Salon du Chocolat (Paris Chocolate Fair): Dates, Tickets & Venue (Paris)

What the fair actually is

Salon du Chocolat is not a single tasting room, it’s an exhibition-hall-sized trade fair that opens to the public. Hundreds of chocolatiers, from small French artisans to international producers, set up stands to sell, sample and demonstrate. Alongside the commercial stands you get chocolate sculpture displays, cooking demonstrations, and a program of ticketed workshops for both adults and children.

It began in Paris in the 1990s and has since spread to other cities worldwide, but the Paris edition remains the original and the largest. For 2026 it runs October 28 through November 1 at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles.

Finding your way to Porte de Versailles

The venue sits in the 15th arrondissement, at the southwestern edge of the city, and is built specifically for large trade fairs, so it’s used to handling crowds.

• Métro: Line 12, Porte de Versailles station, exits directly onto the exhibition center
• Tram: T3a, Porte de Versailles stop
• Bus: several lines terminate nearby, including the 39 and 80

Driving in is possible but the complex has its own paid parking structures, which fill fast on weekend afternoons; arriving by métro is simpler for a first visit.

The chocolate runway, this fair’s signature moment

Most trade fairs don’t have a catwalk. Salon du Chocolat does. Its “défilé en chocolat” is a fashion show where models wear garments made partly or entirely of chocolate, designed by chocolatiers and fashion houses together. It’s the single most photographed moment of the week and usually draws the thickest crowds of any single scheduled event inside the halls. If a runway show is part of the 2026 program, it will be listed with its own time slot on the official schedule, separate from general admission hours, so check that page specifically rather than assuming it’s included with a standard ticket.

Tastings, sculptures and workshops

Inside the halls, the format repeats across sections: a chocolatier’s stand, small tasting samples offered as you pass, and full bars or boxes for sale to take home. Sculpture displays, ranging from statues to architectural set-pieces built entirely from tempered chocolate, are staged as photo points between the commercial aisles.

Workshops run on a separate booking track from general entry. Past editions have included:

• Pastry and chocolate-making classes for adults
• Family and children’s sessions, often shorter and simpler
• Guided tastings led by chocolatiers explaining origin and cacao percentage

Workshop slots are limited and tend to book out before general admission tickets do, so if a specific class is the reason you’re coming, treat that booking as the priority.

Picking your day

The fair runs five days, and how it feels changes a lot depending on which one you pick. Weekday mornings draw fewer families and more trade visitors and serious chocolate buyers. Weekends, especially the Saturday and the final Sunday, pull in the biggest general-public crowds, partly because the runway show and headline demonstrations are often scheduled then.

If your priority is actually tasting and talking to chocolatiers rather than fighting through aisles, a weekday slot serves you better. If the runway show and the overall spectacle matter more to you than elbow room, plan for a weekend and arrive as close to opening as the schedule allows.

Getting the most from the stands

The venue is arranged in aisles by exhibitor, which rewards a plan rather than aimless wandering.

• Bring a tote bag or box. You will end up carrying purchased bars, truffle boxes and sometimes fragile sculptures; the fair doesn’t hand out sturdy bags at every stand.
• Pace your tastings. Samples are small, but stacked across dozens of stands they add up; skipping around by chocolate style (dark, praline, single-origin) keeps your palate fresher longer.
• Card and cash both work at most stands, though smaller independent producers sometimes prefer card minimums or cash for small purchases, as at most French markets.
• Talk to the makers. Many chocolatiers staffing their own stands are happy to explain sourcing and technique if you ask; it’s one of the few fairs where the person behind the counter often made what you’re eating.

Before you go

Confirm timing and tickets on the official Salon du Chocolat site. Paris Expo Porte de Versailles hosts back-to-back trade fairs throughout the year, so the exact hall number, opening hours and entry requirements for this event are listed there rather than assumed to repeat from year to year. The same source carries the runway show schedule and workshop booking, both of which move faster than general admission.