Paris Greeters – Come as a Visitor; Leave as a Friend

Have you ever traveled to a city where you had a friend who lived there? If so, didn’t seeing the city with a local enhance your experience many times over? That’s what you get with a walk from the non-profit organization Paris Greeters. Their volunteer “greeters” will walk you around their favorite neighborhood in a way you really can’t get on your own. Their motto is “Come as a Visitor; Leave as a Friend.”

I’ve done this twice now (and hope to do it again). Both times I found it a fascinating, friendly, and fulfilling way to see the City of Light. And it’s free. Let me tell you more about it and how you can do it too.

Let’s Take a Walk—and Why We Should

In Paris, I discovered the very best way to get a private, curated-for-you walk around a Parisian neighborhood is to do it with a volunteer from Paris Greeters.

But What Exactly IS Paris Greeters?

The non-profit association was founded in 2007 as part of the Global Greeter Network, an international initiative that began in New York City. The philosophy behind it is simple: to promote cultural exchange and foster a sense of community by offering free, personalized walking tours led by locals. These volunteers, known as “greeters,” are passionate Parisians who love their city and want to share its hidden gems and personal stories with visitors.

What sets the group’s work apart from traditional guided tours is the focus on genuine, informal interactions. There’s no set itinerary or script; each walk is tailored to your personal interests as a visitor and the unique knowledge and insights of the greeter. It’s like having a friend show you around their hometown.

What Does a Paris Greeter Do?

The answer to this question is straightforward and quite simple. They take you for a walk. There are some 400 volunteers who are passionate about the City of Light and love showing her off, in depth and with the kind of detail and inside info only the locals know.

Often these volunteer guides were born and raised in the arrondissement they’ll walk you around. Or their parents or grandparents were. They know what’s behind the doors and gates and which ones can be pushed open to uncover the secrets inside. More often still, by the end of your 2-4 hours together, they’ve become more than just a guide. They have become your Parisian friend.

What Can You Expect from Your Neighborhood Stroll?

One of the best things about Paris Greeters is the variety of walks available. Each greeter has their own favorite spots and areas of expertise, so no two walks are the same. The focus is on genuine, informal interactions. If your walk goes through Le Marais, your guide might point out centuries-old synagogues and lead you into hidden courtyards and art galleries you’d never find on your own. Or perhaps they’ll take you to their favorite vendor at the oldest covered market in Paris (standing since 1628), the Marche Couvert des Enfants Rouges, which the locals call “the village square.”

Maybe your walk will take you to the Canal Saint-Martin, to watch boats navigate the locks and locals relaxing by the water. Your guide might explain the rules of the lively game of boules going on at one of the sandbank.

Because every Greeter is unique, no two walks are ever identical. You get the personal insights and stories of your guide as well as seeing what’s in front of you.

But is it Really “Free?”

There are “free” walking tours offered in cities all over the world, but they’re not truly free. They’re “pay what you can.” The guides survive on tips from their visitors and are not hesitant to ask for them. And though you are, of course, free to skimp them, I do hope you won’t. It’s their job and they are usually pretty good at it.

But Paris Greeters is not like that. It’s actually free. The guides neither ask for nor accept tips, though you are welcome to invite them for a coffee if you wish at the end of your tour. You will be cordially invited, without pressure or follow-up, to make a donation to the non-profit organization, which you can do on their website. I was happy to contribute for both of my walks, to help support the program and allow it to continue offering these incredible experiences.

How Does the Paris Greeters Program Work?

Arranging a stroll with a volunteer is easy. Just visit the Paris Greeters website. Click on “Meet a Greeter,” and fill in the registration form. You’ll be asked for your basic info, your preferred language, and a phone number for while you are in Paris for What’s App or SMS messaging.

On the second registration page, you’ll fill in your preferred date and two possible alternate dates for your stroll (if that’s possible). Then there are boxes to tick off for your particular interests. The choices are:

• History (Big & Small)
• Architecture & Urbanism
• Gastronomy & Open Markets
• Antiques & Flea Markets
• Gardens & Green areas
• Youngsters
• Daily life

My Paris Greeters Reviews for Two Strolls

My first stroll was to a neighborhood entirely new to me, even though I had visited Paris several times by then. I knew—vaguely—that Montparnasse had been the hub for artists, writers, musicians, and intellectuals between the two World Wars. I was looking forward to walking in the footsteps of such “Montparnos” as Hemingway and Anaïs Nin, seeing the sites that inspired Picasso and Modigliani’s paintbrushes, or imaging the philosophical discussions between Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir and their bright friends.

The Montparnasse of Artistic Ferment

My guide was Jean-Paul, an older gentleman who was a retired history professor from the Sorbonne. His English was excellent and his knowledge awe-inspiring. His sense f humor and the twinkle in his eye were icing on the cake.

We started near the Montparnasse Tower, a 700-foot (213-meter) gray-brown modern aberration towering over the neighborhood like the opening monolith in 2001 Space Odyssey. This skyscraper—Paris’ least beloved building—is so ugly and detested that its birth caused new laws to be passed so it would never be copied anywhere within the original city.

We didn’t go to the top, though Jean-Claude assured me it had the best view in all of Paris—better even than the Eiffel tower—because…you didn’t have to look at the Montparnasse Tower from up there.

Next we wandered a short distance to the Gare Montparnasse, the train station for trips heading west and southwest from Paris. Not much to see here, I was thinking until he led me through a passage and suddenly we were in a beautiful public garden. On the roof of the train station.

The Jardin Atlantique is almost 8 ½ acres/3.4 hectares of lawns, trees, water features, flowers set above the station’s tracks and platforms. There’s a section of undulating grasses and one full of aquatic plants. Large pine trees are set in box planters. There’s even a meditation garden

Who knew? I never would have found this lovely spot on my own.

Seeing Where the “Montparnos” Lived and Worked

We climbed back down from the garden and headed into the streets. I followed wherever Jean-Claude led me, into café-lined boulevards and cobblestoned lanes. While we walked, he told stories about the history of the area, and especially about the artists, writers, and other “Montparnos” who lived, worked, and partied here.

An Artist Corner at 21, Avenue du Maine

Some Never Left Montparnasse

Our next destination was Montparnasse Cemetery. We saw only a small part of the roughly 47 acres, the second largest cemetery in Paris with more than 35,000 graves.

We saw the single grave of Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, forever united in death. Also, I liked seeing a grave decorated with a whimsical cat statue by sculptor Nikki de Saint-Phalle. Other luminaries buried here include Marguerite Duras, Charles Baudelaire, and Samuel Beckett.

Montparnasse in the ’20s: a Who’s Who of Talent and Art

The afternoon was wearing down as we strolled back to the streets while Jean-Claude regaled me with more stories of the lively life of the neighborhood in the early 20^th century. We headed to Blvd Raspail where it crosses Blvd Montparnasse, the site of the four famous (and infamous) cafes where this cauldron of talent, thought, and philosophy bubbled: La Couple, Le Select, Le Dome, and La Rotonde.

To give you some idea of the artistic ferment of the period, here’s just a partial list of some of the Montparnasse denizens, in addition to those I’ve already mentioned.

• Loie Fuller, the great modern dancer
• Andre Breton
• Max Jacob
• George Gershwin
• Diego Rivera
• F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Fernand Léger
• Tristan Tzara, founder of Dada
• Paul Gauguin
• Jean Cocteau
• Louis Aragon
• Marcel Duchamp
• Eugène Atget, the iconic Paris photographer
• Giorgio de Chirico
• Rainer Maria Rilke
• Guillaume Apollinaire
• Robert Capa
• Henri Cartier-Bresson
• Man Ray
• Vassily Kandinsky
• Vladimir Lenin
• Leon Trotsky 
• Josephine Baker, with Chiquita, her pet cheetah

The Elegance of the 7th Arrondissement

The next time I was in Paris, a year or two later, I registered for another Paris Greeters stroll. This time, the walk was in the 7^th Arrondissement, near the Eiffel Tower. My guide was Jacqueline. And since it was a Saturday, her husband Etienne joined us and brought Mick, their loveable, sloppy-friendly golden retriever. Jacqueline grew up in the neighborhood, and Etienne’s grandmother had lived here too. He pointed out her corner apartment with an Eiffel Tower view where he loved to play as a child.

This clearly affluent neighborhood is a treasure-trove of monuments, grand museums, wide tree-lined boulevards, fine restaurants, and fashionable boutiques. Upscale food shops are dotted everywhere.

Where Art Nouveau Abounds

Just around the corner is the small Square Rapp, where a tiny courtyard with a perspective-bending graphic on the back wall is enclosed by a Lavirotte-designed fence. My camera finger was busy. Then Jacqueline pushed open the gate. We walked into the courtyard, and she told me to turn around. I gasped as I saw the Eiffel Tower so perfectly framed by buildings and the wrought-iron curlicues of the fence. More snap snap.

As we continued walking, my guides pointed out the bullet holes in the wall of the grand École Militaire, reminders of the street battles of World War II.

And everywhere we walked, there was the Eiffel Tower, just over there, peeking through buildings, putting an exclamation point on a street’s perspective.

We ended our walk with a café crème at the café La Fountaine de Mars, a perfect end to a lovely afternoon.

Conclusion? A Paris Greeters Walk is Highly Recommended

Both of my experiences with Paris Greeters were highlights of my trips. They offered me a different perspective on a city I already loved. They introduced me to some lovely Parisians (including one dog) I left as friends.

Whether you’re a first-time visitor to the City of Light or have been a dozen times, I can guarantee you’ll see some aspect of the city you never knew or would have guessed. Seeing it through the eyes and cultural lens of a passionate local is an experience not to be missed.

More About the International Greeter Association

The International Greeter Association offers their free walks with locals in more than 150 destinations in 43 countries. In 2023, their 3900+ volunteer greeters carried out more than 16,500 walks with visitors to their home areas.

To find out if there are volunteer-led walks in your destination, go to the organization’s website. Scroll down the page till you see the list of countries where they offer Greets. Then click on the country of interest. Some have offers in many cities and towns, others only one or two. But the network is always growing.

You’ll also find information on the website about how to become a greeter yourself and how to set up a program in your own hometown. Spread the love!

---

Pin it for Later