KABK in Paris

Dates Tuesday 21.01 → Friday 25.01.2025

Hotel Generator Hostel 9-11 place du Colonel Fabien, Paris 10

Emergency Emergency number: 112 Closest police station (Commissariat de Police) 26 rue Louis Blanc, Paris 10 Closest hospital (Hôpital Saint-Louis) 1 avenue Claude Vellefaux, Paris 10

Maps Cheap Restaurants and Bars Bookstores Art galleries in Le Marais Art galleries in Paris 10 and Paris 20

Communication WhatsApp Group

Tutors Hannes Bernard, Quentin Creuzet, Virginie Gauthier, Chantal Hendriksen, Els Kuijpers, Marit van der Meulen

Paris can be quite pricey, but if you know where to look, eating and drinking here can be pretty budget-friendly. Check out these tips for keeping costs down while enjoying the city (here is a map with all the places mentioned below):

• Nowadays, you’re hard-pressed to find a bad boulangerie in Paris. Just pop into any boulangerie and grab a delicious pain au chocolat or croissant for around 1,50€. For lunch, go for the classic sandwich Parisien (butter, ham, sometimes cheese and cornichons) found in any boulangerie for less than 5€.

• The hostel is right by Belleville, which is like the second Chinatown in Paris (the main one is in the 13th). You can score some amazing and cheap Chinese and Vietnamese food there. For tasty Chinese noodles (~8€), hit up Lim Sept or Mian Guan. Craving dumplings? Check out Ravioli Nord-Est or Guo Xin for around 7€. For a Vietnamese banh-mi (~6€), don’t miss Panda Belleville, Saigon Sandwich, or Chez Yu.

• If you wander down the boulevard a bit, you’ll hit Ménilmontant, home to lots of North African folks. It’s a great spot to find inexpensive dishes from Maghreb. For a couscous or tagine (~10€), try Le Taïs or Darna. And if you have a sweet tooth, grab some North-African cookies like corne de gazelle or makhrout (~2€) at La Rose de Tunis or La Rose Sucrée.

• When it’s time for drinks in the evening, many bars in France have a Happy Hour, where you can get certain drinks at a discount. It usually starts around 5 or 6 PM and goes until 9 PM or later. During this time, a pint of beer (50cL) goes for about 4-5€. Some good, inexpensive spots to check out nearby are Villette Bar, Le 9b, Belleville Sauvage, and Le Relais de Belleville. If you find a bar is too pricey and the weather’s nice, grab some drinks from a supermarket and chill by the Canal Saint-Martin. It’s a popular thing to do among locals!

• Traditional French food tends to be on the expensive side, but you can hit up places called bouillons for tasty meals at better prices in a lively atmosphere. We will go to Bouillon République on Wednesday all together, but Bouillon Pigalle and Bouillon Chartier are also good options.

• Another wallet-friendly traditional option is to try galettes and crêpes. A Complète (egg, ham, cheese) usually goes for about 9€. Great creperies to check out are Rond or Krügen.

• Just a bit away from the hostel on the other side lies La Chapelle (not Porte de La Chapelle!), a South Indian neighborhood. It’s perfect for finding delicious and cheap vegetarian food (not always easy in France). Krishna Bhavan, Le Petit Veg, or Muniyandi Vilas are great spots where you can grab a meal for under 10€.

• In Paris, most restaurants wrap up dinner service by 10 PM, and sometimes they stay open until 11 PM. If you’re out and about later and need a snack, you can’t go wrong with a kebab. It’s the French take on the Berlin döner, but it comes with more meat and fewer veggies. You can snag one pretty much anywhere in the city for about 6€.

Paris might not be the top spot for designers compared to other cities, but it definitely has some awesome bookstores and art galleries to check out for inspiration during your stay.

Bookstores After8 Books, Artazart, Cahier Central, Ephemera, Librairie du Centre Pompidou, 0fr., Sans Titre, Volume, Yvon Lambert

Art galleries in Le Marais Galerie Allen, Almine Rech Gallery, Galerie Anne Barrault, Brigitte Mulholland, cadet capela, Ciaccia Levi, Galleria Continua, David Zwirner, Galerie Derouillon, DS Galerie, Galerie Hussenot, Lo Brutto Stahl, Marian Goodman Gallery, mor charpentier, New Galerie, Nil Gallery, Perrotin, Spiaggia Libera

Art galleries in Paris 10 and Paris 20 Exo Exo, Fisheye Gallery, Galerie Crèvecœur, Goswell Road, Marcelle Alix

If you’re thinking about exploring Paris on your own, here are some things to keep in mind:

• Paris is pretty safe overall, so you don’t need to stress too much, but some neighborhoods near the hostel, like Stalingrad and parts of Barbès and Goutte d’or, don’t have the best rep among locals. During the day and early evening, you’re usually fine, but it’s a good idea to stick with someone who knows the area if you’re out really late. This is especially important if you’re a woman or part of the LGBTQI+ community.

• Always keep an eye on your phone and wallet, especially on the metro or at train stations. Those places are notorious for pickpockets.

• People used to talk about the Rive Gauche (south of the Seine) and Rive Droite (north of the Seine) when dividing the city, but it’s not really the same anymore. Now, the real divide is between the wealthy West, where tourists flock, and the East, which is younger, more diverse, and artsy.

• Everyone complains about the transport system in Paris, but honestly, it’s pretty good compared to other big cities. There’s usually a metro station nearby, and you can get almost anywhere within 45 minutes, even from one end of the city to the other. So definitely use it!

• Paris is a super walkable city. It’s small, charming, and mostly flat, so just stroll around! If you want to get around faster, biking isn’t the best idea (Paris is really not like The Netherlands). There’s some bike infrastructure, but drivers and taxis can be really hostile towards cyclists, and pedestrians don’t always watch out for bikes, so accidents happen all the time. Seriously, just walk or take the metro or bus—biking isn’t worth the hassle.

• And about the whole English thing: sure, some French folks might not speak it very well, especially older people or those in the countryside, but in Paris, you’ll be fine asking for help in English at restaurants or bars.

• But most importantly, just have fun and enjoy your time in Paris!