Springtime in Paris: Favorite Places from Indagare’s Ali Malecka

“I have always been so intrigued by France, and I thought, if not now, when?!” says Ali Malecka, an Indagare Journeys manager who is just back from spending two months living and working remotely in Paris. Here, she shares favorite memories, places and finds from her springtime adventures.

I have been working for Indagare for almost five years and had somehow never found my way to Paris but always dreamed of going. When my lease was up for my apartment in New York, I decided to finally make the trip—and I moved into my new pied-à-terre in an apartment owned by my beloved Indagare colleague, Iva, who is herself based in Paris.

When you tell your friends and family that you are going to live in Paris for two months, they will come visit you! My mom was the first to join me, in early February. Despite the fact that it rained (it poured!) every day for that week, we didn’t let the grey weather ruin her belated 60th birthday celebration. Having my mom, my sister, a few of my friends and my boyfriend all come at different points during my time in Paris was such a treat, because I got to explore the city and experience all it had to offer with people I love.

The best part about taking an extended trip, especially to a city like Paris, is not having to squeeze everything you want to see in over the course of just a few days. In the end, my favorite thing to do in Paris was just wander. I would wake up in the morning, pick a coffee shop, park, store or museum to visit—and then walk all around that arrondissement. I learned to love the different offerings on both the Right and the Left banks. I found my preferred benches to sit on along the Seine or in the gardens of the Palais Royal. I would people-watch for hours. I began to be recognized in my favorite bakeries, where I would be greeted with a more enthusiastic Bonjour! or be given an extra pastry or two (in the Parisian bakeries, it seems, loyalty is prized). It was incredible to be able to observe and admire the French ways of life, and watch as spring arrived.

From all my wanderings and observations, I've gathered a shortlist of places I now love to recommend—and can't wait to return to! Discover them below.

During my time in Paris, I scouted a few of Indagare’s favorite hotels. There's no shortage of special properties in this city, but the Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel stole my heart. I got to sit in on an interview that our founder Melissa Biggs Bradley had with the general manager (keep an eye on the Indagare newsletter for more!), and it was captivating to hear how passionate he was about the hotel. And who doesn’t love the Butterfly Pâtisserie (which celebrates its first anniversary this week), the gilded pool in the spa and the Officine Universelle Buly products? (Also—If you look up at the painted ceiling of the Bar Les Ambassadeurs, you can see that they've added some gray clouds over the blue, to show a more realistic Parisian sky!) I thought every single detail in that hotel was exquisite.

Other hotels I visited and loved included:

• J.K. Place Paris, a dreamy apartment-style hotel on the Left Bank
• The iconic Hôtel Ritz Paris
• Le Grand Mazarin in the Marais, a new boutique property that is colorful and fun
• The oh-so-elegant Fouquet's Barrière
• Indagare-adored classics Hôtel Plaza Athénée and Le Bristol
• Hôtel de Sers, a great, reasonably priced option right off Champs-Élysées, for a weekend trip with unique Eiffel Tower views
• In Versailles: Airelles Château de Versailles, Le Grand Contrôle

You could live in Paris and never have the time to try all the amazing restaurants, old and new, but I sure did try. Reservations are encouraged. These were some of my favorites:

LEFT BANK

• Le Petit Lutetia: I may or may not have gone to this restaurant six times in the two months that I was in Paris. The service, the food, the ambience, the crowd—it fit everything that I wanted and was the perfect place to bring visitors for their last night's meal. My go-to order became the milanese and the mushroom tartlet.
• Chez Fernand for dinner. This is a cozy spot with red-and-white-checkered tablecloths and a wonderful wine list. The French onion soup is a classic, as is the roasted chicken.
• Brasserie Lipp for a classic French meal, right across from Café de Flore.
• Maison Fleuret in the 7th is a coffee shop in an old bookstore, perfect for a quiet, light breakfast or lunch.
• Visit La Grande Épicerie (the food market behind Le Bon Marché) for a quick bite in between all the shopping! Their croissants are to die for.
• Grab a coffee at Cordelia Coffee Shop, an adorable coffee and flower shop in the 6th.
• Go to La Fontaine de Mars for dinner and then walk to the Eiffel Tower around the corner to see it sparkle on the hour!

RIGHT BANK

• The Hemingway Bar at the Hôtel Ritz Paris for a martini—If you are a Hemingway fan, you have to do it once!
• La Renommée is a restaurant by the group behind New York's super-hot 4 Charles Prime Rib. I absolutely loved it—especially the bar downstairs, which has great music and a sexy vibe. It’s located within a historic restaurant and grocery dating back to 1823!
• Go to Ferdi when you need an American burger fix. Its funky interiors will make you laugh.
• Le Relais de L'Entrecôte for steak frites (and only steak frites!). My friend who grew up in Paris said that this is the one spot he recommends, despite the lines. Go at 6 o'clock to wait in line (it opens at 6:45 p.m.). The location on the Right Bank is around the corner from Crimson Cashmere, so you can alternate between holding down the fort in line and shopping.
• Head to Le Bon Georges in the 9th for an incredible French dining experience and a very large book that serves as the wine list.
• Lafayette's is a new restaurant with embellished, candlelit interiors and incredible art (my favorite piece is a 1978 sketch by Joan Miró) in a former 17th-century townhouse. This place was suggested to me for a fun Parisian experience without the classic French food.

• Flabelus in the 6th arrondissement is my new favorite shoe store, and it specializes in the trending (but oh-so-classic) Mary Jane flats. I may or may not have walked out with three pairs...
• Assouline's flagship in the 6th arrondissement—where you can see their entire book collection.
• Barthélémy cheese shop in the 6th arrondissement: Get yourself a heart-shaped brie and a baguette and head to the Luxembourg Gardens to enjoy.
• Sézane of course! The original is in the 2nd and has every color of sweater that you could dream of.
• Crimson—While they are known for their endless collection of colorful cashmere sweaters, don’t miss the silk sets or new embroidered purses.
• Marin Montagut for adorable homewares and gifts.
• Stop by the Red Wheelbarrow Bookstore, an English bookstore, to grab a book—then sit on the classic green chairs in the Luxembourg Gardens and watch the toy boats go by.
• There are different flea markets each weekend in Paris in several districts. You can search online each weekend to see what's on, but the largest permanent one is in Saint-Ouen. Paul Bert Serpette was my favorite market to walk through for interior décor—beautiful antique dressers, fun light fixtures, porcelain tea cups and vintage Air France and Cabaret prints. (They are open from Saturday to Monday.)
• I also recommend visiting the Bouquinistes (booksellers of Paris) along the banks of the River Seine.

• Exploring La Galerie Dior was a true highlight of my visit. For those who have not watched The New Look on Apple TV yet, I recommend it! It’s fun to see how 30 Avenue Montaigne came to life, especially having visited the building itself.
• Favorite museums that I visited were: The Mark Rothko exhibit at Fondation Louis Vuitton; the Musée d’Orsay; the Hotel de la Marine; and the Picasso Museum.
• I loved the Place des Vosges in the Marais. We stopped by the famous L’As du Fallafel to pick up lunch and lay in the park watching people from many different walks of life. On the way to the park, across from the falafel place, is a new and adorable store, Le Nom. Here you can also find a wonderful museum that is not on many people’s radars, the Maison de Victor Hugo, the former apartment of the writer best known for The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Misérables.
• While the Grand Palais is under construction for the Olympics, the Petit Palais has free entry and is the perfect place to go for a little bit of culture, art and contemplation in the courtyard. One of my favorite Monet paintings is in there. Don’t forget to look up at the gorgeous windows when you walk in the entrance of the building.
• I loved people-watching in gardens of the Palais Royal. By mid March, the rain eased up. Paris was extremely romantic in all the rain, but having the sun shine and the flowers bloom was even better. It’s hard to say which park I enjoyed visiting the most.
• I feel everyone should see the Moulin Rouge once. It’s a different experience and was fun to share with my mom and my sister. I recommend just booking the ticket service with a drink, not dinner—and go to a fun meal in the area beforehand.