Paris - City of Lights
 Paris is many things to many people,
the city of light, the city of romance, the city of gourmet food and
wine, and a city with a history rich in ideals, art and fashion. Paris
is a city with much to see and do. It is also a great location to use
as a base and enjoy day trips out to other parts of France. Let's take
a look at the 3 day plan first and then add additional day trips from
there.
If you arrive in Paris from CDG, you can arrange in advance for hotel pickup. Or, you can take a
taxi to the heart of Paris - cab fare is over $50 depending on the cab
driver. If you are traveling light and have only a little luggage, you
can take the RER train into Paris or you can take the Air France bus.
However, if you are arriving from the UK on the Eurostar, you will
terminate in the heart of Paris at Gare du Nord. Day trips from London
start here. If you want to see it all in a day, leave Gare du Nord,
wait for the Hop-on-hop-off bus and see the
highlights of Paris in an afternoon, finishing up at the end of the
day, ready to Eurostar back to London. If you are staying in Paris, you
will likely arrive in the late morning or early afternoon. Upon
arriving, take a taxi to your hotel if you are at the Gare du Nord.
Check into your hotel and let's see Paris! When leaving Paris for CDG,
a hotel pickup can also be arranged.
3 DAYS IN PARIS
The best way to get around the city is
the Metro, if you Metro often and plan to travel around central Paris,
it is best to buy a metro pass (the "Paris Visite" includes this along
with admission or discounts to several top attractions) for the day or
days you plan to do this. However, if you plan to spend your day in a
concentrated area, buying a book of 10 tickets at a time at the station
may be your most economical choice. This will give you tickets for
everyone in your party to use. We are going to stay in central Paris
and take a boat tour so we will buy the Paris Visite pass for 3 days
covering zone 1-3, which will give us discounts on the boat tour and
cover all modes of transport in those zones.
Take the metro to Notre Dame and the
heart of the city, Ile de Cite and Ile St. Louis. Paris was born on Ile
de Cite so it's a natural place to start. Notre Dame is a must see on
anyone's list. You can spend varying amounts of time here depending on
your interests. The Church itself is magnificent and the Rose windows
are unforgettable. You can walk the 387 steps to the top of the tower
and see the view or go below to the crypt. After you leave be sure to
walk to the back of the church for the view of the flying buttresses
and a great photo op. If you have time you may want to return to Ile de
Cite one morning and visit the famous church at the other end, Saint
Chapelle. The vision of the morning light coming through the long stain
glass windows behind the altar will be a sight that will stay with you
forever. It sparkles like a wall of jewels!
At this point many people move on to
another major sight, and if you do you will miss a chance to see the
real Paris the locals see. So come out of the Notre Dame gardens and
walk over the bridge in front of you to Ile St. Louis. This is truly a
microcosm of Paris. Here you will see wonderful little sidewalk cafes,
the famous Berthillon ice cream shop, and shops for each of the
necessities of life, colorful fresh produce, a bounty of cheeses,
meats, aromatic French spices, wines, and a bakery sending out whiffs
of French bread. Imagine walking out of your Ile St. Louis apartment
and conveniently collecting all of the fresh ingredients you need for
tonight's meal right on the main street below you! Since you can't do
that, you can do the next best thing, try one of the restaurants. There
are a number of good restaurants and many specialty boutiques and high
quality original art galleries. It's a great place to buy that painting
of Paris to forever be reminded of City of Lights. If it's time to eat,
try the Le Restaurant Au Sergent Recruteur for atmosphere and
a good sample of country French food. The brick walls, cassoulet, and
that bottle of French wine will let you know that you have arrived. And
you won't awaken the next morning to find yourself in the French
Foreign Legion!
As we approach nightfall it's time to
take a cruise on the Seine. This is a cruise we have done many times
and never tire of it. We think the Parisian architects designed the
most fabulous buildings of Paris right along the river. Cruising along
and seeing them illuminated with light will take your breath away.
There are a number of cruise companies and you can catch the cruises
day or night. We like night best. The Illuminations and Seine
Cruise Tour
is the best way to see the lights from the water
AND the land. If you do it on your own, the Bateaux (boats) are
available a short walk from the Alma Marceau metro station.
 L'Open Tour hop-on-hop-off bus for
a great view of Paris. This tour has 4 different legs and covers all of
the sights in central Paris. For $4 more than the standard fare you can
be covered for 2 days. It's well worth it to give you the travel
flexibility. While the metro is great for a quick trip, it is not very
scenic. And best of all you can buy the tickets in advance so you are
ready to go when you get there. On this tour you can hop off at great
sights like the Eiffel Tower, the Luxembourg gardens, Napoleon's tomb,
Rodin's museum, the Musee D'Orsay, the Louvre, and one of my personal
favorites, Montmartre. You can exit the bus and take the funicular up
to the Sacre Coeur. Remember, those scenes of Paris with the artist
painting the beautiful domed church and the church he is painting is in
the background? Well, the church is Sacre Coeur and the spot is the
Place du Tertre. Here you will see many artists painting scenes and
doing portraits. It's another great spot to buy that memory of Paris
direct from the artist. Surrounding the artist square are a number of
shops and restaurants. It's a nice lunch spot before you check out that
fabulous Neo-Romanesque church, Sacre Coeur.
In the afternoon you may want to stop
at the Galleries Lafayette, the famous Parisian department store with
the fabulous stain glassed dome ceiling. The first floor has a number
of better quality souvenirs, perfume, and fashionable jewellery
selections. You will also find interesting food halls and a quiet
little tea room upstairs to escape the crowds. Or you can exit the
store and head over to Place d'Opera nearby and get a table at the
world renowned Cafe de la Paix where you can enjoy coffee while you
gaze on one of the most beautiful buildings in Paris, the Opera House.
From here an interesting stop not far
away is the Place Madelaine with La Madeleine Church, modelled after a
Greek temple. It's a totally different architecture for a church and
well worth a look. The famous Paris food store called Fauchon is just
around the corner. If you would like to take a bit of Paris home with
you to recreate it in your kitchen later, stop by and pick up some
spices, condiments, or wine. You will enjoy seeing the variety and the
mouth-watering displays. As we move toward evening take the bus to the
Latin Quarter for dinner. The rue de la Huchette is a great place to
peruse the variety of ethnic restaurants on the left bank and make a
selection. After dinner you may want to go back over to the Eiffel
Tower and take a ride up to the top, it's a chance to see Paris
sparkling before you, what a sight!
On day 3, it's time to see one of the
great art museums of the world - the Louvre. This museum could take the
whole day if you let it. It is a beautiful palace on it's own, however,
the art it holds is extra special. If you are going to other museums
you may want to look into the Museum Pass as it can save you
money. Buying in advance will allow you to skip the lines and go right
in. If you want a more in depth tour, there are guided tours of the
Louvre available, conducted by people knowledgeable in the art and
antiques you will see. This choice will give you the most appreciation
for what you will be seeing.
Back to touring the Louvre, besides the
must sees of the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory,
don't miss the Napoleon Apartments as they are an excellent display of
some of the best Empire antiques, art and decor in a live in palace
setting. The Louvre has some good lunch spots and the mall attached to
the Louvre also has a food court upstairs with a wide range of food.
After you leave the Louvre walk through the Tuileries gardens, they are
lovely and there is a little cafe where you can have coffee and crepes.
Coming out of the gardens on the right is the Rue Rivoli. This is a
covered colonnade lined with shops. If you are into antiques, don't
miss Le Louvre des Antiquaires at number 2 Place du Palais Royal across
from the entrance to the Louvre on the Rue Rivoli side - it has museum
quality antiques.
Your afternoon can be spent walking
down the famous Champs-Elysees to the Arch de Triomphe or crossing over
to the left bank and visiting the Musee D'Orsay, the other great art
museum. Here you will see some of the famous impressionist paintings
for which France is best known. The building itself is an architectural
marvel as it is an old converted train station.
As you finish your day you may want to
stay on the left bank and try one of our favorite steak and pomme
frites places, the Entrecote Relais on Rue Benoit or another favorite
on the left bank near Notre Dame, Maitre Albert on Rue Albert.
Find out more...visit our section on Paris
Tours
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