Best way to enjoy last day in France?

Option 2 all the way for me. A night in Paris is still a night in Paris.

You can save sensible and practical for when you're back at work...

I go to Paris, no doubt, stay at my favorite hotel, walk around a bit and have dinner at my favorite Paris restaurant. You would have time in the morning for a croissant and coffee at an outdoor cafe as well. No matter how many times I get to Paris, I will always enjoy some cafe sitting and people watching.

Option 2. Absolutely.

But CDG is a horror - I'd aim for 3 hours before the flight. Maybe there is not time in the morning for cafe sitting!

Option 2, with a leisurely enjoyment of a focused area--whether the Louvre environs & maybe a boat ride on the Seine, the Left Bank, the Marais, or by the Eiffel Tower; a hotel with net access to confirm flight, times, etc.; and an easy bistro/cafe dinner, or else a walkaway crepe by the Eiffel Tower and an evening stroll to imprint those beautiful views to take with you.

Count me in for #2! A hotel near the RER line to the airport, then an afternoon and evening sounds like a nice way to just slow down. Since you have already been there before would be no need to run around trying to cram in sights. Dinner at an outdoor cafe, then perhaps a Seine cruise after dark, followed by time spent standing/sitting on one of the Seine bridges (Pont Neuf, des Arts), then beddy bye and up early next morning, easy ride to CDG on RER.

If you do Option 1, could still fit in a couple of hours in the City that night.

Why am I not surprised by the unanimous vote for #2? I guess I also knew #2 was the right answer, but just needed some encouragement. I just booked the TGV tickets to Gare de Lyon and got a nice price of 22 E each. Thanks everyone!

Now I'll go into hotel research mode, but in the meantime if anyone has a recommendation...

Michel, like your idea of staying near the RER line. If I understand my maps correctly the B line running north-south through the city is the one going to CDG? From our last trip I remember liking the neighborhood around Cluny and St Michel, which appear to be near the B line. I also loved the Marais, which appears to be farther from the B but maybe that's OK too.

We like smaller boutique hotels rather than large chains. Something in the 250 to 300 euro range.

Any additional advice is appreciated!

St Michel RER stop works out great because of its central location. I stayed at the Notre Dame hotel, if I looked out my window I could see the RER sign...and some big Cathedral in the background That would be really convenient.

Why not rent a car and take a leisurely drive up to a hotel next to CDG for the last night? You could (briefly) see a number of sights along the way to stimulate you for your next trip to France.

Kerouac, this is an interesting idea, and I think we'd consider it if we had 2 days instead of one. Via Michelin is saying the drive takes around 6.5 hours staying on motorways, so that wouldn't leave much time to sightsee if we try to do it in one day. And we don't want to cut additional days from our Provence itinerary.

I'm not worried about stimuation for additional trips to France! I already know this trip is one of many I'll make in the future!

Hi bniemand, did you decide on a hotel yet for your last day in Paris?

Just curious because I will be renting an apartment in Paris next June for 7 nights then going up to Normanday for 3 nights, coming back to Paris to stay over for my last night and flying out of CDG the next afternoon.

We also like small boutique hotels.

Hi Janiekins, yes I did book a hotel! Thanks for reminding me to post about it!

I decided to go with my original desire, which was to stay in the Marais area. We're staying at the Hotel Duo
http://www.duo-paris.com/EN/hotel.php

The location looks perfect in terms of easy access to public transportation...the hotel is very close to the Hotel De Ville Metro stop... just 2 stops away from Gare de Lyon. Then when we leave for the airport the hotel is also near the Chatelet RER stop. And it's a short walk across the river to the sites/areas I want to visit -- Notre Dame, Saint Germain and the Latin Quarter.

Of course, I have a bad feeling that by the time we get to Paris I'll have amassed large quantities of souvenirs, we won't want to juggle luggage on the subways, and we might end up in taxis. Oh well, at least we have options!

I spent a fun afternoon researching restaurants and decided to go with Itineraires for our one dinner.

I hope you have a wonderful trip! Please do a trip report when you get back!

The early Avignon TGV arrives at CDG at 9:25AM.