How to join a walking tour through Paris for free

Whatever you might think of the storyline of Netflix’s Emily in Paris, no-one can deny that the location is the real star.

Elegant, stately and beautiful, while at the same time colourful, quirky and lived-in, Paris is quite simply gorgeous, and delivers the goods on every visit.

After doing the obligatory iconic sites, it’s fun and rewarding to explore the city’s other, less touristy side – and that is where the Paris Greeters organisation comes in.

The Greeters were established 50 years ago in New York as a group of volunteer guides keen to show off their city, for free, to visitors. It was such a success that the idea has spread, and the Paris branch is now one of the biggest members of the network.

The only requirement is that the guides are local, knowledgeable and, above all, enthusiastic – the last quality one that my host, Quan, possessed in abundance. I joined him in his suburb, the 13th arrondissement, on the Left Bank in the south of the inner city.

It is known for its multi-cultural character, and Quan himself embodied this, being both French and Vietnamese. He had lived his whole life here, and during the hours I spent in his company wandering the streets, we passed by all its main stages: his childhood home, schools, places of work, the church he’d been married in, his current apartment block.

Quan was very proud of this building, one of many modern tower blocks that feature in the district, the most distinctive being the futuristic and minimalist François-Mitterrand Library beside the Seine, its buildings book-shaped. Far more to my taste, though, was the Cité Florale district of pretty, pastel-coloured two-storey traditional homes lining narrow cobbled streets.

We wandered along, through a secret network of lanes named after flowers, past relaxed cats sprawled in the sunshine and locals fussing over their pocket gardens, behind walls draped in bougainvillea, wisteria, honeysuckle and roses. Tucked into this maze were peaceful little courtyards set about with colourful pot plants. It was peaceful and villagey, and felt very far from cliché big-city Paris.

The Butte aux Cailles district continued the theme, with an art deco flavour, as Quan led me on a twisting route dictated by his mission to “show you something special”. So we came across an artesian well, busy markets, elaborate fountains, little churches, a modern Chinatown, social housing, a chateau, an imposing prison and even an almshouse where a nun in a blue habit welcomed us inside.

We peered through the windows of a 16th century tapestry factory, seeing traditional techniques still in use. Most imposing under its huge dome was the Pitié-Salpêtrière – a gunpowder factory turned prison turned university hospital, where Princess Diana died.

Without Quan, I would have walked straight past the plaques honouring Resistance fighters, and not heard their stories. There was no missing the street art, though – bold and bright, both small and huge. Enthusiastically admiring one mural, Quan was as surprised and delighted as me when we were invited by an eavesdropping artist into his studio in a private little mews nearby. Pierre proudly showed us his collection, all sorts of paintings leaning against every surface.

Over more than six hours of walking, talking, looking and listening, plus tucking into a welcome bowl of pho at a Vietnamese restaurant, I learned many things about life in Paris. The main one was that exploring on foot was the best way to connect with the city. So, next day, I hit the streets again.

Located in the 12th arrondissement, the Promenade Plantée is almost five kilometres of former railway line now solely the preserve of pedestrians and cyclists. Partly below street level, partly above, it’s remarkably peaceful, the city’s busy traffic reduced to a hum, mere background to birdsong and the pinging of bikers’ bells.

The famous Viaduc des Arts section of highline, in places ten metres above street level, was the first elevated linear park anywhere, and is now much copied around the world.

Landscaped with water features, trees, wildflowers, benches, fountains and trellised archways, it gives satisfying views over the traffic below, into the first floors of apartments and of architectural details on buildings I would never have noticed from street level.

In the 45 arches beneath is a series of artists’ studios and shops, while further along the walkway crosses a park on a bouncy bridge. Well-used by both tourists and Parisians, it’s a peaceful retreat right in the city centre.

Even more peaceful, in several senses, is the Paris Pet Cemetery. It’s on the northern bank of the Seine, outside the Route Périphérique and easily accessed on the Metro underground line. A grand arched entranceway features a statue of Barry, a St Bernard mountain rescue dog who saved the lives of 40 people before his death in 1814.

Inside lie the graves of many other dogs, as well as those of cats, horses, fish, hamsters, mice, birds, tortoises and even monkeys and a lion, all linked by being loved and mourned by their grieving owners.

The older couple I saw there carefully tending a fresh gravesite were probably not going to invest in an ornate tombstone, but the cemetery certainly features many remarkable statues and obelisks, dating back to its establishment in 1899 as a dog cemetery.

That so many other species soon joined those more conventional pets is touching proof of how strongly people connect with animals, and how hard they find it to say goodbye. Wandering around the wide variety of memorials, I found heartfelt messages to departed companions, photos of them with their owners, favourite balls under protective domes, bunches of fresh flowers.

Some inscriptions were bright and new, others weathered and mossy but all of them, big and small, honoured much-loved creatures, conventional and not. Cocotte, “faithful and inseparable”, dying aged 16, was a chicken. Rin Tin Tin, canine star of many Hollywood movies and nominated for an Oscar, lies here too.

A walk around Paris is guaranteed to surprise.

Fact file:

Paris Greeters offers a range of walking tours, for no charge although a donation to the organisation is welcomed. See: greeters.paris

The Cimetière des Chiens (closed on Mondays) is located in the Asnières-sur-Seine district, and has an entry fee of €3.50.