1st trip to paris
 

Me & my Husband are visting paris for the first time this easter, we are only there for the lond weekend...so i'm after any suggestions of best places to visit i.e bars, restaurants, museums etc..

Hi claire,

Have you looked at the guide to Paris under"Destinations"?

((I))

this is a trip report about a long weekend in Paris:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34490066

Be prepared to travel in Paris with the Metro from your hotel (where is it located?) to visiting spots. When you leave the Metro than walk, walk, walk. It is the only way to explore the city.
First, you visit the very heart of Paris: Ile de la cité with Notre-Dame. Do not miss the Sainte-Chapelle - a gothic jewel. Walk over the bridge to the other side of the Seine, look at th e displays of the bouquinists and enjoy the very best view of Notre-Dame. Maybe extend your stroll to the Quartier Latin.
If the weather is fine, take the Metro to the Eiffel tower and go up.
If the weather is bad, visit the Louvre. Visit also the quarters of Napoleon III within the Louvre.
You must walk through the area around Montmartre.
Also, visit the Marais area around Place Vosges.
Make sure that you see Place Vendome, Place de la Concorde and walk up the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe.
Visit one of the big department stores (Printemps or Galleries Lafayette) and make sure to visit the food halls.
Visit Boulevard de Montparnasse and take a cup of coffee or a glass of Pastis in one of the art nouveau bars. "La Coupole", 102 Boulevard Montparnasse, is a good place which is full of history. It is also a good place for a good dinner.
For at least one evening, select a good restaurant and enjoy a six-course-menu with a glass of champagne for apéritif, a bottle of white wine for the starters and a bottle of red wine for the main course.
When selecting restaurants, how to avoid tourist traps:
Look at the menus. If they have written their menu on large, easy-to-see signs or blackboards it is a bad indication. Locals do not need this kind of signaling, just tourists. If there is a "steak" or "frites" on the menu, avoid the place. It's best if you read the menu and if you do not understand what you will get. Then it is authentic food.
To select a restaurant use a good guide. Since Paris has thousands of restaurants it depends on the area where your hotel is located. The very best guide for Paris restaurants is of course the red "Guide Michelin". Always a good bet are the restaurants with the "Bib Gourmand" meaning "good food at moderate prices". If you are willing to spend more, select a restaurant with a "star". I think, frommers.com also has good restaurant recommendations.
Do not go to Versailles. Do that if you come back and have more time.

A good guidebook and reading posts on this website should help a lot.

Thank you so much for your replies, we are staying near george v metro. I have brought a guide book never go anywhere without one. This may seem like a really stupid question but anyway... i have a map of paris that came with the guide book but most people seem to talk about so and so on the 7th or 11th etc.. i gather these are roads??? but it's just road names on my map???? can anyone explain. please excuse by ignorance.

NO, they're not roads, they're arrondissements, or neighborhoods, and if you look at your map you will see that they start in the center of the city and spiral out around. Generally speaking, it's recommended that first-time visitors find a hotel inthe 1st-7th arrondissements in order to be reasonably close to the sights they presumably want to visit.

Those are arrondissements, or city sections. You really should type Paris into the Search tab on this page and just start reading. Lots of valuable knowledge there.

traveller...an excellent and concise summary!!!

One thing I wouldnt miss is D'Orsay!

http://www.intransit-international.c...ment_tour.html

I thought this was a good map for showing the arrondissements and then a description of the 'nature' of each one...

I went to Paris for a long weekend (4 nights) in November. If you are interested, you can check out my trip report at http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...200&screen.

Tracy

Hi C,

Also look at Paris Superthread
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34519236

((I))

A long weekend in Paris for me would include the following top 10:

1. strolling in the Tuileries Gardens followed by tea at Angelina's
2. strolling in the Luxembourg Gardens and a visit to the church of Saint Sulpice
3.lunch at Laduree (rue royale location)
4.see whatever's showing at the Opera Garnier (if you get bored, stare at the ceiling)
5.the Musee d'orsay
6.the Musee Jacquemart Andre
7.the Clignancourt flea market for antiquing--or Port de Vanves for something more manageable
8.dinner at Paris Dakar for delicious Senegalese food
9.lunch somewhere on the Rue Moufftard
10.Notre Dame de Paris followed by Berthillon ice cream on the Isle St. Louis