Paris, But Cooler: Where to Escape the Summer Heat
It’s hot out there! June saw the city hit a sweltering 39°C with tropical nights giving many visitors and residents their fair share of nuits blanches. Now we’re moving into the summer holidays and la canicule is back with a vengeance. We’re all loving the air conditioning at the ACCORD French Language School in Paris, but where else can we go to escape the heat once your French lessons are over for the day? Stay cool with some of our French favourites.
Go green
Leafy havens are a go-to in any country when the mercury rises. The nearest park to ACCORD Paris is Champ de Mars, where you can relax in the shade of the trees on the expansive lawns. The largest water basin at the nearby Trocadero has cannons spraying water that act as misters if you stand close enough… just don’t copy everyone else dipping their feet in them or you may get fined! If you’re willing to venture a little further afield, starting at ACCORD Paris, you’re a half hour walk from Parc André Citroën where you’ll find 72 jets of water to cool off under and 14 hectares of lawn to relax on. You’re also a 30-minute stroll from the Jardin de Brume just past the Pont Neuf, where “parabrumes” shower visitors with a fine mist to take the edge off the heat.
Make a splash
Make sure you pack your swimsuit with your French dictionary, pens and paper! Paris plays host to a wide variety of places to swim in the city over the summer and most of them are free. There’s a temporary outdoor pool at Just Fontaine Stadium (July 4th-August 16th), a pool and open-air cinema at Jules Noël Sports Centre in the 14th arrondissement (July 4th-August 16th), an outdoor pool at the Léo Lagrange Sports Centre in the 12th arrondissement (July 4th-August 30th) and one at the Louis Lumière Sports Centre in the 20th arrondissement (July 4th-August 30th). You can also swim in a supervised stretch of Canal Saint-Martin’s Bassin des Récollets (now open) or in the Seine itself at La Villette (July 4th-August 30th).
Contemporary art museums
Not all museums in Paris have air conditioning, so here are a few top places to keep cool whilst you take in some culture. The Bourse de Commerce is a contemporary art museum which hosts insightful evening lectures in French near the Louvre. The Fondation Cartier celebrates the contemporary artists in a space near to the Tuileries, so you can combine a chill in the garden with some time cooling off in the air-conditioned museum. The Fondation Louis Vuitton is another go-to among culture vultures escaping the heat outside… plus the walk through the Bois de Boulogne to get there gives you lots of shade beneath the trees.
Shop ‘til you drop (but not from the heat)
Just like the capital’s museums, not every shop you visit will have air conditioning, so pick out the big ones and replace window shopping with indoor browsing during the heatwave. Le Bon Marché is a good place for exploring the latest in French chic in the comfort of air con, just a half hour’s walk from ACCORD Paris. You could soak up the breeze coming off the Seine on a stroll to La Samaritaine before embracing the chill in the department store. No trip to Paris would be complete without visiting the iconic Grands Boulevards, so use la canicule as an excuse to explore Les Galeries Lafayettes and Le Printemps in all their air-conditioned glory.
Going underground
Swap the bus or your regular walk for a trip on the metro and enjoy some A/C on the following lines: 1, 2, 5, 9, 11 and 14. The Catacombs are a popular tourist attraction in Paris which everyone wants to visit when the temperatures rise. Why? Because the temperature is a constant 14°C underground and the human remains give you a real frisson to keep you cool. Given the weather forecast, we recommend you book well in advance to avoid disappointment.
Scream for ice cream
Paris is famous for its gastronomy, so it would be rude to miss out on a slice of the ice cream action. If you fancy a sweet treat as soon as you venture out of ACCORD Paris’s air-conditioning, you have a few options to keep you cool. Amorino on Rue Cler is a chain famous for serving its ice creams in the shape of roses. Le Bac à Glaces on Rue du Bac has a vintage vibe and serves over 60 ice cream and sorbet flavours. Glaces Glazed on Rue des Martyrs is a super-stylish parlour with intriguingly named ice creams: cococaïne sorbet anyone?
And don’t forget, ACCORD Paris is a French language school with air conditioning throughout every classroom and communal area!
If you want to escape the heatwave for a few hours in the French capital, book a French course at ACCORD Paris, cool off in the air-conditioned classroom and learn the local lingo. Beat the heat!
