In recent years the city government has legalized several artists squats throughout Paris, bringing buildings up to code and offering agreements with artists in residence to exchange token rents for the ability to work (if not live) in Paris.

The most famous and easily accessible of these squats is 59 Rivoli, which began in 1999 as an artists squat in an abandoned Crédit Lyonnais building in the heart of Paris and soon attracted a steady stream of visitors and media attention.

The squat got the blessing of the government when mayor Bertrand Delanoë kept a campaign promise to legalize what is now a renovated government-subsidized “aftersquat” that houses artist studios for some 30 permanent artists and visiting artists, features a ground floor gallery and hosts weekend concerts. It’s free to the public and open daily except Mondays. For a virtual visit, go here.

The post The Parisian Art of Squatting appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But Paris has always had its friperies, inexpensive secondhand clothing shops where you have to dig through piles of cast-offs to find a vintage pearl.

Here are a handful of top good value addresses where Parisians go for a wallet-friendly vintage fashion shopping spree.

Free’P’Star

With three locations all within five minutes walking distance of one another in the Marais, this annoyingly named boutique (a franglais play on the French word fripe, which means “second-hand clothing”) is a favorite for men and women’s clothing and accessories. Always mobbed and packed to the gills with stock at low prices. They don’t buy clothes from customers on site or sell merchandise online so the only way to hunt for vintage gems is in person (bring your elbows). Open every day of the year.

Kilo Shop

If you’re looking for clothes by the pound, head to Kilo Shop, with a flagship in the Marais and another location in the 6th. Like Free’P’Star, they don’t buy on site. You can weigh your own pile of vintage loot on scales provided throughout the store. The per kilo price of clothes is indicated by colored buttons and the goods here are organized into racks by type making for a slightly less chaotic shopping experience.

Vintage Désir

Located on rue des Rosiers in the site of a former hair salon, this great inexpensive vintage shop is often mistakenly called “Coiffeur Vintage.” Vintage Désir is tiny and cluttered with new arrivals daily. Dresses start at €10. Open daily; check it out on a weekday to avoid the weekend crowds.

Guerrisol

With four locations in the 9th and 18th, Tunisian bargain depot Guerrisol is a classic down-and-dirty destination for vintage lovers to rummage for clothes, shoes and accessories. Be prepared to dig.

The post Cheap Vintage Shopping in Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But then there are those times when you land in Paris on a rainy day after a sleepless night in cramped cattle class and endure an escargot-paced jet-lagged slog through customs at the airport, or realize you booked yourself an early morning departure on a frigid winter morning, and hauling yourself and your belongings onto public transport is not worth the savings.

Here are some tips for minimizing costs if you decide to splurge on a taxi to or from the airport. (Related story: Money-Saving Tips for Taking Taxis in Paris.)

From the Airport

Getting a taxi from the airport is a no-brainer requiring you to follow the signs to the taxi stand, get in, give your address to the driver, sit back and hope for the best.

If it’s rush hour, you might end up paying up to €60-70 for the luxury of a ride into town, since trips to and from the airport are not price-regulated as they are in big American cities like NYC and a traffic jam can add a hefty mark-up to your fare.

During off hours when traffic is flowing, a taxi ride into central Paris can drop down to €35-40, meaning that if you are traveling with at least another person, taking a taxi makes more financial sense, since the bus fare for each person ends up being around €11.

Going Back to the Airport

The city’s blue and white taxi stands, ostensibly meant to give passengers an easy place to find a taxi, are often deserted. And if you happen to accidentally hail a cab within 50 meters of a taxi stand, they are not allowed to stop.

In the mornings, on a rainy day or late in the evening, it can be impossible to find a taxi on the street, which makes it tempting to book online with one of the city’s major taxi companies, or call ahead.

The Cost of Advanced Planning

It might be convenient to pre-book a ride to the airport, but if you schedule a taxi to pick you up at an appointed hour, don’t be surprised to find that there is already €10 or more running on the meter, as taxis start charging you from the time they are dispatched, not from the time they pick you up.

If you want to take a taxi but don’t want to pay the extra dispatch charge, leave yourself a bit of time to wander around and find one. If your luggage is light enough to lug around with you and you are patient, you can save money by hailing a cab on the street or at a taxi stand as well as at certain hotels.

A Note on Luggage

Drivers are allowed to charge €1 after the first bag for any additional luggage of 5 kilos (11 lbs.) or more that is large enough to require being stowed in the trunk.

The Tipping Point

Remember that tipping is optional for Paris taxi rides, and not expected. If your driver was pleasant and competent, feel free to round up a few euros, but don’t waste money on an American guilt tip in a country where the rules of gratuity are not the same.

The post How Not to Blow Your Budget Taking a Taxi to or from the Paris Airport appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But taking the occasional taxi to get from point A to point B is the sort of small luxury that can make a world of difference when you are tired, traveling with children or older people or in a group to make the ride more affordable.

Here are a few guidelines to help you navigate the rules and quirks of Parisian taxis so that a minor indulgence doesn’t turn into a calamity for your wallet.

Before You Get In

First of all, make sure that you are taking one of the city’s 17,357 official taxis, easily identifiable by the “Taxi Parisien” panel perched on the roof. These cabs are manned by card-carrying licensed drivers who are required to pass medical exams and have their taxis regularly inspected to make sure they are both clean and in top working order, as well as regulated meters that protect you from being ripped off.

It probably goes without saying, but never get into a random black car with a solicitous driver asking “Taxi?” A free Parisian taxi will stop if you flag it, but never hound you to get in.

Never on Sunday

Note that Paris taxis have a three-tiered rate system: A, B and C. The bottom line: Taxis are the most expensive on Sundays (and holidays), slightly less expensive from 5 p.m. to 10 a.m. and the least expensive from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every other day of the week.

Don’t Blow Your Taxi Allowance on Short Distances

Unlike some cities where the minimum ride is negligible and you can feel justified taking a taxi to get somewhere faster, the minimum ride in Paris is a whopping €6.60. So don’t waste money taking taxis on shorter routes that you can access via public transportation or on foot.

Safety in Numbers

If you are traveling with a group, keep in mind that most sedan taxis will usually take up to three people. There are more mini-van taxis and larger vehicles on the road these days that can accommodate a group, and some drivers will allow you to squeeze in a fourth passenger, but keep in mind that they are allowed to add €3 to the fare if they do.

A Tip About Tipping

In France, tipping your taxi driver is not expected, so don’t feel obligated to offer a large gratuity and only round up to the nearest euro on a small fare.

Also, see my related post: How Not to Blow Your Budget on Taxi Rides to and from the Paris Airport.

The post Money-saving tips for taking Paris taxis appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Drinking in Public

If you’re out and about, take advantage of the city’s 820 drinking fountains (check out this map) including 120 historic Wallace drinking fountains or its new brand of sparkling water fountains that offer chilled bubbly water on tap.

How to Order Free Water in a Restaurant

If you’re in a Paris café or restaurant, water, like bread, is always free.

And it’s the only drink in France that comes with a free refill.

Just ask for a glass of water (un verre d’eau) or a carafe (une carafe d’eau) to indicate that you plan to revel in the complimentary pleasures of the city’s “grand cru.”

Or if your waiter gives you a nudge by asking whether you prefer flat (plat) or sparkling (gazeuse or pétillante), asking for “Château-la-Pompe”–the cheeky nickname for tap water that translates roughly to “Château of the Water Pump”–will demonstrate your command of French wit and the knowledge that there’s no need to pay for something you can get for free.

Eau de Paris Souvenirs

In an effort to encourage Parisians to drink tap water, the publicly funded city water company Eau de Paris makes colorfully designed 1-liter carafes for home use that have the perfectly balanced mineral content of Paris water printed on the side.

The sturdy glass carafes come in limited edition designs including a carafe for each arrondissement to promote neighborhood pride. But there’s no reason you can’t bring one of these babies home and fill it with your own tap water (or wine).

And if you’re not in the mood to lug a glass carafe in your carry-on, you can pick up a reusable Philippe Starck-designed plastic water bottle from a vending machine at the sparkling water fountain at André Citroën park in the 15th arrondissement.

The post Why you should never buy water in Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Sparkling water fountains are popular in Italy and were first introduced in Paris in 2010 in an effort to reduce the plastic waste produced by the over-consumption of bottled water.

La Pétillante (The Sparkling) fountains are able to deliver chilled sparkling water thanks to a clever system that cools public water to a precise temperature using an ice block and adds carbon dioxide to the carefully cooled water to make it bubbly.

The sparkling water is distributed in roughly five ounce portions to avoid waste. But you can bring your own bottle to refill. And at the fountain at Park André Citroën new Philippe Starck-designed reusable water bottles are now on sale for €3.

The city’s two other sparkling fountains are located at the Jardin de Reuilly in the 12th arrondissement, and at the headquarters of Eau de Paris on 19 rue Neuve-Tolbiac in the 13th. And this year Eau de Paris plans to install an additional two new fountains, at Jardin d’Éole in the 18th arrondissement and Parc Martin Luther King, ZAC des Batignolles in the 17th, with another at the Square Tino Rossi in the 5th arrondissement coming in the spring of 2014.

The post Paris Rolls Out Its Third Free Sparkling Water Fountain appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

A Word About A.C.

A movie in a dark room can be a lifesaver on a scorching afternoon, and you have the best chance of decent a.c. at one of the bigger multiplexes, but keep in mind that the temperature will never be as chilly as it would be in the U.S. Same goes for large department stores like Galeries Lafayette, Printemps, Le Bon Marché or the B.H.V., where you can cool down a bit, but possibly not as much as you would like.

Browsing frozen treats–and cooling off–at Picard. Photo: asirap

Browse the Aisles of Picard

You can always duck into a supermarket and hover in the frozen food section or vast dairy aisle of a Monoprix or a G20. Even better? Picard, Paris’ popular frozen food chain, which is a great place to escape for a breather from the hot sun while browsing the aisles full of gourmet French TV dinners.

Go Underground

When Paris gets hot, those seeking cooler temps head for the Paris Catacombs, where the temperature is a cool 57.2 degrees F and you can chill your soul by looking at the bones of six million people that line the walls. The catacombs are open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm, and the tour lasts 45 minutes. But keep in mind if you’re feeling worn out from the heat that it’s 130 steps down and 83 steps back up to street level.

Another underground tour where you can escape the heat for an hour or so are the city’s elaborate 19th-century sewers (though be warned that the ambient odor might make this a less desirable place to revive). Closed Thursdays and Fridays.

Take a Swim

You can’t jump into the Seine on a hot day, but Paris has 38 municipal swimming pools if you feel like taking the plunge. Remember that pools are crowded, bathing caps are required and shorts are not allowed.

The city of Paris has created a new free app (available in English) to help you locate the pool nearest you and find out everything you need to know about pool hours and other information.

The post Paris Heat Wave Survival Strategies appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But keep in mind that just as French vacationers commonly divide themselves into camps of those who like to vacation in July (“juilletistes”) and those who favor the month of August (“aoutiens”), the city government takes the obligation to provide bread for its citizens and visitors so seriously that Parisian bakeries are assigned vacations, split into two groups and allowed by law to alternatively take off either July or August, switching it up every year. The law dates from 1790, created in order to prevent famine when bread was a major source of nutrition during the French Revolution.

(A caveat, however: just because your favorite boulangerie happens to be open doesn’t mean that it’s the A team running the place. The only time I have ever seen a boulangerie run out of croissants? August in Paris.)

Earlier this summer, the national Observatoire du Pain launched a billboard campaign to encourage the French to buy more bread (although 97,6 % of French people eat it, bread consumption in France has dropped to half a baguette per person per day, down from three baguettes per day in the early 1900s, and one baguette in the 1970s).

The campaign is also fighting against public perception that bread is fattening and gluten is the enemy by promoting bread as a healthy diet aid.

Finding your baguette in August

To help summertime Parisians procure their daily bread, the Chambre professionnelle des artisans boulangers-pâtissiers has compiled a list of boulangeries that remain open in August.

Or if you want to geo-localize your next croissant, go here.

The post Half of Paris’ Boulangeries Remain Open in August appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

French magazines and bloggers have long extolled the joys of the American nail salon and the affordable stateside luxury that is the mani-pedi. But until recently it was hard to find an inexpensive place to get your nails done in a city obsessed with beauty.

So to try and bridge the gap between high-end, time-consuming, budget-busting Paris beauty institute manicures and so-called medical pedicures (an expensive and clinical French ritual as daunting as it sounds), a new generation of reasonably priced, NYC-inspired nail bars have popped up around the city. Here are a few of our favorites:

Culture of Color

More than 200 OPI nail colors and prices that start at €6 for a simple polish change (and start at a reasonable €21 for a manicure and €37 for a pedicure) make the sleek, modern Culture of Color a good choice. The chain also has multiple locations around the city.

Nail Factory

Decorated with polished concrete and industrial furniture in a nod to New York style, Nail Factory has three locations in Paris. They use OPI products, and polish changes start at €5, with full-on manicures from €19.90.

Paris New York

At this chic NYC-inspired nail bar at 38 rue de Varenne in the 7th arrondissement, there’s a flat screen and a wandering iPad to entertain you while you get your OPI polish changed for as low as €5. Call 01 42 84 02 39 for an appointment.

The post Where to get a cheap chic manicure in Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Part of the Global Greeter Network, Paris Greeters is an all-volunteer organization made up of outgoing tour guides who are passionate about their neighborhoods and anxious to share the love with you and up to five other people.

Have you already explored every corner of the city and wonder what lies beyond its borders? There are also Greeters available for tours of surrounding communities outside of Paris but accessible by Métro (departments 92, 93, and 94).

Be prepared to be surprised as you can’t choose tours by area; sign up online here. The tours are free, but post-walk online donations are accepted.

Related: For more freebie tours, check out our previous post on free walking tours in Paris.

The post Free Walking Tours with Real Parisians appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.