Paris: Take Your Time

Paris is one of the best cities on the planet to visit. According to Reuters.com, in 2017, 33.8 million visitors arrived in Paris and the Ile de France. Paris is a city that should not be rushed. Like a good love affair, the relationship should not be rushed. Design your schedule so that you have at least 5 days to get a sense of the city and the “uniquely French” way of life.

So Much to Love

Infatuation with Paris

1. Subway/Metro. There is a difference between the Metro/subway, RER and SNCF. The Metro is the subway (inside the city), the RER is the suburban train system, and the SNCF is the rail system throughout France.

The excellent news is that the French rail system works (although all cars may not be air conditioned)! The Metro is the quickest and most efficient method for getting around the city while the SNCF (using Rail Europe) is the best way to travel throughout the country.

While accessing the Metro and bus systems are not easy/peasy – even for a New Yorker, there is some logic to the operation, and thanks to Google Maps, can be navigated with a significant degree of accuracy and efficiency.

Most of the time Google is spot on, however, there are parts of London that have not been fully integrated into the Google system, and the old-fashioned methods of paper maps and asking shopkeepers and people on bicycles for directions continues to be the best resources for getting to a location.

Read the full articleat wines.travel

What's New In Paris And The Paris Region For 2018

City Expects Most Successful Tourism Growth in 10 Years

PARIS- On the heels of a tourism uptick – with 23 million tourist arrivals expected in 2017 – Paris, France is forecasting more growth in 2018 and is expecting its most successful year since 2008. Atout France shares a range of highly-anticipated, momentous occasions and new experiences for visitors to enjoy in 2018, including major sporting events, cultural exhibit openings, historic anniversaries and a slew of new luxury hotels.

Making the City of Light and the larger Paris region even easier to visit, many airlines are adding faster, more direct routes to Paris, including direct flights from Seattle on Air France and the first non-stop flights from Indianapolis on Delta Airlines. The city is also utilizing new tactics to help travelers feel more comfortable, including widespread complimentary WIFI in downtown areas, an improved city app, multi-lingual signage and announcements in the subway system, and roaming tour guides to help direct city explorers.

Whether an annual visitor or a newcomer to the city, Paris maintains its top spot as a bucket list destination with new developments and happenings including:

MAJOR EVENTS

• August: Held every four years, the Gay Games advocates for acceptance and celebrates diversity, respect and equality. More than 15,000 participants from 70 countries are expected to participate in the 10^th edition of the games. Visitors and athletes from around the world can take part in more than 36 sports at exclusive facilities in Paris and the Ile-de-France region.
• September: Le Golf National (near Versailles) will host the 2018 Ryder Cup, one of the golf world's signature events and the second time in history that the iconic golf tournament takes place in continental Europe.
• October: The bi-annual Paris Motor Show, Mondial de l'Automobile, will celebrate its 120th anniversary at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles trade fair grounds, welcoming car lovers and trade professionals from around the world.

CULTURAL OPENINGS

• New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Foundation Louis Vuitton have collaborated for the first MoMA exhibition in France. "Being Modern: MoMA in Paris" will be displayed at Foundation Louis Vuitton through March 2018 with masterworks by artists including Max Beckmann, Alexander Calder, Paul Cezanne, Marcel Duchamp, Walker Evans, and more.
• Corot et la figure at Marmottan Monet Museum: Featuring sixty masterpieces from public and private collections in Europe and the U.S., this 2018 exhibition (open February through July) organized by the Marmottan Monet Museum showcases original productions by the first modern landscaper: Camille Corot.
• Teatre La Scala, a French music hall and historic landmark that first opened in 1874, will reopen in March 2018 after a full renovation as a 550-seat theater with restaurant. The opening show will be entitled "Scala" by multi-disciplinary movement artist Yoann Bourgeois.
• The Lafayette Anticipations – Galeries Lafayette Corporate Foundation will debut in spring 2018, as a public gathering place dedicated to displaying and creating works of art. The Foundation aims to support contemporary artists from the visual arts to fashion, design and the performing arts.
• L'Atelier des Lumières is Paris's first digital museum of fine art, located in a restored iron foundry. Opening spring 2018, the museum will include two areas for visitors: La Halle, with a continuous cycle of digital exhibitions, and Le Studio, for experienced or emerging artists. The opening will include an extended program focusing on Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele, as well as a limited-time program on Friedensreich Hundertwasser.
• FlyView 360, a new concept of VR aerial simulator, will open in April 2018 at Place de l'Opéra offering dynamic flights over Paris.
• Galeries Lafayette is launching a new department store on the Champs-Elysées with 7,000-square meters worth of fashion designed by Danish firm BIG. 52 Champs-Élysées marks the site of a future flagship, positioned as an upmarket department store for the 21st century.

RESTAURANT OPENINGS

• Brasserie du Lutetia by three Michelin-starred chef Gérald Passedat, opens spring 2018 in a setting designed by Jean-Michel Wilmotte at the newly renovated Lutetia Hotel.
• La Girafe, from the same family as La Maison du Caviar and Rasputin, brings a new rooftop dining experience to Cité de l'architecture in November.
• Eataly will continue global expansion with the opening of the first French flagship in a 43,055-square-foot building at Rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie in the Marais.
• Guy Savoy is set to open his Metal Café at the brand new Musée National de la Monnaie.

ACCOMMODATION NEWS

• Early 2018:
• Hôtel Dress Code & Spa, located near Opera Garnier, will open with 33 rooms, indoor pool and spa, and a bar lounge.
• The first Paris hotel under the Curio Collection by Hilton brand will open with a photography theme, 42 rooms and 10 suites and"La Verrière" restaurant.
• Spring/Summer 2018:
• After a three-year renovation, the highly anticipated Lutetia by The Set Hotels will reopen with 184 rooms (previously 231), seven signature suites, an extended brasserie with open terrace, jazz bar and cigar bar. French architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte designed a new courtyard, a 17-meter swimming pool and Akasha spa.
• Brach Paris, by Evok Hotels Collection group and designed by Philippe Starck, will open as a deluxe hotel in the 16th arrondissement with 59 rooms and suites with Eiffel Tower views, restaurant, bar, pastry shop, two pools, and rooftop vegetable garden.
• Hôtel de Berri by Marriott International, a 5-star hotel with 39 rooms and 37 suites, will open in a 1930s mansion off Champs-Élysées and will include a bar overlooking the garden, a restaurant, and a modern contemporary art collection.
• Fall/Late 2018:
• La Clef Champs-Élysées Paris, an apartment-style hotel, and the third property by The Crest Collection, opens in a quaint five-story Haussmann-style building along Rue de Bassano with 70 suites and a restaurant.
• Opening of the first Autograph Collection Hotel by Marriot, a 50-room hotel with conference center in the former Pentemont Abbey in the 7th arrondissement.
• Goralska Residences, a 25-suite hotel in the Castiglione / Vendôme area.
• The first Motel One in France, located in the 12th arrondissement.
• The first Hotel Fauchon with 54 rooms and suites, and 150-seat Café Fauchon with terrace.
• The second Okko Hotel, an innovative European hotel concept offering an all-inclusive rate (including movies, open bar, fitness, and more), opening near the Montparnasse station..
• Maison Albar, a luxury boutique hotel, near the Opéra Garnier, providing an elegant and authentic French experience.
• Grand Hotel de Chantilly in Avilly Saint Léonard on 10-acres of land with 210 rooms including 23 suites, seminar rooms, several restaurants and spa.
• Domaine Montcel in Jouy en Josas, near Versailles on 14-hectares with 180 rooms, swimming pool, restaurant, and 3,000-square-meters of meeting rooms.
• The first J.K. Place in Paris, a luxury hotel with an elegant contemporary atmosphere, will open at 82 rue de Lille.

ILE DE FRANCE REGION

• Southwest of Paris, the Centre des Monuments Nationaux and the Palace of Versailles are presenting an exhibition at Château de Rambouillet through January 2018 featuring portraits of the Bourbon-Toulouse-Penthièvre family, who owned Rambouillet during the 18th century.
• Creation of a river marina at l'Isle-Adam, to the north of Paris, on the edge of the largest river beach in France with 120 docks for boats, a range of shops and restaurants and a hotel.
• Creation of an urban transport museum in Chelles, to the east of Paris, with 150 trams, buses, trolley buses, omnibuses as well as uniforms, signs, 10,000 films and 300,000 photos.
• 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI and the signing of the armistice in Compiègne—not far from Paris and at the edge of the Paris Region. In honor of this momentous occasion, several events will take place in Paris and the Paris region and on the Western Front in Northern France.
• Ceremonies will be held at the Lafayette Squadron Memorial located in Marnes-la-Coquette, 11 miles east of Paris and on the way to Versailles, which honors the American volunteer pilots who flew in this unique squadron with the budding French air force during the Great War.
• The recently reopened and redesigned Franco-American Museum at the Château de Blerancourt in Picardy, features memorabilia of the famed WWI American Squadron. Created by Anne Morgan in her former WWI headquarters and residence.

With a wide variety of activities, attractions and openings for visitors to take part in throughout Paris and Île-de-France over the coming year, the City of Lights and Paris region is a must-visit destination. For more ways to visit and experience Paris and Ile-de-France in 2018, visit en.parisinfo.com https://en.convention.parisinfo.com/or en.visitparisregion.com.

Feel Paris: City Of Light, City Of Love #FeelParis

Feel Paris: City of Light, City of Love Paris, one of the world’s most effortlessly romantic cities. Whether you’re planning a long holiday or just a weekend mini-break, there are hundreds of ways to enjoy Paris with your loved one, whatever your budget. It’s easy to see why Paris has been nicknamed the City of Love: visitors can picnic in manicured gardens, share a bottle in intimate candlelit wine bars and stroll along the Seine arm-in-arm at sunset. Visually, Paris has a grace and elegance all its own with its wide, leafy boulevards and splendid architecture – and, despite this being a capital city, the pace of life remains relaxed and decidedly French. In Paris it’s all about the senses.   See the twinkling lights of landmarks from the top of the Eiffel Tower at dusk; kick off your shoes and feel cool grass underfoot in the jardins publics; listen to live music in a jazz bar; browse flea markets and luxury department stores; savour gourmet cuisine, or simply linger over coffee and croissants in a street-side café and watch the world go by.

Read more at: http://us.france.fr/en/feel-paris-1

What's New In France 2017, The Things You Need To Know About.

© Shiregu Ban Architects Europe - Jean de Gastines Architectes

2017 is a year for celebration in Paris and the rest of France, offering a delectable assortment of cultural initiatives, major openings and anniversaries for all to come and experience and fall in love with France.

These countrywide developments and major events will allow visitors to explore along the way France’s diverse landscapes and heritage – from renewed cities to medieval villages, enticing vineyards, towering alpine settings, pristine countryside, and the expanses of the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts.

• December 15, 2016

Opening of the Lascaux IV, the complete facsimile of the most famous prehistoric cave in the world. Click here for details.

• February 23 to May 22,2017

Major Vermeer retrospective at the Louvre: "Tout contre Vermeer", Masters of genre painting in the Golden Age at Musée du Louvre. Click here for details.

• April 2017

Opening of the Cité Musicaleon the Seguin Island to the west of Paris, designed by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban and French architect Jean de Gastines. A plastic and visual arts portal "R4" designed by French architect Jean Nouvel. Click here for details (French language only).

• April 1 to May 1, 2017
1st Côte d’Azur Garden Festival.The Alpes-Maritimes department has decided to celebrate this priceless heritage with a brand new event: The Côte d’Azur Garden Festival, which will take place between 1 April and 1 Mai 2017 with the theme “Awaken your senses”. The gardens in the Côte d'Azur region have significantly contributed to the area's reputation as a top tourist destination and today harbour an exceptional wealth of botanical heritage. The Côte d’Azur was the playground of the 19th century aristocracy, and botanical enthusiasts wintering in the area had plenty of time on their hands to acclimate many of the species they brought back from their travels to the Mediterranean environment, thus creating extraordinary gardens. These include botanical gardens, acclimatisation gardens, conservatories of fragrant plants for perfumes and flower gardens. These sites can be found both on the coast and in the mountains, and several have earned the label “Remarkable Gardens” of France. Click here for details

• May 27 to October 8,2017

The 500th Anniversary of the founding of Le Havre by Francois 1er– The great Impressionist artist Claude Monet painted the famous “Impression, Sunrise” in Le Havre, in 1872. To this day, Le Havre offers a captivating mix of industrial and natural grandeur. Reaching the centre of town, though, where estuary and Channel meet, there’s a remarkable feeling of space and light in this port city almost completely rebuilt after the terrible destruction wrought through World War II. Just a handful of historic buildings made of fine stone survived the appalling devastation. A modern architect with a big vision was put in charge of the post-war reconstruction. Auguste Perret was one of the world’s pioneers in employing concrete. Not only was concrete readily available, Perret reckoned he could achieve many new effects with it, and Le Havre is a result of it. The whole design, though altered many times, turned out to be bold and grand. Perret’s modern transformation of Le Havre helped the place become the first modern town in France recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

During the entire summer season, the whole of the city and its port will come alive with art installations, street parades, concerts and exhibitions. The festivities will begin on 27 May with an impressive opening ceremony orchestrated by the Art Point M Collective, the team behind the popular N.A.M.E electronic music festival that takes place every year in Lille. The event will be a spectacular celebration of all things cultural, with festivities extending all the way from the upper town in the hills to the beach. The highlight of the summer will be the return from 7 to 9 July of the Royal De Luxe Company’s impressive giant mechanical marionettes for a unique show which will take place throughout the entire city.

From 9 September to 8 October 2017, Monet's masterpiece returns to Le Havre from its home at the Marmottan Museum in Paris. Claude Monet's “Impression, Sunrise”, which gave its name to the Impressionist movement, returns to the city where it was originally painted in 1872. During a one-month exhibition at the MuMa (Modern Art Museum), visitors will be able to view the painting alongside a selection of works by Eugène Boudin, William Turner or Raoul Dufy. On 8 October, the closing ceremony will be a huge public get-together and visual spectacle, starting with an impressive firework display at sunrise. An interactive digital installation will also be unveiled as a new landmark for the city and will act as a permanent legacy of the anniversary celebrations. Click here for details.

Summer 2017

• June 24th, 2017 2017 marks the ongoing centennial anniversary of WWI and is the anniversary year of the entry of the United States into the conflict. The Franco-American Museum at the Chateau de Blerancourt in Picardy, France will reopen June 24, 2017 after a significant expansion and re-organization of its large collection. Franco-American Museum - Click here for details. 

Fall 2017

• Opening of a Yves Saint Laurent museum at 5 Avenue Marceau in the 16th arrondissement, in the historical headquarters of the couture house. Click here for details.

• Opening of Lafayette Anticipation, contemporary art foundation designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas at 9 Rue du Plâtre in the Marais. 2,500 m² of exhibition space in a historic building dated 1891 with an impressive glass tower. Click here for details.

RECENTLY OPENED

• June 2016

Opening of La Cité du Vin in Bordeaux. Situated in Bordeaux, La Cité du Vin is a unique cultural facility where wine comes to life through an immersive, sensorial approach, all set within an evocative architectural design. La Cité du Vin gives a different view of wine, across the world, across the ages, across all cultures and all civilisations. Click here for details.

• July 2016

The opening of the Cité internationale de la Tapisserie in Aubusson – a cultural center created in response to UNESCO incorporating the craftsmanship of tapestry into its list of intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009. The task of the Cité Internationale de la Tapisserie is to preserve, increase and highlight the great craftsmanship of tapestry in Aubusson. Click here for details.

2017 marks only the beginning of developments and news from France. On the 2018 horizon lies the opening of the much anticipated Cité de la Gastronomie in Lyon. Further ahead the iconic Ryder Cup will take place in France in 2018 at Le Golf National near Versailles, marking the second time that the tournament will be held in continental Europe since its inception in 1927.

Whether you find yourself in the French West Indies or mainland France, there is a place for all to enjoy the Art de Vivre of French culture.

Come join us and visit France in 2017 for an enriching journey into the past, present and future.

Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris Becomes The First Hotel In Europe To House Three Restaurants Recognised By The Coveted Michelin Award For A Total Of Five Michelin stars.

Following the announcement of the 2017 Michelin Guide, the restaurants Le Cinq, Le George and L’Orangerie at the

 Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris have collectively been crowned with a total of five Michelin stars, making the

 acclaimed Hotel the first luxury Hotel in Europe to be home to three Michelin-starred restaurants.

Le George and L’Orangerie have both been awarded their first Michelin star in the latest edition of the Michelin

 Guide and join the Hotel’s French haute cuisine restaurant, Le Cinq, which retains the highest accolade of three

 Michelin stars for the second consecutive year.

José Silva, Regional Vice President and General Manager of Four Seasons Hotel George V said

 “We believe that a memorable stay would be incomplete without an extraordinary dining experience.

 As a gastronome myself, I have always had the highest culinary aspirations for our team who have worked to continuously innovate and exceed our guests’ expectations. I believe the five Michelin stars awarded today are a testament to this commitment to excellence brought to life by our Chefs, Christian Le Squer, Simone Zanoni, David Bizet and their teams. We are honoured to be the first Hotel in Europe to hold this designation and look forward to many more years of culinary excellence.”

Showcasing the cuisine of three Chefs, each with their own individual identities, diverse talents and distinctive styles, the Four Seasons Hotel George V offers guests an unprecedented culinary experience under the same roof, and is now indisputably the leading gourmet address of the capital.

Top 10 New Museum Opened In 2017

 Past and present … Potsdam’s Museum Barberini (right) will host work by old masters and contemporary artists when it opens in January 2017. Photograph: Alamy

History, art and design is celebrated in their many forms, and disciplines, at new institutions from Paris to Los Angeles and London to Cape Town

Museum Barberini, Potsdam, Germany

In the magnificent reconstructed palace from which it takes its name, the Museum Barberini is a significant new attraction in the city of Potsdam’s already impressive historic centre. The museum is hosting exhibitions ranging from the old masters to contemporary art.
 museum-barberini.com

Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town

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 Artist’s impression of the Zeitz MOCCA. Photograph: Heatherwick Studio

A landmark opening, and not just for South Africa, the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa is the biggest museum to open on the continent for over a century. It is an influential place too: the $38m institution will be filled entirely with work created since the year 2000, and house the impressive collection of Jochen Zeitz (German philanthropist and former CEO of Puma), while it continues to acquire work of its own. The museum is inside the 57-metre-high Grain Silo, a towering reminder of Cape Town’s industrial heritage – and  a symbol of its creative future.
• Opens 23 September, zeitzmocaa.museum

National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST), Athens

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 Visitors walk on a corridor leading to the top of the new museum. Photograph: Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP/Getty Images

The reconstruction of EMST has been quite a tale, with over a decade financial and bureaucratic setbacks. Still, in October 2016 it was finally ready for a soft launch, inaugurating the temporary exhibition space with the show Urgent Conversations: Athens–Antwerp in its newly reconstructed home in the old Fix brewery.
• emst.gr

Museum MACAN, Jakarta, Indonesia

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 Artist’s impression, by MET Studio Design, of the museum interior.

Indonesia will get its first museum dedicated to international modern art, when MACAN, the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara, opens its doors. With spacious interiors designed by London-based MET Studio Design, the museum features works from the collection of Indonesian philanthropist Haryanto Adikoesoemo, who says he has dreamed of creating a museum for the people of Indonesia for over a decade.
• On Facebook

Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles

 Concept drawing of the ICA. Photograph: theicala.org

With a new logo designed by Mark Bradford, which is meant to evoke the unique urban pace of Los Angeles, the ICA LA represents a rebranding and rehousing of the Santa Monica Museum of Art. It opened in the autumn in a new location in the Downtown LA arts district. Its new space aims to bring together “architecture, urban design, and sustainability to create cutting-edge environments for exhibitions, education, dialogue, and collaboration”.
•  theicala.org

Victoria & Albert Museum, London

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 The new Sackler Courtyard at the V&A. Photograph: V&A

 V&A got an upgrade, with the completion of the Exhibition Road project: the largest architectural scheme the museum has undertaken in the last 100 years. It will consist of a new temporary exhibition space, the Sainsbury’s Gallery, the Sackler Courtyard and a grand new entrance, the Blavatnik Hall. The open courtyard will be used for events, installations and a cafe, revealing a part of the historical facade of the museum’s west side to the public for the first time.
• vam.ac.uk

Design Society, Shēnzhèn, China

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 Artist’s rendering of the new centre in Shēnzhèn. Photograph: Maki and Associates

The V&A  expanded beyond its London home in 2017, by collaborating with a Chinese partner to create a new cultural hub in Shēnzhèn. Design Society will span all creative disciplines and include a theatre, shops and a roof garden. The V&A will also have its own gallery within it, focusing on 20th- and 21st-century design and will host two major touring exhibitions over the next two years.
• designsociety.cn

Museum of the American Revolution, Philadelphia

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 Workers hang a mural depicting the Battle of Bunker Hill . Photograph: Jacqueline Larma/AP

With US politics as polarised as it is, there has perhaps never been a better time to reflect on the history of a country that was once so divided it endured five years of civil war. The Museum of the American Revolution does just that; taking a non-partisan view of the period through thousands of objects, artworks, manuscripts and artefacts. Exhibitions  take visitors on a chronological journey, from the roots of resistance to the legacy of its outcome.
• Now open, amrevmuseum.org

Musées Yves Saint Laurent, Paris and Marrakech

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 A display at the Paris museum. Photograph: Luc Castel

One of the world’s most influential fashion designers, Yves Saint Laurent is also the only designer of his generation who has systematically archived his work since creating his couture house in the 1960s. This year two museums will open, in Paris and Marrakech, to house the thousands of garments, accessories, sketches, photographs and objects that represent his life’s work. The Parisian museum will be in the historical couture house at 5 avenue Marceau, which has been converted over the last year. The Marrakech museum is an impressive new build, near Jardin Majorelle – a garden long associated with the designer.
• Opening in April, fondation-pb-ysl.net

Louvre Abu Dhabi, UAE

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 The construction site of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, pictured in November 2014. Photograph: Caren Firouz/Reuters

This epic international collaboration between France and Abu Dhabi has had its opening date pushed back several times over the years (it was originally to be completed in 2012). This year, however, will hopefully see the ambitious new museum open its doors to the public. Designed by award-winning architecture firm Ateliers Jean Nouvel, the museum “city” consists of a series of white buildings inspired by the Arab medina.
• louvreabudhabi.ae

By Will Coldwell

@will_coldwell