We will be in France 6 days but in reality only 3.5-4 full days as we will be coming from London one day, taking a trip to Lourdes (a must) and back another day and flying out to Venice at 7PM on the last day.

Day one:
• Eurostar arrival right before lunch, drop bags at hotel. How bad is immigration and customs at the Eurostar station? Do we take cab to Hotel St. Gregoire at the 6th arrondisement?
• go to a café immediately for lunch and coffee! Any recommendations?
• Walk around Jardin du Luxembourg since we are already in the 6th
• Shop around
• Walk through Latin Quarter to see Notre Dame and St Chapelle (could skip this for this day and move it at the end of the trip)
• Boat ride at night. I've read that the one at Pont Neuf is most recommended, can someone please enlightment me why?
• Dinner – yet to be researched?

Day 2:
• Louvre. How early should we be there exactly? If I buy tix online can I skip the line? Or do I need the museum pass to skip the line?
• Jardin des Tuileries
• Vendome
• Opera
• Behind the Opera – Galeries Lafayette and Au Printemps
• Sacre Couer

Day 3:
• Half day to Versailles. Do we really have to be there by 9? How much crowd is there in the middle of June?
• Eiffel Tower – how to skip the line since we're not there first thing in the morning?
• Trocadero at night

Day 4:
• Walk through Champs-Elysees from Arc de Triomphe to Tuileries Garden
• Go to Lourdes…Take 4:20PM train

Day 5: 7:41 train ride out of Lourdes arriving at 13:45 in Paris

- see all the sights that we could've missed plus last minute shopping

Day 6: Plane to Venice (MYAIR) leaves at 7PM. How early do we need to be at the Airport? What airport transfer to use?

- before we leave for Venice, similar to Day 5, we shall see all the sights that we could've missed plus last minute shopping

Sounds like fun stuff!

Don't skip the St Chapelle. Breath taking place. I took amazing black & white pictues of the upper level. Take a good look at outside of Notre Dame your way to St. Cappel.

Glad to see you are planning night time activities. Have you decided on on what opera and what were your option? We were able to see a ballet over near the Bastile. No ballet since has lived up the performance of La Beyadette.

Don't rememver the specifics but we avoided the lines by entering under the Richelieu wing.

Neither the Ste-Chapelle nor Notre-Dame is in the Latin Quarter; they've over the bridge on the Ile de la Cité. But you could go through the Latin Quarter to get there. You might add the Conciergerie to that group.

The underground entrance to the Louvre via the Rue de Rivoli entrance usually has the shortest line, especially if you're using a museum pass. The Pyramid entrance can take forever on a busy day and gets really hot, too.

The Pont Neuf is the most convenient site from which to take a boat cruise; other docks are farther down the Seine. Also, vedettes de Paris uses smaller ships.

As you will be arriving from London, there is no immigration in Paris. There is a taxi stand at Gare to Nord. The line-up can be long but it moves very quickly. There are larger cabs (mini-vans too). It sound as though this is your first trip to Paris so use a cab to get to your hotel unless $ a big issue and you are travelling light.

Hi Z,

You are overplanning, a problem that we both share.

Pick 3 things that you must do and 3 things that you would like to do.

Leave the rest of your short visit for just wandering around and soaking up Paris.

For example, on the corner of Rue Madam and Rue Vaugirard is a great patissiere.

If you are going to the Luxemourg gardens, you could walk down to Pl St Sulpice and people watch at the cafe across from the fountain.

Pierre Herme is right around the corner on Rue Bonaparte.

etc, etc, etc.

What type of stopwatch will be using to track your itinerary?

Ste Chapelle: You must go when the sun is bright to get the effect of the magnificent stained glass windows.

You are trying to do everything in too little time. Drop Versilles and save the travel time. Ira has the right idea.

Hi thanks for all the replies. Is watching the opera a must? I seriously thought it was just a structure (like the Sydney opera house) that I could just pass by and see and have a few pictures taken.

I do realise that the itinerary is quite packed. However, I've been told the same thing before for my other trips and we managed just fine. We managed NY when my daughter was still a todder and that was a real busy schedule. I can't help it - I'm borderline obsessive compulsive and I need to see everything and this time around - no kids! Anyway, we can always have cafe breaks in between and walking around would be enough to take in the sights.

Thank you for all the suggestions. I've also read all other threads regarding shopping and bakery/brasserie suggestions, my question is how do I know which arrondisements these are? I'm trying to plan out my itinerary in such a way that I have food and shopping choices in each neighborhood that we go to.

As for the Eiffel Tower, I would appreciate any suggestions on how to skip the line - late afternoon most probably.

Versailles - I was planning to skip it and then I read that it took a mere 40mins train ride and possibly 70min max to include metro walk and walk up to the chateau. Perhaps I can take a tour here so that hubby and I can have a comfy bus ride. Any suggestions?

And don't worry, I'm not skipping St. Chapelle but moving it to another day as day one seems quite booked.

Sorry If I rushed writing the itinerary. I knew that the Notre Dame was not in the Latin Quarter. And that was exactly my intention: walk through the Latin Quarter to Notre Dame.

There is no 4:20 train to Lourdes. I think you want the 2:40.

Notre-Dame is right across the river from the Latin Quarter, so placing it there by accident is not a big mistake.

It's best not to be compulsive when travelling, because everything takes longer than you expect or plan, and changes are inevitable. It's hard enough to keep to a tight schedule when you are at home and you know and can control more of the variables, but abroad it can be almost a roll of the dice at times.

The lines at the Eiffel Tower are shortest when it opens in the morning and late at night. But there is almost always a line in high season.

Hi Z,

> Is watching the opera a must? I seriously thought it was just a structure ...<

You are correct. Very nice building.

You can find which arrond your various restos, etc are in by entering the address at www.pagesjaunes.com.

You can also see a photo and take a tour of the neighborhood.

RonZ you are absolutely correct! Thanks for pointing that out. I guess my eyesight plus my mind's slowly deteriorating from planning this trip. I'm tempted to take to the 3:45 train that arrives close to midnight to Lourdes or perhaps take a plane instead...

Thanks for the website, ira. It's very useful indeed. Are the arrondisements quite huge in size - i.e. two attractions can be in the same arrondisement but the distance between them can be quite far.

Any tips on how to skip the line at the Eiffel Tower? Can I buy any pass to do this because I'd be willing to? And is the restaurant up there pretty decent?

You can't pre-book tickets for the Eiffel Tower - I tried! I'll be in Paris in late August and also wanted to miss the long queues at the Tower, so checked the website. The best suggestions I've seen so far are to go early morning or in the evening after the daytrippers have left the city. They also suggest the queues for tickets to take the stairs to the 1st or 2nd levels are much quicker than the queues to take the elevators.

There is a restaurant on the first level of the Eiffel Tower that is okay: Altitude 95. Reservations are good but sometimes you can just walk in. If you're lucky enough to sit by the windows, the view across the river of the Palais de Chaillot is wonderful.

The other restaurant is the Jules Verne, for which you must reserve well in advance. It's quite expensive, too. It has a private elevator entrance and it's on the second platform. The view is mediocre, since it looks out towards the southern suburbs.

There are also several snack bars inside the tower at both levels.

RonZ, I've just double checked the tgv website versus our local travelex website for the train schedules and there appears to be a 16:20 departure from paris that arrives at 21:57 in Lourdes.

Anyway, is it just me and my computer: can someone enlighten me why I can open threads where I have posted but not the forums itself. This has been the case since 12hrs ago!

Hi, At that time of the year I would prebook as much as you can. We were there in April for 9 days and rest assured at the Louvre, Orsey and Versailles prebooking saved hours. In June I expect it would be chaos. Allow at least a half day for Versailles and the Louvre as well, both are worth the extra effort. It took us 100 minutes wait to get up the Eiffel, the coffee was crap in the restaurant as well. Also, bone up on the sites you wish to vist and the metro, with your sort of schedule you will need to make the most of your time. Rather than taking the cruise at night, take a stroll, especially the Eiffel at night.

We flew MYAIR from Venice to Paris, excellent service and payed only 1 euro cent each + taxes!! Get there 2 hours beforehand as typically low cost carriers will oversell seats to cover for no shows. If everyone does turn up late comers get bumped.

Have a good trip.

Redcrab thanks very much for your reply. Please tell me how you pre-book the Paris sights?!

I got myair for EUR10 but the taxes do add up.

The 16:20 train is listed on SNCF but not on the German rail site, so you were right.

Hi Zizz,

We booked the Louvre and Musee d'Orsay (had to specify a day for the Orsay) at the Virgin Mega store, Versailles was booked at the FNAC's store (France's version of Virgin) and Euro Disney at the Disney shop (you can get you rail tickets here as well for Disney), all are on the Champs d'Elysées and walking distance apart. All (except Disney) have a nominal booking fee. You will still have to queue one way or another, what you avoid is the queuing to purchase the tickets once you are inside. As previously stated, for Eifell, just get there early. A trick with the Louvre if you are in a hurry to see the Mona Lisa, is to pre-purchase your tickets and enter thru the Porte Des Lions entrance, be there before the 0900 opening time. She is on level 1 so you head up stairs and then along the long passage way. It is nice to look at her without the crowds and the tour groups following collapsed umbrellas! Check the Louvre web site to familiarise yourself with the layout. Another handy hint, I printed out (in colour and A4) all the underground maps, my wife was carrying a shoulder type bag and she could whip the maps out quickly and easily. The free ones you get get tattered very quickly. MYAIR fly from Orly, so you need to catch the RER from Gard Du Nord, Chatelet Les Halles or Saint Michel Notre Dame to Antony, then you jump on a light rail train that takes you to the terminal. Check out www.ratp.info, click on english and away you go. you will get all the maps and schedules you need.

Cheers