SashieZo

My sister-in-law (W), her daughter (K- 24 yrs old) and I will be in Paris the end of June. I have been before but this is W and K's first trip and I'm tailoring it to their likes. They will be there 4 nights with a day trip to Versailles on the last day. I will be there 5 nights. W and K are not interested in museums, unlike me. But we all love to walk taking in the beauty of the city, the gorgeous architecture, pretty parks and gardens, enjoying a relaxing hour or so at an outdoor cafe, strolling through winding streets, stopping in a small shop (not a shopping trip by any means). Visiting churches, sitting at cafes and having a bottle of rosé.

I'm having difficulty with the itinerary. We would like to go to a flea market and thought Puces de Vanves would be better since it is smaller. Afterwards we would like to go to Place des Vosges for lunch and there is nothing direct (looks like 3 train changes) to get there. Would I be able to find a cab instead?
Here is what I have so far:
Saturday
• Arrive in Paris @ 8:30am Walking Day
• Pont Neuf Bridge to Louvre
• Tuileries Garden
• Place de Concorde
• Champs D’Elysees to Arc De Triomphe
• Eiffel Tower
• Park Champ De Mars
• Rodin Museum Garden
(Besides Rodin Museum Garden, if we are up to it, we won't be going in sites)

Sunday
• Flea Market either Clignacourt or Puces de Vanves
• Place des Vosges
• Marais District (I heard Sunday was the best day)
• Place de Bastile
• Pantheon
Catacombs
• Luxembourg Garden
• St. Sulpice

Monday
• Montmartre
• Sacre-Coeur
• Place Du Tertre
• Sainte-Chapelle
• Notre Dame
• Love Locks Bridge
• Isle St .Louis

I never had any desire to go to Paris in summer but there are some advantages such as longer days and, I would assume, it would be more lively at night. So maybe the Marais area or Isle St. Louis can be explored in the evening after dinner. Are shops open?
Any suggestions about how to arrange my days would be appreciated.
Thanks so much.

janisj

You are zig zagging all over the place.

Sunday has you going from the 14th (Puces de Vanves) to the 4th to the 11th to the 5th back to the 14th back to the 5th to the 6th . . . . Makes me tired just thinking about it.

Then Monday has you crossing all of Paris from Sacre-Coeur to Ile de la Cité (which you crossed the day before) to Ile St Louis

IMO you need to group things that make more sense geographically.

If they are flying in long haul -- Saturday will likely kill them off so the Sunday/Monday problems will be solved

Gretchen

Do the Vanves market on Saturday--pretty picked over on Sunday. But that first day is SO packed anyway you may have to give up on a flea market. I don't think you have time for Clignancourt either, but a couple of hours on Sunday maybe.
I think they should scrap Versailles.
If you wanted to have a fun day of touring and seeing eclectic things, anecdotes, etc. you couldn't go wrong by hiring Micahel Osman for athe day but I am sure it is too late now.
Are they sure they don't want to stick their noses in the Louvre or Orsay museums? REALLY!! The Orsay has beautiful furniture--and a lovely restaurant, as does the Louvre (resto).
And personally, I could leave out Montmartre and most assuredly the Catacombs!
Visit a street market--there aren't any on Mondays. Visit a market street like rue Cler.
Get a sandwich and bottle of wine and have a picnic on the Champs des Mars and look up at the Eiffel Tower.
Rather than the flea markets, look on a schedule and see if there is a brocante in some square if antiquing is their thing.
Where are you staying?

janisj

I also think they should scrap Versailles . . . just not enough time IMO

moatenote

LOL I'm still laughing at Janisj's first response! Too funny!!

SashieZo

Ouch!

SashieZo

We are staying in St. Germain.
Yes, Sunday is crazy - looked on a map again and it needs to be changed. Maybe scrap the Flea Market and try a street market - thanks Gretchen. Not really interested in Catacombs but my niece is. Again, this trip is for them...I have 2 days to go to museums since I won't be going to Versailles and I'm staying in Paris an extra night.

We arrive early Saturday AM and I usually walk to help the jet lag. It's a long walk but we also have 5 or 6 hours before our room is ready. A stop for breakfast and a stop for lunch also helps. Any ideas about how you deal with jet leg would be great.

Thanks again

Christina

yes, you can do more at night when it is light later, that's one reason why I like going in summer.

YOu do have a lot going on Sunday, but it makes sense as an itinerary (Marais to Left Bank), sort of. YOu mioght want to put in the Pantheon when you do Notre Dame instead or something, and go direct from Marais to Catacombes.

FWIW I don't personally think Sunday is any better in the Marais than any other day, I think what you've heard is some Jewish businesses may be open Sunday there and some other business in other parts of the city may be closed Sunday, or something like that. Or that some of those may be closed Saturday (personally, not sure what kind of business you are concerned with there, maybe something you are buying to eat?). But that's just a small part of the Marais, anyway.

It is a little convoluted to get from Vanves to place des Vosges, although I have one option (not good in a hurry, though).

Take the metro from Vanves to Montparnasse. There, get bus 91 which goes to place de la Bastille. Walk from there to place des Vosges OR take bus 96 from gare Montparnasse right to place des Vosges stop. That bus can take a long time due to traffic, of course, but at least it is relaxing. here is the schedule, and it does run on Sundays

http://www.ratp.fr/informer/picts/pl...s_paris/96.pdf

Gretchen

I suggest you get a copy of DK Eyewitness Guide to Paris. The one thing it is good for is showing areas and their sites in a good graphic form so you wouldn't be doing what you describe in your initial post.
Don't forget the Seine boat ride--it is fun and scenic.

There are some bus rides that are really good sightseeing rides--I think 42 is one of them.
Sometimes tough love in the sightseeing department is good for people who don't know Paris. MAKE them go to a museum for 2 hours (and by the way, if they don't like museums, what's with Versailles!!). I suggest the Orsay for the building and at least "something" of the collection. BUT to each his own.
and the idea of walking and stopping for a glass of wine is GREAT of course.

SashieZo

Thanks Christina. I read that the best day to go to the Marais is Sunday. The article mentioned all stores being opened (unlike other areas in Paris) and it is very lively. That is why I have place des Vosges and Bastille on Sunday as well since they are in the same area. But if Sunday is not the best day, I can make changes.

With regard to the flea market, if W and K agree, I might just scrap that - but I appreciate the bus information. I never thought of taking the bus - slower than the train but you certainly see more.

SashieZo

Good point Gretchen about Versailles and not liking museums.

Nikki

The Marais is very crowded on Sundays because the stores are open. There is a special ordinance or something that allows them to be open in that area on Sundays while in most of Paris most stores are closed. It is lively in the Marais on other days also.

sugarmaple

I really love the DK Eyewitness Top Ten Travel guides.

My Paris one has been used so much, Its falling apart! They are compact enough to fit into a cross body, the information is distilled into areas, so you're not retracing your steps, are easy to read and follow.

I've found them the single best guide for every major city we've been to.

Please encourage them to build in some time in a cafe and watch the world go by.

What a great time you'll have!

Bitter

We've done a lot in Paris in 3 days, but it takes "grouping" of sites, and liberal use of public transportation.

FWIW, we have visited Montemartre (etc.) in the early evening. Lots of activity and a good use of non-business hours time. But it is a bit of metro ride. Also, if you stay too late (and not really that late) the closest stop closes (or did when we were there a couple times).

Remind me what is at the Place de Bastille. I vaguely remember Steves suggesting it was underwhelming (in that the Bastille is no longer there).

The louvre's map includes pictures and locations of a number of high impact/well known exhibits (Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, etc.). You aren't going to see everything anyway, so pop in and see some famous things and also a lot of neat stuff on the way to other exhibits.

mamcalice

Not sure the Bastille is worth a visit unless you go on Sunday when there is a very large market.

Christina

There is just a monument or column in the place de la Bastille, that's all. Now the surrounding area is young and has some good cafes and wine bars (and there is a FNAC store there) (and shops, depending what you want), but I wouldn't consider that "place" a destination point in and of itself, just as a point with a good metro hub.

But if you had some special interest in that history of that event, you'd probably want to see it just to be there, and it's not that out of the way.

I wouldn't go out of my way to go there, unless it was for the market, which perhaps it was being on Sunday. In fact, I think you might scrap the entire flea market idea just to go to one of those weekly markets, anyway, would sure save time on that day. The Pantheon and Catacombes are on the same RER line, so if the OP wants to end up in the gardens/St Sulpice, that itinerary makes a lot of sense to me (take RER from Pantheon to Denfert, then back, Luxembourg stop). They don't want to end up at the catacombes at the end of the day, after all.

suze

<Any ideas about how you deal with jet leg would be great.>

I deal with it by having a couple glasses of wine & taking a short nap. There is absolutely no way I could do your proposed first day itinerary (and I'm a big walker but that sounds like a nightmare after coming off an overseas flight).

And I agree with the other suggestions... you really need to get a street map of Paris in front of you and plot out all your stops on it. I'm no expert but you aren't doing things in a logical (geographic) order.

SashieZo

Your suggestions are very much appreciated and are so helpful.

I was going to remove Bastille from my list until the market was mentioned. There were good reviews about it online and I think it would be a perfect compromise. And I like the idea of visiting Montmartre in the evening. Sacre Coeur is open until 10:30 - I'll google to see if the train is still running. I loved that area when I was there (many years ago) and to me, it's a highlight. Will also strongly suggest D'Orsay for two hours and maybe lunch inside.
Let me put together a new itinerary.

But I don't think I will change the first day although how far we go depends on how we feel. But that is true of any itinerary. I've never been able to check into my room until 2 or 3. Yes, the route is long but we can always stop in a cafe to rest or if too tired, walk back in the direction of the hotel. But my point is.... if you can't check into your hotel, what do you do? Sleep on the sofa in your hotel's lobby? The only downside is it might be a warm day and then everything changes.
thanks again....so helpful!

kerouac

Oh my god, DO NOT try to fit everything in.

janisj

>>The only downside is it might be a warm day and then everything changes. <<

Or it might be a wet miserable day which also changes everything.

Yes, you might not be able to get into your rooms till mid afternoon -- but that day 1 itinerary will take you til well after dinner time.

Say you get to the hotel by 11AM and drop your bags. I'd walk around the neighborhood, have a nice lunch. Return to the hotel to finish checking in and unpack -- then back out and walk around another area (ONE area - not 3/4 of central Paris!) have dinner and back to the hotel.