Paris is known for romance, art, and pastries, but it also has a surprisingly rich car culture hiding in plain sight.
If you only have 24 hours in the city and you want to fill it with automotive goodness, consider this your starter itinerary: a small free slice of the full En Route Paris Guide (coming soon for paid subscribers).
Here’s how to spend one perfect day as a car lover in Paris…
Start Your Morning at Chez Coffee Shop
Tucked away in the 6th arrondisement, Chez Coffee Shop is the kind of place where you can ease into the day before the city fully wakes up.
The coffee is strong and the sweet treats are exactly what you hope for.
Settle in, sip slowly, and plan your route.
Stroll to Librairie Passion Automobile
From Chez Coffee, it’s a short walk to a bookstore that feels like a treasure hunt for anyone who loves cars.
Librairie Passion Automobile is a tightly packed cave of automotive and motorsport history, old rally books, obscure marques, and glossy coffee-table editions that weigh as much as a cylinder head.
Even if you don’t buy anything, you could easily spend hours here flipping through the shelves.
Put Your Skills to the Test at a Sim Racing Spot
Paris is full of sim-racing studios, and Sim Drivers is just one of many places to jump in.
Whether you want to test your reflexes on a Formula circuit or just have fun with friends, it’s a perfect mid-morning burst of adrenaline.
It’s also a great way to experience tracks and cars you won’t see on the street, and maybe discover what kind of driver you actually are.
Lunch at Auto Passion Café
This place is exactly what it sounds like: part restaurant, part automotive shrine.
The walls are filled with motorsport memorabilia, car parts, and racing posters. You will find a full size car in the middle of the restaurant and an F1 car on the ceiling. Yes, that’s how car-themed this place is.
It’s not necessarily fine dining, it’s fun dining. And that’s the point.
If you’re traveling with someone who doesn’t care about cars, this is where they realize: oh, this trip has a theme.
Visit the FIA Hall of Fame
The FIA headquarters in Paris hosts a Hall of Fame celebrating the greatest champions in motorsport.
It’s a small, quiet space that reminds you how deep and global the legacy of racing really is. Names you know, names you should know, and a few you might discover for the first time.
It’s a reflective stop, something that brings history into the present.
And its free and open to anyone to pop in.
Check What’s Happening at the Défilé Renault
Depending on the day, you may catch something special at the Renault Défilé
From pop-up exhibitions, new model showcases, music performances, or community events.
Renault does a beautiful job of blending the past with the future, and it’s a lovely way to end the day: surrounded by creativity, craft, and a bit of French automotive flair.
And if not, it still brings you to the heart of the Champs-Elysees where you can undoubtedly get some good car spotting done.
Want More?
This 24-hour itinerary is just a preview.
The full Paris Car Lovers Guide includes:
Hidden automotive gems most tourists never find
The best spots for car spotting
A car meet every week
Driving routes near Paris worth escaping to
Boutique shops, garages, exhibitions, cafés, and events
Seasonal car events (and how to attend them like a local)
If you want the full guide, it’s dropping soon for paid subscribers.
So make sure you’re subscribed and stay tuned.
