theme: Ours en peluche XXL et univers magique & gourmand
– Printemps | From November 9 – Theme: Noël en papier, les vœux sont exaucés
– Galeries Lafayette | From November 15, 2023 – Theme: Le Noël de mes Rêves
– BHV Marais | From November 8, 2023 – Theme: Noël en forêt
• Read also: 5x Best department stores in Paris for top shopping →
5. Have an enchanting Christmas at Disneyland Paris 2024
Celebrate the magic of Christmas at Disneyland Paris! From November 9, 2024 to January 6, 2025, Disneyland Paris puts on a festive show with a brand new parade, various Christmas shows, fun markets, beautiful lighting, decorated streets and all your favorite Disney characters. You can easily make a day trip from Paris by, for example, taking the Disneyland Paris Express from Gare du Nord. Be sure to book your entrance ticket to Disneyland Paris in advance. The prices depend on the chosen date.
