My husband and I have two full days and three nights in Paris in early May. We are staying at the Quai Voltaire. What are your suggestions of the best way to optimize our time there. We would like to see a museum, and see a few sights, but not knock ourselves out as it's the first leg of a three week trip and we will be jet-lagging as well.

We are in Paris as it was a rewards ticket that got us there and two days in Paris is it. Thank you and Merry Christmas!

Hi seek,

I would spend one day on the Batobus, getting off at each of the stops and wandering.

See www.batobus.com.

I would spend another day on the Ile St. Louis and the Ile de la Cite'.

What's your budget for dinner?

I agree with the hop on-hop off bus tour of Paris. It will get you aclimated and you can get on and off at will. You have to do the Louvre, they had an English headset tour while I was there that was really worth it. Also the Eiffel Tower, especially at night......it's golden and beautiful (plan on sunset), a river cruise down the Seine, we did a dinner cruise which was lovely.

My husband made me go to Paris while we were in Europe. I didn't really want to go there particularly but I ended up loving it !! We spent three days and I would definately go back, especially to spend more time at the Louvre....we were only there half a day the first time.

Have fun. Wish I were going with you.

geordias

Two days in Paris, and 3 nights. That sounds like you have 2 full days plus.
OK first question, what interests you?
Paris is full of famous monuments, museums, streets, squares, and restaurants.

Second question, how much stamina do you have for going a lot of places in one day?

If you have an interst in art, Paris has overwhelming opportunities for gallery gazing. This observation leads me to my third and last question?

Do you plan on a Louvre visit?
If yes, plan your visit carefully. With only two days, you could spend the whole time just visiting the Louvre.

After 4 visits and 17 total full days, I still have sites on my "go see" list.
I still feel like I have only started because even the places I have already visited tend to change.

I do have one overwhelming site that I recommend to everyone, whether art lover or art hater: Ste. Chapelle. The stained glass walls and windows are almost unreal. I don't know of anything quite like it.

As a final suggestion, get a good street map of Paris and start plotting Metro routes to the places you would like to visit. Which lines will you need, and in which direction will you travel?
Knowing the end station of the line is important because that is the platform to which the signs will direct you.

You should choose your museum based on the kind of art you prefer. The Louvre has antiquities and art up to the ninetenth century in a huge, historic palace. Art from the mid-nineteenth century through the early twentieth century (mostly French), including the Impressionists, is at the Musee d'Orsay, in a wonderful setting in a refurbished train station, and that is many people's favorite museum in Paris.

The sight I would most recommend is Sainte Chapelle, on Ile de la Cite near Notre Dame, which is also obviously worth seeing.

If you want to see more with less effort, get a guide. We used Michael Osman - www.geocities.com/parisfinder/
He charges about $100 for a full day (8-9 hrs)plus you pay for his lunch. And well worth it. He knew how to get around, get the tickets, the highlights of the museums,the gardens, etc. We used him for 3 days and told him what we wanted to do and saw and learned more than we did the remaining 14!

Hi Ira,
I love your batobus idea.
Are you familiar with the batobus schedule?
Right now, the website only posts their current winter hours--10:30 to 4:30, running every 30 minutes. Are the hours longer in the June, and do they run more frequently?

topping

Your hotel is directly across the bridge from the Louvre pyramid - and a very short walk from the Musee d'Orsay - like a 2 minute walk from each one. So you don't really need to "plan" which museum(s) to visit. If the weather is nice you may only want to spend a bit of time in one of them. But if it is nasty - then having two of the best museums in the world virtually on your doorstep is a fabulous bonus.

It is also a reasonable walk from the hotel to the Ile de la Cite (Notre Dame, Ste Chapelle, the Vedettes boats, etc). I prefer the Vedettes to the larger Batteaux Mouche.

I'd spend a couple of hours at least on the island - especially Notre Dame and Ste Chapelle, but also just wandering around.

the Paris Vision hop-on-hop-off bus is a great way to see alot easily - you'll get to places away from the river too so it may be better thab the Batobus. One tour stop is right outside the Louvre, one is just down the block from d'Orsay, and there is another close to Notre Dame so very convenient to your hotel.

Skip the Batobus!

The Seine is fronted by high stone walls. Which nmeans it is very difficult to SEE ANYTHING. You will mostly see grey stone, I was very disappointed.

Take a road-based tour bus instead.

If you are in Paris for a short time, do not skip:

Notre Dame
Eiffel Tower
Louvre (even if only for a very short visit)

They are NOT corny, playeed out, etc. I was wonderfully surprised.

I stayed at the Quai Voltaire, and, as others have said, you are just across the Seine from the Louvre and just down the block from Museé D’Orsay. You might also consider Museé Rodin, which I found to be within walking distance of the hotel. You will also be in the heart of a thriving antique district.

One note about the hotel: If you fancy a view of the Seine from your room, that may come at a price — the street noise. If you opt for quiet, you should ask for an interior room. I switched rooms when I found the traffic outside to be too much, and I was quickly moved. They gave me Room 56 on the top floor, which, while its slanted proportions gave it the appearance of a struggling poet’s garret, looked like it could accommodate two people. It was the quietest room I’ve ever had in my travels abroad. It also turned out to be the former residence of Charles Beaudelaire. There’s a photo of Beaudelaire on the wall, as well as letter from Flaubert to the (struggling?) poet.

If I had 2 full days in Paris in early May, I would visit Ste. Chapelle, walk around the outside of Notre Dame, visit the Louvre long enough to see the Winged Victory and another work of your choice (Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa?), walk through the Tuilleries, stopping to sit and enjoy the passing scene, and walk up the Champs Elysee to the Arc de Triomphe. That night I would take the Ponts du Vedettes boat ride on the Seine and have a wonderful dinner on the Right Bank at Le Pamphlet or Aux Lyonnaise. The next day I would start at the Eiffel Tower, walk to the Invalides to see Napoleon's tomb, visit the Rodin Museum across the street and perhaps have lunch in the garden, go to the Musee D'Orsay to see the Impressionists, visit the Luxembourg Gardens and have dinner at L'Epi Dupin. That is a very busy 2 days with lots of walking so you should be sure to stop frequently at a cafe for coffee or wine. By the way, we find that lots of walking the first couple of days of a trip helps to get rid of jet lag.

Hi Fodorites! Phone's been out for days due to a bad storm. So, no internet (I'm a country girl with a slow dial-up), so I'll print this out and respond later. Thanks so much!!

>..and walk up the Champs Elysee to the Arc de Triomphe.<

I would start at the Arc and walk down the Champs.

Much easier on the feet.

IRA-
Are you still there?

I don't think you saw my Batobus question about the schedules... (scroll up...)

Please let me know (if you know).

Thanks,
Dina

If I had six months before a trip to Paris, I assume for the first time, I'd click on "Destinations" in the Orange section above (BTW, what happened to all the b-tch-ng about the horrendous color choices) go to the Paris section and decide what appealed to me and then return to ask opinions.

We were very happy using the Batobus last June. We purchased two day-passes for our family of four. We rode it a lot and especially enjoyed it after dark. We were not disappointed. I think a boat ride on the Seine, especially after dark, is a Must Do in Paris.
As I recall, the Batobus ran until 10:00 p.m. in early June. It is relatively inexpensive, maybe 13EU apiece for two-days unlimited hop on-off.

Thanks, Maureen.

BTW, do you think a vedettes night cruise would be redundant after riding the Batobus all day?

Hi dina,

Sorry, I missed your question.

In June the Batobus runs until 22:00.

It's still every 1/2 hr.

Thanks, Ira.

That sounds a lot more convenient.

Dina