I'm thinking aobut a trip to Paris this fall from the US and could use some help. DH and I would be traveling the late October/Early November and have about 8-9 days. In general, what will the weather be like in Paris that time of year?

Also, we'd like to spend 3-4 days Paris before heading out of the City. Any suggestions for itineraries given the time of year? (I know that's a wide open question).

Thanks for any help

You need to give us an idea of interests. If museums are a must, or specific art (Monet?), that would also help. Have alook at the Destination guide here for Paris, to get a
sample of what is possible.

I assume that first day will be mostly lost due to arrival, jet lag,etc..

With 3.5 days, assuming no large museums, I might pick one are per day. One day in the Louvre area, one day in the Notre/Dame + left Bank area, one day in the Marais. Out of this, I would build in itinerary.

Louvre, Tuileries Gardens, Place de la Concorde, Palais Royal, Place Vendome, Champs Elysee, Arc de Triomphe, Rue St Honore, Passages,etc..

Notre Dame, Ile de la Cite, Ile St Louis, Seine walk, bouquinistes, Blvd St Germain, St Sulpice, Luxembourg Gardens, Buci area,etc...

Marais, village St Paul, place des Vosges, Rue des Rosiers, walk around area looking at old mansions,etc...

Add on Eiffel Tower for a visit, a nighttime Seine cruise. I might skip Sacre Coeur with so little time. Could do a bus toru to get overall view of sites, then do above. Could add a Paris Walk...

We go to Paris just abut every year late oct to early Nov and have neve experienced bad weather in fact after a FL summeer we delight in the cool temps. i have a liner for my rainjacket and of have had to remove it.

Here is a Google Map we put together of 5 "tours" in Paris. Right now there isn't any real info on these on the info boxes, but in the next week or so I'll be adding in MP3 audio files to each location. These will give you a full overview of each site and how to get around the city.

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=...b7408387&msa=0

dave

Thanks for this info. I just realized that my original post wasn't clear. We are well set on things to do in Paris but could use some help deciding on where to go outside of Paris for about 4 days or so. I've been to Nice/Cannes, though quite a while ago, but haven't visited any other part of France.

you might try Lyon, Beaune, Dijon. ALL nice places and easy rto get to and get around without a car.

I did Lyon in Novembrr and it qas quite pleasant in terms of temps.

Convenient, in that the TGV from CDG takes you right to the city. With the time you have, you could fill 3-4 days nicely. Nice old buildings and neighbourhoods, great views, good food, musuems, roman ruins,etc

I toured the Old Town (ended up there every day), Fourviere (funicular up to cathedral, garden area behind cathedral, roman arena, gallo-roman museum, walk down side of Fourviere hill). Croix Rousse was a nice area to just wander, liked the steps going down the hill (like Montmartre). Place des Terraux, Place Santenay and Bellecour nice for sitting or wandering. I stayed across from train station and took metro ('T') to get around.
City is called gastronomic capital of France, so good chance of eating well.

Being in November found less crowds, and greenery had turned nicer more scenic fall shades.

We visited Paris in late October to first of November in 2008 - - our experience was that it was dark sooner, quite chilly and we had several misty/rainy events... I didn't really like the weather or short days, but we had to postpone due to health issues.

I was in Paris last year Oct 12-20. Daytime was wonderful for walking around. Mornings were sometimes coolish, meaning our breakfasts were mostly indoors at the cafes, but there were a few people sitting outdoors with a sweater or light coat. Evenings were also very pleasant for walking to dinner and strolling after dinner. Ate dinner or had after dinner drinks outdoors at places with heaters. I has a light 3/4 length raincoat with thin lining that was perfectly adequate.

Normandy is a wonderful part of France and only a few hours from Paris. You would need a car..you didn't say whether you intended to rent one or not. If you are renting a car, it's an easy drive on the autoroute, and one of my favorite parts of France. The weather there, however, might be chilly and damp by that time...but then, the weather is France is always unpredictable and you never know what you're gonna get. I've been cold in summer and really, really warm in late September.

We took the train to Mont St. Michele for a day and enjoyed it tremendously. It's easy to book yourself at the train station and less expensive than booking through a hotel or tour group. Once there, ask for the English tour. We were the only ones on our tour and so had a unique opportunity to view some of the sights that are normally not included in the tour.

You might want to take a look at davidlebovitz.com before your trip for lots of wonderful Paris insights.