My 13 year old daughter and I are headed to Paris for 3.5 days over Easter weekend before taking the TGV to Provence. Though I have been to Paris twice before (first time for my daughter), I found this trip challenging to research and plan because of possible closures on Easter Sunday and the Monday bank holiday. I found myself having difficulty grouping activities in a similar arrondissement because of which specific days our desired restaurants and activities were open/had availability. Sunday is our most packed day right now, but Monday and Tuesday have more breathing room.

Our priorities for this trip are delicious food, history, architecture, art, and some local shopping for the teen. Would love any helpful insights from the experts on this board on any tweaks we should make.

We will be staying in an apartment in the Marais, a minute from the Square du Temple.

Saturday, March 30:
-Arrive from London via Eurostar at 3 PM.
-Check into apartment around 3:30.
-From 4-5 PM, pick up a late lunch from food shops on Rue de Bretagne (all within 5 minutes of apartment: Caractere de Cochon, Fromagerie Jouannault, and Bontemps La Patisserie).

-From 5:00 - 8:00 PM: Take metro from Temple to Sentier (9 minutes) and peek into Easter chocolate displays along Rue de Montorgueil, then do some light shopping along Rue Etienne Marcel/Tiquetonne (Passage du Grand Cerf, Kiliwatch, etc.)

-Walk 15 minutes to Pont des Arts for Le Calife dinner cruise (board by 8:30 PM).

Easter Sunday, March 31:

8:00 AM - Boulangerie Bo&mie for breakfast

9:00 - 1:00 PM - Paris Charms & Secrets history tour by e-bike starting and ending in Place Vendome

1:30 PM - Lunch at Breizh Cafe Canal St. Martin, brief stroll along the canal

4:00 PM - Palais Garnier self guided visit (would have preferred to do this Monday afternoon but it’s closed except for a brief mid day window on Monday)

6:00 PM - Concert at St. Chapelle

7:10 PM - Explore Place Dauphine or take Eternelle Notre Dame VR tour

9:00 PM Eiffel Tower Summit


Monday, April 1:

9:30 Spend the morning exploring the Louvre

1:30 Lunch at Parcelles, dessert at Maison Aleph

3:30 Spend the afternoon in the Luxembourg Garden

8:30 Dinner at Huguette



Tuesday, April 2:

-Breakfast at Carette in Place des Vosges
-10:30 AM two hour history walk of the Marais with Paris Walks
-Pick up quick falafel for lunch
-2:30 PM Musee d’Orsay
-See sunset at Sacre Coeur
-8:30 PM Dinner at Chantoiseau in Montmartre

Wednesday, April 3:
Morning departure on TGV to Avignon

Wow, that’s an impressive itinerary! For her age group there’s some fun shopping in the Marais along Rue de Rosiers and definitely check out Merci on bd Beaumarchais-fun and very hip store with clothes, housewares and cool accessories. If she’s a shopper I think Galleries Lafayette and/or Bon Marche are both worth going to check out just for the architecture. Sometimes it’s not a bad idea to build in some downtime and just wandering around to see the sights. Canal St Martin is a fun area and close to you is the indoor market and restaurants-Marche des Enfants Rouge.

This sounds like a great trip. The only thing I would possibly add is the Orangerie Museum to see Monet's waterlilies. However, I don't see an easy opening in your plan except for Monday afternoon, but you may well need an outdoor break after the Louvre.

This looks great! One thing: for Sunday, the Breizh cafe in Canal Saint-Martin is really far away from Place Vendome where you end your bike tour - and then after Breizh/the canal you have to turn around and go all the way back to where you came from for visiting the Opera Garnier. I love the canal, but the geography of this doesn't quite make sense.

It might be more relaxing to just hang in the area, explore the nearby Tuileries gardens, maybe make a stop at the Galeries Lafayette (one of the biggest and oldest shopping structures in Paris with 8 floors - check out floor six for souvenirs - and a gorgeous art nouveau dome that people come to see in its own right) OR consider stopping by La Galerie Dior if your teen likes fashion. This is a museum chock full of Dior's vintage dresses and is really neat to see - but do make reservations.

You could then move the canal exploration to the next day after the Luxembourg Gardens - it'll put you a bit closer to the Huguette restaurant anyway (if there's only one location).

My single favorite thing to do in Paris is to walk up the steps of Sacre Coeur to the rooftop. Yes, you can walk along the rooftop. From there you have the Eiffel Tower in the background and the Byzantine architecture of the basilica in the foreground. The best view in Paris.