<p>I would add that it’s really helpful to get the museum pass–it allows you to go in the short line at Versailles (which you can get to by commuter train). My husband really liked the Croques Monsieur, which is basically a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, but is cheap. My daughter loved the crepes, particularly the Nutella variety.
Enjoy your trip!</p>
<p>twinmom, are you back? How did the trip go? Did you pack in a lot of activities or just spend time wandering the streets? Hope it went well!</p>
<p>We are back, and we had a positively fantastic time! We did pack a lot in including Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle, the Louvre (twice!), Musee de Orsay, the Centre Pompidou, the Picasso Museum, Palais de Justice, the Pantheon, walked around the Marais (Jewish Quarter), the Arc de Triumph (we went to the top), the Catacombs, a walk down Champs-Elysees (I can’t figure out how to get the appropriate accent marks in - sorry!) and a trip up to the top of the Eiffel Tower just before dusk. It was just getting dark as we went up, and we watched the structure begin to light up while we were in the elevator and saw the lights go on around the city from the top. Beautiful! We stayed in the Latin Quarter which was a terrific location … ate at a lot of great restaurants … and enjoyed time with our daughter when she wasn’t in class. Oh yes, we also went to Versailles. On our last full day we took the train to Bruges, Belgium and spent the entire day and evening there. </p>
<p>We spent a lot of time strolling through the streets with croissants in hand … Paris is a beautiful city and we’d go back in a heartbeat, though we have lots of other places we’d like to explore.</p>
<p>Thanks to all for the great advice!</p>
<p>I wanted to add that we did purchase museum passes which were quite worthwhile. Also, we never waited on any lines anywhere (which had nothing to do with the passes.) It must have been because we were there off-season.</p>
<p>Did you think Bruges was worth the day trip (I really liked Bruges)?</p>
<p>I did think it was worth the day trip. The trains were kind of expensive, but it was fun to see a place so very different than Paris. Bruges was beautiful … we loved seeing the chocolate and lace shops and especially the specular Michelangelo statue of Mother and Child - I believe one of the only sculptures that left Italy during his lifetime. We were a bit suprised at how touristy Bruges is; we tried to stay off the more touristy streets. We had a great dinner there … all in all quite enjoyable and I’m glad we went.</p>
<p>We just got back from Paris too. Turns out it’s a great time to go-- lines were short, crowds few, locals didn’t seem at all tired of tourists, and weather was fine almost every day. </p>
<p>We used a 4 day museum pass and it was a good deal for all we used it for. The 10 pack of metro tickets worked well too (convenient plus a 30% discount). I HIGHLY recommend the Splendid Hotel. Cute boutique hotel, with extremely friendly and helpful staff, views of the Eiffel Tower from your little balcony, in upscale neighborhood a half block to the Metro, and can easily walk to lots of sights (the Seine, Napoleon’s tomb, Rodin Museum, and great shopping/restaurants/cafes along Rue Cler).</p>