Advice on paris trip?

Show all answers

Mozartmaid

There's a book out there called "the unofficial guide to Paris". It's the best guide book out there and I highly recommend you get it in planning your trip. But don't let it stop you from exploring the city on your own. Paris is magical and part of the magic is letting down your guard a little... slow down, go to a cafe..
As soon as you land, buy a map of the city and allow yourself to get lost in Paris. You can always find your way back, but you won't always see the best of it if you keep your nose stuck in a guidebook (though they are handy!) ;)

My favorite places:

Montemartre: at sunset
Musee D'Orsay: better than the Louvre, in my humble opinion
Le Quartier Latin: Best place for an inexpensive dinner
Le Marais: Place de Vosges--Victor Hugo lived here, beautiful square
Pere Lachaise--tons of very famous people are buried here from Jim Morrison to Chopin
Versailles: Make sure you set up a whole day to travel out here. It's well worth it! Try to pick a clear day--the gardens are heaven
Best place to see the Eiffel Tower:
From Trocadero--metro stop--go out of metro and head to your left---fantastic!

Anyway, enjoy yourself. Paris is the most beautiful city in the world; it's everything people say it is and then some.

Bon voyage!

ed s

BRAVO for choosing the world's prettiest city

My favorite place is Montmartre (check the restaurants, the painters, the romantic views on tour Eiffel in the evening)
I also like quartier latin, try some greek restaurants

Just let yourself walk in this beautiful city, eat baguette, take metros, etc just like the typical Parisian.

Note this is a FAQ, lots of websites and YA answers give numerous tips about Paris

Bon voyage,

Rick H

Um while your there you should see, Nortre Dame, The Effial Tower, the Arch de trimuph, the underground city under Nortre Dame, ride on the Sin River, eat french bread sandwiches at a trypical french Cafe, and more. Have fun

Rose T

I've given this advice several times...think about renting an apartment or staying in an apartment hotel instead of a regular hotel. There are a multitude of apartment rental agencies, so just google 'paris vacation apartment'.

If you want to do an apartment hotel, there are two at which I've stayed: (1) Appart Valley, which is on the edge of the Latin Quarter (a great place to explore) and is very close to a major metro/RER station (gare d'austerlitz). (2) Citadines, which has locations at different price points throughout the city.

An apartment or apartment hotel will probably have a slightly higher nightly rate than a regular hotel; HOWEVER, you can save at least that much on food by buying croissants from the closest bakery for breakfast, shopping in the market to prepare dinner at home, and eating only lunch out at brasseries.

As for time of year: Jan-Mar airfares are usually cheaper because it is low season. April through September are high season, so have higher fares. The downside for going in the winter is that the weather is chilly and overcast most days. Still, the city is a wonderful place to visit whether or not the weather is sunny.

If you're really into museums, you might buy the Museums and Monuments pass that gives you entry into a very long list of sights. If you're not that into museums, then this pass is not a good deal, so it really depends on your preferences.

Make sure that you walk through Jardin du Luxembourg. That's the one place I keep missing, but I've seen friends' photos and it's gorgeous. Also, make sure to walk through Palais Royal across from the Louvre. Every trip I go there and see different odd metal sculptures throughout the park.

If walking around street markets is something you would like, check out the one on rue Mouffetard (close to Appart Valley hotel mentioned above) or (my favorite) rue Montorgueil, which is close to Chatelet-Les Halles.

You should also try to buy a Carte Orange for the metro system. They are valid for Monday thru Sunday, and are sold only on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. You'll need one or two passport sized photos. If the first station you go to refuses, go to another station. Techinically this pass is only for Parisians, but enforcement is spotty at best. Trust me, you'll want to use the public transportation system to move around, and the Carte Orange will save you a ton of money.

Paris Traveler

Have you ever looked at Yahoo Trip Planner? It's way cool and has many great suggestions for hotels, restaurants, attractions and each has a link to the item for all the information you need--even reviews from other travelers. I used it very successfully to plan our anniversary trip and it worked out very well. You can see our trip from last May on the URL below. Bonne chance and bon voyage!!

Dean G

Don't let him out of your sight French chicks are hot.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: