The Marais district covers the 3rd and much of the 4th arrondissements. Le Marais  means literally “the swamp” and it’s now one of the best-loved right bank areas. There were many decades of decay, but now Le Marais has made a big comeback, though perhaps not quite like it was in the 17th-century when prosperous aristocrats inhabited the 3rd. It’s a great place to base Paris breaks now, being charmingly unique but also very central.

The Marais contains Paris’s major gay neighbourhoods,with lots of gay/lesbian restaurants, bars, and stores, as well as the remains of the old Jewish quarter, centered on rue des Rosiers. Two of the best attractions are museums. The Musée Picasso is a well curated collection of paintings, sculptures and ceramics which the French Government inherited in lieu of death duties. The Musée Carnavalet, a history museum also in the Marais depicts Parisian life from prehistoric times to the present. Small restaurants, kosher food and felafel kiosks abound for informal lunches.

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Eurostar Paris trains from London getting busier

I used to wonder what would happen after the Eurostar Paris trains were diverted from the interim Waterloo International station to the new St Pancras and now we are beginning to see the answer. International commuters in their thousands are switching from short haul flights between the two capitals to the fast St Pancras service by Eurostar. Paris has of course been moved 20 minutes closer to London since November last year, but it’s also the higher price of aviation fuel which has driven people away from the troubled terminals at London’s airports. So the situation now on an early weekday morning is that the waiting areas at St Pancras station are chock a block with people heading to Paris in time for a full day’s worth of meetings.

Paris is always an exciting place to visit and the eurostar journey between London and Paris having been made slightly shorter makes all the difference for some trips.

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Capital Style is about living in the city, and also about getting away from it.

Travel to and from the capitals in style with eurostar fast rail Paris breaks, or weekend flights to the sunshine.

Make your interior beautiful with shabby chic furniture.

Find out where to shop, eat, drink and hang out in the coolest places that only the local city residents know about in Capital Style .co.uk

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