France shuts down in August

I had been forewarned by Jorja K. that August in France is an entirely different beast. Thus, I should not have been surprised by the amount of businesses closed for the holidays during “cette mois”. In all actuality, our recent trip to Paris and central France was not really impacted as there was far more to see and do than we could ever realistically accomplish in 5 days.

By way of background and for those of you around the globe not familiar with the generous vacation laws in EU countries, most EU citizens have at least 6 weeks of annual leave, if not more. With that said, France literally shuts down in August; many hotels, shops, art galleries, restaurants, etc. take a 4 week extended vacation, usually from the end of July to the 25th to 31st of August.

This still surprises me. Point: If the summer time is THE tourist season, it stands to reason that these businesses would want to be open in order to capitalize on the tourist crush. Guess that is the blatant capitalist coming out in me. Counterpoint: Maybe that is why I saw so many tourists…hmmm….

Fortunately, Paris is chocked full of sightseeing opportunities, and none of the major sights are usually affected. Having been to Paris before, and experienced the traditional tourist must-sees (i.e. Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Tuilleries, Place de Concorde, Champs Elysee, Place Vendome, etc.), I was hoping to hunker down in one or two Parisian neighborhoods and experience the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of such places as Montmarte and St. Germain des Pres. Quick translation: crawl around in the antique shops, art galleries, one-of-a-kind clothing and book stores that are located on virtually every street and putz to my heart’s content. More times than not, though, a pleasant sign (in French) greeted us at the front door of many shops and eateries politely informing us of the business’ August closure. Even the touristy book and print sellers along the Seine were apparently on hiatus.

Example: One the restaurant recommendations we decided to act upon, Le Grand Colbert, was planning on closing the very next day for about a month. As we began to order, the waiter politely informed us that about half of the menu items were not available that evening in anticipation of being closed for the next 30 days. Hmmm…no chicken, salmon, steak, no veal….

Lest you get the impression that we did not have a fabulous time in Paris, let me be sure to set the record straight! It was a wonderful five days spent visiting with family, as well as exploring parts of France I had never seen before. Yes, multiple shopping bags were in evidence, lovely meals were had (Le Petit Cour – thanks, Mike and Matt), and even a few antique shops separated me from some of my Euros.

Just remember, though: forewarned is forearmed. Paris in August marches to the beat of slightly slower drummer.