My DH and I have been to Paris twice; once in October 2002 and December 2004. We would love to see it in the spring with flowers and lovely weather. Fortunately our travel dates are flexible, so we are looking for some approximate dates when everything should be in bloom. I am fully aware that there's no guarentee on the weather and we've already been rained and snowed on in Paris and it never dampened our spirits yet! Any comments on approximate dates would be very nice.

I would choose May, but plan carefully to avoid all those May holidays.

StCirq,

Is the avoidance because things are shut down during the holidays, or it's really packed with people?

I will do a search on holidays but if you know a week or 10 day stretch of no holidays, please let me know.

If you go after May 12, I believe you'll have missed all the holidays.

It's a matter of things being shut down, not crowds.

We were there May 1. Everything was closed, but all the horse chestnut trees were in bloom. We walked for miles. I would go in early May, or if you can hold off for your reservations, see what the weather is like. Late April would be ideal for a normal spring. This year it was late.

Is May considered high season for hotels?

We had near perfect weather the first two weeks in May 2007. The holidays were no big deal - plenty to do in spite of the holidays. I will admit, however, that it was unseasonably hot the end of April 2007 and unseaonably cold the end of May 2007. So............it's difficult to time it right - sometimes you just get lucky!

ttt just in case

holidays in April/ May 2009

# Sunday 12 April - Easter (Pâques).
# Monday 12 April - Easter Monday (Lundi de Pâques).
# Friday 1 May - Labour Day (Fête du Travail).
# Friday 8 May - VE Day - WWII Victory Day (Fête de la Victoire 1945).
# Thursday 21 May - Ascension Day (Ascension catholique).
# Sunday 31 May - Whit Sunday (Pentecôte).