Top activities to do on the 1st of May in Paris

Top activities to do on the 1st of May in Paris !

The 1^st of May, represents for France the Labour Day, it became since many years a bank holiday.

Here are some of the TOP activities you can enjoy :

Visit Cartier’s Foundation for contemporary art:

Built in the mid 90’s, the famous foundation is located on Boulevard Raspail in Paris. In this building, you can discover a lot of contemporary art exhibitions. There are hips of people to meet during the Nomadics Nights.

fondation Cartier

You can discover a lot of different creations on many supports such as photos, painting, videos, fashion, living show and a lot more.
Our advice? End up your visit in the amazing garden that represents a real artwork created by Lothar Baumgarten.

cartier-foundation

From the 19^th of April2017, you can discover an exposition called Autophoto. It shows the relation between photography and the automobile’s worlds. It mainly reveals why and how the automobile world became such a subject and a source of inspiration for different artists and how it has changed our lives and environment.

Go to a few Museums

The 1^st of May is a holiday that celebrates the work. Some sites are closed but a few of the Parisians Museums keep their doors open to public. During this special day, you should definitely visit different museums.

Meet your favourite celebrity at the Musée Grevin. You can see all the world’s famous stars’ wax statues and take your best pictures with them like if you were with them for real.

Or you can also go to the Chocolate Museum and discover the fabric of this mainly loved product; you will also have the chance to taste some of it, yummy!

Discover the different expositions available to see at the Dali’s space in the heart of the artist’s district Montmartre! You will be able to explore some of the biggest artworks of the famous artist Salvador Dali in different supports: sculptures, drawings, funny objects or even poetic furniture. So just follow the path and come into Salvador Dali’s world.

Top activities to do on the 1st of May in Paris

Discover fun activities for all ages

If you are with friends or family and don’t want to spend your day in a museum, there are still some very special sites to discover !

• Face to the Eiffel Tower, the Paris’ Aquarium (the Cinéaqua) offers a moment of happiness foreveryone. Get lost in its 3500m² and discover more than 10 000 varieties of fish, including scary sharks. Discover the animals through different organised animations. You can even have a rest at the restaurant and eat in front of the amazing 600 000 litres aquarium.

• Enjoy discovering the different animals at the Zoological Park of Paris located in the Bois de Vincennes. Over its 4 Ha path, you will travel through the Patagonia, the Sahel-Soudan, Europe, Guyana and even Madagascar. The picnic area and the 2 restaurants will welcome your friends and you whenever you feel like having a break and resting among nature! You will leave this amazing place with your head full of memories (and you can also buy a souvenir at the boutique.)

• Go and have the best time you never had before at the biggest funfair near Paris: La Foire du Trône! It Is one of the oldest funfair in France and one of the most famous with more than 350 attractions. You will be able to find anything you want to do in this 10 hectares’ area: have fun on the attractions, taste the different gourmandises (candy apple, candyfloss, crepes, churros…) On this special day that represent the 1^st of May, don’t miss the amazing firework that is organised only on this date!

foire du trone

Head towards big monuments that are open

Paris is also known for its famous monuments. On this special bank holiday, some of them are closed. Some others keep their doors open to the visitors. You will still be able to go up the Eiffel Tower but only until 10:00pm time when it shots down. Other big sites such as the Sacré-Coeur and Notre-Dame Cathedral are open all day long, so no worries, you can spend the day on visiting some of these world’s most famous places. Even, go up the Tour Montparnasse and have a drink or a meal at the restaurant located in the 56^th floor so you can admire the amazing view of all Paris through the glass windows.

tour eiffel

Closed sites:

Some of the monuments are closed so you must go and try to visit them because you won’t be able to.

Here is a list of the mainly Parisian monuments that are closed on this date:

1. Louvre Museum (on Monday the 1^st of May and on Tuesdays),
2. Grand Palais,
3. Musée d’Orsay,
4. Musée du Luxembourg,
5. Nationals Archives
6. Musée du Quai Branly,

Obviously, you can still do plenty of activities even on this special day! A lot of monuments and sites are staying open and some of them are even organising extraordinary events just for this day.

An article by Eden Portal.