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Two Days in Paris - what's are the Must Do's?
My husband and I will be in Paris for two nights in early August, and have never been before. We're staying in the Latin Quarter. His one 'must-do' is the Louvre; my less lofty goal is to get to Longchamps for a new bag!
If you only had two days, what would you say is a 'can't miss this'? |
I'd say Notre Dame is up there. Do you love Monet? Then I'd see the Musee Marmottan before the Orsay, but I'm sure many people would disagree.
I loved Giverney, that's a 1/2 day trip outside Paris. |
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We had 3 nights 4 days, and I got nice and sick while I was there, so I saw about 2 days worth of stuff...
We went to Ile de la Cite and saw Ste. Chappelle (don't miss it), and Notre Dame, then walked around a bit and headed over to The Louvre and shot through it long enough to see the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Winged Victory...with some stuff in between. Then we walked outside towards the Champs Elysees, through the Tuilleries, and got a bus up to the Arc de Triomphe. All easily doable in a day. Another day we went up the Eiffel Tower (I can't imagine having missed that -- it doesn't disappoint), went up to the Pompidou (I was done with museums by then and DH went in while I browsed the shops and funny performance art outside). Personally, I would have gone to the Orsay, but I will "right" that wrong when I go again in September. If I were you, I'd do the Eiffel Tower, then head up to Sacre Coeur and hang out in the Montmartre area. If you have any more time, you could take the RER out to Versailles...it opens at 9 a.m. and if you get there early, there won't be much of a crush of people. Although in August there might be. I'd avoid it all together if you're going to be there on a weekend. It only takes a few hours to go through really...30 minutes each way on the RER. Happy travels. Jules |
I would say the things in the very center island -- Notre Dame, etc, and the general area around the Seine; I would have said the Musee d'Orsay, but since you are going to the Louvre, that would be it for museums. And seeing the vista and walking between the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysees. I don't care what people say about it being a lot of shops and touristy (which is, of course, true), I think seeing that and the city layout is important to understanding Paris and its history and there is nothing like that anywhere. I would not go to the Eiffel Tower, you can certainly see it, as it dominates the horizon. Any extra time, I'd spend just walking around the Latin Qtr or St-Germain, maybe a Seine boat cruise. I would not go to any minor museum unless you have been dying to see it and would never say the Marmottan as a must-see for a two-day trip to Paris (yeah, I'm one of those who'd disagree. Ony if I were doing a dissertation on Monet.
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Two days, never been?
You MUST see: Louvre Eiffel Tower Notre Dame That's it. Everything else is a matter of personal preference. Close to essential: Champs-Elysee Riding the Metro Sacre Coeur Arc de Triomphe While in the Louvre, don't skip the Mona Lisa. |
Hi mc,
Buy two one-day passes on the Batobus www.batobus.com Get off at whatever strikes you. Spend the second day enjoying Paris and not caring what you see. ((I)) |
I would put Ste. Chapelle ahead of most places to see.
The Louvre can take all day and then some. The amount of time required is a direct function of your knowledge of art. I wasn't that bowled over with Marmottan. The d'Orsay is in a unique class. |
My first must do in Paris is Ste. Chapelle. After that, the Musee D'Orsay for the Impressionists, the Louvre for the Winged Victory, the Tuilleries and Luxembourg Gardens, the Musee Rodin, Notre Dame from the outside only and the Eiffel Tower from a distance. The rest of the time, just walk along the Seine and through St. Germain, visit the Place des Vosges and spend plenty of time in cafes watching the people.
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Thank you all for your replies...there are enough commonalities that it will make our planning much easier.
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