What cultural etiquette should I know for Paris?

The single most important thing to know about Paris etiquette fits in two syllables: bonjour. Say it when you walk into a boulangerie and the warm, yeasty air hits you. Say it to the pharmacist. Say it to the person behind the fromagerie counter before you point at the Comté. Skipping it is roughly equivalent to walking into someone's living room and demanding things without making eye contact first. Parisians are not cold — they're formal, and formality here starts with acknowledgment. After about 6 pm, switch to bonsoir. If you're unsure which applies, bonjour is always safe. The greeting resets every interaction: you'll notice shopkeepers visibly relax the moment you open with it, and visibly stiffen when you don't. Worth noting — this also applies to elevators in apartment buildings, Métro platform encounters, and anywhere else you'd typically just stay silent back home.

Restaurant behavior trips up first-timers in specific ways. The bill already includes service — you'll see service compris printed at the bottom or on the menu. Leaving €1–2 in coins on the table is a kind gesture, not a requirement. Rounding up to the nearest euro on a €47 dinner is plenty. Bread goes directly on the tablecloth, not on your plate — this looks wrong but it's correct. For water, ask for une carafe d'eau and you'll get free tap water; don't let anyone steer you toward a €7 bottle of Evian unless you actually want it. Never snap your fingers or call out garçon — catch the waiter's eye, give a small nod, or raise a finger slightly. Service feels slow by North American standards, but that's by design. Your table is yours for the evening. Nobody is rushing you, and asking for the check before you're ready signals you want to leave, not that you're being polite.

The Métro has its own unwritten code. Stand on the right side of escalators — left is for people who are late and moving fast. Keep your voice low; Parisians on the Métro tend toward silence, and a group of tourists talking at normal volume sounds like a stadium PA system bouncing off those tile-walled tunnels. Don't put your feet on seats. The fold-down strapontins near the doors — stand up and fold them when the car fills, even if nobody asks. Mind you, the RER suburban trains are rougher around the edges than the central Métro lines, but the same courtesies apply. The enforcement is social, not official. You won't get fined for being loud, but you will get stared at with a precision the French have spent centuries perfecting.

At open-air markets — the Marché d'Aligre in the 12th, the stalls along Rue Mouffetard in the 5th — don't touch the fruit. Point, ask, and the vendor picks for you. This is not optional; squeezing a peach at a Parisian market stall earns you a sharp correction in rapid-fire French you won't fully catch but will completely understand from the tone. Queuing is respected but takes a looser shape than in London: at boulangeries, you might need to say je suis après vous to the person ahead of you to establish your place in line. Personal space is smaller than in the US but wider than in Tokyo. La bise — the cheek-to-cheek greeting with a light air-kiss — is for friends and acquaintances, not strangers. Two kisses in Paris, starting right cheek first. Don't attempt it with someone you just met unless they lean in first. That said, a firm handshake works in every situation where you're unsure.