Three days in Paris
 

Hi, I am a 65 year old woman who will travel with my niece (50) and her daughter (25) on Jan 24th. First time for my grand-nice, third for me and second for my niece so varying degrees of familiarity with Paris. We like to eat, a bit of culture and maybe enjoy some events. Last time we were there, we stayed at the 17th arrondissement and took the train to various sites. It was okay but maybe we will want to stay closer to the sites for my grand niece's sake. We've been to the Louvre, Notre Dame, Orsay, Eiffel, Champs Elysee but will revisit again, for my grand niece.
Would love suggestions on places to stay (air bnb or small hotel), non-touristy restaurants to try and areas to cover in three days. Thanks!

This could be a lot of fun. Since you are all adults, you could consider splitting up for part of the time.
Are the 3 days exclusive of arrival and departure days? Budget?

Three Days in Paris
 

Hi AJ - Change of dates. We arrive in Paris the morning of Thursday, Jan 30th and depart on the morning of Sunday, Feb 2nd.
We are trying to keep our costs down but also considering that we have very little time. The hotels in the 1-6th arrondissements are quite pricey. But I am cautious about going for an AirBnB since I read that most apartments for rent in Paris are illegal. :(

You really have only Thursday afternoon, Friday, and Saturday for touring, and three nights lodging costs. You might try looking for a family room in "tourist central" arrondissements 5 and 6, since that will minimize time lost commuting from further out to get to the central Paris destinations. Try searching with booking.com or hotels.com as they have filters. You may be better off booking directly with a hotel after finding one you like on the on line travel sites, however. What is your actual budget per night?

Also note that some sites including the Louvre need pre-booked entry times.

Three Days in Paris
 

Hi AJ - I booked a hotel near the Eiffel Tower (7th AR) for $200 /night. I am hoping the location will cut on travel time,as you suggested.
Wondering whether we should buy the City Pass for Euro128 per person. If we are very close to the sights, we might not need to the city pass?

No, you do not need the City Pass. It is a rip-off, offering all kinds of things no one would ever want or use.

While you research your location on google maps, note the bus stops and metro stations and the lines that they service.

Hi
Good idea to go to a hotel. For 3 nights no need of the hassle if an Airbnb.
As activity check if there is a concert at the sainte Chapelle. Stunning. You can find tickets on ticketreduc.com.

Good choice!
I agree with the previous poster. I would not buy the City Pass.

On the other hand, the museum pass may be useful. You skip the ticket lines, but everyone goes through the security lines. And you may save money.

I just came across travel podcaster who has some great tips: https://theearfultower.com/the-podcast/

I also have been listening to this one: https://joinusinfrance.com/podcast/a...sodes-by-date/

Thought they might be helpful! :)

Some sites you may not have seen that are noteworthy. Paris Opera House, l' Orangerie to see Monet's beautiful Water Lily murals. The Catacombs (but I recommend getting tickets in advance, the ones where you skip the line). The tour is fascinating. Sacré Coeur Basillica, Montmartre area, including painters square. Rodin museum. Seine river cruise at night is fun. Post Alexander lll Bridge, quick stop, but beautiful and has a fantastic view of the Eiffel Tower at night. Walk Champs- Elysées to the Arc de Triumph, maybe even stop for lunch at Ladurée, even though you can do that all over the world now, it's still fun to go to the original. I also love the St. Germain area. There are so many things to see, do, and eat, I could go back 20 times and still find new things! You may not have the time this trip, but the Palace at Versailles and the Gardens are well worth the time.

[QUOTE=Brenkjtravel;17048116]Some sites you may not have seen that are noteworthy. Paris Opera House, l' Orangerie to see Monet's beautiful Water Lily murals. The Catacombs (but I recommend getting tickets in advance, the ones where you skip the l/QUOTE]

Been 500 times to Paris before getting to see the catacombs. I could have done without.
I recommend spending time with the living.

I think there may be a subset of kids who enjoy the catacombs, but I thought it was one of the most boring, unpleasant things I've ever done in Paris. Drippy, wet, dark, narrow, endless piles of skulls...what's to enjoy? The history is of course interesting, but I didn't need to actually see the bones to understand it. And the fact that you exit some distance from where you enter (or at least you did the one time I did it) was disorienting.

The catacombs are popular with tourists (or have become so recently for some reason I don't understand, it never was a couple decades ago), I think because they think of it as Disneyland (Haunted House, etc) and that it isn't considered intellectual. Most people don't go because they are interested in the history or urban renewal efforts that it was part of. Tourists are fascinating with seeing dead people a lot, I've noticed. I find it disrespectful of the dead myself, the way tourists treat that site and even the city for presenting it as a big tourist attraction. And I'm not even that religious.

I would never recommend it as a must-see for a first-time tourists with only a couple days to visit.

Wow, is all that I can say. I am now remembering why I rarely ever get on here. Everyone is so negative and condescending. Out of all of the places I mentioned that's all you got out of that. Sure, the catacombs are not for everyone, but who knows, she might be interested. And just for the record, we treated the experience with the upmost respect, and didn't even take photos. I have been to Paris many times and this was something I found historically fascinating.

Have fun staying glued to your computer so you can be everyones moral compass.

I'm off to Bora Bora. And won't be back on these forums anytime soon.

basically you don't like people not following your advice or you just don't like people expressing different views ?

We enjoyed using the Batobus to get to the sites of Paris. A hop-on-hop-off day pass is relatively cheap, and it gives you a nice way to sit down, take a break, and watch Paris glide by. One day we were there, it was raining, and Batobus was a great way to get out of the rain, but still have a view.
There's a stop near the Eiffel Tower, of course. It doesn't run very late into the night, so watch the schedule if you're out around 9pm.
https://en.parisinfo.com/transport/73337/Batobus-Paris

Anyway, OP, what is it that you would be interested in doing, while you're in Paris.
The bit of culture, is that art? music? Being in "artistic surroundings"? If it's the latter, google for artists' studios that have been preserved and are open to the public. Musée de Montmartre is such a place, but also the recently re-opened Maison Balzac. Certainly the Nissim de Camondo museum.
Or perhaps a morning's walk somewhere interesting architecturally.

I've got one tip for an event:
Not only because of the fairground machines themselves but because of the location: the last remaining wine entrepot in Bercy. That area used to be all like that. Musée spectacle - Les Pavillons de Bercy You can book a "visite spectacle". Worth every euro.

We found the catacombs a bit underwhelming, having seen the ones beneath St. Peter's in Rome. Weaving through the chambers can be a bit disorienting, and the climb back up is tedious and difficult for anyone not a youngster.