Why Spring is the Best Time/Season to Visit Paris

Posted on 04/02/2019 | About Paris, France

Everyone enjoys travelling to different destinations at different times of the years. We can’t argue that some people dislike the warm 30°C weather and that others love it. But we can provide our personal opinion and back it up with a few relevant points. In this case, we want to convince you that spring is the best season to visit Paris. Why?

1. Weather

Paris can get very damp, especially during the winter time. The weather is at a high of 8°C but can easily drop down to nearly freezing by nighttime. The days are also shorter, which gives you less time to explore the beautiful city of lights. The spring season (March-May) starts to become more pleasant, as the sun is out longer, and the daily highs start at around 12°C in March. By May, the weather in Paris has warmed up to about 20°C which is the perfect weather to go out and explore. Although you can still expect a few rain showers during the Spring season, it is not uncommon for them to last only a few minutes and then disappear altogether. The weather is warm enough to sit outside on the terrasse with your coffee every morning, without freezing to death or sweating your skin off.

In the summer, some say the weather is just too unbearably hot. The daily highs are about 25°C, but the humidity makes it feel much warmer which makes it unpleasant to be outside for long periods of time. Paris also has food markets twice a week that become much more enjoyable during the Spring season. Walking outside becomes enjoyable again, and the selection of fresh fruits at these markets start to multiply. Even more, the gardens start to bloom during Spring! Our personal favourite has to be the ones at the Château de Versailles, where you can spend days exploring the beautiful gardens that surround the castle (the gardens are free of entry). Although it’s about a 60 to 90 minute train ride from Paris, it is definitely worth the visit! You can plan an entire day trip there... I promise you won’t be disappointed. Other popular gardens to visit would be the Jardin du Luxembourg, Jardin des Plantes and the Tuileries Garden.

2. Shops are open
Another reason Paris is most enjoyable during the Spring season is because all the shops are almost all still open. During the summertime, many shop owners take their vacation, and so many restaurants, boutiques, etc. are closed for the duration of your trip. Although all of the big tourist attractions will still be open year-round, the small little shops you stumble upon while walking are what make Paris so unique. I made the mistake of booking my first trip to Paris in August, and about 5 or 6 of the restaurants and cafés I wanted to visit were closed. I didn’t know until I physically arrived at the destinations, since the only notice the families give are a piece of paper on their window saying they’re closed from date A-B. It was such a disappointment, and wasted so much of my time that I could have spent exploring! It’s best to avoid this hassle by visiting during a time when the shop owners will still be operating their businesses.

3. Less Tourists
The third and final reason has to be one of the main reasons why Spring is the most enjoyable time to visit Paris: there’s less tourists. Although that can also be said about the fall and winter seasons, the weather still isn’t as enjoyable. During the springtime, you can truly enjoy yourself as you would in the summer, by enjoying long walks by the Seine river, drinking an espresso at Café du Flore, or simply taking a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower without having to wait in a 2 hour line for a ticket. The restaurants are less crowded, as are the streets, and I think every tourist can agree that that makes a destination so much more enjoyable. There’s nothing worse than wasting your time waiting in a line...

So, have we convinced you to take your next trip to Paris in the Spring? It’s only April 1st, it’s not too late to book...