Page 334 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Paris

332  TR A VELLERS ’ NEEDS
ENTERTAINMENT IN PARIS

Whether you prefer classical drama or cabaret, “oh-la-la!” experience, showgirls await you at
showgirls or ballet, opera or jazz, cinema or celebrated cabarets while bright young things
dancing the night away, Paris has it all. Free pose in nightclubs. For fans of spectator sports,
entertainment is aplenty as well, from the there is tennis, the Tour de France, horse racing,
street performers outside the Pompidou football or rugby. Recreation centres and gyms
Centre to musicians busking in the Metro. cater to the more active, while the municipal
Parisians themselves enjoy strolling along the swimming pools delight waterbabies. You
boulevards or sitting at a pavement café, and can also catch a game of boules (or pétanque)
nursing a drink. Of course, for the ultimate in Paris’s squares and parks.

Practical Information Booking Tickets
partially, or perhaps not at all.
For the visitor in Paris, there Depending on the event, Often, obliging ushers will
is no shortage of information tickets can be bought at the put you in a better seat,
about what’s on offer. door, but for blockbuster depending on availability,
The Office du Tourisme, near concerts it is necessary to but don’t forget to tip.
the Tuileries and Opéra, is the book well in advance. For most Theatre box offices are
city’s main tourism distribution major events, open daily from approximately
point for leaflets and schedules including 11am until 7pm. Most box
of events. It has a recorded some classical offices accept credit card
information telephone music concerts bookings made by phone or
service giving details and museum in person, but you may have
of free concerts shows, tickets can be to arrive early to pick up your
and exhibitions purchased online or at tickets if you booked by
along with FNAC or Carrefour telephone, as they may be
information shops. For popular sold to someone else at the
on transport to the events book well last minute. If you are really
venues. Its website is also ahead, Parisians can keen and can’t get hold of
extremely useful. Your hotel be very quick off the tickets, you can always turn
reception desk or concierge mark for hot tickets. up at the box office just
should also be able to However, for theatre, before the performance in
help you with any Ballerina of the Ballet opera and dance case there are unclaimed or
such information. They de l’Opéra performances, you returned tickets.
usually keep a wide can often buy
range of brochures and leaflets inex pensive tickets at the
for guests, and will generally be last minute. If the tickets are Listings Magazines
more than happy to make marked sans visibilité, you will Paris has several good listings
reservations for you. be able to see the stage only magazines. Among them are
Pariscope and L’Officiel des
Spectacles. They are published
every Wednesday. Le Figaro
has a good listings section on
Wednesdays. Télerama, France’s
leading culture and listings
weekly, has a Paris supplement
called Sortir. For English listings,
see the webzine Paris Voice at
www.parisvoice.com.
Ticket Touts
If you must have a ticket to
a sold-out performance, do
as the French do: stand at the
entrance with a sign that says
cherche une place (or deux,
etc). Many people have an
extra ticket to sell. Often the
people selling the extra
Concert at the Opéra National de Paris Garnier (see p340) tickets are doing so because

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