Paris Travel Guide – what to do, see, eat when in Paris
Gone are the days of the stereotypical turtle necks and beret-clad Parisians sat all day discussing poetry, existentialism and ‘snobbing’ those with minimal linguistics.
The nouveau Parisian is polite, helpful and willing to speak English- just have some sense and adapt with a few words here and there and you’ll blend in like a local!
Here is what you will you visit Paris:
WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN: You will eat the best cheese and drink the best wine of your entire life! Cafe culture is still a huge part of the Parisian lifestyle, alfresco cafés litter the sidewalks with chairs and tables crammed closely together. For a good taste of true Parisian cafe culture, don’t miss one of my fave places in Paris- Montmartre (located on the Right Bank – 18th Arrondissement). Montmartre is ideal to spend an entire afternoon with coffee, people watching, you may even stay until the evening until wine and cheese o’clock.
WILL PROBABLY HAPPEN: You will have no language barriers, getting around and ordering food will be a breeze just make sure that you know basics and use French before English..you’re in France! Most people will be able to tell you are visiting and will assist you. Being polite goes a long way. I’ve never met a rude French person in over six visits to France, either its a stereotype or I had the sense to learn a few words…
PROBABLY WON’T HAPPEN: You’ll leave without seeing some great works of some of the most famous work of Leonardo De’Vinci The Mona Lisa along with . Look even if you’re not a museum or history buff- go in breeze straight to the real famous works take a look.
DEFINITELY WON’T HAPPEN: You’ll leave without taking a pic of the magnificent Eiffel Tower. This landmark is one of my personal favorites. She is beautiful from any angle but the spot for newbies who want to capture a memorable image is the Trocadero. The picture here, of the Eiffel Tower by night was done on my iphone! She is magnificent and really photographs well from any angle!
Paris Travel Guide: TOP 10 THINGS TO DO IN PARIS:
- Photo of Tour de Eiffel. The Trocadero (a large platform where you can view the Eiffel Tower) is the absolute best place for the full Eiffel Tower pic embrace your lover and have a passerby snap a pic of you kissing at the Trocadero. I don’t recommend. There is nothing that you can see from the Eiffel Tower that you cannot from Montmartre the best views in Paris are actually looking at the Eiffel Tower from the Trocadero or from the seine! Going up is a waste of time! Now I admit I’ve been up but don’t need to! offer “skip the line” tours (and you can stick with the tour or not). The time you’ll save skirting lines is worth a little extra cash. If money is no object, your very best bet is to book a table at Alain Ducasse’s swank Le Jules Verne restaurant on the tower’s second floor (3-course lunch, €98; dinner, €185). Along with gorgeous views, you’ll dine in splendor and arrive like a VIP on a dedicated lift.
Dine in the Eiffel Tower at Michelin Star – Le Jules Verne Tour Eiffel
2. Explore Montmartre. Montmartre is an ‘artist village’ with a great history and Parisian cafe culture. The Sacre Coeur sits above Montmartre and is worth to visit the area alone. The views over Paris from the hill are spectacular.
3. Eat in a Michelin Star restaurant. France is world-renound for haute cuisine, with some of the finest michelin star restaurants in the world. If you’re on a budget opt for something in the michelin guide – always great recommendations.
4. Shopping on the Champs-Élysées, a boulevard in the 8th arrondissement of Paris that’s 1.9 kilometres of pure retail heaven. Luxury brands made in France are generally better-priced than in other countries.
5. Photo op at the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile (Triumphal Arch of the Star), it’s one of the most famous monuments in Paris. It stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulleat the western end of the Champs-Élysées. The Arc honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars – Interesting fact: This was the largest Arc monument until North Korea built The Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, completed in 1982, is modelled on the Arc de Triomphe….hmm…
6. Visit the Louvre, the world’s largest museum and a historic monument in Paris. The Louvre is on the right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement. Home to the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo. Worth to spend half a day to see these works, even if you’re not an art buff, its worth to see great historical pieces in person, plus the Lourve Pyramid is a great photo op.
7. Explore Le Marais in the 3rd and 4th- It’s the city’s epicenter of cool with hip boutiques, designer hotels, and art galleries galore; the hub of Paris’s gay community. You could easily spend your entire visit to Paris in this neighborhood, its gone from shabby to chic and has some of the best bistros in Paris.
8. Feel regal and take in Versailles, the most famous Palace of France, 20 km (12 miles) out of Paris is the most famous palaces Versailles was a country village; today, however, it is a wealthy suburb of Paris, some 20 kilometres (12 miles) southwest of the French capital.
9. Musée d’Orsay – Housed under the soaring roof of one of Paris’s grand old Beaux-Arts railway stations, the recently renovated galleries of the Musée d’Orsay contain the world’s largest collection of Impressionist masterpieces by the likes of Cézanne, Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Degas, Gaugin, and many others. With two excellent cafés and a magnificent restaurant original to the train station- very easy to spend a day here.
10. Take a boat down the River Seine – there’s nothing quite like seeing Paris from a boat on the Seine. See Paris’s graceful bridges up close along with the city’s most famous landmarks on a relaxing 2 to 4 hour boat ride. The bateaux mouches offer everything from a gourmet meal with champagne, if you’re you not interested in dining, for 15€ you can hop on or off wherever and whenever you like all day long. Stops include the Musée d’Orsay, Louvre, Eiffel Tour, Champs Elysées, and Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
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