Paris 13th district is a former working-class district. Today, it is famous above all for its Chinatown, the quartier de la Butte aux Cailles, and the Bibliotheque Nationale de France (National French Library) on the banks of the Seine River.
The district is divided into four areas:
- Quartier de la Salpêtrière (North East)
- Quartier de la Gare (South East)
- Quartier de la Maison-Blanche (South West)
- Quartier Croulebarbe (North West)
Places
The 13th arrondissement is home to numerous cultural monuments- you will find around twenty religious buildings associated with the Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Jewish, Buddhist and other faiths.
However, the area doesn’t fare particularly well in terms of green spaces : the Parc de Choisy, Parc Kellerman, Jardin du Moulin-de-la-Pointe and square René-Le Gall are the only ones. To compensate, the 13th arrondissement has around fifty sports complexes; the most equipped district of Paris!
If you are in the mood for culture, there are also six theatres and six cinemas inside the district, as well as the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and the Manufacture des Gobelins (the former tapestry factory for the French Royal families).
Regarding architecture, only a few arrondissements have given such opportunities to modern architects as the 13th. You’ll find all sorts of buildings from famous 20th century designers such as:
- Two of the rare buildings built by Le Corbusier in Paris: the maison Planeix du 26, boulevard Masséna (1924) and the Armée du Salut, between rue Cantagrel and rue du Chevaleret (1934).
- The famous building complex Les Hautes Formes, by Christian de Portzamparc (1975), a concept (called an open island) created by the architect in the “Paris Rive Gauche” area
- The building “Grand Ecran”, built between 1992 and 1998 by the architect Kenzō Tange at the entrance of the Italie 2 shopping centre .
- The first Norman Foster office building in Paris (2004).
Restaurants and cafes
- Chez Gladines, 5 rue des Cinq Diamants. Big Basque salads and a lot of ambiance in this moderately low-budget restaurant. This place is almost always crowded on Saturday nights.
- Le Temps des Cerises, 18-20, rue de la Butte-aux-Cailles. If you are looking for quality French food, and a large choice of good and affordable wine this is the place to go. This is what we can call a “restaurant populaire” (as opposed to other posh and expensive places around) with friendly staff, a very nice atmosphere and no way to reserve a table- just show up and the “patron” will find a place for you (arrive before 8 if you don’t want to queue up especially on weekends), shut down your mobile or you will be kicked out! The “Boudin a la Normande” (blood sausage) is a must, you can also get very decent goose liver and other French specialities such as “Salade de Museau”.
- Batofar, 11 quai François Mauriac. This little red lighthouse boat which hosts dance and chilled electronic music and other cultural events has been one of the coolest spots around for some time. The dance floor is in the hold, and the lounge on the upper deck. Of particular interest is the Sunday afternoon chillout/cookout event which spills out onto the quai (when the weather permits)
- La Dame de Canton. A party boat docked below Paris’ national library, offering live music concerts in exotic wooden surroundings. Its upper deck provides fabulous Seine views, while down below, narrow corridors and staircases make you feel you’re exploring a floating labyrinth. Music-wise expect intimate, avant-garde acts – anything from gypsy jazz and tropical electro, to Thai funk! If you fancy making a night of it, reserve a table in the boudoir-style restaurant. The food is well prepared – think mushroom risotto with prawn and saffron sauce and killer chocolate cake – and provides ample sustenance for the long night ahead.
Property price per sqm in the 13th arrondissement of Paris
According to the website Notaires de France, the average price per square meter was €7,970 for the third quarter of 2011. It is currently the fifteenth most expensive district of Paris, after the 11th arrondissement.
Population
There were 179 500 inhabitants in the district in 2008.
Useful information
Tourism office in Paris:
www.francetourism.com
Maps of Paris:
www.ign.fr
www.viamichelin.com
Travel from the UK
By air: Easyjet flies from Belfast, Liverpool Newcastle and London Luton to Paris.
Ryanair flies from Shannon, Dublin and Glasgow to Paris.
By rail: Eurostar go from London to Paris in just 2h35.
By car: You can travel by car to Paris by taking the ferries which go from Dover to Calais and then you can take the Motorway to Paris.
You can also cross the channel with the Eurostar and stop at Calais. Then you will travel on the motorway directly to Paris.
Our team of sale advisers at Sextant Properties will be happy to help you to find a property in Paris. We have a large network of partners in Paris. All of them are registered French real estate agents and speak both French and English. Whatever kind of property you are looking for: farmhouse, longere, barn, gite, B&B, country house, mill, castle or chateau, we will do our best to find a property in Paris matching your requirements.