The first time I came to Paris in November, I ended up standing in the middle of the Champs-Élysées looking for a pharmacy.
Not for medicine, but for shoe cushions. I had packed some cute ankle boots and walked all over Paris, up every staircase, just like everyone does here. By the afternoon, my feet were finished. That’s the kind of lesson November teaches you, and I’ve returned several times since to learn a few more.
There’s something people don’t usually mention about Paris in November: it feels like two different months. Early November is autumn, with golden leaves, cool mornings, and a coat over your sweater. By the end of the month, it’s Christmas season, with lights and window decorations, but before the December crowds. That second half is honestly one of my favorite times to visit.
This guide covers both: how to dress, what to do when it rains (because it will), what to eat, and what to expect from the Christmas decorations, including the honest version.
I’m Ersilia – architect and travel lover
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Paris in November at a glance
| Weather | Around 41–54°F (5–12°C), getting colder as the month goes on |
| Rain | Expect it. Snow is rare |
| Sunset | About 5:30pm on November 1, just before 5pm by November 30 |
| Christmas lights | Usually switched on in the second half of the month |
| Public holidays | November 1 (All Saints’ Day) and November 11 (Armistice Day) |
| Shoes | Warm, comfortable, waterproof. Not your cutest pair |
| Best for | Museums, covered passages, raclette, hot chocolate, early Christmas lights |
Early November vs late November: which half should you pick?
Early November feels like autumn. The weather is usually still mild enough that your fall wardrobe works, the parks still have color, and the city is calm after the summer and Halloween rush. If you’re curious how Paris does October 31, I wrote a whole post on Halloween in Paris, and the short answer is: more and more decorations every year, but it’s nowhere near as big as it is in the US.
Late November is the start of the Christmas season. The Champs-Élysées lights usually go on in the second half of the month (in 2025 they were switched on November 16 and lit up every evening from 5pm), the department store windows are dressed, and the Christmas trees start appearing.
You get the festive atmosphere without the peak December crowds.
If you want to see the Christmas lights, plan your trip for the last ten days of November. If you prefer autumn weather and lighter clothes, visit during the first week.
→ Already thinking about a December trip instead? Read where to stay in Paris at Christmas.
Early November: chase the autumn colors
If you come at the start of the month, the autumn trees are the best reason to head outside between two showers. Paris turns yellow and gold, and it’s one of the most photogenic moments of the whole year. These are my three favorite spots:
- The Jardin du Luxembourg. The chestnut and plane trees around the palace and the big pond are beautiful when they turn, and the famous green chairs look even better against the orange leaves.
- The Jardin des Tuileries. Easy to fit into any day, since it sits between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde.
- The alley of trees next to the Eiffel Tower. This one is my absolute favorite. When the whole alley turns yellow, with the tower right behind it, it’s pure magic, and it’s the photo I’d tell you not to leave without.
The later you come in the month, the more leaves will already be on the ground, so if autumn colors matter more to you than Christmas lights, aim for the first week of November.
What to wear in Paris in November
The deeper you get into November, the colder it becomes. At the beginning, a good autumn coat is enough. By the end of the month, even though snow is rare in Paris these days, you’ll need real winter clothes: a warm coat, a scarf, something for your head, and layers underneath.
Make sure your coat can handle rain. In November, it usually rains more than it snows.
But the most important thing is your shoes. I’d honestly skip regular sneakers unless they’re made for winter. Last year I came with my Allbirds, which are made of wool, and they worked great: warm, light, and comfortable all day.
Two years before that I tried ankle boots, and you already know how that ended. Paris is a city of steps (metro stairs, museum stairs, monument stairs) and you’ll walk far more than you expect.
My packing list for November:
- A warm, rain-resistant coat (a hood or a small umbrella too)
- Comfortable, waterproof walking shoes you’ve already broken in
- Sweaters you can layer, because museums and restaurants are heated
- Scarf, gloves and a hat for late November
- Pack shoe cushions in your bag, just in case. Trust me.
Christmas decorations in Paris: the honest version
If you’re visiting in late November mainly for the Christmas decorations, I want to set your expectations so you won’t be disappointed.
Christmas matters far more in France than Halloween does, and you will see and feel the festive vibe.
But Paris is a lot less decorated than, for example, London. If you’ve seen London at Christmas, Paris will feel more restrained (I compare the two cities in more detail in Paris or London: which one should you visit?). In the last few years, France has prioritized simplicity over extravagance, and you see it in the decorations too.
The moment I really understood this was on a Christmas day trip from Paris to Vaux-le-Vicomte.
Inside the château, the decorations were lovely and honestly extravagant. I was impressed, because I wasn’t used to seeing that in France. Outside, it was the complete opposite: only a few bare trees with small white lights. And I found that beautiful.
Even at Château de Chambord in the Loire Valley, the Christmas decorations are kept to a minimum.
So come for the atmosphere, the lights on the big avenues and the department store windows, not for wall-to-wall decorations.
If you want the full fairytale version, that’s what the Alsace Christmas markets are for: here’s my Strasbourg vs Colmar comparison to help you choose.
→ More ideas outside the city: winter day trips from Paris · Chambord, Chenonceau and Cheverny in one day from Paris
The best things to do in Paris in November (most of them indoors)
In Paris, November means you have to plan for cold and rain. Most of my favorite activities below will keep you dry. If it’s your first visit, start with my 3-day Paris itinerary with maps, and swap in these ideas when the weather changes.
1. Walk the covered passages
This is my number one rainy-day activity. The passages couverts are 19th-century glass-roofed shopping arcades, and they transport you straight into old Paris with their mosaic floors and wooden shopfronts.
You’ll find local boutiques, a few luxury ones, old bookshops, and cafés where you can sit with a coffee while it pours outside.
There are several of them. Galerie Vivienne, Passage des Panoramas and Passage Jouffroy are the classic trio, and they’re close enough to string together on one walk.
There are many guided tours that are available too, if you feel like learning more about their history and how they were built!
2. Visit the Hôtel de la Marine (my not-so-secret favorite)
Yes, the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay are wonderful in November, and if you’re going to the Louvre, read how to visit the Louvre in 2 hours first. One thing to budget for: since January 2026, visitors from outside the EU (so, from the US) pay €32 for a Louvre ticket instead of €22.
But the museum I always recommend is the Hôtel de la Marine on Place de la Concorde.
It’s not new anymore, but most people still don’t know about it. It looks like Versailles, but it’s right in central Paris. From the balcony overlooking the square, you get a great view all the way to the Eiffel Tower.
November tip: it’s open until 9:30pm on Fridays. With the sun setting before 5:30pm, that means you can be on the balcony in the dark when the Eiffel Tower sparkles.
3. Climb the Arc de Triomphe
There are 284 steps to the top, and the view over the whole city is worth every one of them. It’s one of the few places where you understand how Paris is laid out, with the avenues spreading out like a star around you.
In the October–March season the ticket is €16 and you can buy them online.
Two things to know before you go: the lift is only for visitors with reduced mobility (and was reported out of service from August 2026), so plan to walk. And on November 11, Armistice Day, the national ceremony takes place at the Arc, so check the opening hours if you’re there that day.
Walking down the Champs-Élysées afterwards is much nicer at the end of the month, once the lights are on.
4. Eat raclette or fondue
Some raclette restaurants are open in summer too, but this is food French people eat in winter, and so should you. You’ll understand why once you’re there.
A few things nobody tells you before your first time:
- Don’t be put off by the smell when you walk in. That’s melted cheese, and it’s completely normal. You get used to it in five minutes.
- Most raclette restaurants have a minimum of two people per order, and both people have to take the same type of raclette.
- There are many types. I prefer the simple one or the smoked one (fumé).
My trick when we’re a group of four: we order raclette for two and fondue for the other two, and everyone shares. You get to try both without ordering for a crowd.
5. See a cabaret show
If you’re looking for an indoor evening, a cabaret is the obvious one, and the Moulin Rouge is the famous name. But it’s not the only cabaret in Paris.
The Crazy Horse and the Paradis Latin are worth looking into too, depending on the kind of show you’re after.
6. Visit Notre-Dame and Sainte-Chapelle
Notre-Dame de Paris reopened in December 2024 after the fire, and entry is free. You can reserve a free time slot online to skip most of the line, or just show up and queue.
Guided tours are available if you want the history explained, but they’re optional.
Combine it with Sainte-Chapelle, just a few minutes’ walk away, for the stained glass. Be aware that it’s paid: €22 for visitors from outside the EU in 2026.
Right under the square in front of Notre-Dame there’s also the Archaeological Crypt, which is one of my favorite hidden gems because most people walk straight past it.
It shows you, with models and remains, how Paris grew from a small island settlement into the city you know. It’s perfect for waiting out the rain.
Important for 2026: the crypt closed on June 28, 2026 for conservation work, for several months. Check the official crypt website before you go in November, because it may still be closed.
7. Take a Seine river cruise (in the daytime)
Yes, it’s touristy. But a boat trip on the Seine keeps you out of the rain and shows you the most important monuments in Paris in a single trip.
Just make sure to take a boat tour that has places inside! Even better, go for a lunch tour and you’ll get both great views from the inside and food!
I suggest going during the day instead of at night. Paris isn’t as well lit after dark as many people expect, and besides the Eiffel Tower, you won’t see much.
The Eiffel Tower’s sparkle is truly special, but it only lasts five minutes at the start of each hour after dark. If you book an evening cruise, make sure the boat will be near the tower at the right time.
→ My honest take: is a Seine river cruise in Paris worth it?
8. Try a bus tour, but only with food
If boats aren’t your thing, there are bus tours that drive you around the main sights.
On their own, I find them way too expensive for what they are. But combine the tour with a meal on board and it becomes a different experience: you get dinner, you stay warm, and you see the city from your seat.
9. Shop like a Parisian at a covered market
Paris’s covered markets are where you see how Parisians actually buy their vegetables, cheese and meat.
The Marché des Enfants Rouges in the Marais is the oldest covered market in the city, dating back to the early 1600s, and you can also grab lunch from its food stalls. It’s a great place for a casual, local meal on a cold day.
10. Visit the Panthéon
Go inside and you’ll find where many of the people who shaped France are buried, from Voltaire and Victor Hugo to Marie Curie and Josephine Baker.
It’s indoors, it’s impressive, and it’s rarely as crowded as the big museums.
11. Go beyond Napoleon’s tomb at Les Invalides
Of course, visit Napoleon’s tomb. But don’t stop there, because the whole Invalides site is full of museums, and my favorite is the one almost nobody goes to: the Musée des Plans-Reliefs.
These aren’t modern models. They’re scale models of fortified towns that Louis XIV began commissioning in 1668 so he could plan the defense of France against possible attacks.
They’re beautifully detailed, and there’s so much to see. I especially love the one of Mont-Saint-Michel as it looked in the time of Louis XIV (if you want to see the real thing, here’s my Mont-Saint-Michel day trip guide).
There’s also a model of La Conchée, the fort off Saint-Malo, among many other places across France.
In the same buildings, the Army Museum covers the First and Second World Wars in France, with uniforms, weapons, and personal items. Some parts are interactive. I really enjoyed it, and my husband, who loves war museums, did too.
The entrance ticket to the Invalides gives you access to all these museums too. It might be one of the best ticket combos you could buy in Paris.
12. Take a French cooking class
Learning to make macarons or crème brûlée is one of the best ways to spend a cold afternoon.
You’re cooking with French people, you’re immersed in the culture, and you leave with something you can recreate at home.
As these activities are limited to small groups, make sure to book a slot in advance.
13. Visit the Aquarium de Paris
I know, you’re not coming to Paris for an aquarium. But there is one, right by the Trocadéro, and it’s a good idea if you’re traveling with kids.
14. At Trocadéro when the rain catches you
You’ve gone to Trocadéro for the most impressive photos of the Eiffel Tower, and then the rain starts. You have two options.
Either you cross the gardens to the Eiffel Tower and visit it, but you’ll get wet on the way. Or you step into the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, right on the Trocadéro square!
Inside, there are full-size plaster casts of sculptures and portals from French cathedrals, including Notre-Dame de Paris, Reims and Chartres, plus architectural models. It’s a really impressive museum, and almost nobody thinks of it.
15. Go underground at the Catacombs
If you want a rainy-day activity that’s nothing like a museum, go underground. The Catacombs are a network of old limestone quarries beneath the city where, from the late 18th century, Paris moved the remains of millions of people when its cemeteries became dangerously overcrowded.
They reopened in April 2026 after five months of renovation, with a redesigned route.
Today you walk about 1.5 km (around a mile) of tunnels lined with carefully stacked bones and skulls. It’s strange, a little eerie, and unlike anything else in Paris.
In November it has an unexpected advantage: the temperature underground stays at 14°C (57°F) all year round. On a cold, wet day, that can feel milder than the street above. Keep your coat on anyway, because it’s humid down there.
What to know before you go: Book online, and be quick. There are no tickets on site. Official tickets (€31 for adults in 2026, audio guide included) are released only 7 days ahead, at 10am Paris time, and the best slots go fast.
→ My full, honest verdict: are the Paris catacombs worth it?
16. Start your morning with coffee at the Petit Palais
The Petit Palais, just off the Champs-Élysées and across from the Grand Palais, is the City of Paris fine arts museum, and its permanent collection is free. That alone makes it one of the best deals in Paris. But my favorite part is hidden in the middle of the building: a garden courtyard with a café.
My tip: go first thing in the morning, before the crowds arrive. I had my coffee there right after opening, with the courtyard almost to myself, and I loved it. It’s calm, it’s beautiful, and it’s the kind of slow Parisian moment that makes a trip feel special. Then wander through the galleries before the day gets busy.
It’s also a short walk from Place de la Concorde, so it pairs perfectly with the Hôtel de la Marine on the same day.
17. The Galeries Lafayette rooftop (with a BUT)
I left this one for last on purpose. These days the Galeries Lafayette is always crowded, and it’s become a hard, not-so-nice experience. But if it’s your first time in Paris, you should still go, not for the shopping, but to go up to the free rooftop terrace and see the city, with the Opéra Garnier right in front of you.
On the rooftop you’ll be cold and you may get rained on, but it’s worth it. One thing to know: the terrace can close during bad weather, so if it’s pouring, go on a drier day. In late November, look up at the giant Christmas tree under the glass dome on your way in.
→ For the big picture: the best things to do in Paris
What to eat in Paris in November
We’ve already talked about raclette and fondue. Here’s what else I’d put on your list.
Macarons. For me, the best are at Pierre Hermé, but I also like Ladurée, and no, they’re not overrated. Honestly, though, buy a few from a neighborhood boulangerie too. You’ll love them.
A note on hype. People rave about the cakes of Cedric Grolet, but I was really disappointed. I don’t think they’re worth the queue.
Duck confit (confit de canard). It’s not a Parisian dish: it’s famous in my region, around Toulouse. But restaurants in Paris start putting it on the menu as the weather gets cold, and it’s a really great plate to try.
Hot chocolate. You can find it everywhere, and I’ve had really good ones in many ordinary restaurants. You don’t need to queue at Angelina to taste a great one.
Crêpes. They’re more famous in Brittany than in Paris, but Paris has adapted them and makes them very well. One of my best was from a small shop just in front of Notre-Dame, right after you cross the bridge. Nothing fancy, and perfect on a cold day.
Beaujolais Nouveau. If you’re in Paris on the third Thursday of November (November 19 in 2026), that’s the day the new Beaujolais is released, and many wine bars and bistros celebrate it. It’s a fun, very French excuse for a glass of wine.
→ Budgeting for all this? Here’s how much Paris really costs.
Things nobody warns you about in November
The days are short. By the end of the month the sun sets just before 5pm. Plan outdoor sightseeing and photos for the morning and early afternoon, and keep museums and dinners for the evening.
November 1 and November 11 are public holidays. Some shops and services close or change their hours. Check opening times before you build a whole day around one place.
The Eiffel Tower sparkles only at the start of each hour. Five minutes, once an hour, after dark. Time your evening walks or your photo spot around it.
Christmas decorations come late and stay understated. If they’re the reason for your trip, come after mid-November.
Your feet will hurt before your legs do. I’m repeating myself, I know. Bring the right shoes.
Some prices are higher for non-EU visitors. In 2026 the Louvre is €32 and Sainte-Chapelle €22 if you live outside the EU. Factor it into your budget. These apps will help with tickets, metro and translation.
Planning beyond Paris in November
November is a great month to combine Paris with a short trip by train. My tips for taking the train in France explain how to book without overpaying.
- Castles: the winter day trips from Paris guide, including Vaux-le-Vicomte in winter
- Christmas markets (from late November): Strasbourg, Colmar and little Eguisheim
- Disneyland Paris: the Christmas season guide and the new World of Frozen
Frequently asked questions
Is November a good time to visit Paris?
Yes, if you plan for the weather. It’s quieter than the summer months, the museums are at their most enjoyable, and in the second half of the month you get the first Christmas lights before the December crowds. Just accept that you’ll spend more of your time indoors.
Does it snow in Paris in November?
Very rarely. Snow has become unusual in Paris in recent years. Rain and grey skies are much more typical.
How cold is Paris in November?
Roughly 41–54°F (5–12°C), with the colder days toward the end of the month.
When do the Christmas lights go on in Paris?
Usually in the second half of November. In 2025 the Champs-Élysées lights were switched on November 16. Check the official announcement for this year’s date.
What should I pack for Paris in November?
A warm, rain-resistant coat, layers, a scarf and gloves for late November, and above all comfortable, waterproof shoes you’ve already walked in.
Your next step: if this is your first trip, the easiest way to turn this list into a plan is to start from a ready-made route. My 3-day Paris itinerary with maps gives you the backbone, and you can swap in the rainy-day ideas above whenever November does what November does.
