Christmas & New Year · Paris
Christmas and New Year in Paris,
handled quietly.
Book & Smile is a private concierge for the festive season in Paris: the Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve tables that are gone by November, gifts chosen, wrapped and delivered to the right address, a week's programme for a family with children and grandparents, a chauffeur for the evenings when Paris is lit and cars are scarce. One bilingual person owns the whole stay, and we remain open through the holidays.
December is the month Paris is most asked for and least available. Restaurants publish their réveillon menus in October and fill in weeks; the houses close early on the 24th; the city is beautiful and slow, and everything takes a telephone call in French.
Visitors plan from abroad, with time zones against them and a hotel concierge who starts working the day they arrive. Residents are hosting — family flying in, a dinner for twelve, a tree, the school holidays — while their own work does not stop until the 23rd.
What if the whole season were planned in November by one person in Paris, and December were simply enjoyed?
What we arrange for the season
- Réveillon tables — Christmas Eve, Christmas Day lunch and New Year's Eve, at the restaurants that take no bookings online; menus, allergies and seating confirmed in writing
- Gifts — chosen with you or for you, from the maisons or the artisans, wrapped, engraved where possible, delivered to the hotel, the apartment or across the world
- Family programmes — a week built for three generations: the Opéra and the ballet, private visits, patisserie workshops, quiet afternoons, a nanny if you need one
- Hosting at home — caterer or private chef, florist, tableware, extra hands, the tree delivered and taken away
- Movement — chauffeur for the evening lights, airport and station arrivals during the holiday peak, luggage sent ahead
- The practical December — pharmacies and doctors open on the 25th, last-minute tailoring, late shopping hours, the forgotten charger, the lost glove
When to ask
The tables for the 24th and the 31st are the first thing to secure: by mid-November for the best rooms, by early December for the good ones. Private visits and performances follow the same calendar. Gifts and hosting can be arranged until the 23rd, and we take last-minute requests throughout the holidays — but every December we tell someone that the table they want closed in October, so write early.
We propose rather than list: three tables that suit the party, two ways to spend the 26th with children, the gift that will not be returned. You choose; we confirm in writing and handle the rest.
Christmas for international families
Families who come to Paris for Christmas usually come for a week, with grandparents, children of different ages and at least one person who wants to do nothing. We build the programme around that: one anchor a day, meals that work for everyone, a chauffeur who knows where the car can wait, and a written plan shared with the whole family. Residents hosting their own families ask us for the same thing, plus the caterer, the flowers and the extra chairs.
New Year's Eve, done properly
The 31st in Paris is less about a single spectacle than about a table, a view and getting home. We arrange the dinner, the terrace or the salon with a view where they exist, a car that will actually be there at 1:00, and the lunch on the 1st that no one has thought about. We say plainly what is overpriced that night and what is worth it.
Who asks us in December
International families spending Christmas in Paris
Residents hosting family and friends from abroad
Couples and small groups here for New Year's Eve
FAQ
Are you open between Christmas and New Year?
Yes. We are open every day through the holidays, 8:00–20:00 Paris time, and 24/7 for members. Requests on the 24th, 25th and 31st are handled.
Can you still find a table for New Year's Eve in late December?
Often, yes — cancellations happen, and we know who to call. We cannot promise a specific room at that stage; we will tell you honestly what is realistic and propose the best alternatives.
Do you choose gifts for people you have never met?
Yes, from a short conversation about who they are. Several clients send us their whole list in November and receive wrapped parcels, or have them delivered abroad.
How are costs handled?
Restaurants, shops and suppliers are paid at their prices; our coordination is part of our assistance, as a one-off engagement for the stay or within a membership.
Consider it handled.
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