A quieter part of the ancient Marais neighborhood which is centered in the 4th, the 3rd is possibly one of the best places to live in Paris. There are several good open air markets, a gigantic covered flea market, and lots of great speciality food stores, especially along rue de Bretagne.

the Picasso Museum

The museums of the 3rd are among the best anywhere, including the Musée Picasso which contains both the master's works and his collections, and the almost undefinable Conservatoire des Arts et Métiers which has on display the first prototypes of almost every important invention, including the first monoplane, numerous artifacts from the creation of the Statue of Liberty, and of course, Foucault's Pendulum.

Map of the 3rd Arrondissement

Get in

By Métro

• Arts et Metiers (3, 11) - most convenient for the Musée des Arts et Metiers (obviously), but also within easy walking distance of all the attractions of the 3rd
• Republique (3, 5, 8, 9, 11) - located on the northern edge of the 3rd arrondissement, but superbly well-connected and therefore highly convenient

See

An early monoplane at the Musée des Arts et Métiers

• Musée Picasso, 5 rue de Thorigny, Métro: Chemin Vert. +33 1 42 71 25 21. [1]. 9:30am to 6:00pm Wednesday to Monday and 9:30am to 8:00pm on Thursdays, except during winter when closing time is always 5:30pm. Most of the works by Picasso and others which were in the master's possession at the time of his death are now on display here.
• Musée national des Arts et Métiers [2], 60 rue Réaumur, Métro : Arts et Métiers, Réaumur-Sébastopol, Bus 20, 38, 39, 47, open Tu-Su 10 am - 6 pm, Th until 9.30 pm, closed Mo and public holidays -
• Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme [3], 71, rue du Temple. +33 1 53 01 86 60.
• Musée de la Serrure, 1, rue de la Perle, Métro: Chemin-Vert. +33 1 42 77 79 62.
• Musée Cognacq-Jay [4], 8 rue Elzévir, Métro: Saint-Paul. +33 1 40 27 07 21.
• Musée Carnavalet [5], 23 rue de Sévigné, tel 01 44 59 58 58, fax 01 44 59 58 11, Métro: Saint-Paul (ligne 1), Chemin vert (ligne 8), Bus 29, 69, 76, 96, open Tu-Su 10 am - 6 pm, closed Mo and some public holidays, last tickets 5.30 pm, tel 01 44 59 58 58, fax 01 44 59 58 10, free entry to the permanent collection - contained within two historic houses (hotels), the museum explores the history of Paris through objects in over 140 separate rooms
• Archives Nationales [6]

Do

Buy

Foucault's Pendulum swings amongst the early aircraft at the Musée des Arts et Métiers

• Au Réparateur de Bicyclettes, 44 Blvd de Sébastopol, Métro: Rambuteau. +33 1 48 04 51 19. Monday to Saturday 10am to 8pm. If you would rather have a funkier bike than the ones you can rent from the RATP you would do a lot worse than checking out this little bicycle repair shop which also offers a wide range of new and used bikes. Their speciality in new bikes is Dutch and English bicycles, but some of the really nice ones are by the American company Scott. The used bikes start at around 75 Euro.

Eat

• Au Relais Sarl Arso, 7 rue Cadet. 01 45 23 25 22. This is the local bar. Everyone else there knew the two ladies behind the bar by name. The downstairs is just a bar with a few tables, and they have a low ceilinged dining room upstairs. On weekdays they have a 12 Euro lunch menu with two courses and a small pitcher of wine. The food is very traditional, and very good. 12 to 20 Euros.
• Le Petit Marché, 9 rue de Béarn, Métro: Chemin Vert. +33 1 42 72 06 67. Open noon to 2:00am every day. This is one of those charming little parisien bistros which is off on its own a little. The waitstaff couldn't possibly be friendlier so this is a good place to bring people to show them how nice parisien dining can be. The food is in a higher class than the price range, and the folks who work here have an easy collegial or even familial way with each other, and with frequent guests.
• Chez Jenny, 39, boulevard du Temple. +33 1 44 54 39 00. A super popular spot with young parisiens and parisiennes. The food must be good for it to be so consistently packed.
• Chez Janou, 2, Rue Roger Verlhomme. +33 1 42 72 28 41. Chez Janou has such a pretty location that it's worth an evening visit just for that. But the food and atmosphere are also amazing. Vegetarians be warned, the tortellini is not the tonken veggi dish; there isn't one. 18 Euro/person.
• Anahi, 49, Rue Volta. +33 1 48 87 88 24 49.
• Chicha Café, 30 rue Debelleyme. +33 1 48 87 40 47.
• Amici Miei, 53, boulevard Beaumarchais. +33 1 42 71 82 62.
• Page 35, 4, rue du Parc Royal. +33 1 44 54 35 35. The name apparently refers to some section of some newspaper or another apparently with social listings. The carte features fantastic crêpe opportunities making this a must for lunch or lingering over a carafe or two of the house wine. 8 Euros
• Le Potager du Marais, 22 rue Rambuteau. +33 1 42 74 24 66. Menus for around 15 Euro.
• Les Philosophes, 10 Rue de Tresor. 01 48 87 49 64. [7] Traditional bistro, generally packed. Simple fare, well done. Euros 20-25.
• Un Piano sur le Trottoir, 7 rue des Francs Bourgeois. 01 42 77 91 91, Fax 01 48 87 36 23. The restaurant is at the end of a long passage. At the front is just a small room with an upright piano and a couple of post-Impressionist paintings. The decor is bizarre: stone and bright purple drywall; two nice chandeliers, and a discoball; a multicolored curtain with spotlights pointed at it. For lunch it is a traditional place with solid French cooking. Euros 25-35.

Drink

Marché du Temple

• Les Enfants Rouge, 9, rue de Beauce. +33 1 48 87 80 61. This one is makes for another tough call between the Eat and Drink sections. It's a completely traditional french bistro with a popular bar in the evenings.
• Andy Wahloo, 69 rue des Gravilliers. +33 1 42 71 20 38. Andy Wahloo apparently means "I don't have anything" in Arabic. The Moroccan artist who owns this place certainly means it as a play on words having done the decor as a Moorish take on Andy Warhol.
• Café des Musées, 49, Rue de Turenne. +33 1 42 72 96 17. A bog standard and absolutely unpretentious bistro the des Musées is a great place to cool your heels over a glass or two of red or white after stomping around the Marais all day.
• Les Arts et Métiers, 51 rue Turbigo. +33 1 48 87 83 25. An updated but otherwise standard Brasserie the draw here is the crowd: young trendy locals love the place.
• Café Solo, 6 rue Dupuis. Located on a newly carfree street the Solo has a huge music collection which they are in the process of selling off at 6 Euros per CD.
• The Quiet Man, 5, rue des Haudriettes. +33 1 48 04 02 77. This Irish pub has sessions and Irish music almost (but not quite) nightly. The atmosphere is tops for the genre.
• Léonard, 57 Rue De Turbigo. +33 1 48 04 07 55. If you like trendy décor this is your joint. Free WiFi
• L'Attirail, 9, rue du Maire. +33 1 42 72 44 42. It's a cool bar/club with concerts ranging from Jazz Manouche to contemporary swing.
• La Villa Kéops, 58, boulevard Sébastopol. +33 1 40 27 99 92. The motif is Egyptian, while the clientele appears to be almost entirely gay men. Go figure.

Sleep

Budget

• Hôtel de Bretagne, 87, rue des Archives, Métro: Temple. +33 1 48 87 83 17. The rooms are small and slightly shabby, but clean. Singles start at 36€ without a shower. Doubles with a shower are 56-70€.
• Hôtel du Marais, 2bis, rue Commines, Métro: Saint-Sébastien-Froissart. +33 1 48 87 09 01. A great value for the location. The rooms are tiny but clean and well maintained. 60€ Singles, 70-88€ doubles.

Mid-Range

• Austin's Arts et Metiers Hôtel, 6, rue Montgolfier, Métro: Arts-et-Métiers. +33 1 42 77 17 61. The rooms are small (as usual) and kept very clean. You are best off asking for something facing the front since the central courtyard is not very attractive. Particularly the 6th floor rooms are said to be quite nice. Singles for 92€, doubles 120€.
• Hôtel Saintonge [8], 15, rue de Saintonge, Métro: Filles-du-Calvaire. +33 1 42 77 91 13. Nicely located in a slightly quieter part of the 3rd a few blocks from the Marais this 3-star has spotless rooms, and recently renovated bathrooms. Singles for 105€, Doubles 115€.
• Hôtel du Vieux Saule [9], 6, rue Picardie, Métro: République. +33 1 40 27 88 21.

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