1st Draft of Paris Itinerary - 6.5 days, 7 nights - Please Comment!
 

Hello Fodorites!

I’ve finally pulled together a ROUGH itinerary … and would love your comments. Right now, I THINK we can move at a leisurely pace (esp. on Sat/Sun/Mon) but I may be mistaken.

Some background: We are in our early 30’s and staying at an apartment on Ile de la Cite. We will arrive on Tuesday, September 23rd at 9:30 am from Toronto (trying to get a few hours of sleep on the plane). We are in Paris until Tuesday, September 30th. We both speak passable French and are fairly seasoned travelers – we also usually move at a very fast pace. We are getting a Museum Pass (6-days) and a Navigo Decouverte. We are NOT big into nightlife (i.e. no clubs, bars, discos, etc.) We are generally up early and to bed early! We like museums but also only hit the main pieces that we’re interested in (i.e. can’t really foresee spending a whole day at the Louvre). We are not big fashion shoppers but love to wander around neighbourhoods and markets. The below itinerary only lists the major sites – the plan is to visit the sites and then hang out in the surrounding neighbourhoods afterward.

Here goes …

Tuesday
- Arrive CDG at 9:30 am - get to apartment, get acquainted with the neighbourhood, go grocery shopping, pick up Museum Pass/Navigo Decouverte, etc.
- If we’re feeling up to it, take a Seine river cruise (Vedettes) in the afternoon (possibly replace this with L’Open Tour)
- Dinner on Ile St. Louis or Latin Quarter

Wednesday
- Pick up L’Open Tour near Notre Dame
- Musee Rodin
- Eiffel Tower – Backstage tour @ 5:30 pm (requires pre-booking – only avail Wed and Sat – possible to move this to 10 am)
- Dinner near Eiffel Tower

Thursday
- Sainte Chapelle (get there early to avoid lines)
- Conciergerie
- Notre Dame (back to the apartment for lunch?)
- Louvre
- Dinner in Marais

Friday
- Arc de Triomphe
- Champs Elysees
- Le Printemps/Lafayette (we have tickets reserved for the 3 pm fashion show at Lafayette)
- Possibly re-visit Louvre if we run out of time the day before (open until 9:45 pm on Fridays)

Saturday
- Versailles – get there first thing – return mid-afternoon (?)
- Musée de l'Orangerie

Sunday
- Rue Mouffetard Market
- Musee D'Orsay

Monday
- Sacre Cœur
- Musee Picasso

Tuesday
- Depart first thing for Gare du Lyon (TGV to Avignon)

So, any comments regarding the logic/logistics of the combinations? Also, please feel free to add some other items in if you feel we’ve got the time.

Thanks so much for all the help!

Hi L,

>Saturday
- Versailles – get there first thing – return mid-afternoon (?)
- Musée de l'Orangerie

With only 6.5 fays, I suggest skipping Versailles and enjoying Paris more.

((I))

As for Versailles, I figure if the populace of Paris could go for a visit in 1789 and bring back "souvenirs", then you should too.

Some random thoughts...

If I was to recommend a Seine cruise, I'd do it after dark. Much more atmospheric (bridges and buildings lit up, Eiffel sparkling,etc..) Vedettes is good and near to your apt. Also check out the Square du Vert Galant at tip of Ile de la Cite.

You don't have a lot of Left Bank time. I might consider more of a day there. See Luxembourg Gardens, Mouffetard, Cluny (Moyen Age) Museum (small, interesting and built over roman ruins). Walk along blvd St Germain, Buci market and rue Ancienne Comedie, cafe time, and finish at Orsay.

Sacre Coeur and Picasso are a bit split up. I might consider doing a Marais Tour with Paris Walks in the morning, it finishes at Place des Vosges (a must see), eat lunch there (I ate at Cafe Hugo last visit), from there go to Picasso, then finish day at Sacre Coeur. I'm a bit ambivalent about Sacre Coeur..church just OK, mostly it is for the view. After that...are you thinking about a Montmartre walk-about? Dinner there?

Brasserie de L'Ile St Louis was a good spot for lunch last trip. I also had a good dinner at Le Vieux Bistro, beside Notre Dame. Across the river from Ile St Louis, on Left Bank, there are some good restaurants along Seine river, some with outdoor eating.

I might skip the fashion show. If shopping is not a big deal for you, I would use that time for something else.

I'd round out visit to Louvre with area around it (Place Vendome, Palais Royal, arcades along Rivoli, Laduree,etc..). The Passages are also neat architectural walkways to visit.

You can either visit Versailles "on your own" or via a bus tour (Parisvision or Cityrama). If you want to control your schedule, think of taking RER train there and back. Get there early to miss crowds, then wander at your own pace. As Ira said, you can easily fill your time in Paris with the amount of days you have.

People here have also recommended Segway and Fat Bike tours as fun options.

Not enough time for Versailles.

I don't have any critques of your schedule, but what is the backstage tour of the eiffel tour, and how do you get tickets?

Don't do the Seine ride the first afternoon. I did this once and fell asleep.

Agree with poster above who said the night ride is more spectacular with the building lights and the Eiffel Tower doing its show.

Do you really need a 6-day museum pass? It won't help you with the lines at Ste-Chappelle as you cannot cut ahead of the security line and I don't think you can bypass the line for the Notre Dame tower.

If you do Versailles you'll need a full day. You won't want to cut it short to get back for the Orangerie. You can do the Orangerie on Friday after the Arch - you'll have plenty of time.

Just a suggestion, but why don't you swap the Mouffetard market on Sunday for the Bastille(also known as Richard Lenoir) market? I've only been there on a Thursday, since we weren't in Paris on a Sunday, but I heard it is fabulous on a Sunday.

I think you could switch the Mouffetard market for another day - isn't it a permanent street market that is open everyday?

But the Mouffetard market on Sunday is better than the other days. More lively and there's the accordian players at the bottom and people singing and dancing (around noon). It's wonderful.

I haven't been to the richard lenoir market on Sunday so I can't compare them.

If you do the Mouffetard market you might want to walk about 10 minutes farther and see the Mosque and drink mint tea in the garden behind it.

WOW! thank you so much to all for your replies...keep the advice coming! i appreciate it tremendously!

ira/apersuader65: versailles is the one thing that DH is insisting on! so we gotta do it. he's left everything else up to me ... it's the least i can do!

Michel_Paris: got it. will do the vedettes in the evening (most of our evenings are 'open' except for one night when we want to go to a concert at sainte chapelle). i will incorporate your left bank ideas into sunday. as for sacre coeur/picasso on monday, it was just really two things that are on my list and were not easily 'combine-able' with the other items. i like you idea of the marais walk and then heading up to sacre coeur later on.

Gretchen/Adrienne: will extend versailles to the whole day. and if we're done early, then we'll just come back to the city and wander around one of the neighbourhoods.

rhy: here is the link for the backstage eiffel tower tour.

http://en.parisvision.com/89,197-gui...ate=c1fea2ab52

i found out about it on this thread:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...cret&fid=2

Anna1013: could you tell me a bit more about this market in the bastille?

We have been to both markets on a Sunday - the Mouffetard market is definitely more festive. The Richard Lenoir market was good, but we thought the Moffetard market was more fun. The Moffetard market is open Tuesday through Sunday (closed on Monday). We haven't been there in a few years, but remember it fondly. We are planning to go again on a Sunday when we return to Paris in October. The Richard Lenoir market is open on Thursdays and Sundays.

If it was me - the night of the Ste Chapelle concert is the same night I'd do the Vedette cruise. Go to the earlier concert (there are two most nights), then you basically walk around the corner to the pier for the boats. Just a lovely evening all around.

I prefer the first concert because there is still some light in the sky so the windows glow. By the time the concert ends, it is dark and perfect for the illuminations along the river.

Hi lilaki , how did you reserved ahead of times for the fashion show in Galeries Lafayette.?

Graziella5b: here is the info for the lafayette fashion show...

http://www2.galerieslafayette.com/in...fontLang=latin

i sent an email and received a reply the next day.

The bastille market is in the 11th, or Bastille district. Everyone always raved about it on the boards, so we decided to head on over for our last trip. We went in the morning on a Thursday, and I really loved the market - there was a whole stall just devoted to spices and dried fruits. There are also candy stalls, pastries, vendors who sell all types of sea salts(including fleur de sel) that are combined with garlic, ginger, herbs, etc.

Not sure if you want to make the trip over, but you could always explore the area while you are at the market. If you want, you could check out my trip report that I did last June, and I'm pretty sure I went into more detail about the market - just do a search under my name...it's currently #24 in the topic section.

You might also want to do a search by either typing in "bastille market" or "richard lenoir market" in the search options. As noted, this market is only on Thursday and Sunday. Since you said you like markets, you could go to both and compare!

As a another tip, we stayed on the island next to where you are staying, the Ile Saint Louis. Since you are so close, really make it a point to try the ice cream from Berthillion - it was amazing! Some people love it, and others just tend to find it so so, but you really need to try it yourself :)

We loved the unusual flavors that you can't get in the US - some of the flavors we tried were white chocolate(my friends favorite), chocolate, earl gray(friend thought it was so so), blood orange, chocolate,creole(rum raisin) and an unbelievable chocolate ice cream with bits of orange skin in it - it think it sort of was called guradani.

On the same street you'll find Amorino which sells gelato - I'm not a huge gelato fan, but there portions are about triple the size of berthillion's. The yogurt gelato was really good.

On the same street, there is a creperie that also had a take-out window. They had crepes with savory fillings, but I loved the chocolate & banana crepe and we also had one filled with orange marmalade....sooo good! I think I'm getting more and more jealous of you by the minute :)

hi Anna1013 - thanks so much for all the info about the markets! i may just be tempted to go to both.

and yes, i was already trying to figure out if it would be TOO slovenly to have berthillion/ amorino each night before heading back to the apartment!!!

lilaki,

I think it would be a "sin" if you didn't get some version of ice cream each night when you are on the Ile de Cite! Trust me - I looked back on my trip report and I noticed we didn't go to Berthillion each night...how stupid is that?

Also, the scoops at Berhillion are quite small(but just enough in our opinion...especially if you get two flavors!!), so I think you could argue that eating them each night isn't that big of a deal. Besides, you will probably walk off all the calories anyway!

Forgot to add - I hope we can look forward to a trip report when you return?

<<Forgot to add - I hope we can look forward to a trip report when you return?>>

oh, absolutely!!! this forum has been INVALUABLE to my planning!

btw - anna - i just found your trip report - AMAZING details!!! thank you for sharing!

No problem - just be careful not to fall asleep while reading it...I can't believe how much I just gabbed on and on in some areas!

Hmm we just got back...

Versailles was our highlight.. BECAUSE we rented bikes.. the best ever.. wouldnt have been the same without that.. right by the Grand Canal..and you can get locks to go see other things.. We got a late start and got there at 11..not a Sat mind you.. but the riding was more fun than anything inside.. BUT it was a great.. day.. i too had an itinerary which the weather blew off. rainy.. yuck..

My friend an artist just last week went to the Piiccasso ..was very disappointed.. apparently most of the works have been shipped away.. .

The R. M market area was very fun.. good place for shopping and lunch..

Sacre Couer was great.. wander the streets.. We stayed up by there..

The Brasserie right by the bridge where you are by Notre Dame.. Ile De St Louis?? had the best steak au poivre at lunch!!

Have a great time..

Hi Lilaki,


Re: Wed. I'd consider going to the Invalides as well as it is near Rodin and on the way to the ET. I'd consider picnicing (sp?) under the Eiffel Tower for dinner and consider a stop at L’ Epicurie Fine (8 Rue du Champ de Mars)or anywhere along Rue Cler to put together a great picnic.

I'd also second the vote for a stroll through the Luxembourg gardens and dedicating a whole day to meander through Versailles (esp. if the hubby earmarked it). My wife and I spent the entire day at Versailles and felt it was well-worth it. I'm also biased because the L'Orangerie deserves unrushed time IMHO.

Regardless of my comments, I think you have a pretty good itinerary and wish you a great trip. Reading your itinerary has triggered a flood of great memories...

lilaki: I, like your husband felt Versailles was a must do. I wouldn't have changed anything with it. I personally don't understand the "don't go to Versailles, there's so much to do in Paris" argument. It's a 35 minute train ride, for crying out loud. We did Versailles in the morning, followed by the Louvre that evening. It's not impossible, and given your age, (10 years younger than us when we did it in 06) and your "move at a very fast pace" energy, I wouldn't think twice about it.

There are certainly others who disagree on these boards about this concept, giving it various sarcastic nicknames, but I went to Paris with the intent to "check the he77 out of the boxes", not knowing if, or when I would ever get to go back. I too have a fast paced style of travel, and am easily frustrated at the sit back and watch the people concept of vacationing. I can people watch here at home and not spend the 1K to just get to Paris to do it. In any event, enough of my rant. If you are used to warding off jet lag, I don't see any problem with your itinerary. My sons and I (wife not so much) really enjoyed the Pere LaChaise Cemetery. The gravestones were certainly pieces of art, and the photo opportunities were endless for the oldest son (art student).

Good luck and enjoy Paris!

Sorry for the ommission - - I would seriously research the cost of the 6-day pass vs the cost of buying single tickets. You might save a bunch of money single ticketing the trip. I do understand the convenience of getting the pass and not having to worry about waiting in lines. For example, other than the Rodin on Wednesday, you won't be able to use your pass until Thursday and St. Chappelle. With some minor adjustments to your schedule, you might be able to get by with a four day pass also.

Good luck and enjoy!

Hi lilaki - You mention in your Wednesday itinerary that you plan to have dinner near the Eiffel Tower.
Nearest restaurant ( and not pricey at all) would be the Brasserie at 17 Rue de Montessuy. There are a number of restaurants including an inexpensive Chinese place along here.

Hi lilaki, thank you a lot for the inf regarding the Galeries Lafayette fashion show.
I do not know if you have done in advance research on the buses you can take from your apartment. The itineraries can be found in the plan du quartier.It also shows you the stops. The metro for Isle St Louis is not the greatest one more reason master the buses.
I have found a good idea to use less and less the metro.

..just another tip while planning given that you are not night people. Most restaurants start the evening meal at 7 or 7:30...this does not apply to those whose almost entire customer base is the tourist trade.

Graziella - they're staying on Ile de la Cite, not Ile St-Louis.

For the metro you can walk to St-Michel for connection to several lines. Although much of your sightseeing can be done on foot. You'll probably only need the metro for Montmartre, Versailles, and Arch of Triumph and you can easily make connections, and have a direct route, from the Louvre or Odeon stations, neither are far from Ile de la Cite.

Buses are nice for viewing the city but are much slower than the metro.

We enjoyed the Musée Marmottan Monet Paris. We went by city bus to this museum. Also, Chartres Cathedral is one hour from Paris and Fontainebleau is amazing - probably better than Versailles.
Church of St-Sulpice was an interesting church to visit - Sainte Chapelle was closed due to security reasons when we were last in Paris.
Paris' Carnavalet Museum
The Museum of the History of Paris
We had passed on this museum until our last trip to Paris and it would have been great to see it our first time in Paris. Admission is free some days or very inexpensive. I would recommend this as a first visit.
With seeing so many art museums, after a couple days of this your brain doesn't register what you are seeing anymore - but you are balancing the museums with other activities.
Have a great time - Paris is wonderful for just walking.

WOW - again!!! thanks for all the info!

okay - i have revised the itinerary ... and i will only buy a four-day museum pass (thank you for pointing this out!!!)

i have no idea how to 'bold' any of the text so i have just put *** next to things i added.

i removed the musee picasso in favour of the marais walking tour on monday.

please let me know if this itinerary makes more sense...

here we go again:

Tuesday
- Arrive CDG at 9:30 am - get to apartment, get acquainted with the neighbourhood, go grocery shopping, pick up Museum Pass/Navigo Decouverte/buy tickets for Sainte Chapelle concert, etc.
- Rue de Buci market (4 – 7 pm)***
- Dinner on Ile St. Louis or Latin Quarter

Wednesday
- Pick up L’Open Tour near Notre Dame
- Invalides***
- Musee Rodin (really interested in gardens only)
- Eiffel Tower – Backstage tour @ 5:30 pm (requires pre-booking – only avail Wed and Sat – possible to move this to 10 am)
- Dinner near Eiffel Tower

Thursday
- Sainte Chapelle (get there early to avoid lines – opens at 9:30 am)
- Conciergerie
- Notre Dame (back to the apartment for lunch?)
- Louvre
- Dinner in Marais

Friday
- Musee de L’Orangerie (opens at 9 am)
- Arc de Triomphe
- Champs Elysees
- Le Printemps/Lafayette (we have tickets reserved for the 3 pm fashion show at Lafayette)
- Sainte Chapelle Concert (7 pm) + Vedettes boat ride (9 pm)***

Saturday
- Versailles – get there first thing – return mid-afternoon (?)

Sunday
- Rue Mouffetard Market
- Luxembourg Gardens (visit Poilane)***
- Bon Marche (food dept)***
- Musee D'Orsay (open until 6 pm)
- Dinner in St. Germain

Monday
- Marais walking tour (10:30 am)
- Sacre Cœur
- E. Dehillerin and other kitchen shops in 1st Arr.***

Tuesday
- Depart first thing for Gare du Lyon (TGV to Avignon)

I don't mean to put a damper on your revised itin but...

If you're looking at Paris Walks the Marais tours are Tuesday 10:30, Thursday, 2:30, Saturday 10:30, Sunday 2:30.

The Buci market isn't much of anything. Very few vendors. There are shops, cafes, and restaurants. Also it's a very short street, 2 blocks I believe. Also most markets are mornings and close up in the later afternoon.

For a flavor of the area I would visit a couple of churches like St-Germain-des-Pres or St-Sulpice, both on rue Bonaparte very near rue de Buci. You could combine this with some stops at Laduree or Pierre Herve both bakeries are on rue Bonaparte as well. Heavenly!

Orangerie - book your ticket on line to avoid the crowded lines waiting to buy tickets.

Don't know but is the Bon Marche open on Sunday?

Do you like sculpture or are you going to the Rodin because he's famous. If you like sculpture I recommend a visit to the Maillol museum (very near the Rodin). These 2 artists have quite diverse styles and it's fun to contrast them. The Rodin garden is lovely. There's a cafe where you can stop and sit for a bit, have a drink and savor the garden. Get a photo of the "Thinker" with the gold dome of the Invalides behind it.

While on Ile de la Cite on Thursday stop to see the Deportation Memorial behind Notre Dame. It's directly across the street from the garden behind the church. It will take about 10 minutes and is free but a very moving memorial to those deported to the camps during WWII.

Do you like period houses? If so the Jacquemart-Andre house is wonderful and filled with Italian Renaissance art collected by the owners. It's a short distance from the Arch of Triumph. They have a free audio with admission and I think you'll have time to fit it in if you're interested. Just looked at your itin again and perhaps you won't have time since you have the fashion show at 3. Oh well...next trip.

yikes! good catch, adrienne!!!

i will probably do a self-guided walking tour of the marais then.

and the bon marche (la grande epicerie) is NOT open on sunday ... however open until 9 pm every day. so we'll tack that onto an evening then...

THANKS!!!

Hi L,

>Versailles is the one thing that DH is insisting on! so we gotta do it.

Then don't try to rush through it. Leave the afternoon open.

Check the Versailles website for the days when the fountains will be on and for the discount tickets [loisier (sp)]

((I))

Hi Ira,

Thank you for the feedback ... I've left Saturday completely open for Versailles ... and it's one of two days when the fountains will be on (other day is Sunday). So if it's rainy on Saturday, then we may flip around the days and go on Sunday instead.

I'm planning to get a Museum Pass which covers Versailles (taking the RER to Versailles). But I'm a bit curious about the discount tickets you've mentioned ... can you tell me more??


Thanks!

I believe it is the Forfait Loisir that Ira is referring to. A package deal for Versailles.

More info...

http://www.transilien.com/web/site/a...ailles/lang/en

We went to Paris in April. I had been before but it was a first to Galeries Lafayette. If you have time be sure to go to the rooftop terrace. It has a great view of the city. The cafeteria isn't bad either, it looks out onto Paris.

We didn't anticipate a full day at the Louvre but ended up doing that. So much to see. My favorite thing to do in Paris is just strolling along and spending time sitting in the park. Enjoy

Do go to Versailles. We went in May and it was fantastic.
Also see the Eiffel Tower at night. It flickers for 10 minutes on the hour. That was something to see. Also in the park by the Eiffel people gather at night and picnic, drink wine, and just hang out. It is very safe and it was nice to see people can gather and just have fun.

We went to Versailles on a Saturday this past May just because the fountains were supposed to be on. After waiting in line over 2 hours to enter Versailles and then doing the tour of the interior, by the time we came out the fountains were off and weren't turned on again until about 4:00. Although we had a museum pass, we still had to wait in line (not what we had expected to do). So I would recommend that you go directly to the gardens first and get pictures of the fountains while they're on - visit the interior later when it's hot outside. Also, take a picnic lunch - the restaurants on the grounds were crowded and ate up a lot of time waiting for service.
Also - we discovered a secret about standing in line for St. Chappelle. The line (right next to the entrance of St. Chapelle) for the Palace of Justice files into the exact security enrance for St. Chapelle. After you go thru the security, everybody ends up in the same alcove and you can then take an immediate right to an outdoor courtyard which leads you to St. Chapelle. We waited in line over 1.5 hours and kicked ourselves for not going thru the other line. Just don't tell the guard that you're going to St. Chapelle.
I would also recommend that you go first to Notre Dame and get in line to go up the tower before you do anything else in that general area. They only allow so many at once and it's worth it to climb the tower and be eye to eye w/ the gargoyles and see the view of Paris from atop. Afterwards, go inside the cathedral.
We went to Paris for 9 days and did many of the things you're planning plus a day trip to Gverney. Click on my name and read my trip report - it may give you some ideas. Enjoy your trip

Just returned from Paris last week...a couple of thoughts...
Museum pass--walked right past lines at St. Chapelle (after security), Musee d'Orsay, Louvre and Rodin--definitely worth the $$
Markets--have only been to the Richard Lenoir on Sundays (twice) and it is well worth the trip. Please buy a charentais melon!
Picnic--sounds corny, but take your market wares and a blanket to the Eifle Tower. It's spectacular, and not nearly as many people as you would think. There are grassy areas on either side of the main lawn where picnicing is allowed. Don't forget your corkscrew! Read more about my trip at www.hereinfranklin.wordpress.com