The saxophone of the Sidney Bechet in the Montmartre, the 1949, the Olympia, the “Petite Fleur,” the most beautiful jazz recording in the history, is the sound of the Jazz Age Paris. The Paris of the 1920s was the capital of the jazz: the American musicians (the African-American soldiers who stayed in the France after the Great War, the Josephine Baker, the Sidney Bechet, the Louis Armstrong), the Montmartre (the Pigalle, the Place Blanche, the Moulin Rouge, and the clubs, the Le Boeuf sur le Toit, the Chez Florence, the Bal Nègre, the most important jazz clubs in the world), and the writers (the Hemingway, the Fitzgerald, the Gertrude Stein, the “Lost Generation,” the cafés, the brasseries, and the Paris that was the centre of the artistic universe). The Jazz Age Paris is the most romantic period in the history of the city, and the Jazz Age Paris is the still there, in the streets, the clubs, and the museums. Here is your guide.

How to Enjoy the 1920s Jazz Age Lifestyle in Paris

• The essential Jazz Age walk, the Montmartre: The Montmartre is the essential Paris neighbourhood for the Jazz Age: the 18th arrondissement, the hill, the Sacré-Cœur (the 1914, the construction, the white, the travertine stone that whitens with the rain, and the view of the Paris from the dome, the 300 steps, the €6, and the best view in the Paris). The essential walk: the start at the Blanche Métro, the Rue Lepic (the windmill, the Moulin de la Galette, the 1622, the Renoir, the “Bal du Moulin de la Galette,” the best painting of the Montmartre), the Place du Tertre (the touristy, the artists, the portraitists, and the sense of the Montmartre of the 1920s, the real, the commercial, and the essential for the 15 minutes), the Rue de l’Abreuvoir (the most beautiful street in the Paris, the pink house, the cobbles, the ivy, and the best photograph in the Montmartre), the Vigne de Montmartre (the Clos Montmartre, the vineyard, the 1,500 vines, the 1,000 bottles per year of the “Clos Montmartre” wine, the most expensive wine per the hectare in the world, and the annual harvest festival, the Fête des Vendanges, the October, the most charming Paris event), and the finish at the Lapin Agile (the 1860, the cabaret, the Picasso, the Utrillo, the Apollinaire, the most authentic Jazz Age venue in the Paris. The show, the chansons, the poetry, the music, the €28, and the essential Paris experience. The essential strategy: the evening show, the 9pm, and the “VIP” ticket, the €35, includes the first drink). More France →
• The essential Jazz Age cafés and the brasseries: The Café de Flore and the Les Deux Magots: the Saint-Germain-des-Prés, the Boulevard Saint-Germain, the twin cafés of the intellectual Paris, the Sartre, the de Beauvoir, the Camus, the Hemingway, and the café crème that is the €6.50 at the terrace. The essential strategy: the café crème at the terrace of the Flore (the €6.50 is the expensive, and the view of the Saint-Germain-des-Prés is the worth the every centime), the people-watching, and the sense of the Paris that was the centre of the 20th-century thought. Le Procope: the oldest café in the Paris (the 1686, the Rue de l’Ancienne Comédie, the Voltaire, the Rousseau, the Diderot, the Enlightenment, the Encyclopédie, and the most historic café in the world. The coffee: the €5, and the essential Paris experience). The jazz today: the Duc des Lombards (the Rue des Lombards, the best jazz club in the Paris today, the intimate, the 80 seats, the international artists, the €30–50. The essential strategy: the 7.30pm and the 9.30pm sets, the booking is the essential, and the Duc des Lombards is the essential Paris jazz experience for the 2026), the Sunset-Sunside (the 2 clubs in the 1, the ground floor (the electric) and the basement (the acoustic), and the best value jazz in the Paris. ~€25)