Saint Germain, cafés & celebrities
Its birth dates back to the 6th century when the king Childebert decided to found an abbey, one of the richest in France. Unfortunately during the French Revolution, its cloister was used as a saltpetre deposit and an explosion destroyed most of it only the church was spared. It became an intellectual epicenter when theater troops came to perform to its famous fair during the middle ages. From the 17th thanks to the opening of "La Comedie Francaise", cafés started popping up to offer a very exotic drink and a place to gather. Thus actors, writers, encyclopedists, philosophers, humanists came to discuss ideas in complete opposition to an absolute monarchy being Voltaire one of the main leading figures. Strolling around this area means to come across many plaques on buildings where celebrities lived or met. George Sand, Oscar Wilde, Honoré de Balzac, Champollion , Voltaire, Charles Baudelaire, Eugénie Delacroix, Ingres, Borian Vian, Jacques Prévert, Picasso, Serge Gainsbourg, Richard Wagner, Marguerite Dumas, Guillaume Apollinaire, Louis Aragon, Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Albert Camus, Pablo Picasso, Alberto Giacometti, Marguerite Duras, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, among many others. Most of them get together in 'Les Deux Magots' or the 'Café de Flor' and even today you might be able to glimpse a few personalities.
HIGHLIGHTS
History of Saint Germain de Près
Cafés and their famous artists
Streets where writers such as Oscar Wilde or Sartre lived and wrote
Oldest chocolate and coffee shop in Paris
INCLUSION
2h tour with certified local guide
Small groups of 10 people or less
Electronic headphones for clear listening to your guide
MEETING POINT
'Saint Germain de Près' metro line 4. 157 boulevard Saint Germain
75006, Paris. Meet your guide outside and look for 'Paris in Tour'
Its birth dates back to the 6th century when the king Childebert decided to found an abbey, one of the richest in France. Unfortunately during the French Revolution, its cloister was used as a saltpetre deposit and an explosion destroyed most of it only the church was spared. It became an intellectual epicenter when theater troops came to perform to its famous fair during the middle ages. From the 17th thanks to the opening of "La Comedie Francaise", cafés started popping up to offer a very exotic drink and a place to gather. Thus actors, writers, encyclopedists, philosophers, humanists came to discuss ideas in complete opposition to an absolute monarchy being Voltaire one of the main leading figures. Strolling around this area means to come across many plaques on buildings where celebrities lived or met. George Sand, Oscar Wilde, Honoré de Balzac, Champollion , Voltaire, Charles Baudelaire, Eugénie Delacroix, Ingres, Borian Vian, Jacques Prévert, Picasso, Serge Gainsbourg, Richard Wagner, Marguerite Dumas, Guillaume Apollinaire, Louis Aragon, Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Albert Camus, Pablo Picasso, Alberto Giacometti, Marguerite Duras, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, among many others. Most of them get together in 'Les Deux Magots' or the 'Café de Flor' and even today you might be able to glimpse a few personalities.