in short
- What's there: The Catacombs, Montparnasse Cemetery, Parc Monsoury, Square Monsoury and the Montparnasse Tower.
- Location: The Left Bank, south of the 6th District.
- Tickets: Advance reservations are required for the catacombs, and admission to the other sites is free.
- What to know in advance: The catacombs are 14 degrees all year round and there are one hundred and thirty-one steps to descend.
- Food markets: Six, including an organic market on Saturdays. In addition, Dagger Street is open almost every day.
- Restaurants: Five recommendations, concentrated on three streets.
- Itineraries: Three take place in the district, and four more pass through it.
The 14th arrondissement is Montparnasse, and that means two things: in the 20s it was the center of Paris's bohemian scene, and today it is a quiet residential district that visitors come to for two places that are underground or beyond the wall.
What most visitors don't know is that in the south of the district are two places that, in my opinion, are some of the most surprising in the city: a large park with a hill and a lake, and one alley that looks like a village in Normandy. I wrote about both of them separately.
So just before we get going, let's talk about what you'll find on this page: first the hotels and apartments I recommend in the district, then the attractions one by one, the five restaurants I send people to, the six food markets with the days and hours, and finally the itineraries.
Recommended hotels in the 14th arrondissement of Paris
Montparnasse is a practical choice for those arriving by train from the west or flying from Orly, and prices are lower than those in the Saint-Germain district to the north. If you're not sure which is right for you, answer three questions and I'll choose from my recommendations:
My personal recommendation
Which hotel in the 14th arrondissement is right for you?
One short question, and I'll filter for you from the accommodations I've already checked and written about on the site what's suitable for the vacation you're planning.
Just a moment, I'll go through my recommendations and look for what suits you...
Prefer to go through all the recommendations yourself, with photos and details about each hotel? Go to my recommended hotels in the 14th arrondissement page.
Recommended apartments in the 14th arrondissement of Paris
Dagger Street and the six markets in the district make an apartment with a kitchen a practical idea. Here too, you can let me choose:
My personal recommendation
Which apartment in the 14th district is right for you?
One question about the area, and I'm sifting through the apartments I've reviewed and written about on the site. Up until now, I've recommended Udi's apartments directly here, but they're snapped up very quickly, so I've also included some great apartments from Booking.com that I handpicked for my readers.
Just a moment, I'll go through my recommendations and look for what suits you...
Want to go through all the apartments I recommend, with photos and details? Go to my recommended apartments in the 14th arrondissement page.
Attractions in the 14th arrondissement of Paris
These are the sites I recommend in the 14th arrondissement. Two of them have free admission, and the catacombs require advance reservations, without which you won't be able to enter.
-
Advance booking required
The Catacombs of Paris (Catacombes)
The bones of six million Parisians, twenty meters below the street.
In the 1780s, Paris's cemeteries were so full that the ground collapsed into the basements of nearby houses. The solution was to remove the bones to the abandoned quarries beneath the city. Note that it's about an hour's walk, 131 steps down and 112 up, and that the temperature down there is 14 degrees all year round. Bring a sweater.
-
Free entrance
Montparnasse Cemetery
The resting place of Sartre and de Beauvoir, in Kedminj, Brackett and Serge Ginzburg.
The cemetery opened in 1824 and is significantly smaller than Père Lachaise, making it more convenient to visit. The joint grave of Sartre and de Beauvoir is right next to the main entrance, and visitors place metro cards and lipstick kisses on it. Smoked cabbage is placed on Ginzburg's grave.
-
Free entrance
Parc Montsouris
The largest park in southern Paris, with a lake and a hill and almost no tourists.
The park was built during the Second Empire on abandoned quarries, and the name Monsoury means "mountain of mice." The RER train runs underneath it, and in its center is an artificial lake that was created by accident: on the day of its inauguration, it completely emptied due to a malfunction, and the engineer responsible committed suicide. I wrote about the full story separately.
-
Kept secret
Square de Montsouris
A private alley of houses with gardens, in my opinion one of the city's best-kept secrets.
This is not a square but a small private street paved in the 20s, with about twenty low houses with small gardens and climbing plants. The place is completely quiet, and anyone who comes to the Montessori Park is minutes away from it and doesn't know it's there. Don't take pictures in windows, people live there.
Other attractions in the 14th District worth exploring
These are places that I haven't written a separate article about yet, but if you're walking around the neighborhood it's worth knowing that they're there:
| the place | Address | Why stop there? |
|---|---|---|
| Montparnasse Tower (Tour Montparnasse) | 33 avenue du Maine, in the 15th arrondissement | The observation deck overlooking the city without the Montparnasse Tower in the picture. Detailed in15th District Page |
| Fondation Cartier | 261 boulevard Raspail | Jean Nouvel's glass structure with changing contemporary art exhibitions |
| Rue Daguerre | Daguerre Street | A pedestrian food street with permanent stores, open almost every day, not just on market days. |
| Paris Observatory (Observatoire de Paris) | 61 avenue de l'Observatoire | The observatory dates back to 1667, and the Paris longitude line passed through it before Greenwich won. |
| International Student City | 17 boulevard Jourdan | A campus of thirty-eight country pavilions, each in a different architectural style. The park is open to the public |
| La Rotonde, Le Coupole | Boulevard du Montparnasse | The great coffee houses of Bohemia, and still operate in the original halls today |
Tours and activities in the 14th Arrondissement that might interest you
And if you're looking for attractions in other neighborhoods of the city, my Paris attractions page brings them all together in one place.
My recommended restaurants in the 14th arrondissement of Paris
In the 14th arrondissement, my list is diverse and focused on three streets: Montparnasse, Dagger, and Chateau. These are the places I send people to:
| the restaurant | Type | Address | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| l'Assiette | French classic | 181 Rue du Chateau | French cuisine without pretensions, on a street without tourists |
| The Troquet canteen | French classic | 89 Rue Daguerre | Dagger branch, Basque cuisine and no reservations. Arrive and wait |
| Creole | French classic | 122 Boulevard Montparnasse | Creole cuisine from the Antilles, a flavor you won't find in the city center |
| Le Petit Bouillon Vavin | French classic | 119 Boulevard Montparnasse | Restored Bouillon, low prices and a 19th-century hall |
| Yummy Noodles | Asian | 17B Rue Campagne Premiere | Noodles on the street that was the center of Bohemia, a good deal for lunch |
Looking for restaurants in other neighborhoods? My recommended restaurants page is organized by cuisine type and neighborhood.
The food markets of the 14th arrondissement in Paris
There are six food markets in the district, the exception being the Brancozy market, which operates on Saturdays from 9 a.m. and is an organic market. The data is from the 14th District municipality website.
| The market | Address | Days and hours | Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edgar Quinet Market (Marché Edgar Quinet) | Boulevard Edgar Quinet | Wednesday 07:00 to 13:30, Saturday 07:00 to 14:30 | Edgar Quinet |
| Mouton-Duvernet Market | Place Jacques Demy | Tuesday and Friday 07:00 to 13:30 | Mouton-Duvernet |
| Brune Market (Marché Brune) | Boulevard Brune | Thursday 07:00 to 13:30, Sunday 07:00 to 14:30 | Porte de Vanves |
| Villemain Market | Avenue Villemain and rue d'Alésia | Wednesday 07:00 to 13:30, Sunday 07:00 to 14:30 | Plaisance |
| Jourdan Market | Boulevard Jourdan, between rue Barboux and rue Faguet | Wednesday and Saturday 07:00 to 14:30 | Porte d'Orleans |
| Brancusi Organic Market (Marché Brancusi) | Constantin Brancusi Square | Saturday only, 09:00 AM to 14:00 PM | GaÎté |
In addition to these six, Dagger Street is run like a market, except that the shops there are permanent, so it is open almost every day. Anyone who lives in an apartment in the district will find everything they need there. On my markets page you will find recommended markets in the other districts of the city.
Itineraries in the 14th arrondissement of Paris
I divided the routes into two: those that take place mostly within the neighborhood, and those that pass through it and continue.
Routes that take place in the 14th arrondissement
Routes that pass through the 14th district and other neighborhoods
Want all the itineraries I've written, by district and by theme? My Paris itineraries page has them all.
The next step in your trip
The 14th arrondissement connects to the north with the Saint-Germain arrondissement and the 6th arrondissement , and to the east with the 13th arrondissement . The logical way to do it is the Catacombs in the morning with a reserved ticket, the cemetery after that, and in the afternoon a trip south to Parc Monsoury.
And if you want to be prepared for any scenario, my comprehensive Paris guide compiles all the knowledge I've accumulated for you. Have an amazing trip, and don't forget to take a sweater for the catacombs for me.
