artzyjen

I found out yesterday that we are going to Paris the last week in March (for my husband's business). This will be my first time there. I'm already onto the museum passes. We will be there for 6 full days. I am debating whether to get two or four day museum passes. My problem is that my husband will only be able to go to museums one day out of the trip. Is there a way to buy two 2-day passes and my husband use one day of the second pass and me use the other?

Also, does anyone know how much admission is to Versailles?

Are there any places off the beaten path you would recommend? I would like to experience as much of the city as I can squeeze into my trip. I'm already planning visit to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur. Any help is much appreciated!

artzyjen

Thought of another question to ask...

Since my husband will be working I will be by myself for most of the trip. (I'm 24 and this will be my first venture outside of North and Central America). is the rail worth taking? Or should I stick to taxis?

jamikins

You can definitely handle the underground. Its very easy. You can buy 10 passes for a reasonable amount and it gets to everywhere you would want to go.

I am so excited for you...I love Paris...what are your interests?

artzyjen

I'm an artist and I do a bit of photography as well. While I am definitely interested in the regular 'tourist-y' aspects of traveling, I like to enjoy random aspects of life in any given place as well. I have a painting that sits in my living room that has been passed down through two generations of my family of a market square in Paris. (My grandmother bought it from a street painter in Paris in 1957). I'd really like to find the same spot and take a photograph of the square.

nbujic

Don't spend too much time in museums;
Paris a great place to walk around, sit in cafes, relax, shop, eat.
I have been to Paris more than 20 times and still have not visited "all the attractions".

Before you go, take a look at a good gidebook and study the Metro system ( the best way to get around).
have fun!

ltr

If you buy your Versailles admission ticket along with your train ticket, it is about 19E for both. When you arrive at Versailles, you can bypass the long lines.

I love the Montmartre and Sacre Coeur area. There are some street "Vendors" that may try to tie a string on your wrist and charge you for it. It is not a big problem, but just something to know. You just need to tell them no and they will not bother you.

artzyjen

Would you recommend 2 day museum passes for a six day trip then?

ltr

It depends on how many museums you plan to visit. The good thing about having a 4 day pass is you can stop at one anytime during your visit vs. trying to see everything in two days. It can be more relaxing to just stop in for a while and then go and do something else.

If I recall correctly, you do have to sign your museum pass when you first use it. I don't recall how closely they check the pass when you enter so I am not sure if you could use your husband's extra day or not.

BeachGirl just returned from Paris today, so maybe after she recovers from jet lag, so will be able to anser that question.

nbujic

never had a museum pass; just went to the museumm I felt like seeng that day and
bought a ticket.

TRSW

artzyjen - As a fellow avid photographer, I HIGHLY reccomend that you go to Musee D Orsay!!! It is in an old train station. The sculptures and the building itself are a photographers dream!!!

You can see my take on Paris at www.pbase.com/trsw/paris2006 The shots at the begining were taken at Musee D Orsay.

Tom

ira

Hi A,

With only a week in Paris, I'm not sure that a visit to Versailles in March is a good idea.

You can buy a ticket for the D'Orsay as late as the day before you wish to visit and skip the lines. (I'm not sure if you can do this for the Louvre.)

You might find these links helpful:
Paris Superthread
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34519236

100 Great Things to Do in Paris
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...mp;tid=1277898

Degas’s Paris Walks
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34712768

Jacquemart-Andre’ Museum http://tinyurl.com/p9pol

Also, look up Paris under "Destinations".

Enjoy your visit.

MargrietVanderBanck

It sounds as though you’re not by nature a clipboard tourist (Louvre, check; Orsay, check; Champs Elysées, check ...), so a museum pass is probably a waste of money. Choose a few things you really want to see and spend the rest of the time wandering around with your camera. If you fall in love with Paris, you’ll be back.

Some people will tell you that you have to have a pass to avoid line-ups, but they shouldn’t be a problem in the last week of March. I just spent a week in Paris with my husband and our daughter and her boyfriend. It was the beginning of a two-week school holiday in France, but they avoided line-ups at the Louvre (by going in through Carousel du Louvre off the rue de Rivoli) and at Musée d’Orsay (by going around 10:30 and missing the long line-up of people who arrive early to avoid lining up). Another strategy for Musée d’Orsay is to go around 5 on Thursays when the museum is open late. The only places you might encounter line-ups are at L’Orangerie and Ste Chapelle. And if you’re not rushing around ticking off boxes, what’s the problem with standing in a line for half an hour?

MargrietVanderBanck

It sounds as though you’re not by nature a clipboard tourist (Louvre, check; Orsay, check; Champs Elysées, check ...), so a museum pass is probably a waste of money. Choose a few things you really want to see and spend the rest of the time wandering around with your camera. If you fall in love with Paris, you’ll be back.

Some people will tell you that you have to have a pass to avoid line-ups, but they shouldn’t be a problem in the last week of March. I just spent a week in Paris with my husband and our daughter and her boyfriend. It was the beginning of a two-week school holiday in France, but they avoided line-ups at the Louvre (by going in through Carousel du Louvre off the rue de Rivoli) and at Musée d’Orsay (by going around 10:30 and missing the long line-up of people who arrive early to avoid lining up). Another strategy for Musée d’Orsay is to go around 5 on Thursays when the museum is open late. The only places you might encounter line-ups are at L’Orangerie and Ste Chapelle. And if you’re not rushing around ticking off boxes, what’s the problem with standing in a line for half an hour?

Have a wonderful visit. I'm sure it will be the first of many.

robjame

TRSW - your pictures are beautiful - makes me want to chuck my camera away
artz - There are places off the beaten path hidden in every turn in Paris - there are some lovely parks with hidden areas. Jardin des Plantes has a great alpine plants area, Luxumbourg usually has an outside art display, look fro sculptures in public areas, searching out artistic Metro signs (art nouveau) is fun, look for the love wall, the Arago markers, artistic food displays (my favorite).
You will have a wonderful time!
Margriet & Anselm - welcome home

Travelnut

If you and your husband each have a 2-day pass, and you both use the first day together, then the 2nd day of the pass is the very next day and you'd only have need of one pass that day. Then both passes would be expired.

The other thing is you have to write your name on the pass and, last time I used them, the card was looked at.

I think the cost of the passes has gone up to the point where it doesn't 'pay' anymore unless you are an art major or something and need to spend half your vacation in museums. There are quite a few city-owned museums on the pass but these are free anyway.

lmlweb

I think there is a museum that focuses on photography. Let me look it up... ah yes, the Maison Europeenne de la Photographie (http://www.mep-fr.org/us/).

As an artist, if you're interested in a particular era, Paris has them covered. Louvre for the pre-1880, then the Orsay for the turn of the century and Impressionist arts, and of course Pompideau for the modern art. There's gong to be something you're interested in as well.

I tried to go to the Sennelier fine arts supply shop, as it was one of the shops that Van Gogh had frequented, but it was closed for lunch break. Never went back there as I was off doing other things, but I'd like to go back when I go back.

suze

Paris is the perfect city to wander. We'd head out to an area for one particular thing (Eiffel Tower, for example) then take the entire day to walk back to our hotel (in the 5th).

The museum thing is such an individual choice. For me, being out in the city itself was more enjoyable than musuem visits, but that's just me.

nbujic

One to two hours a day of any museum is enough for me.
First time visitors to Paris often try to see too much in a few days - they never really get to enjoy the city's beautiful parks, street, cafes, etc. .

Millie64

I loved having a museum pass. You skip any lines (which you might not have in March). You can also just go into a museum for an hour, walk around the area, go back in, without paying again. I personally would get a 4 day pass for you.. then you wouldn't feel you had to see more than one museum a day. Paris is a small city, very walkable. I would think your husband might just want to pay admission the day he goes. I've been to Paris lots of time and will be ahppy to answer any other qustions.

kas238

one more thing...if you get tired of museums, go take a walk in the luxembourg gardens! It's in a great quarter to explore...and near Boulevard St. Germain.