Paris_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Lonely Planet [229]
Paris’ ‘Harrods for roller-heads’ rents and sells equipment and accessories, and gives courses at five different levels. Elbow and knee guards/helmets cost €1/2. Deposit of €150 or an identity card or passport.
Ice-Skating
From December to early March, the city maintains several pretty-as-a-picture outdoor patinoires de Noël (Christmas ice-skating rinks; www.paris.fr, in French). Access is free but patins/casques (skates/safety helmets) cost €5/3 to rent. Rinks include Patinoire de l’Hôtel de Ville (Map; 39 75; place de l’Hôtel de Ville, 4e; noon-10pm Mon-Thu, noon-midnight Fri, 9am-midnight Sat, 9am-10pm Sun; Hôtel de Ville) and Patinoire de Montparnasse (Map; 39 75; place Raoul Dautry, 14e; noon-8pm Mon-Fri, 9am-8pm Sat & Sun; Montparnasse Bienvenüe). The national library rink in the increasingly happening 13e, Patinoire de la Bibliothèque François Mitterand (cnr rue des Moulins & av de France; 9am-8pm late Dec–early Jan; Bibliothèque) opens for one month from late December to late January.
DJs turn Friday and Saturday evenings into something of an ice disco at the Patinoire Sonja Henie (Map; 01 40 02 60 60; www.bercy.fr, in French; 8 blvd de Bercy, 12e; adult/under 26yr €4/3, Fri & Sat €6/4, skate hire €3; 3-6pm Wed, 9.30pm-12.30am Fri, 9.30pm-12.30am Sat, 10am-noon & 3-6pm Sun Sep-May; Bercy), an indoor ice-skating rink in the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy.
Art Deco in style, 800 sq metres in size and worth the trip is Patinoire Pailleron (Map; 01 47 20 27 70; 32 blvd Édouard Pailleron, 19e; adult before/after 8pm €4/6, carnet of 10 tickets before/after 8pm €34/26, skate hire €3; during school holidays except Jul & Aug noon-10pm Mon, Tue & Thu, 9am-10pm Wed, noon-midnight Fri, 9am-midnight Sat, 10am-6pm Sun; during term time noon-1.30pm & 4-10pm Mon, Tue & Thu, noon-10pm Wed, noon-1.30pm & 4pm-midnight Fri, noon-midnight Sat, 10am-6pm Sun), open year-round except July and August.
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BOULES & BOWLING
Don’t be surprised to see groups of earnest Parisians (usually men) playing boules (known as pétanque in southern France) – France’s most popular traditional game, similar to lawn bowls – in the Jardin du Luxembourg (Map) and other parks and squares with suitably flat, shady patches of gravel. The Arènes de Lutèce boulodrome (www.arenesdelutece.com, in French) in a 2nd-century Roman amphitheatre in the Latin Quarter is a fabulous spot to absorb the scene. The player who tosses his boules (biased metal balls) nearest the small wooden cochonnet (jack) wins. Sports shops and supermarkets sell cheap sets of boules, should you have the urge to have a spin at it.
Come dark, tenpin bowling takes over. Prices for games depend on the time and day of the week. Among the best and/or most central alleys:
AMF BOWLING DE MONTPARNASSE Map
01 43 21 61 32; www.bowling-amf.com, in French; 25 rue du Commandant René Mouchotte, 14e; games €4.50-6, shoes €2; 10am-2am Sun-Thu, 10-4am Fri, 10-5am Sat; Montparnasse Bienvenüe
This centre, just opposite Gare Montparnasse, has 16 lanes.
BOWLING MOUFFETARD Map
01 43 31 09 35; www.bowling-mouffetard.abcsalles.com, in French; 13 rue Gracieuse & 73 rue Mouffetard, 5e; games €3.10-6.20, shoes €2; 3pm-2am Mon-Fri, 10am-2am Sat & Sun; Place Monge
Intimate, friendly place with eight lanes and two entrances; games are cheapest on weekday afternoons.
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TENNIS
Again, the Mairie de Paris ( 39 75, reservations 01 71 71 70 70; www.tennis.paris.fr; open court per hr adult/under 26yr €6.50/4, covered court €12.50/7) is the contact. The city runs some 170 covered and open tennis courts in dozens of locations (hours vary considerably); reserve by telephone or online. Courts include Luxembourg (Map; 01 43 25 79 18; Jardin du Luxembourg, 6e; Luxembourg); Candie (Map; 01 43 55 84 95; rue de Candie, 11e; Ledru Rollin); and Neuve St-Pierre (Map; 01 42 78 21 04; 5 rue Neuve St Pierre, 4e; St-Paul).
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