Montmartre Guide: Sacré-Cœur and the Artists’ Quarter

Montmartre is the highest hill in Paris, and for a long time it wasn't really part of the city at all. It had windmills, vineyards and cheap rent, which is why painters like Renoir, Van Gogh and Picasso lived and worked here. Much of that village feel survives once you step away from the busiest square.

You'll want to do it on foot. Here's the loop we'd follow.

A walking route

Start at Abbesses metro station, one of the deepest in the city, with an original Art Nouveau entrance. Nearby, in the small Square Jehan-Rictus, is the "I love you" wall, where the phrase is written in hundreds of languages on dark blue tiles.

From there, climb up through the side streets to Sacré-Cœur. If the stairs look like too much, the funicular from the bottom of the hill takes a standard metro ticket. The basilica is free to enter, and the view from the steps outside is one of the best in Paris, especially in the evening.

Behind the basilica is Place du Tertre, the square full of painters' easels. It's very touristy and the portrait prices reflect that. Walk through, don't linger. Then keep going downhill on Rue des Saules to the Clos Montmartre, a small working vineyard that holds a harvest festival every October. Just below it is Au Lapin Agile, a cabaret that has been running since the 19th century.

Finish by drifting down Rue Lepic, where Van Gogh lived at number 54, past the Café des Deux Moulins from the film Amélie, and down to the Moulin Rouge on Boulevard de Clichy. Most people just photograph it from the outside.

Timing

Weekday mornings are quietest. Weekend afternoons around Sacré-Cœur get very crowded. Sunset from the steps is lovely, but you won't be alone.

Watch out for

Around the foot of Sacré-Cœur, men sometimes try to tie a "friendship bracelet" on your wrist and then ask for money, and others ask you to sign a petition. A firm "non merci" and walking on is the normal response.

The streets are steep and cobbled, with long flights of stairs between them. Not a place for new shoes.