Nuit Blanche

Nuit Blanche

An energetically curated jag of nocturnal creativity, laced with Gallic absurdism, Nuit Blanche is a nocturnal city-wide street party that turns Paris into a giant interactive art installation. More than 1.5 million people take to the streets to consume and generate happenings both trad and rad. Restaurants and bars, galleries, museums, monuments, cinemas, churches, parks and public pools stay open until it’s time to get up. Every artist, musician, dancer, model and circus artiste in town works the night shift. Previous Nuits Blanches have seen historic courtyards colonized by flying luminous loaves, a pretend film shoot for Nuit Blanche of the Living Dead on the east side of town, a giant skull made of cooking utensils installed in a church, and musical offerings from baile funk to Monteverdi.

Highlights

Among the most beautiful sights every year are the lighting installations: past Nuits Blanches have seen the Canal St Martin festooned with twinkling white lights, and the obelisk on Place de la Concorde bathed in Yves Klein blue. Expect the unexpected: you’re as likely to be bowled over by a spoken-word performance in a subway as you are by one of the more popular productions.

In The Know

Head Count

More than half a million people are expected to come and spend the night as flâneurs.

Meeting Point

There are five information huts around town, including ones at Hôtel de Ville (opposite Avenue Victoria), Les Halles (angle of rue Pierre Lescot and rue Berger), and at Place de la Bastille (between Boulevard Bourdon and Boulevard de la Bastille).

Best View

Go on, get up the Eiffel Tower – you probably haven't tried it since you were on a school exchange trip, decades ago (open until 23h45 in October).

What If

Modern art’s not really my cup of tea? There are plenty of opportunities to soak up mainstream and classical art and music, with scores of galleries and churches open, and recitals and gigs galore.

Packing Tips

This is a massive social occasion, so dress for a party. But think chilly outdoor rave – inclement weather may intervene, and you’ll be on your feet for hours. Pack a few low-GI snacks, as well as a bottle of water, since some of the best surprises are out in the backwaters of the north and east, where there aren’t any 24-hour oyster bars.

Escape

Hop on the RER train to Versailles Rive Gauche station (which takes 40 minutes), and spend an afternoon indulging your Marie Antoinette fantasies as you wander around the gorgeous palace and gardens. For more details, go to www.chateauversailles.fr.

Dos and don'ts

• Brush up your lingo. The Nuit Blanche brochure – which you can pick up in restaurants, bars and arts venues around town – is in French only, and it’s pretty essential. However…
• Allow yourself to get lost and enjoy random experiences.
• Check the weather forecast and prepare accordingly.
• Don’t think you’ve been there, done that – the artistic directors change every year, so Nuit Blanche is always fresh and surprising.
• Don’t get this Nuit Blanche muddled up with its cousins in Berlin, Brussels, Madrid, Rome, Toronto…

Need To Know

Children

This is a thoroughly inclusive event, with plenty of shows and activities that will appeal to kids. Entertainments specifically aimed at les gosses are detailed in the brochure and on the website.

Parking

If you do have to come by car, leave it at your hotel, or in the district in which you think you’ll be hanging out most. There are parkings all around Paris.

Disability Access

Overall, access is good. The brochure gives information for specific venues.

Food & Drink

Many restaurants, cafés and bars stay open all night for Nuit Blanche, and some of these promise diners free breakfast later on. The Marais area is a good bet for night-owl gastronomy. Accustomed to serving up onion soup at 03h is the 24-hour brasserie Au Pied de Cochon, at 6 rue Coquillière, a year-round post-party institution at Les Halles. Two of the finest bakeries in the city, for a croissant at breakfast-time and a bag of cakes for the Eurostar home, are Le Levain du Marais, at 32 rue de Turenne, in the 3ème, and Le Moulin de la Vierge, at 105 rue Vercingétorix, 14ème.

Sleep

There are some wonderful Smith hotels in Paris: try arty, sophisticated Hôtel Le A on the Right Bank; the deceptively classical-looking Hotel Sezz, named for its 16th-arrondissement location; futuristic funhouse Kube, near the Gare du Nord, which has its own sub-zero ice bar; sweet petite Le Placide in St Germain; or exotic and charming Hôtel Daniel, just off the Champs-Elysées. Visit www.mrandmrssmith.com or ring 0845 034 0701 for more details or to book rooms.

VIP

Not applicable at this event.