Suggestions for couple on first time trip to Paris with 5 days?
 

My husband and I are heading to Paris for 5 days, 5 nights - from Chicago in April. It is the first time for both of us and I'm trying to figure out a good itinerary while there. We love cities, love walking and exploring, is 5 days too many? Should we plan a day trip outside of the city? Just curious if anyone has some "must-sees" or suggestions on planning our trip. Thanks!
Jill

Not too many days - for some of us, too few. If this is your first time in Paris, five days will not leave much time for a trip outside the city unless there is something you especially want to do. The Fodors main Paris page has a 3-day itinerary which is pretty basic for a start but leaves out a number of my favorites including the Ste. Chappelle, the Rodin Museum,the Marais, Pere Lachaise cemetary, the Marmatton Museum and many others. Shopping and walking around Paris and stopping to watch the passing scene in a cafe are also appealing. You will get lots of ideas from the many Paris lovers on this board.

St Chappelle is wonderful, as is the Rodin sculpture garden. I also enjoyed Napolean's palace. Musee de Orsay was cool. PIck a few items to see in the Louvre and get in an out, you could spend a wk there alone. We went 2 years ago March and it poured rain the whole time and was a bit of a bummer We stayed in area 6 I think, just N of the Duomo. found a very inexpensive nice place through cosy-hotels.com. Hopefully you can sit and eat/drink and people watch more than we did with the rain. I also really liked the Sacre Couer and the artist area just next to it. I think you could do a day trip to Versailles.

Hi,

You will find a wealth of information on this board. As a starting point, I would consider a hotel in the core of Paris. Paris is broken up into districts called arrondisments. Many will recommend staying in the 7th (near Eiffel tower as detailed in Rick Steve's book). I personally like the 5th, which is the Left Bank/Latin Quarter area. Staying centrally will allow you to walk everywhere and it is THE best way to see the city. The Metro has lots of stops, so you will never be far from access. You might want to consider buying a carnet (book of 10 tickets), for quick return to hotel at end of the day (all walked out:)). Waht are your interests? Museums? Neighbourhoods? Churches? etc.. We're here to help!
Mike

Thank you for your suggestions, I love the information on these boards, but sometimes there is so much to go through! Not sure where we are staying yet, my husband works for an international bank so we can get incredible corporate rates at very nice hotels. But I think most of them are on the right bank - it sounds like the left bank has more personality, which is very appealing to me. So I think I will keep researching! We definitely want to sight see a lot, but I don't want to be rushing around the whole time, I love the idea of enjoying cafes and people watching as well. Thanks for taking the time to respond!
Jill

Friends of mine stayed at the Hotel Abotel Trianon Saint-Germain, Rue de Vaugirard, and really enjoyed the hotel and the location. I believe it is a three-star hotel.

We stayed at a tiny hotel in the 1st that I would not recommend. However, I must say that we just loved that area of Paris.

Have a great time planning and don't miss Ste. Chappelle.

I may be wrong but most of the REALLY really nice hotels are on the right bank - close to the Louvre, Garnier Opera...Madeleine area...
aren't they? All the same, you'll be central to walk out and about and get a nice taste of Paris...

this is easy. take one or two half day trips and spend the rest of your time in paris. versailles is a 5-6 hour trip so there would be time for other things in paris to do. a day trip to giverny, chantilly or fontainbleu also. i think these would be a longer day. get a rick stevesguide. [email protected]

You should not commit to any day trips until after you've been in town a few days - 5 days isn't really adequate to see all of the city and you may decide to spend all of your in the city. SUGGESTION: Stay in an inexpensive, central hotel (Hotel Chevruse in the 6th @ $75/night is one - there are many others) and use all of the savings from your original hotel budget and enjoy a "splurge" dinner. You'll re-taste each course years after you've forgotten what any hotel room looked like.

Hi Jill

I like to plan things by morning/afternoon/evening. Then depending on how things go, I slot events & destinations in on the day.

For example, if it's a bright sunny morning and I'm up for it, then Notre Dame followed by Ste. Chapelle (opening times 8.30/10am) would be great for the stained glass windows/the sound of early Mass being sung. With any luck you'd get at least 1 sunny morning outta 5...

The 'Paris for Dummies' or Idiots book (it has an orange cover) is most excellent for helping you prioritize what you and hubby would like to do, definitely get that from your library [or buy it new, use it, then donate to your library].

HTH and have fun planning!

Jill -
We did that same trip 2 years ago. We had never been either. People told us to visit Versailles, and other day trips, but I'm glad we didn't. There is just so much to see right in Paris.

We bought the AAA Paris guide, and created a "wish list" and decided each day what we would like to do from the list. We like their guides because they have walks, and "Don't Miss" sections for each area of the city, along with "If you have time" suggestions. We carried this book everywhere.

We stayed right next to Luxembourg Gardens in a sweet, chic, lovely hotel called "Clos de Medecis (?sp)". We were able to walk everywhere from this hotel, even to Montmarte/Sacre Coeur.

In 5 days we saw Eiffel Tower (went up in it), Champs-Elysee, Place de la Concorde, Arc de Triomphe, Louvre (quick in and out), Musee d'Orsay, Marais, Ste. Chapelle, Notre Dame (went to Mass, which was the highlight of my trip), Montmarte and Sacre Coeure, Paris Opera House, Ile de la Cite and Ile St. Louis, Latin Quarter, Rodin Museum, Luxembourg Gardens, Tuileries, Place des Voges, The Bird and Flower Market, and The Bastille.

We also walked along the Seine and took in the artists and vendors - loved this!, and took a Bateaux Mouches trip at dusk on the Seine which was breathtaking. We did a fair amount of just strolling, popping into shops along the way, hanging out at cafes and people watching. Our first day there we were too jet lagged to do much, so we basically ate at a cafe and walked around and went to Luxembourg Garden.

The pace was a bit hectic, but the city is so walkable, and things are all close together. We walked to Montmarte, which I would not do again - too far, and not a great area to walk through.

If you can't tell already, I left my heart in Paris - it is so beautiful, and no one was offended by my terrible 5th grade french. Everyone was very, very nice.

Please do a trip report when you return!!

http://www.closmedicis.com/

Jill - here's the hotel link. There was one GREAT restaurant we walked to from there - Le Mediterrane or something like that. We ate outside on the sidewalk in candlelight - very romantic!! - and the food and service were outstanding.

Le Mediteranne...the one on the plaza at the Odeon Theatre? We ate there. Loved it. The waiters were a hoot...practically fought over us.

Jill:
Just a couple of notes. With only 5 days I would stay in Paris. There's so much to see.

Assuming you want to see the Louvre, you should plan at least 2 different visits. It's so overwhelming. Decide ahead of time what you want to see...rent the appropriate audio tour. You'll get a lot more out of it.

You can do this two different ways. Cram everything in or decide from the beginning you won't be able to see everything and just enjoy the sites you do fit in. If you're anything like us, you'll spend a lot of time just strolling through the lovely streets of Paris admiring the river, the shop windows, etc. Don't pass by all the patisseries...go in a buy an outrageous pastry. You'll walk it off, believe me!

Paris is as much a feeling as it is a compilation of monuments.