Paris/12th arrondissement

By Métro

The newest Métro, line 14, serves Gare de Lyon and Gare de Bercy.
Line 1 crosses the arrondissement east-west serving Bastille, Gare de Lyon, Reuilly-Diderot, Nation, and Porte de Vincennes.
Line 8 crosses the arrondissement east-west serving Bastille, Ledru-Rollin, Faidherbe-Chaligny, Reuilly-Diderot, Montgallet, Daumesnil, Michel Bizot, Porte Dorée, and Porte de Charenton.
Line 6 arrives from the left bank, serving Bercy, Dugommier, Daumesnil, Bel-Air, and Picpus.
The RER-A passes east-west through the 12th serving Gare de Lyon and Nation.

Landmarks

• Jardin Yitzhak RabinNestled in the centre of the Parc Bercy (below) is a lovely, and truly peaceful, garden with several waterworks and other high-quality landscape-art pieces. If you are one of the many people visiting the 12th on business it would be well worth an hour of your time between meetings and dinner to explore the mound, the fountain, and the bridges, and to watch children play in complete peace, much like the peace to which the garden's namesake dedicated his life.

• Bercy VillageFor a taste of the French countryside, a visit to Bercy Village brings to life the spirit of market shopping inside Paris.

• AccorHotels ArenaAn indoor sports arena that seats around 17,000 for sports and slightly over 20,000 for major concerts; formerly known as Palais des Omnisports de Paris-Bercy and Bercy Arena. Home to numerous concerts and major sporting events, most notably the Paris Masters tournament on the ATP World Tour in men's tennis.

• Opéra Bastille

  address: Place de la Bastille
  One of the truly great venues for the performing arts anywhere in the world, Paris' new opera house actually managed to inspire some neighborhood protest during its planning and construction. Pretty much everybody is a believer nowadays though. Check out the website for upcoming shows, it might even make sense to plan a trip to Paris around one.

• Promenade PlantéeIf you were a city planner in one of the great cities of our Earth and you discovered that a railroad right-of-way had been abandoned and would never be used again what might you do? Perhaps if you knew your stuff you'd convert it into a 4 mile long park, about half of which is elevated above street level on the old rail viaduct. This long narrow park pretty much allows the visitor to walk in carfree bliss from Place de Bastille to the Bois de Vincennes.

• Parc de BercyBetween the River Seine and the rail yards attached to Gare de Lyon and Gare de Bercy is a green space which would seem pretty huge if the 12th weren't also the home of the Bois de Vincennes. The park is a good place to hang out waiting for the line to form for sporting events and concerts at AccorHotels Arena.

• Bois de VincennesThere are many beautiful footpaths, a Buddhist Temple, and a lake with rowboats available for rental (about €10 as of Feb 2009). The lake has many different kinds of birds, and islands accessible by footbridge.

• Picpus Cemetery

  phone: +33 1 43 44 18 54
  address: 35 Rue de Picpus
  A must for anyone interested in the history of the American Revolution. This small cemetery includes three mass graves from the French Revolution plus a section that includes many of France's most noble families that lost members during the French Revolution and consequently have a continuing right to be buried there. In the farthest right hand corner is the tomb of General Lafayette the friend and fellow soldier of George Washington. Beside him is his beloved wife plus other members of her family, the de Noailles who were almost completely wiped out,during the French Revolution, because of their closeness to the Court. Since 1834 the American flag has apparently flown continuously over his grave, even, I was informed by the local expert, during the German occupation pf Paris during World War 2. A fascinating place well worthy of a visit.

• Bercy Expo

Museums and Galleries

• Palais de la Porte Dorée

  address: 293 avenue Daumesnil
  Housed in an amazing Art Deco building, purpose-built for the 1931 Colonial Exhibition, featuring an elaborate frieze across the front facade that depicts the achievement of French overseas territories. It houses an Aquarium and an Immigration Museum. The Aquarium can be seen in about an hour and is popular with families with small children.

There are any number of shops catering to the needs of travellers in and around Gare de Lyon, where you can easily replace a piece of broken luggage or even buy a suit if you suddenly find yourself with a business appointment.
The archways of the former railroad right-of-way which now support the promenade plantée are home to trendy restaurants, designer's studios, and art galleries. Taken as a whole it's known as the Viaduc des Arts', and is well worth a stroll for those interested in art and design.
Another shopping highlight of the 12th is the amazing number of electronics and computer shops, mostly clustered around rue Charenton near the Jardin de Reuilly, as one would expect the intense competition keeps prices low (for Europe).

• New PC Charenton

  phone: +33 1 43 07 02 30
  address: 171 rue de Charenton
  This is just one example out of the many computer shops in the immediate area, included here to help you find them all. Check the prices here, next door, and across the street. When you find the lowest bidder plunge forward and add them here please!

• Marché d'AligreThe cheapest open air market in Paris, on Rue d'Aligre. There's produce, carpets, clothes, antiques. Covered market, Marche Beauvau, is adjacent. North African influence, many food shops surround it.

• A Carnaval & Fetes

  phone: +33 1 43 47 06 08
  address: 22 Av Ladru Rollin
• During the spring time there is a carnival called the Foire du trône held in the Bois de Vincennes

• l'Ébauchoir

  phone: +33 1 43 42 49 31
  address: 43-45 rue de Citeaux
  A typical restaurant of the bo-bo (bourgeois - bohème) population of this district. Good traditional cooking with mid-range prices.

• Refuge

  address: 54 Avenue Daumesnil
  This charming storefront bistro offers an adventurous take on traditional French cooking, and with a couple of good selections for vegetarians, including a €12 vegetarian menu. The indoor vineyard decor appeals for its artsy clutter; the only indications that the owner and chef is a former rugby star being the newspaper clipping on the wall and the almost hidden world championship medal behind the bar.

• Le Train bleuLocated in the 1st floor of Gare de Lyon with colonial charm. Serves haute cuisine in amazing surroundings. Reservations strongly recommended

• Le Picotin

  phone: +33 1 46 28 99 00
  address: 35 rue Sibuet
  An excellent find in a quiet back street. Good value food, with a selection wide enough to offer a good choice whilst allowing the chef to concentrate on perfecting a small number of dishes. Warm, friendly welcome and faultless service.

• Café L'Arrosoir

  address: 75, Avenue Daumesnil

• Les Furieux

  address: rue de la roquette
  An alternative bar at the end of the Rue de la Roquette, punk, rock, metal, goth.

The Bastille area is quite well known for its many bars and clubs. Among them the Barrio Latino, a large latin music nightclub on the Rue du Faubourg Saint Antoine.

• Hotel de France

**Located very close to Gare de Lyon and a short walk from Bastille, it is a decent budget hotel with single, double, triple and quadruple rooms. Convenient to visit Disneyland as well as to the sights of Paris.

Budget

• Hostel Blue Planet

  phone: +33 1 43 42 06 18
  address: 5 rue Hector Malot
  This hostel, within a block of the Gare de Lyon station, has bunk beds in shared rooms sleeping 4-6 people. Some rooms have showers and toilets. A basic breakfast of pastries and hot drinks is included in the price.

• Hôtel Prince Albert

  phone: +33 1 43 43 54 92
  address: 38 boulevard Diderot

• Hôtel de l'Aveyron

  phone: +33 1 43 07 86 86
  address: 5 rue d'Austerlitz

• Hôtel Royal Bel Air

  phone: +33 1 43 45 26 00
  address: 10 Avenue du Bel-Air

• Corail Hotel

  phone: +33 1 43 43 23 54
  address: 23 rue de Lyon

• Hotel Le Quartier Bercy - Square

  phone: +33 1 44 87 09 09
  address: 33, boulevard de Reuilly
  Hotel Le Quartier Bercy Square, located in the 12th arrondissement, is right between Metro stations Dugommier and Daumesnil (Lines 6 and 8). It has easy access to Palais Omnisports at Bercy, Cours St. Emillon with its lively area of shops, restaurants, and bars, and train stations Gare de Bercy and Gare de Lyon. And with Line 14 at Bercy station just down the road, the rest of Paris is only minutes from you.

• AIJ Paris

  phone: +33 1 47 00 62 00
  address: 10, rue trousseau
  Some sites (including their own) says they are a youth-only hostel, but there do not enforce any age restrictions. Wifi and a small non-buffet continental breakfast is included. Each room has a sink, but the top sheet for each bunk is not included and will cost extra if you don't just want the blanket. No alcohol is allowed in the hostel. The hostel is 24hrs but the rooms close between 11AM-3PM for cleaning.

Mid-range

• Grand Hôtel Doré

  phone: +33 1 43 43 66 89
  address: 201 avenue Daumesnil
  Having opened its doors at the beginning of the 20th century The Grand Hotel Doré has been owned and operated by the same family ever since, giving the place plenty of character and quite a bit of charm. Guests tend to be a pretty even mix of business and pleasure travellers.

• Ibis Gare De Lyon Diderot

  phone: +33 1 43 46 12 72
  address: 31 Bis Boulevard Diderot
  This particular branch of the Ibis chain is a bit more comfortable than most, especially worthwhile if you have just arrived at Gare de Lyon. The website has current price information, and links to their 650 sister hotels across Europe. Breakfast (€10, until 10AM) is the pretty ordinary buffet fare.

• Hotel Palym

  phone: +33 1 43 43 24 48
  address: 4, rue Emile Gilbert
  This nice little hotel is around the right price and probably has the closest possible access to the Air France airport buses.

• Hôtel de la Porte Dorée

  phone: +33 1 43 07 56 97
  address: 273, avenue Daumensnil

Splurge

• Mercure Paris Gare de Lyon

  phone: +33 1 43 44 84 84
  address: 2, place Louis Armand

• Pullman Paris Bercy

  phone: +33 1 44 67 34 00
  address: 1, avenue Terroirs de France
  The former Sofitel was demoted to Pullman, but has since been afforded a thorough renovation (finished in autumn of 2013) to bring it up to current Pullman brand standards along with other Pullman hotels in Paris. Friendly and helpful staff.

Internet Cafés

• Les Meilleur des Mondes

  phone: +33 1 43 46 01 64
  address: 4 bis rue Michel Chasles
  Internet access and office applications.