Explore the real-world places that appear in The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include 74 rue Campagne-Première, Café de Flore, Les Deux Magots, Shakespeare and Company, Musée de Montmartre and 9 more.
Montparnasse — Hemingway's first Paris apartment
Ernest and Hadley move into this modest apartment in the winter of 1921, shortly after their marriage. The apartment becomes their first home together in Paris, a cramped but magical space where Hemingway writes and Hadley adapts to being a writer's wife. The couple struggles financially but are deeply in love, and this apartment represents the idealistic beginning of their life together before success and temptation complicate their marriage.
Built in the early 20th century, 74 rue Campagne-Première became home to numerous artists and writers during the 1920s. The building was part of Montparnasse's bohemian renaissance, attracting expatriates and creative figures fleeing post-war America and Europe.
The building still stands as a residential apartment complex. A plaque commemorates Hemingway's residence here. The street remains a charming Parisian neighborhood with cafés and galleries, though it is now primarily private apartments not open to public tours.
Boulevard Saint-Germain — Where Hemingway wrote and socialized
Ernest frequents this legendary café to write and meet fellow expatriate writers. Hadley observes the intense artistic world swirling around her husband as he drinks coffee for hours, working on short stories and his novel. The café becomes emblematic of Ernest's devotion to his craft and the stimulating but sometimes isolating literary scene that draws him away from domestic life with Hadley.
Café de Flore opened in 1887 and became the intellectual heart of Paris's Left Bank by the 1920s. Sartre, Beauvoir, Picasso, Hemingway, and countless other luminaries made it their headquarters during the golden age of modernism.
Café de Flore remains one of Paris's most famous establishments, operating continuously as a café and restaurant. It retains its Belle Époque interior and is a major tourist attraction, though prices are significantly elevated from its bohemian heyday.
Visit: Café de Flore (restaurant)
Boulevard Saint-Germain — Literary café and gathering place
Hadley and Ernest visit this iconic café where the expatriate literary community congregates. Hadley witnesses the competitive energy and intellectual ferment of the 1920s Paris arts scene, observing how writers and artists like Fitzgerald, Pound, and Stein debate aesthetics and ambitions. The café represents both the excitement and the exclusionary nature of the Lost Generation that gradually marginalizes Hadley.
Les Deux Magots opened in 1914 and became a favorite haunt of Surrealists and modernist writers by the 1920s. Named after the wooden magots (Chinese figures) that decorated the original storefront, it was second only to Café de Flore as the intellectual epicenter of the Left Bank.
Still operating as a restaurant and café, Les Deux Magots maintains its intellectual cache and attracts tourists and locals alike. The interior has been carefully preserved to evoke its 1920s glory, though it is now firmly established as a heritage destination rather than an active artist's hangout.
Visit: Les Deux Magots (restaurant)
37 rue de la Bûcherie — Sylvia Beach's legendary bookshop
Hadley frequents Sylvia Beach's famous bookshop, the intellectual and social epicenter of the expatriate writer community. Ernest conducts business here, borrows books for his reading, and connects with other writers and patrons. The shop becomes a refuge for Hadley as she navigates the complexities of marriage to an ambitious artist, offering her a space of calm contemplation away from the crowded cafés.
Shakespeare and Company was founded by Sylvia Beach in 1919 and became the most influential English-language bookshop in Paris. Beach published James Joyce's Ulysses and served as mentor, librarian, and confidante to virtually every major modernist writer of the era.
The original Shakespeare and Company was destroyed during World War II. A new Shakespeare and Company reopened after the war at a different location (37 rue de la Bûcherie) and operates today as a historic bookstore and tourist destination, beloved by literature fans worldwide.
Visit: Shakespeare and Company (landmark)
12 rue Cortot — Where Hadley and Ernest experience bohemian Paris
Hadley and Ernest explore Montmartre, visiting studios and galleries that showcase the artistic legacy of the neighborhood. Hadley observes the bohemian world that shaped the artistic consciousness of her husband and his contemporaries, gaining insight into the creative ferment that drives Ernest's ambitions and occasionally takes him away from their marriage.
Montmartre was the center of Paris's artistic Renaissance from the late 19th century through the 1920s. Renoir, Van Gogh, Picasso, and countless other artists lived and worked in its studios. The neighborhood epitomized bohemian culture and artistic freedom.
The Musée de Montmartre operates in a historic building (Maison Poulbot) in the neighborhood, displaying art and ephemera from Montmartre's golden age. The area remains one of Paris's most charming and romantic quarters, though commercialization has diluted its authentic bohemian character.
Visit: Musée de Montmartre (museum)
Montagne Sainte-Geneviève — Daily provisioning in the Left Bank
Hadley navigates the daily rituals of Parisian domestic life, shopping at this lively street market for food and provisions. The market represents her role as wife and homemaker, the unglamorous but essential work of maintaining their household on a tight budget. Through Hadley's eyes, the market becomes both a source of simple pleasure and a subtle reminder of how she is being left behind as Ernest's literary career ascends.
Rue Mouffetard has been a major marketplace in Paris since the Middle Ages, serving the Left Bank neighborhood for centuries. By the 1920s, it was already an established and beloved fixture of Parisian daily life, the heart of the working-class Left Bank.
Rue Mouffetard remains one of Paris's most authentic and popular street markets, operating daily with vendors selling fresh produce, cheese, bread, and flowers. It retains much of its character from the 1920s and is popular with both locals and tourists seeking an authentic Parisian experience.
Visit: Rue Mouffetard Market (landmark)
Passy District — Walks, riding, and brief escapes from city life
Hadley and Ernest escape to this vast, beautiful woodland park on the western edge of Paris for respite from their cramped apartment and the intensity of the literary scene. They walk, ride horses, and find moments of peace and connection away from cafés and competing artists. The park represents the natural world that both of them love but that becomes increasingly secondary to Ernest's literary ambitions.
The Bois de Boulogne was redesigned in the mid-19th century as part of Baron Haussmann's modernization of Paris. By the 1920s, it was a fashionable retreat for Parisians seeking nature and leisure within the city.
The Bois de Boulogne remains one of Paris's largest and most popular parks, offering forests, lakes, gardens, and recreational facilities. It is accessible to the public and maintains its appeal as an urban sanctuary and romantic destination.
Visit: Bois de Boulogne (park)
Place Vendôme — Hemingway's post-war haunt and symbol of excess
Ernest becomes increasingly drawn to the luxurious Ritz Hotel, a symbol of the wealth and status he craves as his writing gains recognition and acclaim. Hadley watches as her husband gravitates toward the sophisticated world of wealthy Americans and aristocrats, his ambitions expanding beyond literature into a lifestyle of glamour and excess. The Ritz represents the seductive pull of wealth that gradually drives a wedge between Ernest and Hadley.
The Ritz Hotel opened in 1898 and became synonymous with luxury and sophisticated Parisian hospitality. During the 1920s and 1930s, it was the gathering place of wealthy Americans, aristocrats, and celebrities, representing the pinnacle of Belle Époque elegance.
The Ritz Paris remains one of the world's most prestigious luxury hotels, fully operational and consistently ranked among the finest establishments globally. It has been recently renovated while maintaining its historic grandeur and remains a symbol of Parisian elegance.
Visit: The Ritz Paris (landmark)
Left Bank — Heart of the expatriate literary quarter
This charming street in the heart of the Latin Quarter is lined with bookshops, galleries, and cafés frequented by Ernest and Hadley. The street embodies the intellectual and artistic community that forms the core of their social life in Paris. As Ernest's ambitions grow and he spends more time away from Hadley, rue de l'Odéon becomes the geography of his expanding world—a world she increasingly observes from the outside.
Rue de l'Odéon developed as an intellectual district in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, becoming the epicenter of the expatriate literary scene. Joyce, Pound, Stein, and numerous other modernist writers and artists made this street their habitat.
Rue de l'Odéon retains much of its literary character, with several historic bookshops still operating. It remains a charming pedestrian street popular with tourists and literature enthusiasts, though the revolutionary artistic ferment of the 1920s has been replaced by more commercialized tourism.
Visit: Rue de l'Odéon Historic District (landmark)
Eastern Paris — Portal to travels and separations
Hadley experiences poignant departures and reunions at this grand railway station as Ernest travels frequently—to bullfights in Spain, skiing trips, and eventually longer assignments that keep him away from home. The station becomes a symbol of the separations that strain their marriage, as Hemingway's wanderlust and professional ambitions increasingly pull him away from domestic life with Hadley.
Gare de l'Est opened in 1849 and became one of Paris's major railway hubs, connecting the city to eastern Europe and beyond. By the 1920s, it was a bustling portal for both commerce and leisure travel.
Gare de l'Est remains one of Paris's major railway stations, fully operational and serving millions of passengers annually. The Belle Époque facade has been carefully preserved, and the station is accessible to the public as a historic landmark and working transportation hub.
Visit: Gare de l'Est (landmark)
Île de la Cité — The spiritual and architectural soul of Paris
Hadley finds solace and spiritual contemplation in the great cathedral, its grandeur and permanence offering perspective on the tumultuous emotional landscape of her marriage. The cathedral represents the enduring beauty and stability of Paris itself, a counterweight to the chaos and ambition of the literary world that increasingly consumes her husband. For Hadley, Notre-Dame is a place of refuge and reflection.
Notre-Dame de Chartres was constructed over nearly two centuries beginning in the 12th century and stands as one of the greatest achievements of Gothic architecture. By the 1920s, it was already nearly 800 years old, a symbol of eternal Paris transcending contemporary fashions and anxieties.
Notre-Dame de Paris remains one of the world's most iconic and visited religious structures, though it suffered catastrophic fire damage in April 2019. Reconstruction efforts are ongoing, with the cathedral not yet reopened to the public as of 2024, though exterior viewing remains possible.
Boulevard Edgar-Quinet — Resting place of artistic giants
Hadley walks through this vast cemetery where many of the artists, writers, and composers who shaped Paris's cultural legacy are buried. The cemetery evokes both the grandeur and the mortality of the artistic world that surrounds her. Standing among the graves of Balzac, Baudelaire, and other titans, Hadley contemplates the lasting legacy of great artists—and the wives left behind in their shadow.
Montparnasse Cemetery was established in 1824 and became the preferred burial ground for Paris's intellectual and cultural elite. By the 1920s, it was already a pantheon of French and European greatness, a testament to the enduring power of artistic achievement.
Montparnasse Cemetery remains one of Paris's most visited cemeteries, popular with tourists and locals alike who come to pay respects to celebrated artists, writers, and cultural figures. It is accessible to the public and retains its contemplative, memorial character.
Visit: Montparnasse Cemetery (historic site)
Provence — The site of Hemingway's infidelity and marriage's unraveling
At this villa in the south of France, the full extent of Ernest's affair with Pauline Pfeiffer becomes undeniable to Hadley. She discovers that her husband has been intimate with the wealthy American woman while Hadley was pregnant and caring for their young son. The villa becomes the physical location where Hadley's marriage fatally fractures, where she recognizes that Ernest will choose ambition, passion, and financial security over his devotion to her.
While the specific villa is fictionalized or generalized in the novel, the Provence region was a popular destination for wealthy Americans and literary figures during the 1920s, offering escape, romance, and luxury away from Paris's intensity.
The exact villa location is not publicly documented or accessible. The Provence region remains beautiful and popular with tourists seeking Mediterranean beauty and French countryside charm.
Left Bank — Paradise of contemplation and loss
Hadley walks through this magnificent garden with her son Bumby, finding peace and maternal contentment in the pastoral beauty. The garden represents the quiet, domestic happiness that Hadley values—the simple joys of watching her son play, of contemplating beauty, of existing outside the competitive frenzy of the literary world. Yet even here, in one of Paris's most serene spaces, she cannot escape the knowledge of Ernest's infidelity and the inevitable dissolution of her marriage.
The Jardin du Luxembourg was created in the 1610s for Queen Marie de Medici and has been a beloved public garden ever since. By the 1920s, it was already a centuries-old sanctuary for Parisians seeking respite, beauty, and contemplation.
The Jardin du Luxembourg remains one of Paris's most beautiful and popular parks, fully accessible to the public. It retains much of its historic layout and charm, with fountains, sculptures, and tree-lined paths that have changed little since Hadley's time.
Visit: Jardin du Luxembourg (park)
More by Paula McLain: All Paula McLain books
More novels set in Paris: Browse all Paris books on Map A Story
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