Sacre-Coeur and Montmartre: Managing One of Paris’s Most Overrun Hills

The Sacre-Coeur basilica is controversial in ways most visitors don’t know: it was built as a penance for France’s humiliation in the 1870-71 Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune, the construction partly funded by right-wing Catholic donations explicitly intended to symbolise the repentance of socialist Paris. The hill it sits on was one of the last strongholds of the Commune. The building has political symbolism baked into its white travertine foundations, which lends the views from the dome a certain complexity.

None of this makes the building less worth visiting. The exterior is more impressive than the interior (which is dim, with heavily restored mosaics). The dome is worth the additional climb for views across Paris; on a clear day you can see 30-40 kilometres. Arrive before 9:30am or after 5pm to minimise queue times for the interior and dome.

The steps in front of the basilica are where pickpockets work systematically. Keep your bag in front of you. The vendors with string bracelets and the people approaching with clipboards are not collecting for any genuine charity.

Montmartre Beyond the Tourist Trail

Most visitors do Sacre-Coeur, take photographs on the steps, walk ten minutes to Place du Tertre (portrait artists, overpriced crepes, significant crowds), and leave. The actual neighbourhood is considerably more interesting.

Rue Lepic runs north-south through the residential part of the hill: a Tuesday and Friday morning market, normal cafes at normal prices, and the two remaining windmills. Moulin de la Galette is a restaurant now; Moulin Radet still looks like what it is.

Rue des Abbesses is where people who live in Montmartre eat and drink. The bistros along here are for the neighbourhood, not for the tourists.

Cimetière de Montmartre (open daily from 8am, free) has Degas, Truffaut, Nijinsky, Heine, and Zola. Worth 45 minutes.

Musée de Montmartre (12 Rue Cortot, around €15) is in the manor house where Renoir had his studio. The permanent collection covers the neighbourhood’s artistic history from the Belle Epoque; the garden has a good view of Sacre-Coeur without the crowds.

Eating

Avoid anything immediately around Place du Tertre. The markup is severe and the quality is below the Paris average.

For a cheap, excellent meal: take Metro Line 12 to Jules Joffrin and walk to Rue du Mont-Cenis. Several ordinary-looking restaurants serve neighbourhood food at €12-15 for a two-course lunch. This is how the 18th arrondissement actually eats.

Café des Deux Moulins (15 Rue Lepic), made famous by the film Amélie, is still there and still serving coffee. Budget a coffee rather than a meal.

Getting There

Metro Line 12 to Abbesses, or Line 2 to Anvers. A funicular (Metro ticket) runs from the base of the hill up to the basilica terrace. From the Marais, the walk takes about 30 minutes or 15 minutes by Metro.