Paris Summer Festival (Festival de l'Été)

For most of the Parisian summer, when many of the city's theatres go dark, Festival Paris l'été keeps the performing arts alive in the open air. Now a long-running fixture of the July calendar, the festival stages contemporary theatre, dance, circus, music and performance in venues you would never normally see used this way — gardens and museum courtyards, rooftops, chapels, schools and public squares across Paris and out into the suburbs. The result is a summer-long invitation to discover the city through performance, often in places the everyday visitor never reaches.

What to expect

Each edition runs from mid-July into early August with a programme of dozens of events spanning disciplines, mixing established names with emerging and international work. Some shows are free and some ticketed, and the settings are as much a part of the experience as the performances — an outdoor stage in a walled garden, a dance battle in a grand exhibition hall, circus in a park. The mood is informal and exploratory, well suited to warm evenings and to travellers who like their culture off the beaten track.

Venues are scattered across the city, so check each show's location and plan by neighbourhood; the programme is usually published in May or June, the festival's ticket office opens ahead of the season and popular dates fill up, so book through the official site.

Paris's summer performing-arts programming spreads across venues in the city centre and beyond, including the Jardin des Tuileries, the Carreau du Temple, the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais. Fly into Charles de Gaulle (CDG) or Orly (ORY). From CDG, the RER B train reaches Châtelet-Les Halles in around 35 to 45 minutes; from Orly, use the Orlyval to Antony then RER B, or the tram and metro combinations. Châtelet is a central hub linking multiple metro and RER lines, putting most festival venues within a short ride or walk. Individual stages vary, so check each performance's address and nearest metro stop, but the dense network makes almost every venue easy to reach.

• Before you go, read the UK government's FCDO travel advice for France (entry requirements, safety and local laws).
• Flight delayed or cancelled on the way? See our Travel Disruption guide for your rights and live alerts.