What to buy in Paris & France as a gift or souvenir to friends or relatives in 2024? Cosmetics, food and wines, clothes, other items that tourists should pay attention to? The best original products you can bring back from France and Paris, where to buy – in the review of good Time for Trip.
Before going abroad, almost every tourist thinks about what could he bring home from the trop. Moreover, today this business is almost never limited to souvenirs themselves – people are happy to buy and transport across the boundaries, seas and oceans food and cosmetics, clothes, sometimes even (big) interior items.
For many reasons: to their beloved one or for using in everyday life, as a gift to relatives and close friends, acquaintances. As a reminder of a trip or for the practical purpose of adding original notes to your own life.
The more popular and larger the chosen city or region, the more temptations. Therefore, one should not be surprised that in Paris you want to buy literally everything. Eyes run wide, but the baggage weight standards established by airlines are inexorable.
Therefore, in order not to get lost and overload your luggage with things that are not too necessary, it’s better to gather your thoughts initially. Which is what we actually did, creating a list of things that make sense to buy while being in Paris or another French city.
It wasn’t easy due to the fact that France is full of beautiful chateaux, small towns and villages, other charming and downright atmospheric places, the memory of visiting which souvenirs can help to preserve. But we’ve done the job and this is what happened!
First of all
we recommend you paying attention to products, that impossible to buy outside of France or at least, Paris. Or to those “Made in France” items which are so expensive in your homeland that the price tag literally beats off the desire to purchase them.
Popular Gifts From Paris
The French capital, as you know, rightfully claims to be the culinary capital of the world. Yes, and others, even not too large cities of this European country, consider themselves something like trendsetters in gastronomic fashion.
So if clothes of famous brands tourists are mainly buying in Italy, then in France it’s more reasonable to focus on foods. For example, on
Cheeses
France is well known mainly for soft cheeses: the most famous are Brie and Camembert. Which, as almost everyone understands, is not so easy to carry in luggage safe and sound.
And it’s not that they can be stolen along the way. Most likely – just crushed!
It’s a bit easier to bring home rounds and triangles of soft cheeses with mold, in factory packings. After all, you can make a puzzle out of them and pack in such a way that Camembert and Brie can’t be afraid of sloppy movers.
The price of such sorts of cheese in French supermarket chains (on average from € 2/200 gr) makes it possible to buy them Paris or somewhere outside it in big quantities. However, if your flight lasts more than 4-5 hours, you risk simply loosing the money.
Please note, that Camembert tolerates transportation better and will live for some time without a refrigerator. But Brie and some others French sorts of cheeses are more gentle and lose taste and aroma, as soon as it warms up a little.
If you don’t consider yourself a connoisseur with great experience, there is no need to buy cheese in specialized family shops. As it’s much easier to get hold of what you want in the supermarkets of large Franprix, Monoprix or Auchan chains.
Foie Gras and Meat Products
Many people can’t deny themselves to purchase in Paris foie gras – duck or goose liver.
The premium product (foie gras entier) costs from € 50-60 per kg, pates (pâté de foie gras) are much cheaper. However, if you learn how they mock a bird in order to enlarge its liver, you may not even touch the delicacy.
France doesn’t produce such recognizable meat products as jamon (Spain) or prosciutto (Italy). That does not prevent local producers from flooding the counters of appetizing raw smoked sausages and dried meat.
The most famous sausages are produced in Auvergne. Prices are quite standard (from € 25-30 per kg) – the less preservatives, the more expensive the product.
Condiments
It may be worth bringing back from Paris some original French spices. For example, Dijon mustard is widely known and conveniently packaged in small jars. Definitely doesn’t regret those, who will find in the store ready-made Tapenade pasta, an indispensable attribute of Provencal cuisine, and buy it it.
Again, all of these things cost quite sane money. In any case, less than you will be asked to pay for even a short Seine cruise.
Alcohol
Cognac and Champagne are recognizable symbols of France. And you can certainly be proud of yourself if you come home with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin or Rémy Martin.
Note, that you can also buy such beverages in a airport duty-free shop – maybe even saving some money. Not to mention the fact that you will simply spend much less time on finding the goods.
Once in France, you can also buy something that is not so easy to find on the shelves of British or American stores. For example, the famous Normandy or Breton cider (from € 3.5), a bottle of white Burgundy or red Bordeaux (from € 6-7 ) wine. The lasts are all will be protected by the region of origin – Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC).
A wonderful choice, confirming your non-standard view of things, will be the acquiring in France a bottle or two of Armagnac. The older, but not so famous “brother” of Cognac.
We advise you to pay attention and to the original Normandy apple brandy – Calvados
Many travelers purchase in France an unique Chartreuse liqueur, which has an interesting taste and a recognizable salad shade. Someone will certainly put in their luggage the popular local aperitif Pastis, anise and herbs based tincture.
Perfume and Cosmetics
There is no particular point in buying even in Paris and taking home eau de toilette and perfumes of well-known mass brands. After all, you can do the same in your homeland for about the equal money.
Therefore, pay attention to some exclusive flavors. From the lines of such houses as Guerlain or Chanel, which does not age over the years.
When it comes to cosmetics, we tend to recommend those of pretty expensive brands such as La Roche Posay and Caudalie. You can buy them in a large Citypharma store at Paris, 26 Rue du Four – this is the largest such institution in whole France.
If you value time and do not want to push it around, inspect other pharmacies in Paris. Many interesting items will be found, for example, in Parashop.
Souvenirs
We are sure that you have already outgrown buying budget souvenirs like the model of the Eiffel Tower, riveted in millions of copies in China. Or the most banal T-shirts with a heart and the inscription “J’aime la France”!
Therefore, try to find inexpensive, but original magnets. Small handmade plates and saucers, porcelain dolls, etchings, engravings and lithographs. Including those that can be found in small and extremely authentic Parisian second-hand bookshops.
Prices for such goods are scattered in a very wide range – some of them may be quite overvalued (at first glance). But afterwards you will not regret spending the extra 15-20 euros just to buy an original thing that will remind you of Paris or France.
- Or about visiting one of the famous French chateaux – at the entrance they often sell very nice author’s watercolors!
Clothing
We aren’t going to give any specific recipes here. If you have enough money, go to the expensive boutiques of the most famous brands on the Champs Elysees. If not – look for the chain stores in the budget segment. Or get inside small family shops, where you can often find “no name” things of very good quality.
It is worth remembering that although France is considered a trendsetter, hunting for branded clothing looks primarily at Italy. That is why sales in Milan are almost more famous than the local openwork cathedral….
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