5 Days in Paris - Help!

Old Apr 3rd, 2013, 03:33 PM
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5 Days in Paris - Help!

My 13 year old and myself are travelling to Paris for the first time in mid July. We have 6 nights and 5 days to see it all! We are staying at a B&B in the 5th District. We need help in planning our stay - we would really appreciate your advice. The only thing for sure I know we will do is attend church at Notre Dame on Sunday morning (we arrive late Saturday night)
My daughter wants to do either Parc Asterix or Disney (which is going to be less crowded? - Mom here doesn't tolerate the sun or long lines too well !), I want to do an escorted day bus tour to outside of Paris, that leaves us only 3 days inside Paris - what do you think?
I'd also like to do an evening river or canal cruise - recommendations?
For the day trip outside of Paris - while I love Castles I'd really like to have part of the day roaming around a village but I don't see many tour companies offering that sort of a tour - do you have any recommendations?
Our B&B hostess is willing to do some walking tours of the other districts with us which I think will be very helpful.
Eifel Tour - book a tour to avoid the lines or ??
Your help on this would be SO MUCH appreciated! Merci!
Callicotraveller is offline  
Old Apr 3rd, 2013, 03:48 PM
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I'll let others help you with the Paris part of your trip but with only five days in Paris I think you shouldn't do more than one day trip. CYou can take the RER A from Paris to Disneyland but I've always been completely baffled at how to plan a visit there. I sometimes read the Disney forum on Trip Advisor and the mind boggling amount of different passes and tips for planning a visit there has left me bewildered. And it seems awfully expensive. To get to Parc Asterix look at their website. I think you'd be much less likely to find lines there (though I've never been).

http://www.parcasterix.fr/en

There's no need to do a bus tour from Paris to do a day trip. There are loads of day trips you can do on your own to places within 1 hour from Paris that are accessible by train or a combo of train/bus. It will be much less costly to do this on your own. I am well acquainted with all the popular day trips from Paris and can help you reach any of these destinations on your own if you need assistance.

Keep in mind the technical definition of a village in France is a place with less than 2,000 people but I think what you mean is a quaint and charming place that's not too big and is pretty for walking around. Crécy-la-Chapelle, Moret-sur-Loing and Auvers-sur-Oise come to mind right away. Perhaps Monet's house and gardens at Giverny. Chartres is a larger town but besides its famous cathedral it has a lovely medieval old town.

Here is a brief list that summarizes many of the most popular day trips from Paris (within an hour and a half by train). There are certainly many others you could also do but this list covers most of the biggies:

Provins (an authentic walled medieval town): http://www.provins.net/

Château of Chantilly (wonderful fairytale château, famous art collection): http://www.chateaudechantilly.com/fr/
http://www.chantilly-tourisme.com/

Senlis (small medieval town can be combined with a visit to Chantilly):
http://www.senlis-tourisme.fr/accueil-senlis.php

Reims (champagne tours, great historic cathedral, museums):
http://www.reims-tourisme.com/

Epernay (champagne tours): http://www.ot-epernay.fr/

Fontainebleau (former royal town with famous château):
http://www.musee-chateau-fontainebleau.fr/
http://www.fontainebleau-tourisme.com/
http://www.uk.fontainebleau-tourisme.com/

Versailles (obvious):
http://en.chateauversailles.fr/homepage
http://www.versailles-tourisme.com/en/accueil.html

Château of Vaux-le-Vicomte (the château after which Louis XIV based his garden renovations for Versailles and IMO one of the most elegant château in France):
http://www.vaux-le-vicomte.com/
http://www.vaux-le-vicomte.com/en/vi...aires_plan.php

Rouen (small city, lots to do, wonderful cathedral, medieval old center): http://www.rouentourisme.com/

Giverny (Monet's house and gardens):
http://www.fondation-monet.fr/fr/
http://giverny.org/giverny/giverny.htm
http://www.vernon-visite.org/index.shtml

Chartres (the famous cathedral and wonderful old medieval town):
http://www.chartres-tourisme.com/en

http://www.discover-chartres.com/

Malcolm Miller Cathedral Tours:

Daily tours of Chartres Cathedral from Easter until late October are at 12 noon and 2.45 p.m. Not on Sundays, and during the winter occasionally or on request.
E-mail address is [email protected].

Compiègne (château with museums, wonderful old town. Can be combined with a visit to the château of Pierrefonds): http://www.compiegne-tourisme.fr/

Château of Pierrefonds (Magnificent fairytale looking château. Reconstructed in the 19th century but magnificent nonetheless. Can be combined with a visit to Compiègne):
http://www.pierrefonds.monuments-nationaux.fr/
http://pierrefonds-tourisme.net/ot/Bienvenue.html
http://www.compiegne-tourisme.fr/Le-...errefonds.html

Troyes (lovely small medieval city):
http://www.tourisme-troyes.com/

Laon (medieval hilltop town with a spectacular cathedral): http://www.tourisme-paysdelaon.com/

Crécy-la-Chapelle (small charming renowned artists village):
http://www.cc-payscrecois.fr/Crecy-la-Chapelle,203.html

Moret-sur-Loing (charming walled medieval village/artists village):
http://www.ville-moret-sur-loing.fr/rubrique.php?id=189
http://www.msl-tourisme.fr/index.php/francais/accueil

Auvers-sur-Oise (Van Gogh and other impressionist art history):
http://www.auvers-sur-oise.com/heading/heading899.html

Rueil-Malmaison (château of the Empress Josephine and a nice old downtown. On the RER A line and could be combined with a visit to Saint-Germain-en-Laye):
http://www.chateau-malmaison.fr/
http://www.rueil-tourisme.com/

Saint-Germain-en-Laye (former royal town with a wonderful château now home to the national museum of archaeology. On the RER A line and could be combined with a visit to Malmaison):
http://www.ot-saintgermainenlaye.fr/en/
http://www.saintgermainenlaye.fr/en/...ulture/musees/

Barbizon (famous artists village, can be combined with Fontainebleau):
http://www.barbizon-tourisme.fr/

These are the most popular day trips and all are worthwhile but there are many other less popular and equally worthy day trips. I could easily list a couple dozen more but only if what's on this list doesn't interest you. A good guide book for the Île-de-France region should give you more ideas.

You'll need to take a train from Paris to do these day trips. For info on trains in Paris and the nearby suburbs (métro and RER trains) use the website www.ratp.fr. Use the interactive map on this website to plan your trip: http://www.ratp.fr/plan-interactif/carteidf.php?lang=uk.

Parts of this website are in French so you can use an English language companion site www.vianavigo.com. For trains that go a bit further out in the Île-de-France region use the website www.transilien.com.

For trains that go further beyond the Île-de-France use the website www.voyages-sncf.com (in French only) or www.tgv-europe.com. A great website to learn about trains in France (and Europe) is www.seat61.com if you have any train questions/problems.

Paris and many of the places nearby in Île-de-France are divided into zones, numbered 1 through 5. Paris is in zone 1 and areas outside Paris are in zones 2 through 5. Some of the destinations I mentioned are in zone 5. For these journeys it will be more cost effective to buy a one day Mobilis pass for 15.65€ for zones 1 through 5. This will be cheaper than the point to point tickets round trip. Plus, this pass is good for unlimited travel on all public trains and buses for one day in zones 1-5. Buy it first thing in the morning before your first métro ride and it gets you to your train station, your round trip tickets, any buses you need to use at your destination and any traveling you'll do in Paris when you return. Before you use the ticket make sure to write your name and the date on the ticket. Don't forget to stick your ticket in the composting machine (ticket validation machine) before getting on your train. You can buy these passes from the ticket machines in métro/RER stations. Sometimes these machines have an English language option. If so, look for the one day Mobilis pass option. When you get to the screen that lists your zones to choose from press zone 1 and then press zone 5. You can also buy them at any ticket counter or stores that sell RATP tickets. They are good for 60 days so you can buy it in advance if you want to be prepared. It's not valid until you write your name and date on it and validate the ticket on your first métro/RER trip or at the train station.

Some of the day trips I mentioned will require a bus transfer once you arrive at the train station. If you choose one of these I can help you with bus info.
FrenchMystiqueTours is offline  
Old Apr 3rd, 2013, 03:58 PM
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My advice is to definitely skip the amusement park visit. It would be a shame to waste a day in Paris, especially since Disney parks, and others, are in the US. A crying shame! I think when you get to Paris, you will understand.
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Old Apr 3rd, 2013, 06:16 PM
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Wow, I hate to redirect this thread, but the list offered by
FrenchMystiqueTours is incredible. I can't remember seeing such a complete list of workable attractions in the vicinity of Paris before. Well done FMT!

To respond to Callicotraveller; I also agree that you should limit yourself to just one trip outside Paris in your 5 days. Unless EuroDisney or Astrix has some special appeal that we don't know about - I would agree with PeaceOut. My choice of day trip would be to Versailles. It is something your 13 year old would never forget - particularly if he/she has done some research or reading on the topic. I suggest the movie "Marie Antoinette" if that is more suitable.

Within Paris I think your time might be spent wisely visiting sites like le Louvre, Eiffel Tower, les Halles shopping district, Sacre Couer and Montmartre. A walk up the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe can take an afternoon. Go to the top of the Arc for a great view. Most Seine River cruises dock near the base of the Eiffel Tower. They tend to leave at least once per hour and there are different companies trying for your business. The cruises last about 60 minutes and are relaxing and entertaining. Try to leave yourself some relax time - just to sit in a park and watch the city pass you by. I hope you have a wonderful journey.

Your penchant for villages might be partially met at Marie Antoinette's farm at Versailles.

tC
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Old Apr 3rd, 2013, 06:56 PM
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TTT
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 02:51 AM
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Thanks teacherCanada. I keep the list in a word doc so it's as easy as copy and paste whenever the topic of day trips from Paris comes up.
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 03:23 AM
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Hi,

I, too, would choose Versailles. Not only is it a great day trip, but it is so easy to supplement with stories of kings, queens, and nobility. Sure to enchant.

Another thought might be Giverny. My Dad and son went when my son was 13 years old. The B&B arranged a van pick-up that went direct to Giverney. There are a few of them. They go to pre-arranged hotel stops and whisk you comfortably away to your destination.This was a combined London Paris trip for them and this was the favorite thing my son did on the whole trip. He came home telling me that one day he would buy a property in Normandy, "It is beautiful, Mom!". They loved Giverny too They especially loved Monet's kitchen and the walking bridge in the garden. The whole day was a hit.

Have a great trip!
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 03:26 AM
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Also! We did Paris Disney when my boys were 9 and 12. No one ever talks about it. Ever. You realise when you get there that everything else is so wonderful that it is not even on the radar.
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 03:53 AM
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I am also very impressed with your list FrenchMystiqueTours. Thanks for putting it all in one place. I am actually planning on Provins as a day trip this summer. I've researched the town itself but am unclear on the best way to get there (which train,etc.) Can you help?

To the OP - totally agree that you do NOT want to do an amusement park. Your daughter is 13, there is so much for her to fall in love with IN Paris, it would be such a shame to waste 25% of your time there going to an amusement park. My daughter was not all that much older than yours is now when she and I first went to Paris - it began a love affair that took her back to Paris for two study abroad's in college plus a year after college working and teaching English (not to mention numerous vacations). Have your daughter help you with the research of what there is to see IN Paris and I bet she'll get excited about it and be willing to give up the amusement park. In addition to the 'sites' plan some time for shopping, strolling, etc.
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 05:47 AM
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Sure isabel. To get to Provins you'll take a direct train from Gare de l'Est. You can look at schedules on www.transilien.com. The journey takes 1 hour 24 minutes. When you're looking at the times on that site for a certain date you only want the direct trains, not the routes with complicated transfers. The ticket to buy for this will be a one day Mobilis pass for zones 1-5 for 15.65€. It's good for one day on any public transport in zones 1-5. Cheaper than point to point tickets and covers all your transport in Paris and Provins for the day.

The train station in Provins is in the lower town. It's just under a 1km walk to the base of the hill leading to the upper town (the main visit area). The tourist office is outside the ramparts of the upper town and there is a local bus, line 9 circuit C, that takes you from the train station to the tourist office. You can check the website in the bus access section:

http://www.provins.net/index.php/tra...transport.html

Get all your tourist info here (maps, brochures etc.) and then start with a visit of the upper town and continue on. On the tourist website you'll find all the other info you need to plan your visit.

About the bus from the train station to the tourist office, here is a plan of the bus network where you can see the names of the stops:

http://www.provinsblog.fr/probus-res...in-de-provins/

Here is a PDF file for the schedules, in French only, but on the second page look for Circuit C:

http://www.procars.com/horaires/Lign...8PROBUS%29.pdf

Unfortunately it looks like there is almost always a 25 minute wait between the train and the bus connection so if you're up for it you might want to walk.
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Old Apr 4th, 2013, 01:20 PM
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Thank you. A 1 km walk is no problem.
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