We are looking into a flight that would get into Paris at 6:30am on a Thursday and leave on a 10:00am flight on Monday. Basically we would have all day Thurs, Fri, Sat and Sun. 4 days. Do you think that is enough time?

There can never be enough time in Paris.

That trip would be a little too short for me, but if it's all the time you can get in Paris, then it's far better than not going.

I once had to do a biz trip to Vienna with a similar itinerary. It was tough but quite enjoyable. I will be travelling to Paris in two months so I have been puruesing this thread for a while and I think the concensus opinion is that you can expect to wish you had more time. But as PM said, if that is all the time you have, then fine. sundays in Paris are when many of the roads are closed to only bicycles. You should have fun.

I would appreciate you emailing me at [email protected] after you get back with your thoughts on how tough or fun it is to arrive at 0630 and try to last a full day.

NO. But it's better than no Paris at all. Carve out more days is possible - even if it's just 1 more.

I have done this (or very similar) itinerary and it was better than not going at all, but I sure wanted to stay longer. If it is the only way you can make the trip wor then go for it, but an additional couple days would make it even more enjoyable. It also depends somewhat on how long you wil have to travel to get there and back, I would reckon.

As much as I love Paris, I think the question really comes down to how well you do with jetlag. I just came home from a 6-day trip to Switzerland and Paris, and have been crawling through the work week. I had a fantastic time, but I'm really not sure given how I feel right now if I'd do it again. The tiredness has been overhwhelming.

Is this your first trip to Paris? If so, I'd say no, you'll be too jetlagged to deal with the first day and the last will be a frantic goodbye.

If it's your 20th, then it'll be perfect.

It's not enough, BUT if this is all you've got - go, have fun! Change your watches to the time of your destination right away -- and when you get to the hotel in Paris, get on their time schedule immediately. Get some Ambien to sleep on the plane to help with sleep!

Go and soak it all in and have a great time.
And, call into work on Monday from Paris and tell your boss that you have a HORRIBLE cold and won't be in for another day or two!

Of course, if you can afford more - time and money -- go for more!

That's exactly what I did when a friend and I went for our "long weekend" in Paris a few years ago. I hadn't been to Paris in almost thirty years, so I don't know if it counts as a first time or not, but I had a wonderful time. And have been back several times since.

On Thursday we took naps, cruised the Seine, ate in a wine bar along the quay, caught a concert at Sainte Chapelle, and went out for tea and dessert afterwards.

On Friday we went to the Louvre, shopped in Saint Germain, and went out for a great dinner.

Saturday morning I went by myself to the flea market at Porte de Vanves while my friend walked the length of the Champs Elysees. I don't remember what we did that afternoon, but we went out to dinner and a jazz club late that night.

Sunday we went to the Musee d'Orsay and then to the top of the Eiffel Tower, where my friend's brother had proposed to his wife so she insisted. Then out for another great dinner.

Monday we flew home and were very happy campers. I had a bag full of antique kitchen items, French books and magazines, truffle oil, French ceramics, and enough photos to make me relive the trip whenever I wanted. Oh, and did I mention the chocolate?

one always wants more time.....but a long weekend in Paris? I'd go in a heartbeat. If that's the time frame you have - go for it. so you might be tired when you get home....you'll go to bed early that week. the memories will be worth it.

Hi S,

If that's the best you can do, it is better than not going at all.

Where are you coming from?

If you live in Europe then sure a quick flight & 4 days in Paris would be fun. If you're flying from US/Canada, then no it would most definitely not be worth it to me.

I flew to Paris for 3.5 days in November and had a wonderful time. It was my first time there. Sure I was exhausted at times but its such a great city and I would certainly do it all over again if I had the chance. I've also done 3 days in Rome on a similar trip with no problems. I think the way you handle jet lag should be taken into consideration though. If you have a hard time with it, you could easily blow the whole first day. Fortunately my hubby and I handle it quite well (thanks to Ambien!) so it wasn't an issue.

Tracy

I went to Paris with my husband and 2 sons for 4 days over Memorial Day Weekend last year and it was great. I had been there a few years back for a week but it was the first time for the rest of the family. We packed so much into those few days and tried to be as efficient as possible with our time. One useful thing we did was to hire a guide to spend a day with us. We spent part of that day in the Louvre and it saved so much time that would have been wasted navigating our way around and figuring out where we were and how to get to where we needed to go. He spared us all that so we were able to cover a lot in the time we had. In May my husband and I are going back to Paris for just 3 days on our way to Provence. We may see a few things we missed and repeat a few things we loved, but basically we're going to walk the city without any real agenda. And this time I'd like to do a little more shopping - that was one activity that had to get clipped. Go for it and enjoy.

I look at this way where any large city is concerned. First, I will never see all of it. Secondly, I will enjoy what I see.

Paris has something for everybody.

I do suggest that you decide in advance what you want to see in priority order.
Then learn how to get from one place to the other so that you don't mill about trying to find your way.

Another tip, one I learned from experience, is to not overplan a day.
Paris has ways of presenting the unexpected.

Case in point: One Sunday we left our hotel for the Musee d'Orsay. The bus we had planned on taking did not run on Sunday, so we had to walk up the stree to Boulevard Raspail to find another bus.

When we got there we found a huge farmers' market in progress. The booths and stands were full of beautiful vegetables and fruits. We both were eager to see what the French farmers produced and we ended up spending quite a bit of time there.

We finally got the museum around 11, just in time for an orientation walk and then a very delicious lunch in the restaurant, followed by a long afternoon of seeing the offerings of the museum.

Something got dropped from the schedule at the end of the day, but for the life of me I don't remember what it was.

I have been there 3 times in recent years, and there are still places to go and things to see. Don't rush it; enjoy it.