The Mediterranean Insider

Paris, France

10 true Paris moments to catch this autumn

The Mediterranean • See & do • 10 true Paris moments to catch this autumn

An insider’s guide on what to do in Paris this autumn

Paris locals guard a secret: autumn is when the city is theirs again. The streets thin, the light turns cinematic, and the rhythm slows. It’s a season of wine poured straight from the year’s harvest, of markets overflowing with wild mushrooms, of nights that demand a jacket and reward you with the glow of a late dinner. You don’t need a checklist to catch the city in these moments – you just need to follow the rhythm of its days. Here are the ways to slip into Paris this autumn and experience it as the locals do.

Sip a new Beaujolais in a bar à vin

Every third Thursday in November, the Beaujolais Nouveau hits the capital. It’s young, fruity and easy-drinking – exactly why Parisians love the ritual. Skip the tourist-facing bars around Saint-Germain and head somewhere locals actually drink. At Le Baron Rouge near Marché d’Aligre, barrels line the walls and glasses are poured without ceremony. We also love Juveniles in the 1st arrondissement, a tiny, family-run spot. You step inside, shrug off your coat and squeeze into a noisy bar. Glasses are raised, voices rise and you toast the season ahead. The tradition began in the 1950s, when bottles from Beaujolais were rushed north overnight to reach Paris by morning. In a neighbourhood bar, away from tourists, you’ll find the moment as it still exists – social, unpretentious and fleeting.

Top photography courtesy of Juveniles

Hunt market mornings for mushrooms and game

Autumn produce changes the mood of Paris’s markets. Walk through Marché d’Aligre in the 12th arrondissement and the air smells of earth. Baskets of ceps, girolles and trompettes de la mort, all freshly foraged. Game appears too – wild duck, rabbit, pheasant – brought in from rural France. Across town in the 17th arrondissement, Marché des Batignolles draws a more local crowd, especially on Saturday mornings. Organic growers from Île-de-France arrive with crates of root vegetables, apples and jars of honey. Even if you’re not cooking, markets like these are about atmosphere. Gloves off to feel the mushrooms, conversations overheard about the weather and the hunt, the quiet clink of wine glasses at stalls where oysters are shucked to order.

Crack chestnuts in season

You’ll smell them before you see them – chestnuts roasting in metal drums outside metro stations and along boulevards. In October and November, vendors roll metal pans of chestnuts atop old supermarket carts, slowly charring the nuts in bursts of spicy steam. It’s one of the simplest Paris rituals in autumn, but also one of the most atmospheric. Beyond the street, chestnuts show up in patisseries too. Mont-Blanc pastries, chestnut purée piped over meringue and cream, are a dessert that has been on menus for more than a century. You’ll find these delights at institutions like Angelina on Rue de Rivoli. On a wet afternoon, there are few better excuses to sit down, order coffee and let the city blur past.

Top photography courtesy of Local food & wine and Jill Colonna

Wander galleries after dark

As daylight fades earlier, evenings open space for art. Away from the Louvre and Orsay, Paris has a network of independent galleries that open late, especially in the Left Bank’s 6th arrondissement. Galerie Kamel Mennour is one of the most talked about, showing international names alongside French talent. Around Rue de Seine, smaller spaces like Galerie Maeght or Galerie Templon host intimate exhibitions. Here, wine flows freely and the crowd is as interesting as the art. The annual Nuit Blanche in early October turns the entire city into an overnight exhibition, with installations stretching from Hôtel de Ville to the périphérique. There’s something almost illicit about seeing art at night, when the streets outside are quiet and the rooms glow with artificial light. It feels like being let in on a secret.

Top photography courtesy of Galerie Kamel Mennour

Settle into a bistro built for colder light

Paris bistros take on a different character in autumn. Le Baratin in Belleville, run by chef Raquel Carena since the 1980s, has that kind of glow. Chalkboard menus, deep wines and plates of braised meats and stews that make you feel at home. Down in Saint-Germain, Allard holds onto its 1930s character. Its sepia-toned dining room is low‑lit, with a décor worthy of the golden age of Hollywood. Thick wooden panels, red velvet cushions and gleaming copper lamps cast a warm halo. Here, the windows fog at the edges and even the chilled Paris sky seems a distant thought.

Top photography courtesy of Allard

Tread cemeteries in colour

Paris cemeteries are oddly alive in autumn. At Père Lachaise, the city’s largest, leaves scatter across cobblestones leading up to the graves of Oscar Wilde, Jim Morrison and Édith Piaf. Families come to lay chrysanthemums for Toussaint on 1 November, turning the grounds into a mosaic of yellows and purples. Up in Montmartre, the smaller Cimetière de Montmartre feels more intimate, with ivy-covered tombs and cats weaving between paths. Even with no one around, these graveyards are vivid and alive in fall. Pause for a moment and listen to the distant church bells and the rustle of leaves. Walking through either in October or November gives a striking contrast. The permanence of marble and ironwork against the temporary blaze of autumn foliage.

Linger at café windows in the rain

Paris feels different in the rain and we’ve found the best way to enjoy it is from behind a café window. Our go-to places are Café de Flore in Saint-Germain or La Palette near the École des Beaux-Arts. At Café de Flore, the terrace doesn’t empty even on grey afternoons – Parisians swear by it, terrace table and all. We’ve sat inside too, where the windowsill catches droplets while cups of café crème send up steam. Just around the corner, La Palette shows a different side. A brass bar, artists and students and old regulars who claim the same stools day after day. The ritual never changes. We order something warm, watch umbrellas weave past and let the city slow. Autumn rain makes everything cinematic – taillights blurring, waiters dodging puddles and the Seine carrying a faint mist.

Top photography courtesy of La Palette

Drift along the Seine in wool

A walk along the Seine feels different once the air turns cold. In the early morning, bridges like Pont Neuf or Pont des Arts are almost empty and the quais carry a damp chill that makes a scarf feel essential. Leaves collect in corners of the stone steps and the water reflects the season’s subdued light. Autumn strips the river of its summer crowds. It’s a walking season, when the city feels slower and easier to explore. Booksellers along the quais keep their stalls open, lids dripping with rain, while runners carve paths past them. Stop on Pont des Arts, scarf pulled high and watch the barges move under you.

Disappear into cinema as refuge

Paris’s historic cinemas thrive in darker months. The city has a rare density of independent cinemas, many screening classic films alongside new releases. Le Champo in the Latin Quarter is a cult favourite, with its glowing neon sign and two screens dedicated to retrospectives. Across the river, L’Archipel near Strasbourg–Saint-Denis leans toward experimental programming, pulling in younger crowds. For something grander, the restored Le Grand Rex – Europe’s largest cinema – still screens blockbusters under its starry ceiling. What ties them together is atmosphere. Queues winding outside in the drizzle, the smell of popcorn and the collective feeling of ease as the lights dim.

Top photography courtesy of Allison Bellido Fotografia and L’archipel

Trace fashion’s shift

Window displays in Paris’s fashion districts signal the seasonal change. Walk through the Marais in late October and you’ll see it immediately – boutiques changing their windows to coats, boots and heavier textures. Textured fabrics like chunky cable knits in camel and deep olive dominate the racks. Merci, on Boulevard Beaumarchais, rolls out knits and corduroy, filling its concept store with autumn palettes. On the Left Bank, Le Bon Marché dedicates whole sections to Parisian designers who understand layers – like Sandro or A.P.C. Even smaller ateliers, like Officine Générale on Rue du Dragon, lean into wool tailoring and muted colours. Fashion here is seasonal, not just by necessity but by philosophy – Parisians dress with the weather in mind.

Top photography courtesy of Sandro