Help me plan a week in Paris!

Parent Cafe
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<p>A wondeful place to go for a (long) day trip out of Paris is Mont St Michel. It’s magical. I have been there several times and never tire of it. There are organised tours from Paris but it’s also really easy to get there on the train. Go to Rennes in Brittany, and then change on to the bus (just follow the Japanese tour groups LOL!)</p>

<p>Here is a photo. It’s not an island really. You can drive right up.</p>

<p><a href=“Brittany Ferries”>Brittany Ferries;

<p>French people are only rude to Americans who yell at them in English. I see this in the UK too. American tourists scream at waitresses, tour guides, bar tenders etc. This of course is why the tourists get bad service wherever they go. Lower your voice. You do not realise what a loud country America is, and how badly this can be interpreted abroad.</p>

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<p>My daughter loved Mont St Michel!</p>

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<p>Just came back to check this thread and realized that I had missed several posts because I was accidentally brought to the second page of the thread last time I was here.</p>

<p>What wonderful suggestions … thanks to you all … including Alexandre, who could probably write for Fodors! We will be staying in a budget hotel in the 5th which got very good reviews, and yes, all we intend to do is sleep there.</p>

<p>My husband and I speak not one word of French. My daughter speaks well, though I anticipate that she will be quite fluent after the semester. She is LOVING Paris as well as the people who she finds to be extremely pleasant to her. As an aside, she has loved the French language since the day that she began studying it way back in middle school.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, we’ll be there after October 31; we had to choose a time conducive to our work schedules and her schedule. I know the weather won’t be optimal but fares were good, so on the bright side, we’ll have more euros to spend at the cafes.</p>

<p>At this point, I’m thinking that we will not do an overnight elsewhere as it seems that we won’t get to nearly all that there is to do in Paris within our week. A day trip is not out of the question.</p>

<p>Now to plan our guided walking tours for the time that my daughter is in class. Merci!</p>

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<p>Alexander’s list is excellent…my thoughts are very random…but heartfelt…</p>

<p>I echo getting a Metro map NOW and plan some trips … understand how to use the metro before you even leave home…it is the easiest underground in the WORLD in my opinion. You CAN plan a lot during a day if that is your approach… we went for my husband’s birthday… we were only there for 4 days…we were staying at the Hilton by the Eifel Tower, and we crashed for a bit, and then went out that evening for our first stop, we went to the Arc de Triomph at nite… I think the best time is during rush hour where you can watch the traffic from above… seeing all 12 roads merge is a hoot… </p>

<p>Sacree Coeur is worth the visit, the walk up from the nearest metro stop… watch your wallets… the neighborhoods there are a bit dicey… leave yourself time to enjoy walking around up there… again, this is another nice place to visit at dusk/nite…to see the city light from there is magical…</p>

<p>I also went a couple of years ago with my college roommates, and when we went to Notre Dame, the lines were impossible… I am embarrassed to tell you how we got in, but I share our method, in case you find the same lines… hang by the “exit” area…and basically act like you want to go back and look at something one last time, or that you need to see what is keeping your friends from coming out… and next thing you know, you are in and you can walk anywhere thru the cathedral…</p>

<p>we had beer and hot dogs w/mustard on baguettes outside at a bistro right nearby the Opera… and it was a wonderful break, best hot dog of our lives…one of the gals was looking for special lingerie and we never really found a nice shop… we laughed as we tried to explain what we were looking for, and my girlfriend went home without anything special…</p>

<p>I recommend reading Marie Antoinette: The Journey by Antonia Fraser before you go, if you want something light but informative… I think “story” history is my personal favorite and it will fill your visit with the ghosts of that era… or read a book about Camille ****aro to get a sense of the vibrancy of the impressionist period…</p>

<p>When I was there with my family for hubby’s 50th, they were all tired one afternoon, as was I…but I was not ready to give up the hunt…so, I dashed over to the Petit Palais on Ave Winston Churchill, I think, and there was an exhibit there of the Chinese Clay Soldiers…they are one of my personal “wonders of the world” and so, I got to see about 8 of them…in a dark room, encased in glass, with some minor lights shining down on them, which was evocative of their underground life/existence. Very memorable and I am glad I “soldiered” on, if you will. </p>

<p>Pain au chocolate for breakfast…every day…if you can…</p>

<p>My dad gave my mom a gold Cartier charm of the Arc de Triomph and I took it from her charm bracelet and put in on a necklace…folks think it is a zodiac…but, I think it is my favorite Paris souvenir…if you can, try to treat yourself to something like that… you can always pass it on to your daughter… and she will feel ties to you when she wears it later in life…</p>

<p>enjoy!!</p>

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<p>I love Saint Chapelle. It is my favorite place in Paris. It will take your breath away. If you can, listen to the tour guides. Ours was fabulous, and it is a way for them to make money with tips. </p>

<p>Make sure that you have comfortable, broken in walking shoes. Also, make sure that if you don’t do a lot of walking now, you take daily walks to get used to walking all day.</p>

<p>Since you are going when it is cooler, I would wear my purse under my coat or sweater. We lived in London for 3 years, and I always wore it under a sweater or coat, if I wore one. I also would put it over my neck, for safety. I may have looked a bit dorky, but I never had a problems with pickpockets.</p>

<p>Make sure you let your credit card company know that you will be going to France. They won’t deny any charges that they think are unexpected. </p>

<p>Oh, if you don’t make it out to Versailles, check out Napoleon’s Appts. at the Louvre. They are magnificent. They used to be closed on Thursdays, so you might plan accordingly. They museum pass is the only way to go. They have special places to enter, so you don’t have to stand in line. </p>

<p>Have fun – I am so jealous!!!</p>

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<p>“Since you are going when it is cooler, I would wear my purse under my coat or sweater. We lived in London for 3 years, and I always wore it under a sweater or coat, if I wore one. I also would put it over my neck, for safety. I may have looked a bit dorky, but I never had a problems with pickpockets.”</p>

<p>I do the exact same thing. It’s a small purse,(but has a very sturdy construction, so would be very unlikely to rip off if pulled very hard) so it doesn’t even look funny.</p>

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<p>just thought I’d mention it, because i didn’t see it in any of the posts. Pigalle is the red-light area of Paris, just to make you aware to either stay away or visit. By the way, that’s where the Moulin Rouge is. An acquaintance had booked their hotel in that area, and didn’t realize that Pigalle is a little bit different :wink: very interesting place he said, especially in the evenings, but he didn’t feel unsafe at all, with so many tourists also in that area. Have fun in Paris.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the tips.</p>

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<p>Speaking of tips, there is another thread about tipping right now. How should one tip in a Paris restaurant?</p>

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<p>Tips are included in the restaurant bill - typically 18-20 percent. If the service was super good, add a euro in cash on the table. Careful you don’t double tip!</p>

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<p>robin is quite right. 1%-2% is more than enough (for excellent survice) because you are automatically charged 18% service charge. However, at an extra fancy, Michelin starred restaurant, 5%-10% is in order.</p>

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<p>You’ve received great advice. On a personal note, you may want to keep tissues or a small roll of tp in your purse. On more than one occasion, while using a public restroom I was glad to have my own…or any. :wink: </p>

<p>If going to Saint Chapelle, try to go on a sunny day. It’s just brilliant. Have a wonderful trip. We just love Paris.</p>

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<p>Has anyone been to Bruges on a day trip from Paris? There are tours available by bus, but the major complaint seems to be that there is not enough time to explore on one’s own. We were thinking of going by train independently. Any thoughts?</p>

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<p>IMO you should stick with Paris-- your trip is so short! If you do any day trip, it should be to see Versailles. </p>

<p>An alternate ‘Versailles’ is Vaux le Vicomte, which is the chateau that inspired Versailles. Same architect, decorator & garden designer. Harder to get to, but waaaay less crowded, and they do a <em>stunning</em> candle-lit twilight tour.</p>

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<p>I second Versailles. I wouldn’t bother with Bruges. If you wanted a day trip I’d do Chartres or Fontainebleau or one or two of the Chateaux of the Loire.</p>

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<p>Hmmm… I’d heard such great things about Bruges.</p>

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<p>Bruges is beautiful. (There are some great panoramic photos on wikipedia BTW [Bruges</a> - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruges]Bruges”>Bruges - Wikipedia) ). But if you only have a week I wouldn’t go somewhere that’s a 3 hour drive away. You lose almost a whole day of sightseeing. I also really believe that it’s better to get to know one place in depth (Paris + perhaps another slice of France) than to try and see all the good stuff in Europe.</p>

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<p>I’ve been to Bruges at least a couple of times and really like it. I haven’t done it on a day trip from Paris though. It looks to be about 3 hours by road so that’d make it a pretty long day for a day trip but possible nonetheless. A benefit of this is that if it’s to be your only time away from Paris it gets you out into the countryside which is worth seeing since Paris is a big city. I don’t know how long a train trip would be but it could be faster. Another possible option is to make it a one night trip rather than a day trip. It’d help you see it at a more relaxed pace. You can walk the town. Make sure you take the canal boat ride and see the windmills.</p>

<p>Versailles is okay too but IMO not as interesting as Bruges. Versailles is also more of a suburb than a town further away from the Paris metro area. The palace is interesting though. Chartres gets you a bit further away but neither of these are as interesting as Bruges IMO. </p>

<p>Whatever you do, I really recommend getting out of Paris for at least a day to see some countryside and some smaller towns. Paris is a big city with lots of buildings, people, and traffic and you might get more of a ‘European feel’ if you head out to areas less cosmopolitan.</p>

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<p>I think the train ride is 2 1/2 hours … checking into it.</p>

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<p>

A clarification - by ‘suburb’ I meant in proximity to Paris as opposed to not being its ‘own city’ which it is.</p>