At a Glance
Compared to this destination's peak season
Paris in November
By Harry Nara · Last updated
Paris in November offers some of the best conditions of the year, ideal for wine lovers & introverts. Expect temperatures of 6–11°C, around 10 days of rain, and low crowds across the city. Daily budgets typically land around €70–130 for mid-range travellers. Rooms are easy to find last-minute and hotel prices stay noticeably softer through the season.
Contents14 sections
#Weather in Paris in November
Paris in November averages 6–11°C (43–52°F) with around 10 days of rain, and crowds are low.
| Measure | November in Paris |
|---|---|
| Daytime high | About 11°C / 52°F |
| Overnight low | About 6°C / 43°F |
| Wet days | About 10, mostly light and drawn out |
| Sunset | 5:31pm on 1 November, 4:57pm by the 30th |
| Clocks | On winter time since Sunday 25 October |
| Crowds | Low, rising again from mid-month as Christmas opens |
Figures are Météo-France (Paris-Montsouris) 1991–2020 normals.
What that actually means for your trip:
- Paris in November is cold, not freezing. Frost is uncommon in the city itself, but 6°C with a damp wind off the Seine cuts through a light jacket. Bring a proper coat and you will walk all day in comfort.
- The rain is the persistent kind. Parisian November drizzle rarely stops you going out, but it rarely stops completely either. A good umbrella and waterproof shoes do more for the trip than any itinerary.
- You get about nine hours of daylight. Museums are the natural rhythm of the month: galleries by day, bistros from dusk.
- The month has two halves. Before about the 12th it is the quietest Paris of the year. After it, the Christmas lights, markets and department-store windows arrive and the city fills again.
How is Paris in November? Grey, intimate and at its most Parisian, if what you want from Paris is museums, food and wine rather than picnics by the Seine. Hotel rates are close to their annual low before the Christmas season lifts them. If your picture of Paris is café terraces in sunshine, come in May or September; if it is a long lunch in a warm bistro while the rain runs down the window, November is the month.
#What to Do in Paris in November
Paris Photo at the Grand Palais (12–15 November)
Paris Photo, the world's largest fair for photography, fills the restored Grand Palais for four days. Galleries from around the world bring prints for sale from the medium's early days to the present, and the building itself, with its glass nave, is reason enough to buy a ticket. Weekday mornings are calmer than the weekend.
Beaujolais Nouveau (Thursday 19 November)
The new Beaujolais is released on the third Thursday of November, which in 2026 is the 19th. Wine bars and bistros put up their "Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé" signs from the Wednesday night, and the evening of the release is a citywide excuse for a glass and a plate of charcuterie. The wine is young and light, and nobody pretends otherwise; drinking it is the tradition, not tasting it.
Armistice Day (Wednesday 11 November)
At 11am the President lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe, a ceremony held every year since 1920. It is short, formal and open to the public from behind the barriers; arrive by 10am for a view. The day is a public holiday, so expect many shops to close and parts of the Champs-Élysées to close to traffic in the morning.
Christmas arrives in mid-November
The season opens from around 12 November.
The Champs-Élysées illuminations switch on around the middle of the month, closing the avenue to cars for the evening, and stay lit into January.
The main market is La Magie de Noël in the Tuileries, with chalets, a big wheel and an ice rink.
The Galeries Lafayette and Printemps unveil their windows and the tree under the Lafayette dome. Everything is free to look at; everything inside the market costs money.
The Salon du Chocolat, at the very start
The Salon du Chocolat runs from Wednesday 28 October to Sunday 1 November 2026 at Paris Expo, Porte de Versailles, so only its final day falls in November. If you arrive on the 1st, go early; it is the busiest day of the fair.
Solo Travellers
Spend a wet morning at the Musée d'Orsay, where the flat grey November light from the great glass roof suits the Impressionists better than summer sun.
The Musée de l'Orangerie has Monet's eight Water Lilies panels in two oval rooms built for silence, and in early November you may have them to yourself. The Orsay is free on the first Sunday of the month, which in 2026 is 1 November.
Couples
Book an evening at the Opéra Garnier or the Philharmonie, both deep in their season. Then take the long way home along the quays; the bridges lit on a wet night are the Paris of film posters.
A Sunday morning at the Marché d'Aligre, the covered market and the stalls around it, ends well at a café on the square.
Families
The Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle in the Jardin des Plantes, with its Grande Galerie de l’Évolution, is the best wet-day museum in Paris for children.
The Cité des Sciences at La Villette is enormous and entirely indoors. From mid-November the Tuileries Christmas fair adds rides and the big wheel.
Groups
Take over a table for a Beaujolais Nouveau evening on the 19th; the bars of the 11th arrondissement, around Oberkampf and rue de Charonne, do it with the least ceremony. For a daytime group outing, a food and wine walk through Montmartre or the Marais suits the weather, with a stop every twenty minutes somewhere warm.
#Getting Around
Charles de Gaulle connects to central Paris on the RER B (about 35–45 minutes to Gare du Nord) or with the flat-rate Paris Région – Aéroport ticket, €14 since 1 January 2026, valid on any mode.
Orly uses the Orlyval and RER B, or Line 14 of the Métro, which now runs straight to the airport.
In the city, a single Métro ticket costs €2.55 and a Navigo Week pass €32.40 (Monday to Sunday, loaded on a Navigo card). Paper ticket books have gone; load single tickets on a Navigo Easy card or a phone.
November is a good month for the Métro and a bad one for the bus network, which crawls in wet rush-hour traffic. The Vélib' bikes work on dry days, but the cobbled streets are slick in the rain.
#Budget & Costs
| Travel style | Per day | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Budget | €60–75 | Hostel or budget hotel, boulangerie breakfast, a bistro lunch menu |
| Mid-range | €130–200 | A warm 3-star hotel, lunch and dinner out, one or two museums |
| Luxury | €350+ | Palace hotels and fine dining, before the Christmas premium |
November is low season until the Christmas lights go on. Hotel rates in the first half of the month are among the lowest of the year; after mid-month they start to climb towards December.
Costs worth knowing:
| What | Price |
|---|---|
| Métro single ticket | €2.55 |
| Navigo Week pass | €32.40 |
| Airport ticket, any mode | €14 |
| Louvre, EU/EEA visitors | €22 |
| Louvre, everyone else | €32 |
- The Louvre raised its price for non-EEA visitors to €32 on 14 January 2026; EU, Norwegian, Icelandic and Liechtenstein visitors pay €22.
- The Musée d'Orsay is free on the first Sunday of the month, 1 November in 2026; expect a queue.
- Vin chaud at the Christmas markets is a few euros a cup; the market is free to walk through.
#Food & Dining
November is Paris at the table.
Oysters are in their best months, and the big brasseries set out their shellfish stands on the pavement.
Game is on the menus of traditional bistros: venison, wild boar and, in the old-fashioned places, lièvre à la royale.
Chestnuts roast on street carts outside the Métro exits.
And the first black truffles arrive towards the end of the month.
- Brasseries for a seafood platter: La Coupole and Le Dôme in Montparnasse, or Brasserie Lipp in Saint-Germain, for the full plateau de fruits de mer.
- Bistros for game: the classic neighbourhood bistros of the 6th and 7th post a chalkboard of the season's game; order what is written in chalk rather than what is printed.
- Chocolatiers: Patrick Roger, Jacques Genin and La Maison du Chocolat launch their winter collections this month.
#Nightlife
The concert and opera season is in full swing.
The Philharmonie de Paris at La Villette, the Opéra Bastille and the jazz clubs of rue des Lombards (the Duc des Lombards, the Sunset-Sunside) all run full programmes. Book opera four to six weeks ahead.
The natural-wine bars are the pleasure of the month: small rooms, candles and a list that changes weekly. The 11th arrondissement has the densest cluster, and November is the season they were made for.
#Shopping
The first half of November is the quiet window before Christmas shopping begins in earnest; the department stores are calm and the winter collections are fully in.
From mid-month the Galeries Lafayette and Printemps windows go up, drawing crowds to boulevard Haussmann in the late afternoon. Black Friday (27 November in 2026) is now part of the French calendar and the chains discount that week.
For something that lasts longer than a purchase, the covered Passage des Panoramas and Galerie Vivienne are Paris's 19th-century arcades, dry on the wettest day and full of small specialist shops.
#Culture & Etiquette
- Say bonjour first. Walking into a shop, a bakery or a café without "Bonjour" is the one thing Parisians notice every time.
- Armistice Day is solemn. On 11 November the ceremonies at the Arc de Triomphe are a remembrance, not an attraction; stay quiet behind the barriers.
- Beaujolais Nouveau is a joke everyone is in on. Asked what you think of it, a shrug and "c'est du Beaujolais Nouveau" is the correct answer.
- Service is included. Restaurant prices include service; rounding up or leaving a euro or two for good service is enough.
#Essential Local Phrases
| English | French | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Hello / Good day | Bonjour | Bon-ZHOOR |
| Good evening | Bonsoir | Bon-SWAHR |
| A glass of red wine | Un verre de vin rouge | Uh vehr duh van roozh |
| The new Beaujolais has arrived! | Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé ! | Luh Boh-zhoh-lay Noo-voh ay ah-ree-vay |
| A dozen oysters, please | Une douzaine d'huîtres, s'il vous plaît | Oon doo-zen dwee-truh, seel voo play |
| A hot mulled wine | Un vin chaud | Uh van shoh |
| It's cold but beautiful | Il fait froid mais c'est beau | Eel fay frwah may say boh |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît | Lah-dee-syon, seel voo play |
#Packing List
- A warm, water-resistant winter coat
- A fleece or sweater for layering under it
- Waterproof shoes or boots; the drizzle lasts all day
- A compact umbrella that survives wind
- A scarf and gloves for the evenings
- One smarter outfit for the opera or a good restaurant
- A tote for market shopping
- A phone with the RATP or Bonjour RATP app for tickets and disruptions
#Backup Plans
If the rain settles in for the day: do the covered passages from Galerie Vivienne to the Passage des Panoramas and the Passage Jouffroy, then the Musée Grévin at its end. You can walk a good part of the right bank without going outside.
If Beaujolais night is too crowded: any wine bar serves the new vintage from the Thursday, and a quiet cave in the 11th is more pleasant than the packed brasseries of Saint-Germain.
If the grey gets you down: take the train to Versailles on a weekday. The palace is quiet in November and the gardens, bare and formal in the mist, are the version the crowds never see.
#Safety & Health
Paris is safe, and November's smaller crowds make it one of the calmer months for pickpocketing, though the Métro, the Louvre and Sacré-Cœur still need attention. Wet cobbles and stone steps are slippery. The short days mean more walking after dark; the main boulevards are well lit, so keep to them late at night.
Strikes can affect the Métro and RER at short notice in any month; check the RATP app on the day. Tap water is safe everywhere. Pharmacies, marked by a green cross, can advise on colds and flu.
Emergency: 112; 15 for medical emergencies (SAMU), 17 for police.
#What's New for November 2026
- Paris Photo returns to the Grand Palais on 12–15 November
- Beaujolais Nouveau is released on Thursday 19 November
- Armistice Day falls on a Wednesday, 11 November
- The Christmas season opens from about 12 November; there is still no Champs-Élysées market, only the lights
- Louvre: €32 for non-EEA visitors since 14 January 2026
- Paris transport: €2.55 single ticket, €14 airport ticket and €32.40 Navigo Week since 1 January 2026
#About This Guide
By Harry Nara (founder of WhenToWander), updated September 2026 for November 2026. Climate data: Météo-France Paris-Montsouris 1991–2020 normals. Dates and prices verified against:
- Paris Photo for the 2026 dates and venue
- Salon du Chocolat for the 2026 dates
- Paris je t'aime for the Christmas season
- RATP for 2026 fares
- Louvre for admission prices
For the month before, with the autumn colour and the last warm days, see Paris in October. For the full Christmas season, the markets and New Year's Eve, see Paris in December and the Christmas in Paris guide.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Beaujolais Nouveau Day?
On the third Thursday of November, France celebrates the release of the year's first Beaujolais wine. Bistros and wine bars across Paris hold tastings and stay open late. It's a fun, very local night — the wine is cheap, easy-drinking, and best shared.
Is November a good month to visit Paris?
If you like quiet museums, bistros and low hotel prices, yes. The weather is the cost: grey skies, 6–11°C, about 10 wet days and dark before 5pm. The lack of crowds makes the city feel intimate in a way it never is in summer.
When do Christmas lights and markets begin in Paris?
The season opens from around 12 November, when La Magie de Noël opens in the Tuileries. The Champs-Élysées illuminations are switched on around the middle of the month and stay lit into January. There is no longer a Christmas market on the Champs-Élysées itself; the markets are in the Tuileries, at La Défense and in Saint-Germain.
What should I pack for Paris in November?
A warm waterproof coat, a scarf, gloves, waterproof shoes with grip, and layers underneath. It rains on about 10 days of the month, usually as drizzle rather than downpours, and wet cobbles are slippery in leather soles.
What’s the weather like in Paris in November?
Paris in November typically sees temperatures of 6–11°C with around 10 days of rain across the period. Pack warm layers, a waterproof coat, and sturdy shoes — days stay chilly.
How much does it cost to visit Paris in November?
Budget-conscious travellers can expect daily costs of €70–130, covering accommodation, food, and local transport. Quieter periods usually push prices toward the lower end of this range.