Alas, gone are the days when Montmartre was a tranquil village packed with vines and windmills, although two 'moulins' (windmills) and a small patch of vines do still subsist. Today, perched high on the 'Butte' (Paris' highest and most northerly hill), the area is tightly packed with houses, spiraling round the mound below the sugary-white dome of the Sacré-Coeur like cubist mushrooms. But despite the thronging tourists (chiefly around place du Tertre) it remains the most unabashedly romantic part of Paris - a place in which to climb quiet stairways, peer down narrow alleys onto ivy-clad houses, and watch the world go by in atmospheric cafés, especially along rue des Abbesses, rue des Trois Frères and rue des Martyrs. Artists have historically been attracted to Montmartre since Renoir and Toulouse-Lautrec immortalized the cabarets here in the late 19th-century; and even today an arty vibe lives on thanks to the upwardly-mobile film, music and media types that have moved in. At the foot of Montmartre, Pigalle has a reputation as Paris' centre for sleaze. Peep shows and sex shops still do line the boulevard, but a younger, hipper and resolutely more wholesome crew line the pavements nowadays, queuing to get into cool music clubs like the Boule Noire, La Cigale, and La Machine du Moulin Rouge - a hotbed of electro sound next door to the Moulin Rouge cabaret. Just south of Pigalle, you'll find the often overlooked quarter of New Athens (Nouvelle Athènes) - named after the neo-Classical mansions built by waves of artists, writers and composers in the early 19th-century. To glimpse at these miniature palaces, wonder along rue Ballu, rue St Lazare (painter Paul Delaroche lived at N° 58), rue de la Tour-des-Dames and rue de la Rochefoucauld. The Musée Gustave Moreau on rue de la Rochefoucauld is reason alone to come, featuring the artist's cluttered apartment and light-filled studio. Another wonderful museum is the Musée de la Vie Romantique, which displays mementoes of George Sand's life. It is especially lovely in summer when the rose garden turns into a tearoom. Nightlife in Montmartre & Pigalle La Boule Noire The 'Black Ball' (a former dance hall and cabaret run by the same team as La Cigale) is one of the best rooms for emerging rockers and confirmed groups looking to play an intimate venue. Metallica, The Kills, The Libertines and Cat Power have all graced the stage. Look out for the Boule Noire's Fallenfest music events throughout the year: they're a chance to get up close and personal with the hottest new acts on Paris' music scene. Autour de Midi-Minuit The Tuesday night boeuf (jam session) is always free, as are many other jazz concerts - some by big names like Laurent Epstein, Yoni Zelnik and Bruno Casties. The upstairs restaurant serves reasonably priced French classic cuisine. Le Trianon The Trianon concert hall adds a touch of class to boulevard de Rochechouart with its Belle Epoque architecture and enviable line-up of artists: Tricky, Raphael Saadiq, Moriarty and Macy Gray have all played here, following in the footsteps of French greats like Mistinguett and Jacques Brel. It also doubles as a venue for one-man shows, musicals and circus acts. Since May 2011 you can dine within the art deco surroundings of its adjacent café-bar ‘le Petit Trianon’, which serves good quality French staples like traditional jambon de Paris (Paris ham) served with artisanal mustard. The terrace, sandwiched between the wall and the pavement, also makes a prime spot for watching the local fauna – a Spritz (Campari, orange slices, white wine and fizzy water) in hand, of course. Le Bus Palladium This legendary rock venue, graced by the likes of Mick Jagger and The Beatles in its heyday, is back on the map after a 20-year spell out of the limelight with a vintage house vibe somewhere between retro rockabilly and punk psychedelia. While the new generation gets wild in the pit, former regulars are trying to catch their breath at the restaurant upstairs (8pm-5am Tue-Sat). Check the programme for concerts. Club nights on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays are a guaranteed riot, and diners get in for free. La Machine du Moulin Rouge So long La Loco, enter La Machine. This three-floor bar/club/live venue has had a substantial makeover and is now reborn with a dash of decadence. The main dancefloor, La Chaufferie, used to be the Moulin Rouge's boiler room and the old pipes remain, but the new Alice in Wonderland-style decor is a breath of fresh air. If you can't take the heat, head for the new terrace or switch to the bouncing Central, a concert hall showcasing new and established talent. Les Trois Baudets All dolled up in black and red, with a 250-seater theatre, an enviable sound system, two bars and a restaurant, this new concert hall encourages chanson française and other musical genres (rock, electro, folk and slam) - as long as they're in French. Hotels in Montmartre & Pigalle Hôtel Particulier Montmartre Visitors lucky (and wealthy) enough to manage to book a suite at the Hôtel Particulier Montmartre will find themselves in one of the city's hidden gems. Nestled in a quiet passage off rue Lepic, in the heart of Montmartre and opposite a mysterious rock known as the Rocher de la Sorcière (witch's rock), this sumptuous Directoire-style house is dedicated to art, with each of the five luxurious suites personalised by an avant-garde artist. The private garden conceived by Louis Bénech (famous for the Tuileries renovation) adds the finishing touch to this charming hideaway. Hôtel Amour Opened back in 2006, this boutique hotel is a real hit with the in crowd. Each of the 20 rooms is unique, decorated on the theme of love or eroticism by a coterie of contemporary artists and designers such as Marc Newson, M&M, Stak, Pierre Le Tan and Sophie Calle. Seven of the rooms contain artists' installations, and two others have their own private bar and a large terrace on which to hold your own party. The late-night brasserie has a coveted outdoor garden, and the crowd is young and beautiful and loves to entertain. Terrass Hotel There's nothing spectacular about this classic hotel, but for people willing to pay top euro for the best views in town, it fits the bill. Ask for room 704 and you can lie in the bath and look at the Eiffel Tower. Julien Rocheteau, trained by Ducasse, is at the helm of gastronomic restaurant Diapason; in fine weather, opt for a table on the seventh-floor terrace, open from June to September. What to see and do in Montmartre & Pigalle Musée de l'Erotisme Seven floors of erotic art and artefacts amassed by collectors Alain Plumey and Joseph Khalifa. The first three run from first-century Peruvian phallic pottery through Etruscan fertility symbols to Yoni sculptures from Nepal; the fourth gives a history of Paris brothels; and the recently refurbished top floors host exhibitions of modern erotic art. Musée National Gustave Moreau This wonderful museum combines the small private apartment of Symbolist painter Gustave Moreau (1826-98) with the vast gallery he built to display his work - set out as a museum by the painter himself, and opened in 1903. Downstairs shows his obsessive collector's nature with family portraits, Grand Tour souvenirs and a boudoir devoted to the object of his unrequited love, Alexandrine Dureux.Upstairs is Moreau's fantasy realm, which plunders Greek mythology and biblical scenes for canvases filled with writhing maidens, trance-like visages, mystical beasts and strange plants. Don't miss the trippy masterpiece Jupiter et Sémélé on the second floor.Printed on boards that you can carry around the museum are the artist's lengthy, rhetorical and mad commentaries. Musée de la Vie Romantique When Dutch artist Ary Scheffer lived in this small villa, the area teemed with composers, writers and artists. Aurore Dupin, Baronne Dudevant (George Sand) was a guest at Scheffer's soirées, along with great names such as Chopin and Liszt. The museum is devoted to Sand, although the watercolours, lockets, jewels and plastercast of her right arm that she left behind reveal little of her ideas or affairs. Venues to check out... La Fourmi Chez Michou Musée de Montmartre Musée d'Art Halle St-Pierre
