Montmartre

What makes it special

The hill rises 130 metres over the Right Bank, and the village on top is a tangle of small squares, stepped lanes and low houses, nothing like the avenues below. Walking up from the boulevards, it feels like a separate village.

Painters made it famous. Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Renoir and Matisse are among the painters tied to the hill, and Picasso and Modigliani lived and worked in the Bateau-Lavoir.

That trade carries on at Place du Tertre, the square behind the basilica, where painters work at easels and will paint your portrait. Each one holds a licensed pitch, many of them a single square metre, and a new painter waits about a decade for a place.

At the summit stands the Sacré-Cœur, its white cupolas a mix of Roman and Byzantine styles. From the dome above it, the view on a clear day reaches 40 kilometres across the city.

Visiting

Steep stairs and cobbled lanes make up this walk, so allow two to three hours for the loop, longer if you climb the dome. From Place Saint-Pierre at the bottom, ride the funicular or take the stairs beside it up to the basilica.

Step inside the basilica, which is free to enter, then walk into the lanes behind it while they are quiet. Just after sunrise the shutters are still closed.

Come back up to Place du Tertre after 10am, when the painters set up their easels; they stay until about 7pm. Then walk down the hill to Abbesses for the metro home.

Tips

Sitting for a portrait on Place du Tertre is entirely your choice, so say no and walk on if you are not interested. If you do sit, bring cash, since the painters tend to take nothing else.

String sellers work the steps below the basilica, so keep your hands close to your body, say "Non, merci" and keep walking. Wear shoes with real support for the steep cobbles, and dress modestly if you plan to go inside the church.