Valentine's Day in Paris 2027: ideas, dinners and bookings

14 February 2027: a Sunday in the middle of the winter holidays

Sunday 14 February 2027 falls in the middle of the zone C winter school holidays (the Paris, Créteil and Versailles school districts), which run from Saturday 6 February to Monday 22 February 2027. Zone A schools break up on Saturday 13 February: on Valentine's weekend, families from other French regions arrive while many Parisians are away on holiday. Three practical consequences:

• On Sunday evening, many neighbourhood restaurants are closed. Family-run bistros often close on Sundays, sometimes on Mondays too. The places that do open that night are in high demand, and many couples choose to celebrate on Saturday 13 February instead.
• Most shops are closed on Sunday, except in tourist zones: the department stores on boulevard Haussmann open (Galeries Lafayette from 11am to 8pm), as do many florists and chocolate shops in the morning.
• Monday 15 February is not a public holiday. Many museums close on Mondays (Orsay, Rodin, City of Paris museums); the Louvre closes on Tuesdays.

Sunset is at about 6:07pm on 14 February 2027, so an 8:30pm dinner takes place after dark, with the monuments already lit up. On Sunday evening, the metro closes about an hour earlier than on Saturday night: check the time of the last train at your station.

When to book

• As soon as sales open (autumn-winter 2026): dinner cruises and restaurants with a view of the Eiffel Tower, where window tables go first.
• Six to eight weeks ahead: shows (cabarets, opera, ballet) and your hotel for the weekend of 13-14 February, ideally with free cancellation.
• Two to three weeks ahead: neighbourhood restaurants, after checking they are open on Sunday evening.
• A few days before 7 February: a free time slot at the Musée d'Orsay for that first Sunday of the month, if you arrive a week earlier.

To plan the other bookings of your trip, see our guide what to book in advance in Paris.

Seine dinner cruises: what 14 February costs

On 14 February, the companies offer a special set menu at a single price, higher than their usual options. Not all 2027 programmes had been published at the end of September 2026; here are the available benchmarks:

• Bateaux-Mouches (pier at the pont de l'Alma, 8th arrondissement): the Valentine's evening is listed at €230 per person, with boarding at 8:30pm, departure at 9pm and return at 11:15pm; champagne or wine included, formal dress requested. The rest of the year, dinners start at €90 (6pm sitting) and go up to €170 (Excellence menu).
• Bateaux Parisiens (port de La Bourdonnais, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower): for Valentine's Day 2026, the 8:30pm dinner started at €175 per person, drinks included. The 2027 price had not yet been announced. On ordinary evenings, the 8:30pm dinner starts at around €115.
• Le Calife (pier at place de l'Institut, Left Bank, at the foot of the pont des Arts): a more intimate barge, leaving at 8:30pm for a 2h20 cruise. Evening options from €97 (Classique), €139 (Royal) and €219 (Prestige Champagne); the 2027 Valentine's menu had not been published. Its neighbour, L'Estello, leaves at 6:30pm, with a weekend price of €105.

Prices as of September 2026 on the companies' websites. Book directly with them: resellers sometimes charge more for the same service. To compare simple sightseeing cruises, see our guide to Seine river cruises.

Restaurants with a view: book without illusions

Tables with a view of the Eiffel Tower are the most sought-after of the year that night. No availability is guaranteed; these addresses only give an idea of the prices to expect:

• Madame Brasserie, on the 1st floor of the Eiffel Tower: two evening sittings, at 6:30pm and 9pm. Gustave menu at €109.80 without drinks or €129.80 with, Grande Dame menu at €206.80 on the Seine side and €261.80 by the bay window.
• Le Jules Verne, on the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower: tasting menus from €305 (5 courses) and €345 (7 courses), wine not included.
• Les Ombres, on the roof of the Musée du Quai Branly (27 quai Branly, 75007 Paris): evening menus at €98 and €118, drinks not included, facing the tower.

For a drink up high rather than dinner, see our selection of the best rooftops in Paris, checking that they are open in winter.

Shows: cabaret, opera and ballet in February 2027

• Moulin Rouge: the "Féerie" revue every night, with a 9pm show (from about €150 with champagne), an 11pm show (from about €115) and a 7pm dinner show (from about €255). For a comparison with the Crazy Horse and the Paradis Latin, see our guide to Paris cabarets.
• Opéra Bastille: Massenet's Werther, staged by Robert Carsen, from 11 February to 12 March 2027; seats from €17 to €205.
• Palais Garnier: the ballet evening Correspondances nocturnes (Thierry Malandain and Cathy Marston, around Chopin and George Sand), from 12 February to 8 March 2027; seats from €25 to €145. The Palais Garnier is due to close for works from summer 2027: this is one of the last chances to see a show there for several years.

Not every evening in these runs has a performance: check the performance calendar on the Opéra de Paris box office before fixing your date.

Museums open on Sunday and the free Sunday of 7 February

On Sunday 14 February, most major museums are open. For an afternoon for two, two addresses are particularly well suited:

• Musée de la Vie romantique (16 rue Chaptal, 75009 Paris): the former home of the painter Ary Scheffer, with mementoes of George Sand and a cobbled garden at the end of a lane. Free permanent collections, open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 6pm.
• Musée Rodin (77 rue de Varenne, 75007 Paris): The Kiss and the sculpture garden, open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 6:30pm.

If you arrive a week earlier, Sunday 7 February 2027 is the first Sunday of the month: the Musée Rodin is free (October to March, no booking needed) and so is the Musée d'Orsay, with a booked time slot. The full list is in our guide to free museums in Paris.

A picnic in February? Warm alternatives

With average highs close to 9 °C, a picnic on the banks of the Seine is hardly an option. Some alternatives:

• Afternoon tea in a tea room or a hot chocolate, before the sunset walk.
• The covered passages of the 2nd arrondissement, to stroll through in the dry, among old shops and tea rooms.
• A one-hour sightseeing cruise from €9 with Bateaux Parisiens, far cheaper than dinner on board.
• A basket from a cheesemonger and a wine shop to enjoy in your hotel room, often more pleasant than a heated terrace.

For a whole day under cover, see our guide Paris on a rainy day.

Romantic winter walks

• The quays of the Île Saint-Louis in the late afternoon: the quai d'Orléans faces the east end of Notre-Dame, and the island's streets are quiet on Sundays.
• Montmartre before 10am, when the place du Tertre is still empty, or at sunset from the forecourt of the Sacré-Cœur.
• The Seine at nightfall, around 6pm, from the pont des Arts to the pont Alexandre III: the Eiffel Tower sparkles for five minutes at the start of every hour after dark.

The bridges and must-see viewpoints are covered in our Paris for couples guide, mentioned above; we do not repeat them here.

Where to stay on the weekend of 13-14 February

February remains one of the cheapest months of the year, but Valentine's weekend pushes prices up, especially in the boutique hotels of the Marais, Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Montmartre. Book early, with a cancellation option, and compare neighbourhoods in our guide where to stay in Paris and our selection of Paris hotels by budget. The tourist tax is added to the room price, per person and per night.

Sample budget for an evening for two

Prices as of September 2026; the 2027 Valentine's menus may differ from the usual prices.

Traps to avoid

• Mandatory 14 February set menus. Many restaurants replace their usual menu with a single, more expensive set menu, sometimes with a deposit or card guarantee and strict cancellation terms. Ask for the exact price and what it includes (drinks, service) before booking.
• Roses sold by street hawkers. Sellers walk between terrace and restaurant tables, or approach couples at the Trocadéro and in Montmartre, with a "free" rose they then ask you to pay for. Unlicensed street selling is illegal: decline politely, without taking the flower. Buy your flowers from a florist, most of which open on Sunday morning.
• Unofficial resellers of cruises and cabaret tickets, whose prices and conditions are not guaranteed.
• Tourist-trap restaurants near the monuments: see our advice on restaurant tourist traps and scams to avoid in Paris.

Further reading

For romantic spots to enjoy in any season, read Paris for couples. The rest of the month, from Chinese New Year to the Paris International Agricultural Show, is covered in what to do in Paris in February. And if the evening goes on, our guide Paris at night has ideas for after dinner.