The Prettiest Street in Paris: Rue Crémieux

The prettiest street in Paris can be found just down the street from this beautiful city’s most gorgeous train station, and home to the incredible Le Train Bleu restaurant, Gare de Lyon. Situated in the Bastille neighbourhood of the 12th arrondissement – district – this short street is filled with an array of unique and whimsical houses. And if you ever have the chance to walk it, it will be one of the cutest strolls you ever take. Most of the townhomes lining Rue Crémieux were constructed in the last half of the 19th-century as a housing development for Parisian workers. Today’s inhabitants have brightened them up by painting them an array of sweet colours, turning the street into a candy-hued lane. It’s a notable contrast to the traditional grey-taupe, Paris-stone facades found throughout the city. And one that attracts many visitors.

This once, blue-collared community is much more affluent today. And a number of years ago, its more recent residents helped enhance its charm by petitioning the city to turn Rue Crémieux into a pedestrian street and preserve the cobblestone paving. Once they succeeded in achieving this, homeowners quickly turned the rue – street – into a garden, lining the sidewalk in front of their townhomes with an abundance of potted plants. And some took the beautification to the next level, creating gardens on their houses with the use of trompe l’œil – optical illusion. I especially love the wonderful vine of wisteria climbing up and over the doorway of number 21. If you look closely, you can also find a painted cat jumping from one window to the next on a second-storey floor as it chases some birds. And then there is the stylized peak into domestic life on display at the corner of Rue de Bercy. But don’t stop there! See if you can find the illusion of another window along the street. Some residents have further personalized their homes with interesting fixtures such as doorknockers and locks. One even has a sign in the image of the iconic Le Chat Noir – The Black Cat – hanging above their door – an hommage to the 19th-century cabaret in bohemian Montmartre. The flowers lining the street warrant a closer look as well as they add their own pop of colour, beautifully complimenting the homes they decorate. If you do decide to visit the prettiest street in Paris, please remember that its colourful houses are homes of everyday Parisians. So treat the area and its people with courtesy and respect, as you would wish if tourists were exploring your street.

Discover another unexpected garden in the heart of Paris in my post Hôtel Dieu: A Secret Parisian Garden.

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