Explore Black Paris of Yesterday & Today
Notre-Dame Cathedral
"All of my life I had been full of a hunger for a new way to live."
Richard Wright.
Welcome to Walking The Spirit Tours - the most indepth and entertaining series of year-round tours of Black Paris. We will accompany you through 200 years to relive the challenges and victories experienced by African-Americans and Africans as they recreated a life in the French capital.
You will stand in the same doorway James Baldwin crossed, browse the market the Beboppers shopped, and visit the bistro where artist Beauford Delaney sipped coffee. You'll also get to peek in the cafe where Richard Wright jotted his notes, study the landscape that inspired Lois Mailou Jones' paintings, stand beneath the marquee where the Harlem Hellfighters first jazzed up Paris, and stroll Josephine's and Bricktop's neighborhood.
Walk or Bus
Our Latin Quarter, Lower Montmartre and Little Africa tours are best done walking. You'll gain a real feel and intimate knowledge of each of these unique neighborhoods. But if time or energy is short, take in the full picture on our comprehensive mini or full-size bus tour, suitable for families and groups of all sizes. Or combine both, the choice is yours.
We Know Our Stuff
Our tour guides know their history and as Paris residents, they know Paris. They're passionate and, above all, entertaining storytellers ready to share what it's like to live in Paris then and now. You'll get warm and insightful accompaniment that self-guided tours lack.
No time to research? Then engage our expertise in your itinerary planning. Whether it's for one day or five, for groups or individuals, we will help you make the best of your time in Paris and beyond.
Paris is full of must-see sites and sharing its black presence with you is our number #1 goal.
We're looking forward to this journey with you!
Walking the Spirit Tours
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Walking The Spirit Tours is expanding!
First Black Paris, now Black Washington.
If you're planning a trip to the capital, include our fabulous one-day walking/drive tour through 300 years of high achievers. See historic homes, visit ground-breaking sites, hear inspiring stories.
For more details, go here.
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Have you seen the new Richard Wright stamp?
USPS did the honors on April 9th. The background of the image pays tribute to Wright's postal service in Chicago.
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New Itineraries
Go beyond Paris on your next trip!
Let our Itinerary Planning Service take you to Richard Wright's Normandy. Visit the village of his family farmhouse, stay where he wrote his haiku. Then continue on to the World War II beaches.
Visit Josephine Baker's chateau in the south of France. Her beloved castle has been lovingly transformed into an unforgettable display of mementos, costumes, photos, honorary medals, recreated family and personal rooms. We'll plan out your trip and help you discover what made Josephine fall in love with this gorgeous region.
Email to start your planning your trip now.
Unforgettable, off-the-beaten-path discoveries - that's Walking The Spirit Tours.
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Do you know where our Black Paris expatriates are buried? If you'd like to visit the resting place of Richard Wright, Chester Himes and James Baldwin, find out where, on our latest blog entry here:
Where Our Expatriates are Buried.
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We know Black History.
