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Paris Fashion Week Meets a Secret Vineyard Harvest: The One Week every Tourists should plan for






Paris Fashion Week, Vendanges and Rude Bastards 2026


Paris Fashion Week, the Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre and the Rude Bastards Tour: Three Sides of Paris in One Trip 2026

Paris changes personality depending on the week you catch it. One week it is runway shows and street style outside grand venues. The next it is grape harvest parades on a hill that still grows its own wine. Add in a walking tour with a guide who tells the truth about the guillotine and you get three completely different sides of the same city in one trip, with 2026 dates and tips for each.

1

Paris Fashion Week 2026

September 28 to October 6, 2026

  • Dates: September 28 to October 6, 2026
  • Time: Shows usually start around 9am and run into the evening, so mornings are best for street style
  • Price: Runway shows are invitation only, but the free events and street scene around the city need no ticket
  • Place: Venues spread across the city, with the biggest crowds around the Grand Palais and the Tuileries Garden
  • Bring: Comfortable shoes you would not mind being photographed in, a charged phone or camera, and a light layer for standing outside

Paris Fashion Week Women’s Ready to Wear for Spring Summer 2027 runs from September 28 to October 6, 2026 across venues throughout the city. This is the last of the year’s four Paris fashion weeks and it closes the international fashion calendar right before Milan and London move on to their own seasons.

Most of the actual runway shows are invitation only, so do not expect to walk straight into a Chanel or Dior show without one. What you get instead as a visitor is the real spectacle happening outside the doors. Photographers and fashion crowds line the streets around the Grand Palais and the Tuileries Garden every morning waiting for street style, and the whole city leans into the mood with window displays, pop up shops and after hours events that anyone can walk into.

Base yourself near Le Marais or Saint Germain des Prés for the week. Both neighborhoods fill with small boutiques, concept stores and the kind of people watching that makes Fashion Week worth catching even without a single ticket in hand.

2

Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre 2026

October 7 to October 11, 2026

  • Dates: October 7 to October 11, 2026
  • Time: Opening night starts at 7pm on Wednesday, with tastings, music and vineyard visits running through each afternoon and evening
  • Price: Free, every part of the festival including the tasting trail and the parade
  • Place: Montmartre, in the 18th arrondissement, centered around the Clos Montmartre vineyard and the Sacré Coeur
  • Bring: Comfortable shoes for the hill and cobblestones, a bit of cash for the small food and wine stalls, and a light jacket for the evening

The Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre runs from Wednesday, October 7 to Sunday, October 11, 2026 in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. This is the 93rd year of the festival and every part of it is free to attend.

Since 1934 the festival has celebrated the grape harvest from the Clos Montmartre, one of the last working vineyards left inside Paris. For five days the whole hill turns into an open air party with a tasting trail of food and wine producers, live music, a children’s parade and a grand parade through the streets, ending with a closing ball. This year’s theme is music, so expect concerts tucked into corners of Montmartre you would otherwise walk straight past.

About 500,000 people show up over the five days, which makes it the third busiest event in Paris after Nuit Blanche and Paris Plages. Go on a weekday morning if you want to see the vines and the Sacré Coeur without shoulder to shoulder crowds, then come back in the evening for the music and the parade.

3

Rude Bastards Tour of Paris

Free, 2 hours, daily

  • Dates: Runs daily, whatever week you visit
  • Time: Departure times vary by day, so check the online booking calendar before you go
  • Price: Free, tips for your guide are appreciated but never required
  • Place: Meets at Saint Michel Métro Exit 3, by the Fontaine Saint Michel
  • Bring: Comfortable shoes since the route covers several kilometers of cobblestones, plus a light jacket and a small umbrella since Paris weather turns fast

The Rude Bastards Tour of Paris is a free two hour walking tour that runs daily and covers the French Revolution, royal scandal and the darker side of the city’s history with a healthy dose of comedy. It is rated five stars on Tripadvisor and meets at Saint Michel Métro Exit 3, right by the Fontaine Saint Michel.

Unlike a standard Paris tour that sticks to polite storytelling, your guide gives it to you straight. Over about two hours you walk from Saint Germain des Prés to Notre Dame Cathedral and on to Pont Neuf, working through royal betrayals, political intrigue and the bloody years of the guillotine along the way. Every guide brings their own stories rather than a script, so no two tours sound quite the same.

This is the side of Paris that Fashion Week glamour and the Vendanges festivities do not show you, the honest, occasionally brutal history underneath the postcard version of the city. Slot it in on your first morning to get your bearings before the crowds from the other two events pick up. The tour finishes at Pont Neuf, perfectly placed for wandering on to the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower afterward.

Join the Rude Bastards Tour of Paris

Putting the trip together

Paris Fashion Week closes out on October 6 and the Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre opens the very next day on October 7, so the two events run back to back with no dead days in between. Fit the Rude Bastards Tour in on your first morning, spend the fashion week days around Le Marais and Saint Germain des Prés, then move up to Montmartre once the harvest festival begins.

Early autumn is one of the best times to visit Paris for exactly this reason. The weather stays mild, the summer crowds thin out and the city runs two of its biggest events back to back, which gives you fashion, folk tradition and honest history in a single Paris trip.

Paris FAQ

Press a question to see the answer

When is Paris Fashion Week 2026?
The Women’s Ready to Wear Fashion Week for Spring Summer 2027 runs from September 28 to October 6, 2026. It is the last of the year’s four Paris fashion weeks.
Can tourists watch Paris Fashion Week shows?
Most runway shows are invitation only, so tourists cannot walk in without one. You can still see street style, window displays and public events happening around the venues all week.
When is the Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre 2026?
The Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre runs from October 7 to October 11, 2026 in the 18th arrondissement. Entry to the festival is completely free.
Is the Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre free?
Yes. Every part of the festival, including the tasting trail, the parade and the concerts, is free to attend.
What is the Rude Bastards Tour of Paris?
It is a free two hour walking tour covering the French Revolution and the darker side of Paris history with dark humor instead of a formal script. It meets at Saint Michel Métro Exit 3 and is rated five stars on Tripadvisor.
Can I do Paris Fashion Week and the Vendanges festival in the same trip?
Yes. Fashion Week runs through October 6 and the Vendanges festival starts October 7, so the two events run back to back with no gap between them.

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