If you have a trip planned to Paris, you’ve probably heard of Montmartre, but you may not know exactly what it is or why you want to explore this neighborhood. The Tour Guy has a Montmartre food tour that is absolutely fantastic, giving you an education on the historic district, amazing food, and plenty of Instagrammable places to stop for photos.
If you’ve ever dreamed about strolling charming streets while you nibble on flaky croissants, this Food and History Tour of Montmartre delivers on all that and more. Yes, you still want to visit the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and other well-known tourist must-dos, but this is another one to add to your list.
The Tour Guy provided my mom and child complimentary tickets for this tour, but all opinions remain my own. I love food tours, and this one did not disappoint.
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Where is Montmartre?
Montmartre is perched on a hill in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. The neighborhood starts by the iconic Moulin Rouge, and it continues to the Sacré-Coeur basilica with cobbled streets and tons of artistic heritage.
This may not be first on your list – yes, definitely visit the Louvre, make time for Versailles, and Disneyland Paris may be part of your plan – but this food tour in Montmartre is one we’re all glad we took the time to do.
How Does the Tour Work?
The tour is led by a knowledgeable guide and can accommodate up to 15 people, though groups are usually smaller, as the guide said they’re often 4 or 6 people. With the relatively small group, it’s easy to ask questions and keep up with the tour.
That said, be prepared for a walk uphill on somewhat narrow sidewalks, so if you have mobility challenges, know what you’re getting into. The pace wasn’t super fast, as the guide walked and talked about history and other facts as we went, but there were also stairs to navigate while on the tour. Montmartre is not on flat ground.
It was easy to find the meeting place and to get to it. There’s a metro stop right by it, and the famous Moulin Rouge is almost directly across from the street, so you almost can’t miss it.
Once you meet up with the tour, you set out with the guide leading you and making four different stops for typical Parisian treats along the way. The tour also includes historical information and a lot of talking about and pointing out a lot of the Emily In Paris locations, which was fun.
The tour itself lasts for about three hours, and you don’t end the tour at the same place where you start. It’s about a 20 minute walk to the starting point, but you can find metro and bus stops much closer to get you where you need to go.
Unusually – especially for a tour in Europe – there were plenty of stops where you could use a restroom if you needed one. My mom especially appreciated that,
What Did We Eat on the Food Tour?
The food was fantastic, and we had plenty of it. Come hungry, and know you will get plenty to eat for one of your day’s meals.
We started with a choice of plain or chocolate croissant at Urban Bakery (and is there really a choice when a chocolate croissant is involved?), and we also could purchase coffee if we wanted. This is a small shop, however, so we ate our croissants outside while our guide regaled us with more information about the UNESCO protection of baguettes in France.
Our next food stop was for escargot where we got a lesson in how to retrieve the delicacy from its shell. If that’s not quite up your alley – and it’s worth trying once – we also had delicious crusty bread and wine here, with the option for water, lemonade, or iced tea, if you prefer.
After a bunch of walking and information to whet our appetities, we stopped for dessert where we were able to choose macaron flavors. The shop is very instagrammable, but the macarons were delicious – I recommend the strawberry and yogurt or milk chocolate with passion fruit.
At our last stop, you can stay as long as you want, and you may want to order extra food here because it was delicious and a fun local spot. You receive a charcuterie plate with cheese and meats, as well as your choice of wine, water, Coke, lemonade, and the like.
We chose to stick around for a while to people watch and savor our last – large – tasting. Four stops doesn’t feel like a ton, but the amount of food we received at each stop was generous and filling, and we really felt like the tour is worth the cost.
What Else Do You Learn?
I won’t give away all the secrets, but between the stops for food, our amazing guide Nkay talked about everything from art history to Emily in Paris to Sacre Couer, the highest land point in Paris.
Montmartre was once a cheap place to live, and starving artists flocked there. Cubism had its start in the neighborhood, and Picasso, Renoir, Suzanne Valadon, Maurice Urtilli, and Andre Utter are just some artists who spent significant time in Montmartre.
It remains an artists’ haven, and the place Picasso rented as a young artist may now be privately owned, but it remains welcoming to young artists. We also walked through Plaza de Tertre, a gorgeous square filled with cafes and artists, though we were warned not to take photos, as many of the artists take affront.
Montmartre was home to more than just painters, as Dalida also had a home there that the guide points out. At one point, the singer was voted the second most popular person in France behind Charles de Gaulle, which is a pretty impressive accomplishment.
If you’re interested in more history, our guide recommended we visit Musee de Montmartre on our own, but we unfortuantely did not have the time. This is on my list for my next visit to Paris, however.
While we didn’t go inside Sacre Couer, this is another place to visit if you have time, possibly at the end of the tour. It’s free to go inside, but there is a cost to go to the top.
You see the fence in front of the basilica where they sell locks for lovers to attach them, and we learned all about the self-cleaning stones that wash themselves when it rains. This is also a great vantage point to see into the rest of Paris, and there’s a spot with a great view of the Eiffel Tower, as well.
Nkay told us people used to come to Montmartre for the artist history, but now they come for Emily in Paris, as many scenes were shot here. You’ll see La Maison Rose, as well as several other locations Nkay pointed out to us, which made a fun pop culture portion to the food tour.
Do You Need to Tip Your Guide?
Tipping is not mandatory in France, but the guide definitely appreciates it. We tipped $10 per person, but use your best judgment.
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The Montmartre Food Tour Is a Parisian Must-Do
The Tour Guy’s Food and History Tour of Montmartre is a delightful way to experience this Parisian district that many first-time tourists miss. We loved the food, and I always appreciate it when a food tour also includes a lot of local history and shares lesser-known tidbits. Put on your walking shoes, and book this delicious and informative tour.
