You’re spoilt for choice for enjoyable activities in Montmartre. The delightful northern Parisian region has excellent restaurants, immense museums, luscious green parks and picturesque cobblestone streets.
If you’re visiting Montmartre, it’s easy to get lost in all the wonderful things the district offers. Fortunately, we can help! We’ve rounded up the best things to do in Montmartre in this post.
Whether you’re an art enthusiast, love French wine, or fancy an afternoon browsing souvenirs, you’re bound to find a Montmartre activity that suits your tastes below.
1. Visit The Sacré-Coeur Basilica
One of the top things to do in Montmartre, Paris, is to visit the Sacré-Coeur. According to Statista, the Basilica receives around 10 million visitors every year, making it the second most visited church in Paris. At 130 meters tall, the Basilica delivers amazing Parisian views and offers a serene prayer setting.
The Basilica sits at a sacred pagan location and has links to martyrs and the early Christian church. The city of Montmartre’s name means ‘Hill of the Martyrs’, which links the village to this ancient site.
Though Paris houses several older churches and clerical buildings, the Basilica is relatively modern, having been built over a century ago in 1914.
The Sacre-Coeur Basilica is home to several interesting artefacts, including a grand organ, one of the biggest mosaics in the world, and a vault packed with spiritual items and statues.
If you’re considering exploring the Sacre-Coeur, bear in mind that the grounds can become crowded fast. If you want to avoid the busy period, try to visit in the middle of the week, preferably early in the morning.
2. Touring the Clos de Montmartre
Another one of the best things to do in Montmartre is visiting a vineyard. Le Clos de Montmartre is a small vineyard that can go unnoticed if you don’t know what to look for. The vineyard only covers 1600 m2 and is tucked away amidst other Parisian homes.
The vineyard is one of Paris’ last few vineyards, only producing roughly 1,700 wine bottles each year. Clos de Montmartre wine is often enjoyed in celebration of the yearly vineyard festival: La Fete des Vendanges de Montmartre, which takes place in the second weekend of October.
Vineyard tours are on offer during the Fete, though places fill up fast, so you’ll have to be quick! The vineyard is generally closed for public viewing but if you’re lucky, you might be able to enjoy one of the few tours that take place throughout the year.
3. Explore Place Du Tertre
Only a little walk away from the Sacre Coeur Basilica lies Place du Tertre. This animated plaza is packed with restaurants and gift shops, though the space is famous for its artistic history. Exploring this square is one of the top things to do in Montmartre, Paris.
Renowned painters, like Picasso, Van Gogh, and Degas, lived and worked in the district. Today, you’ll find several painters sitting down and creating art at their easels. Each space is rented by modern artists who work from mid-morning to dusk.
We’d recommend agreeing on a price before your artists begin creating your art, as this avoids any unpleasantries later on.
After you’re done exploring the square, you can finish with a glass of vin at one of Place Du Tertre’s cafes and soak up the Parisian atmosphere – a perfect end to an afternoon!
4. Explore Montmartre Museum
You can’t explore Montmartre without taking a trip to the Montmartre Museum! Located in one of the oldest buildings in the village, the museum started in 1960, though the building has been in place since the early 1700s.
The museum exhibits documents and paintings depicting Montmartre’s artistic history. Many artists had studios within the galleries housing, like Renoir and Suzanne Valadon. If you’re visiting the museum, make sure you schedule enough time to walk through the museum’s lawns.
The gardens are named after the artist Renoir, who created the works Jardin de la rue Cortot and Bal du Moulin in the studio, found within the museum’s building. If you walk through the garden path towards its end, you can view a covert display of the Clos Montmartre vineyards.
Thinking of visiting? The Montmartre Museum is open every day between 10 am and 6 pm, but remember that the last entry is 45 minutes before the museum closes.
5. A Personal Montmartre Tour
Another one of the best things to do in Montmartre is to book a personal tour of the village.
From the Sacre Coeur to the Place du Tertre, a private tour allows you to view as many sights as you want to. An expert guide will fill your tour with stories and anecdotes, while you explore the places that you want to see.
Whether you’re an expert French tourist or visiting Paris for the first time, a custom private tour lets you experience Montmartre with fresh eyes. If you want to learn more about one of Paris’ most famous villages, you can’t go wrong with a personal Montmartre tour.
At Yellow Moon Tours, our knowledgeable team have lots of experience creating personalised special tours for families, single travellers, and couples.
Whether you want to try some incredible Parisian food or see as many of Montmartre’s sites as possible, Yellow Moon Tours has got your back.
Want to create memories that last a lifetime? Get in touch with us to book your private tour today.
6. Dali Paris
Another museum for art lovers is the Dali Paris, an exquisite gallery right in the centre of Montmartre. The famous Spanish artist, Salvador Dali, lived in Montmartre with Gala, his wife, in 1929.
The Dali Paris is a private gallery devoted to Dali’s artistry, housing around 300 art pieces from his artistic reign.
Visitors can browse a range of paintings, sculptures, drawings, and surreal items within the museum. Notable works include ‘Persistence of Memory’, Dali’s well-known melting clocks painting, and ‘Antiflower’, a vivid yellow glass sculpture.
If you’re interested in art or Dali’s work in particular, the Dali Paris is a worthwhile visit. The gallery is a small walk from the Place du Tertre, but with several subway and bus stations nearby, you can get to the museum easily via public transport.
We hope that this article has provided you with some inspiration ahead of your trip to Montmartre.
Got questions? Contact us at info@yellowmoontours.com or +02032903665 to book your private tour today. You can also check out our social media on Instagram, Facebook, and X.
Written by Rosh for Yellow Moon Tours, the private tours specialist covering Paris, London, New York and Ireland.
