janinet

Ok, so I'm having trouble deciding our itinerary, so I would love everyone's opinion about what you would definitely see, skip, and any recommendations on where to eat or just general tips would be appreciated. Oh, and if anything is missing below that you would do, please fill me in. We will be staying near st. michele metro station near the Seine river in the 6th arrondissement. I have broken down the days with areas, but am not even sure what some of these sights are. Please tell me what you would choose and why, oh, and the order you would do them. Thanks! Ok, here it is:

Sunday: Versaille (even though some of you say to do it next time, but there probably won't be a next time, and I will be so upset if we don't go)

Monday: Ile St. Louis and Ile de la Cite:

* Ile de la Cite
* Notre Dame
* Sainte Chapelle
* Conciergerie

Latin Quarter:

* Market at Place Monge
* Rue Mouffetard
* Pantheon
* Blvd. St. Michel
* Sorbonne
* Blvd. St. Germain
* Rue de la Huchette pedestrian streets
* Shakespeare and Co.
* Market at Maubert Mutualite

St. Germain des Pres:

* Boulevard St. Germain and its famous cafes
* Historical side streets of St. Germain
* Eglise St. Germain des Pres
* St. Sulpice
* Luxembourg Gardens

Tuesday:

Marais:

* Place des Vosges
* Musee Picasso
* Musee Carnavalet
* Rue des Rosiers
* Mariage Freres
* Great shopping streets of the Marais

Louvre and Champs Elysees:

* Musee du Louvre
* Pyramide du Louvre
* Tuileries Garden
* Place de la Concorde
* Champs Elysees
* Arc de Triomphe

Wednesday:

Montmartre:

* Place du Tertre
* Sacre Coeur
* Montmartre vineyard
* Musee de Montmartre
* Rue Lepic
* Beautiful back and side streets of Montmartre
* Place des Abbesses
* Highlights from the film "Amelie"

Seventh Arrondissement:

* Eiffel Tower
* Palais du Chaillot
* Champ de Mars
* Musee Rodin
* Musee d'Orsay
* Invalides

I know this is a lot of info to ask about, I'm just so overwhelmed. And I know you aren't supposed to plan everything too much, but I want a general outline so we don't spend half the day deciding what to do. Plus I don't want to get lost. Thanks and I really appreciate any help! Thanks ;o)

janisj

&quot;<i> I know you aren't supposed to plan everything too much</i> You can plan all you want, but &quot;planning&quot; doesn't make it so.

You simply will not be able to see/do all that in that short a time.

It seems to me you have just taken a list of places and strung them together. All of your days are too full - but Wednesday is impossible. Just taking the &quot;enter and visit/tour&quot; sites on Wed you have Sacre Coeur, Musee de Montmartre, Eiffel Tower, Musee Rodin, Musee d'Orsay, Invalides. That isn't counting the 7 other streets/walks/viewpoints/sites you also want to include.

Including/eliminating Versailles is the <u>least</u> of your worries.

Sorry to be so blunt - but IMO you need to blow this up and start over.

janinet

Umm......thanks for the KIND response?! If you had read my post, you would have seen that the long list is not my itinerary, those are the sights to choose from in each area and I was simply asking for people to list their favorites and why. I suppose it was foolish of me to ask for this large amount of information, I was just feeling so overwhelmed and couldn't choose which sights to see and which to skip. But no worries , I have found people on other forums to be quite helpful (and polite!) and have made great progress with making my itinerary. Sorry to be so blunt, but next time please actually read the post. And remember, people come to forums for help, so when you respond, try to be helpful or don't' respond at all. Thanks!

Apres_Londee

Hi janinet: please accept this in the friendly spirit in which it is offered- janisj really was trying help. When I read your post, I also thought you were posting a rough draft itinerary, and janisj was absolutely correct in suggesting to start again from stratch. Please understand that even your request to tell you what to do, and why, and in what order, is very difficult when we don't know your interests, your age, etc. There is no &quot;one size fits all&quot; itinerary, and I think you'll find that no one appreciates that more than the long-time posters at these boards. In my own experience, nothing beats the wealth of information and advice found here.

Okay, that being said, you say you've made good progress with your itinerary If you're still looking for advice, think about posting what you've got and also a bit about your interests, your must-sees, your purpose for the trip, who you're travelling with, if you have any mobility issues or limitations, etc.

Padraig

janinet wrote: &quot;And remember, people come to forums for help, so when you respond, try to be helpful or don't' respond at all.&quot;

Have you any sense of irony?


I thought not.

StCirq

If you're this thin-skinned you're going to have real problems in Paris.

What you're asking is impossible, or at least so subjective that any answers would be useless.

It looks to me as though you've just done some very superficial research and made a list of places, grouped by general location, and you want to stop your research there and let others take over. I would suggest you do the next bit of refining by yourself, since you are the only one who knows what interests you and what kind of traveler you are. You actually claim you don't even know what some of these places are.

Back in your court.

dedlaw

I also thought this was a starting point itinerary that was to be whittled down -- and I figured maybe one could simply get to all these places in a single day on a motor scooter. Museums are different from outdoor markets are different from scenic views are different from architectural marvels are different from . . . Even if one is trying to help (which is what typically happens here), one needs some basic idea of how YOU would select -- I can tell you I really enjoy a lot of time in museums, but that might not be your thing.

nytraveler

First, way too much stuff.

Tuesday especially is about 2.5 days worth of stuff - if you whip through everything). And Wednesday afternoon is also more than a full day. IMHO either the Louvre or the D'Orsay takes half of a day.)

And is there some reason to spend so much time in markets? How different are they really from each other? And how much stuff are you planning on buying?

And why spend a whole day in Versailles?

Second, way too organized for me.

I would shoot myself rather than go with a list like that.

Who knows which day it will rain? Or if you have a late night and don;t want to start early?

Where is the time to just sit in a cafe and watch the (very interesting) world go by?

Where's the chance just to wander in a cute neighborhood?

I've been to Paris 9 times - and still haven;t seen some of the things on your list. And while several were business trips with only a day or two of vacation added on - twice we were there for a whole week.

nytraveler

janinet -

Agree that my favorites are not YOUR favorites. YOU need to decide the focus of your trip. I love museums, churches, castles etc - and have no interest whatsoever in markets - and rarely buy &quot;stuff&quot; to bring home.

We can't get inside you head - to see what you enjoy.

Only you can.

Agree you need to make a focus decision and then start over.

As for putting together a list of what you should see in what order on what days - that's why people take tours - so they don't have to think about those things.

Traveling independently is much more rewarding, since you do what YOU want - but also a lot more work - than taking a tour.

To do what you ask you need to find - and pay - a travel agent very familiar with Paris.

Oscar_James

I like your agenda, always plan for more than you can do. You will find that some museums to be closed or crowded. Visit my site to see some of our agendas... emilyandjim.info

janisj

janinet: I DID read your post. You are the one who said you are including Versailles no matter what anyone says. You are the one who laid out the list day by day (so most people would think those were the sites you planned to see on those days). And finally, you are the one who said &quot;<i>And I know you aren't supposed to plan everything too much, but I want a general outline so we don't spend half the day deciding what to do</i>&quot; which makes it look like this was your basic outline.

So -- am I supposed to be a mind reader and know that wasn't what you really meant???

Sorry - but I stand by what I wrote -- you do need to blow it up and start over. I was not being rude - I was saying you do not have a plan we can refine for you.

ira

Hi J,

&gt;Versailles ...even though some of you say to do it next time, but there probably won't be a next time,

I am so sorry to hear of your terminal illness.