fuzzbucket

You could visit Strasbourg's Christmas market from Paris, if you want more bang for your buck than you'll get from the Marchés de Noël on the Champs-Elysées.
Two days should do it, then back to Paris.
Buy tickets 90 days ahead for best prices.

yestravel

Congratulations! How exciting for you!

Paris is a very walkable city. You can walk for hours and when you get tired take a bus or the metro. Its very easy to get around Paris. We have also enjoyed staying in Oltrano in Florence. In NYC I'm a bit more LES and used to really like SOHO. In Paris I like the 3rd or 4th arrrondisement, but for a first visit any of the single digit arrondisements would be a good choi as its more in the center and closer to the attractions. Read some descriptions of each arrondisement and decide which best fits you. It's like NYC in that each area has a personality of its own. Here are descriptions by a former NYC'er, but if you google you'll find lots.
https://youngadventuress.com/2013/02...nts-guide.html

PalenQ

https://www.google.com/search?q=la+d...w=1920&bih=950

Some say the Chirstmas Market in Paris' La Defense is as good as any in France at least.

Christina

Some say the Chirstmas Market in Paris' La Defense is as good as any in France at least.>>

But the point isn't just what can you buy, I presume, La Defense may be fine in that regard. But it's a modern business complex and a shopping mall, it's not the same ambiance as central Strasbourg at all. So it depends why you are going. If just to buy more "stuff", sure, it would be fine.

Any part of Paris is walkable within the neighborhood, pretty much, but it is denser in the center as that was the first part of the city. So outer edges of the 15th, for example, aren't so exciting to walk around, and same for 16th-20th, things just can be farther apart.

Marais and St Germain would be fine, though, can't go too far wrong for first-timers. I think there are more hotels in St Germain. Even the 7th arrondisment arouned rue Cler and Ecole Militaire would be fine as it's very walkable in the surrounding area, sure you need to take metro or bus to go to Louvre, etc., but you aren't going to be able to walk to everything from anywhere, unless you didn't do much, of course. Around Ecole Militaire is more quiet and residential than heart of St Germain, also. Plus, hotels are a bit cheaper around there.

I would never pick the Marais or St Germain as a "quiet" area in particular, although parts can be, but not if you are near the main busy streets with all the tourists and traffic.

mjs

Have been to the La Defence Christmas markets recently as well as the London Christmas market and was underwhelmed by both. A a pale imition of the German markets such as Berlin, Munich etc. Have not been to Strasbourg but have heard good things about it

kmb1116

Thank you for the well wishes, yestravel, and thank you for that helpful link! My husband is a former LESider himself

I'm not sure I've ever been to a proper Christmas market (do the ones in NYC count?), so I'm enjoying this debate. We are not big shoppers, even around the holidays, so we would be going more for the ambiance.

fuzzbucket

You could go to Strasbourg's market - Google this year's dates, they do change.
Then, you could take a 30 minute train ride to Colmar and explore the area, which is charming.
Go on the earliest available train or maybe spend one night in either city.

fuzzbucket

I'd recommend staying in Paris in a hotel in the 10ème, 11ème or 12ème arrondissements.
Good outdoor markets, inventive restaurants, etc.