This is our itnerary for our week in Paris. We tried not to over schedule. Please let me know what you think:
Saturday,
Leave Oakland Airport at 1pm
Sunday,
Arrive in Paris, get shuttle bus to apartment
Walk around and over the bridges of the Seine. Have an early dinner and to bed.
Monday
Paris Walks
Ile de la Cité and Notre Dame 10.30am Read the stories in the medieval sculptures, and hear how the
cathedral was built. We explore the history and architecture of the Island, the old streets, secret courtyards
and the poignant memorial to the deported. Meet at metro Cité Notre Dame
Fat Tire Afternoon Bike Day tour
Tuesday
Paris Walks
The Marais Circuit 1 10.30am This is the most unspoilt historic quarter in Paris. Beautiful architecture
from picturesque medieval streets to splendid classical mansions, and the lovely royal square, the place des
Vosges. We look at architecture, history, hear stories of the famous inhabitants such as Victor Hugo and
Mme de Sevigné, famous for her witty letters. Meet at metro St Paul
PM Sainte-Chapelle AND Boatride down the Seine – 4th
Wednesday
Versaille
Thursday
AM Musee D’Orsay
Lunch at Jardin du Tuilarries
PM L’Orangerie
Fat Tire evening Bike Tour
Friday
Am Musee du Louvre-1st
The Village of Montmartre 2.30pm On this picturesque walk you will discover old
winding streets, the vineyard, artists' studios (Renoir, Lautrec, Van Gogh) quiet gardens, historic cabarets,
the place-du-Tertre with its artists and the Sacré Coeur Basilica. Meet at metro Abbesses
Evening stroll down Champs-Elysees from L’Arc de Triophe to Place de la Concorde – 8th
Saturday
Tour Eiffel
Champ de Mars
Rue Cler
Musee Rodin – 7th
Sunday
Fly Home

IMO you are taking too many organized tours. Paris Walks are good - but in 6 days do you really need 3 of them plus two Fat Tire tours??

I'm with janis in wondering why you feel the need for so many organized tours. Paris isn't much more difficult to get around and enjoy than San Francisco. In fact, it's easier.

I don't know how much you are interested in art, but the museums tend to be more crowded in the mornings, especially with noisy tour groups being herded around to "cover" seeing the most famous artworks. If you are going to the Louvre just to see Mona Lisa, the Venus, Michaelangelo, Reubens, etc., you should plan to go at night.

Also, you shouldn't go to Ste Chappelle unless it's a sunny day.

I like to do a museum and then skip a day and do something else. Museum walking is asurprisingly tiring and I like to separate the art from each museum.

Be sure to secure tickets for the Musée de l'Orangerie early on your trip. It gets crowded during tourist season.

Is this your first trip to Paris? If so then I agree about the number of tours you're taking.

Monday - you have a morning walking tour of the area but the tour does not go into Notre Dame and you do not have the church on your schedule. You might want to skip one of the tours and take the free Notre Dame tour of the church. It's given by volunteers on Wednesday and Thursday at 2:00 and Saturday at 2:30. The tour is scheduled for an hour and a half but usually lasts longer.

Tuesday afternoon - I prefer the boat rides at night to see the lights. They run until 11:00 or midnight so there is plenty of time after dinner. That leaves more time in the afternoon to explore a small museum, churches, parks, shopping. Ste-Chapelle won't take more than an hour as it's small.

Thursday - you have 2 Impressionist museums on the same day. That would be overload for me. You could move the Orangerie to Monday afternoon in place of one of the bike tours.

Lunch in the Tuileries - after a morning in a major museum I would suggest a restaurant lunch rather than looking for someplace to buy picnic food and then trying to find a chair, which may be in short supply if it's a nice day. You can't sit or walk on the grass in Paris parks (there are only a few exceptions to this rule). The Orsay has a nice cafe.

You have the Champs-Elysees scheduled for Friday evening but are stopping at Place de la Concord which is the beginning of the Tuileries. Why not combine the two things and walk from the Arch of Triumph to the Louvre on Friday. It will be light until 9 or 10.

Saturday - Rue Cler. It looks like you're going in the afternoon but the market will be finished by then and the street itself is not that interesting. Although you can get great pasteries at Le Notre.

Why are there no churches on your sightseeing list (I don't count Ste-Chapelle as a church). I'm a church freak and one of the great joys of traveling in Europe is the churches.

You can book tickets on line for the Orsay, Orangerie, and Rodin museums and for the Seine boat.

Rodin & Orangerie:

http://www.digitick.com/ext/museerod...te=billetterie

Orangerie:

http://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/visits/...n/tickets.html

Vedettes du Pont Neuf (Seine boat)

http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/billet_en.php

Correction - the Orangerie site above should read Orsay.

All good advice. You certainly don't need tours for much of what you want to see.

Two more points. First, we have rented apartments in Paris, Italy, the UK, and in Florida. Almost all have involved slight glitches (and occasional major glitches) in getting into the apartment. These are worse, sometimes much worse, if your plane should be delayed. Sometimes this can make you very, very stressed. You may/will also need to go out and buy supplies and food, find the local bakery etc and you will be pretty whipped after the flight from OAK. Plan nothing the first day, even less than you have planned. Take a walk around the neighborhood. Have a glass of wine. You will cross the bridges plenty of times.

Your focus is on "seeing the sites" as opposed to seeing Paris. Walking around the Marais, taking it in, noticing people sitting in cafes right in the middle of the afternoon, perhaps even joining them, will turn out to be as important as ticking items off the "1000 places you must see" list.

I disagree with Zeppole about Ste Chapelle - you've come an awfully long way and paid a heap of money for this holiday and to miss seeing one of the most incredible churches in Paris just because it's not sunny ( so the rays light up the stained glass even more) is so sad.
The interior is fantastic - so what if you don't see it at its optimum, its great anyway!

Agree with the others that organized tours are totally unnecessary in Paris and will ensure that you miss out on a lot of things you can find time to discover on your own. A guide book and a map are all you need...plus plenty of time just to meander and get the feel of various neighborhoods.

I also agree. For the Eiffel Tower, get there first thing in the morning during the week & beat the tour buses. It may not be a bad idea to stop on the Rue Cler 'en route' & enjoy some breakfast. Lose the tours, they are unnecessary. If you've not been to Paris before, leave out Versailles, that will eat up a whole day. I would plan for lunch @ Montmartre, on the square, there may not be a better place to people watch in all of Paris.

What I have in my mind eye that I look forward to seeing in Paris this fall is...

Walking into a cafe and having to step over the dogs that people have brought with them.

I LOVE THIS !!!

I've only done a few walking tours but do find it to be a good way to receive some historical background while I'm in the presence of the site, further enriching the experience. My problem is I usually don't want to commit myself to any set times whenever possible to avoid it.

I don't think there is enough difference b/t the daytime and nighttime bike tours - they cover virtually the same sights. I'd choose only one (and probably the one that doesn't interfere with my evening meal )

Overall, I think the above itinerary is pretty good. Even though it contains a lot of descriptive verbage, the days are actually not overfilled with 'to do's.

jetset, I've made 105 trips to Paris and I've never had to step over a dog in a café that I can remember. I did have a dinner at La Fontaine de Mars once, though, where the woman next to us was dining with her dog. It was a classic French poodle, and he was sitting on a maroon velvet pillow, eating steak tartare out of a silver bowl. I'll never forget that.

St Cirq

What?
When I was there in 2001 I stepped over a dog in a cafe and thought it was the coolest thing that dogs were in a restaurant. I was so loooking forward to this again.

We are way too anal about that stuff in the USA.

Hi there!

You must be so excited! I know I was. Anyway, the best thing to do when you're planning your itenerary is to look - especially for churches and museums - at their open hours. Unless it's changed, the Louvre is open late on Wednesdays giving it easier access. My suggestion: swap the Louvre to Wed and Versailles to Tues so you have a little bit more time in the museum. Trust me, you'll need it. It's massive.

Another trick I used when I went was to take the city and divide it like a pie by the number of days you have available - excluding the 1 day trip. Then make a list of the sights in each area and categorize them by "must", "should", "extra". By just attacking a subregion a day, you'd be surprised at how much more you can fit in.

Third trick: use the bateau buses as much as possible. The boats aren't just a touristy thing. They are great for longer travel between the Latin Qtr and the Eiffel Tower. They're relaxing and open and just a nice ride in general.

Finally, check into getting a museum pass. I believe you can purchase them through the museum pass site. www.parismuseumpass.com My friends and I bought them and we were able to bypass the majority of the lines at all the major museums. That alone was well worth the price...that and the free admission.

Anyway, enjoy your trip. You're going to absolutely love it!

jetsetj,

Not to worry, there's no shortage of pooches in Paris. My favorites are the ones in large handbags accompanying their owners around the grocery stores.

ttt

Today when we were in Montmatre we ate in a restaurant and though we didn't have to step over a dog - one was on the bench sitting next to me. I could not imagine my little doggie being so quiet and patient. It was so cool. There have been dogs in several restaurants so don't give up hope! I thought the Montmatre area was the Paris that I had always imagined - artists out painting, mimes, street musicians, etc. It was great.

Thank you so much for all of the comments. This is our first trip to Paris and really appreciate all of the advise. We did use the London Walks, when in London a couple of years ago and loved them, which is why I had them on this itinerary also. Seems Paris is a more walkable city, so maybe we don't need so many. As for the bike tour, I think 1 may be all we need. This is really just a loose idea of place we wanted to visit and see. I want to be able to just go with the flow. I will check out purchasing the museum tickets in advance. Getting so excited. We leave in 7 weeks!!!

Now that you have refined your itinerary a bit, I wish you an enjoyable trip to Paris. If you cannot change your Saturday afternoon, just remember not to go to rue Cler before 4:00 PM. They close at about 1:00 or 1:30 for lunch. It is open everyday but on Mondays, a lot of the shops are closed.

And yes, try to fit in Saint Chapelle if you can. It is true, it is better on a sunny day to enjoy the stained glass windows fully but sunshine is not guaranteed all the time. You will have a good time on this first trip. It is always memorable. I can still remember myself crying at Notre Dame when I first saw it which worried my 5 and 8-year olds at the time. My, I seem to cry in Churches but only in Paris, though!

From another Bay Area resident, I wish you happy travels!