Loacker

I'll be staying at my brother's apartment in Paris for one month this coming May. I've only been to Paris once before on a very short visit. Planning to explore it in depth this time.

I set aside $150 for sightseeing, $70 for the one month Navigo pass, and $100 for a splurge meal at Septime or another Michelin starred restaurant.(some offer a lunch menu for less than 50€)

1-Do you think $50/day for food will be adequate? I'm planning to eat out at lunch only at simple bistros. I will have breakfast and dinner at home.

2-Also,how should I go about sightseeing? Should I buy the six-day museum pass and see the major sights on the first week? Or should I forget the pass and book my museum tickets online?

Thanks in advance

Christina

I sure hope $50 a day is enough just for lunch. At first, I thought you were going to say for the whole day, and I would say that was skimpy, but I've never spent that for lunch in my entire life. Of course I don't go to Michelin starred restaurants, but I can't imagine why you couldn't eat at a simple bistro for that amount for lunch. Depending what you mean by simple. I presume not trendy/Michelin-starred, etc type places in wealthy areas. Besides, even in expensive places, lunch is chaaper than dinner.

I would never buy a 6 day museum pass and go to all major museums in 6 days when I was in Paris for a month, no. I'd forget the pass myself, in fact, I have only bought one once many years ago, and that was just because I wanted to go to the Orsay in a popular time period when it can get crowded. That pass costs 74 euro or over 12 euro a day. Most museums don't even cost that much, so it's not like you'd be saving money. The Louvre, Orsay and Pompidou are the only ones I know that do.

Whathello

If you stay at your brother, surely you can cook there or prepare some sandwiches, heat some prepared meals.
Just go to a supermarket in the neighbourhood, you'll eat for a few bucks.

janisj

I think your food budget is fine -- more some days and almost nothing other days.

But I think $150 for 'sightseeing' for a month is VERY low. Very few attractions/museums are free. I think you would need to more than double that amount.

Loacker

I wrote down the list of museums and monuments I want to see, with their respective admission fee, and that was the total.

Some days I will be hitting a museum, others just hanging around a park, or checking out a street market.

Sassafrass

With a month, I would try to do some day trips. A fabulous meal might be more important to you, so if it is, go for it, but that $100.00 would cover a day in Versailles or Giverny or probably both, and May would be a great time to see them. In addition to the chateau and park, the town of Versailles is very nice - a small walking area with a great market and little cafes. The market would be a good place to get bread, meat, cheese, etc. and have a picnic on the grounds of Versailles.

janisj

>>I wrote down the list of museums and monuments I want to see, with their respective admission fee, and that was the total.<<

My guess (just a guess) is your list is just a few of the most well known sites.

In a month you are bound to go to more than that. Say one morning you go to Notre Dame (the cathedral is free but the Towers cost €10) , Ste Chapelle and the Conciergerie (€15 for both) . . . all are very near each other and would cost €25/$30 . . . just in one morning.

If you bought a 6-day museum and monuments pass, it costs €74 / $85 which would leave you only $65 for 24 days (or less than $3 per day) of sightseeing. I just think you are underestimating what things will cost.

yestravel

I think your food budget is fine and may even be high for a simple lunch. As suggested some days you can even make yourself a picnic and sit in the park. I think $150 for a month of sightseeing is low. As mentioned most places cost. If you save $10 a day for food you'd have plenty! Have a wonderful trip.

Loacker

Thank you all for your replies.
I will make sure to bump up my sightseeing budget.

Regarding my food expenses, when I said $50/day, I estimated $30 for lunch at an inexpensive restaurant, $5 for a coffee/snack, and $15 for groceries or a dinner take-away.
So that's $50 for the day, not just lunch.

Seamus

I think your food budget is realistic - you may well get by on less but better to over-budget than under, and it allows for the occasional splurge. Will your brother be in residence and sharing meals? Things like <<poulet roti>> can cover a couple meals.

Also think bumping up your sightseeing budget is well advised.

f1racegirl

How much do you spend on food at home? That would be a good starting point for Paris - keeping in mind that's money you would spend anyway. Then add in a few lunches and dinners out and you will have a good guideline of what you can expect to spend.

I agree that your sightseeing budget is a bit low - but it's your trip and you can do whatever you want to do - within budget.

I also agree with the suggestion to take some day trips. There are many that you can do for free with your ND card.

denisea

Overall, your budget seems good. The museum pass is better for saving time waiting in line for tickets, than cost savings, IMO. Since you will be in Paris for a month, you should have plenty of time to see what you want.

One feature on the Paris Museum Pass site is the ability to map the museums and monuments. It will make it easier to plan you days and avoid back tracking. You will have a month, so lots of time to really explore each arrondisement and get to know them.

Some museums offer combo tickets. I am not sure if those offer any savings on cost but might be worth looking at. I think d'Orsay offers a combo with L'Orangerie and maybe also Musee Rodin. I think the longer you are there, the more things you may discover and want to see/visit.

PS--love that you are planning to contribute on groceries for dinner even though you are staying with your brother...ensures you will be invited back!

Enjoy Paris.

NYCFoodSnob

It's been too long to remember what it feels like to budget for a trip. I'm a firm believer in: Take as much money as you can, live as if this will be your last trip. No one can predict the future.

The only thing I can add:

1. A "splurge" meal to me is either 4-courses with wine and maybe a cocktail to start, or a chef's tasting menu. $100 seems closer to a tip, if you splurge the way I splurge. My splurge meals have been known to cost $300-$400 per person. These things are relative. Some of us have favorite chefs.

2. A fabulous sandwich or a great slice of pizza will save you a ton of money at lunch, but if I'm lunching at a favorite Michelin, refer to 1. above.

3. As for visiting sites, I have a simple rule: No weekends. My favorite days are the middle of the week. I enjoy a museum on a rainy day.

Have fun! I love spending a month in Paris.

Whathello

You can save by asking for 'une carafe d'eau'. Tap water. Free. Some say it is drinkable. Water I mean.

When someone is on budget I doubt he spends 300 whatever on a splurge. But if some want to show off and tell how wealthy they are good for me.
Being a good communist I don't care.

There are some very inexpensive places like flunge (sp ?) correct and a creperie is always a good quality price ratio.

Enjoy.

KodakMoment

"Take as much money as you can, live as if this will be your last trip. No one can predict the future." NYCFoodSnob

Or you could save as much money as you can, to allow for future trips.

"$100 seems closer to a tip, if you splurge the way I splurge. My splurge meals have been known to cost $300-$400 per person."

$400 for a meal is not a splurge. It's extravagance.
That's what students get by for a month. For most travellers, a $100 meal IS a splurge.

NYCFoodSnob

<i><font color=#555555>"Or you could save as much money as you can, to allow for future trips."</font></i>

Of course, you can do that. But, again, no one can predict the future.

On your flight home, the pilot could fly your plane into a mountainside. If you got one of those super-cheap flights on Turkish Airlines, ISIS could blow your plane out of the sky. When you land, you could get hit by a bus. What's the point of denying yourself a special splurge experience (one that you can afford) today when you have no idea what will happen to you tomorrow? To each his own.

Frankly, in my experience, most people who fall in love with travel find a way to afford future travel, whether they take a splurge on a trip or not. Some people just love the trap of thinking small.

<i><font color=#555555>"$400 for a meal is not a splurge. It's extravagance…For most travellers, a $100 meal IS a splurge."</font></i>

Perhaps on this board, $100 is a splurge. In the real world, not so true. I see plenty of "tourists" ordering <i>Quintessence</i> at Le Taillevent, but they don't post here.

<i><font color=#555555>"That's what students get by for a month."</font></i>

Who said anything about a student's budget? What does the word "student" have to do with the subject of this thread?

Loacker, I'm not suggesting you rob a bank or travel beyond your financial means. I'm simply responding to the questions you asked from my perspective.

I hope you have a fabulous month in Paris.

MaineGG

Here's a site with lists of museums and other sites that are free always or at certain times.

http://en.parisinfo.com/discovering-...ments-in-paris

We've enjoyed many of the municipal museums of Paris that are always free except for special exhibits. This site links to them and for many you can download an English language guide:

http://next.paris.fr/english/museums...-museums/p8229

Many museums are free on the first Sunday of the month. This year, the first Sunday in May is May 1st, a major holiday when most museums are closed.

As someone noted above, be sure to check out all the potential daytrips you could do in Zones 1-5 with your Navigo pass. A help in seeing the possibilities is the interactive map on the RATP site:

http://www.ratp.fr/plan-interactif/carteidf.php?lang=uk

What a great opportunity you have to spend a month in Paris. Hope you come back to share some of your experiences.

runningtab

Overall, I think your budget is fine, but it's not allocated at all the way I'd allocate it. I would need far, far less to spend for lunch and far, far more for sightseeing. The good thing is, once you're there you get to control what you spend your money on, so if you generally have an adequate budget, it will work.