I am surprising my fiancee for his birthday with a trip to Paris for a week. I just bought the flights (roundtrip from Paris) and we are going the second week of Nov. My plan is to spend 3 days in Paris, then a day trip to Versailles (will it be worth it in November if it's not in bloom?). I would like to go to one more place for the remaining 3 days, but I just have no idea where to go. What would make this trip well-rounded and be a good spot to spend 3 days (or split between 2 day trip spots?). We will not have a car. We like seeing sights, we like tours, but may be toured-out from Paris, we like walking, good food, relaxing and would just love to feel that we had a great and full first trip to France.

Also, when we head back to Paris that last night before flying out, should we stay near CDG airport (we need to be there at 11:30am)? Or is it worth it to head back into the city?

Spend the whole time in Paris except for your trip to Versailles. Paris will still be wonderful even if it rains the whole time, but some other destination might not be.

There is absolutely no reason to stay near the airport for an 11:30 flight. Not to mention the fact that it would ruin your last evening in Paris.

You have plenty of time to prepare before your trip so I suggest reading a good guidebook or two about what Paris has to offer. I think you will discover that even with one week here you will only see a fraction of what it has to offer. Remember your first day is going to be spent settling in and getting overjetlag. And you may still feel a bit sluggish on day 2.

Versailles is a good day trip but I wouldn't do any more than 2 days trips max. Paris will keep you busy and after you've done a bit of reading I think you'll agree that one day trip is probably enough.

Will it be a waste to go all the way over there to spend the whole 7 days just in Paris (minus the Versailles trip)?

One other tip. Buy a good and very detailed map of Paris. Michelin and IGN have good Paris maps. I have one with a scale of 1/12,000 and it shows every street in the city, with street names and a street index, and shows the location of metro stops and all the famous sites and attractions. This will help in getting you oriented and make planning your daily itinerary much easier.

You could easily spend the whole week in Paris ( I would live there if I could) and Versailles is a good day trip. Another easy day trip via train is Chartres.

No, I think Versailles is worth a day trip but it really depends on what your tastes and interests are. If you search forum threads you will find lots of threads about various day trips from Paris and you will see what other possibilities there may be. Ask that question to a thousand people and you'll get a thousand different answers. It is your vacation so do what you want to do. You will enjoy your vacation best if you get the needed guidebooks and do some studying. Make it your vacation, not a vacation that was suggested to you. Once you learn a bit more you can post again and again when you have more specific questions.

Let me again recommend the book, "One Hour from Paris," available on Amazon. (I have no pecuniary interest in it, though I may ask for one.) It has a good month's worth of day trips from Paris that can be done entirely without a car.

Also, I agree you should stay in Paris for the week, for all the reasons stated. BTW, at CDG you are asked to be at the airport 3 hours before departure. Unless you are flying in business, first, or have elite status on your airline, that is an essential because of the length of the security lines. If you are on the right bank, you should be able to get to the airport in a half an hour by taxi. I would allow 45 minutes to the airport from most of the left bank. If you tell us which hotel you are in, and the day of your departure, there are people on this board whose knowledge of Paris is so comprehensive they will be able to tell you to the minute about how long it will take you to get to the airport.

<<Will it be a waste to go all the way over there to spend the whole 7 days just in Paris (minus the Versailles trip)?>>

No. Not at all. Never.

You'll find that after 7 days you won't even have touched the surface of all that Paris offers.

Another big vote for staying in Paris in November. Lots of hotels outside of Paris even close in Nov.

Get the following:
1. Michelin map - as advised by FrenchMystiqueTours
2. Michelin Green Guide to Paris
3. "Walking Paris" by Gilles Desmonds - lots of interesting 3-4 hr walks around Paris.
4. www.paris-walks.com - lots of guided walks, in English


We returned from Paris about 3 weeks ago - and 3 hrs from departure is really too early. We flew AA and there was a huge line when we arrived - actually 2 lines - 1 for JFK & ORD, and another for Boston (where we were connecting through). The Boston line was not being serviced - we just stood there not going anywhere, and the AA attendants constantly asked anyone in our line if they were flying to JFK or ORD - and if so they were moved to the other line - which was moving fast. Finally, when most people in the JFK/ORD line was checked in, they let us through - about 2 1/4 hrs before flight time. Within 30 mins, our line was down to almost nothing. This happened to us last year also.

Going through security was a non-event.

Still - I would probably arrive 3 hrs before flight time just to reduce the anxiety.

Stu Dudley

OK, I have the Knopf MapGuide of Paris right now, which has a lot of information, but I will look into the others. Ideally, staying in one hotel the whole time and committing to Paris and nearby surroundings is easier to plan than moving around, I just didnt want to feel like we went to France and only saw Paris. I'm from NY and sometimes cities can run together and not give you the feel of even being abroad. But I will heed this advice of staying local.

By the end of your stay you will be used to the public transportation system. To avoid last minute anxieties and possible hang-ups, buy your tickets to CDG the day before departure from a ticket seller at any metro station and take RER B to CDG. It will take 25 minutes from the St. Michel station to the airport, less if you catch the train from the Right Bank.

We did a day trip to Reims and really enjoyed it. Did a tour/tasting at one of the champagne houses (quick cab ride from the train station) and saw the cathedral with the Chagall windows.

I'm not sure where you are coming from, but depending on jet lag your arrival day could be hit or miss. That would leave you with 4 days in Paris, one in Versailles and then one more day trip. Sounds like a perfect week to me!

Please heed the recommendations here and spend the week in Paris. You'll just scratch the surface and still be doing the "tourist shuffle" at the end. This means you'll need to return to catch the hidden charms--and you will.

You can barely build memories in three days. My one recommendation: Plan your evenings as carefully as you plan your days. This is a romantic trip so you need to take full advantage of the beauty that is Paris by night.

Have a wonderful trip!

Stay in Paris for the seven days. It's not possible to have a full trip to France in seven days, but it is possible to have a full first trip to Paris in seven days. Perhaps that was your intended meaning.

I do agree that Versailles is an interesting day trip. I would skip other day trips commonly offered by tour companies unless you have a compelling interest in visiting a Loire chateau or Monet's Giverny. Versailles is fascinating and quite easy to reach by train.

We did many walking tours on our own in Paris. I'll scan my shelves for the guides we found most helpful.

Are your interests in art, history, literature, food, shopping, etc? Read a variety of guides to help you determine your priorities. I start preliminary reading with an assortment of guide books: Cadogan, Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, Eyewitness, Fodors, etc. The library is a great place to select guides by the armful. Then purchase those that are most useful. If you're a reader, and any of the following topics interest you, you might do some additional reading: history, art, French literature, and the writings of American authors based in Paris.

Once you've done some preliminary research you'll be able to reach decisions.

Absolutely agree with spending the week in Paris. If you just feel like you have to see something outside of the city and Versailles, you could make a daytrip to Chartres, but there's no need to move around. With a week in Paris, I would also reccommend getting an apartment rather than a hotel, but some people prefer to have room service and a concierge (I prefer the space of an apartment).

My fiance and I took our first European trip together in 2005 and it was a week in Paris in February (brrrr!). We more or less explored a different part of the City each day, took a day trip to Versailles, and had a wonderful time. Don't think it'll be your only chance to see France - it will only stoke the fires to return, and you will!

Portiaperu, Giverny is closed in November in any case, I think.

Versailles is a full day if you are going to see it all. but in November the gardens may not be as interesting. I've done a day trip to Reims to see the cathedral and a champagne cellar.

I've been 9/10 times and still have a list of to-do's, so don't feel like you should/could 'see it all'. My philosophy is to "be" in Paris, not to "see" Paris. With 7 days you could see the main sites and wander some neighbourhoods.

Four walking tours, have a look at Paris Walks, they have a good selection and are a good value. Last trip I did their 2 Marais tours.

There is a split of opinion here on how to access the airport. Cheapest and quickest is the RER train. It has several stops in central Paris. I've also used the Air France bus from Montparnasse station.