We%26#39;re in the final stages of planning our first trip to Paris (10 days, arriving THIS Friday in the morning, Oct. 14!). I%26#39;ve read a lot of guide books and gotten information from the Internet, and planned out our trip generally by area. I%26#39;ve listed some of the sites I%26#39;d like to see, but I%26#39;m aware that we may not get to everything. Likewise, if there are other not-to-miss attractions, I%26#39;d appreciate any and all advice.
We are not looking for gourmet restaurants - good and cheap recommendations will be gladly accepted. My husband has diabetes and his strict diet allows meat, fish, salads, cheeses, and the like (no baguettes or chocolate for him!)
BTW - our hotel is in the Latin Quarter (Hotel Monge).
Fri. - Arrive mid-day. General acquaintance walk in Left Bank.
Sat. - Eiffel Tower (Dome Church, Rodin Museum, Les Egouts) %26amp; Chaillot areas (Palais de Chaillot, Jardins de Trocadero, Musee de la Contrefacon, Wine Museum)
Sun. - Notre Dame and Ile de la Cite Sainte Chapelle, Conciergerie, Archological Crypt, Deportation memorial)
Mon. - Montmartre (Sacre Coeur, Espace Dali, St. Pierre)
Tues. - Luxembourg Gardens (Palais, Jardin, St. Sulpice) and St. Germain (Musee d%26#39;Orsay, money museum)
Wed. - Louvre (Jardin des Tuileries, fashion and textile museum, musem of decorative arts), Arc de Triomphe (Grand and Petit Palais, Palais de Decouverte, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier), Champs Elysees
Thurs. - Versailles
Fri. - Opera (La Madeleine, Passages, Cabinet des Medailles et des Antiques, Bibliotheque Nationale) and Marais (Picasso museum, Place des Vosges, Victor Hugo house, Musee Carnavalet, Jewish museum)
Sat. - Montparnasse
Sun. - Either Montparnasse, revisiting some of the sites we missed, or some of the sites further out (Baccarat crystal museum, Nissim de Camondo, Pere Lachaise cemetary). Leaving late Sun. night.
The order of the days isn%26#39;t so important, other than that I%26#39;ve heard it is better to visit Versailles during the week to avoid lines as much as possible. I%26#39;ve tried also to schedule which days certain museums are open or not.
We%26#39;re considering whether to get the 5-day Museum pass and I%26#39;m not sure if we should, since it seems that there are many museums that I%26#39;d like to see that are not included in the pass. If, however, we can rearrange days, the pass is definitely preferable. Right now, I don%26#39;t think there are 5 consecutive days of valid museums. But if you think I can move stuff around, please let me know!
I%26#39;ve heard that Versailles is included in the Paris museum pass - is this correct? If so, does it include all areas of Versailles?
TIA,
Linda
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I guess you realise you won%26#39;t be able to visit all the museums you mention!
Friday : Eiffel tower, Invalides and Rodin are about all i would put if you intend to go up the Eiffel tower, with maybe a walk along the Champs Elysées and Arc de triomphe later in the day. If you do not go up the eiffel tower then maybe the wine museum or the egoûts if you really like strange museums.OR best would be maybe to group Invalides and Rodin museum with Montparnasse the following saturday.
Sunday and monday sound good.
Tuesday Orsay tends to be crowded as the Louvre is closed.
Wednesday is a bit much : the musée des arts décoratifs only has the gallery of jewels open, i think the rest is closed. Don%26#39;t miss the concrode square between Louvre and Champs Elysées, but that is a long walk as you will get tired from the Louvre
Thursday Versailles, it is good to have the whole day there, don%26#39;t miss the Grand and petit trianon and the hameau de la Reine at the back of the park, an hour walk approximately but worth it. No high heels!!
Friday too much : keep the Opera but in the Marais the Carnavalet museum is great but very large, as is the Picasso museum
Saturday : group Montparnasse with Invalides as otherwise only Montparnasse will not keep you entertained the whole day.
Sunday Nissim de Camondo OR Jacquemart-André as you seem to like museums. Or do the rest of the Marais
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Holy SMOKE that%26#39;s a lot of museums. I would eliminate a large number of them and spend time outside...cafes, walks, architecture, people watching....
I agree with Raphy%26#39;s suggestions. Especially that Montparnasse does not require much time at all and that the Chaillot area doesn%26#39;t either....
Have fun, but don%26#39;t come home more exhausted than before you leave!
Les
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Thanks for the advice so far. The list I posted earlier is my wish list (and not even a complete one from all my notes!). We do indeed plan to spend time outdoors as well (depending on the weather, too, as it is forecast to rain a couple of days. I think we will pick 2 museums a day as sure things, and then see how we feel about the rest...
Linda
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I love museums, but I agree that you%26#39;ve planned WAY too many! To me, the Musée d%26#39;Orsay is an absolute must, and I love the Musée Picasso. I also love the Louvre, but you might consider tackling only a small portion in detail (the Renaissance collections, for example) or do the %26quot;big three%26quot; highlight sprint. I%26#39;d then pick no more than one or two of the lesser museums to round out the experience. Even that will be a lot.
By the way, Raphy, the Musée de la Publicité and a portion of the Musée de la Mode are also open at Arts Decoratifs. I would strongly recommend the jewelry collection. The advertising section is quirky, to say the least--the installation itself is more interesting than the collection.
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Truffaut, actually my remark was only about the musée des Arts Décoratifs which has only one room open, the Galery of jewels. I wasn%26#39;t talking about the musée de la publicité and musée de la mode, so you are right! :)
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Hi, Carmonle -
Wow, what a wonderful trip you%26#39;re in for! We stayed in the Latin Quarter, just one block from the Seine and Notre Dame, and absolutely loved it! Had 7-1/2 days in September which wasn%26#39;t nearly enough for all we wanted to do. It%26#39;s good you realize you won%26#39;t have time to see it all. The main thing is to fully ENJOY and not put yourselves under too much pressure (easier said than done, I know).
I love museums too....hubby isn%26#39;t quite so enthusiastic (: You%26#39;ve mentioned some interesting ones, but the schedule may be a little %26quot;top-heavy%26quot;. We enjoyed the Louvre, Orsay, Cluny (my special favorite) and the Army Museum at Napoleon%26#39;s Tomb. Couldn%26#39;t push hubby any more than that! Of course, a lot will depend on what the weather may be when you%26#39;re there. Cold/rainy days seem to lend themselves more to museums and indoor activities.
I noticed something really fun missing from your list....you absolutely must get in a couple of Seine boat trips, both a day and a night.
It%26#39;s good you%26#39;re allowing a full day for Versailles. And also that it%26#39;s a Thursday. Try to be there before the chateau opens at 9:00. You may be able to get thru the State Apts before the worst of the tour group crowds arrive on the scene. If you can, sign up for one of the private tours, the only way to see the private apartments and the opera. As Raphy said, DO get out to the Trianons and the Queen%26#39;s Hamlet. This was one of the absolute best things we did on our whole trip! And the gardens are lovely (don%26#39;t know how they are now, though). If the walk is too much (for us, it was, but we%26#39;re no %26quot;spring chickens%26quot; and it was quite warm), you can rent bikes or a golf cart (we did the golf cart), plus there%26#39;s a tram that will take you out there. The tram is hop-on/hop-off but goes only to the Trianons. You%26#39;ll have to walk over to the Hamlet, but the distance isn%26#39;t bad at that point.
Yes, the regular museum pass does include Versailles..... entry to the main chateau,the Grand and Petit Trianons, plus the Hamlet. You pay extra for the gardens.
You really need some kind of pass for Versailles, as the regular line for tickets can be awfully long. Your other option is the Versailles Passport, sold at most of the RER stations. It covers virtually everything, including your round-trip fare and admittance to the gardens. As with the regular museum pass, you still pay extra for any private tours and transportation around the grounds.
Also good that you%26#39;re allowing quite a bit of time for Montmartre. We wound up going there on a Sunday....not a good idea! Hadn%26#39;t originally planned it that way, but even well-planned itineraries have a way of rearranging themselves according to circumstances at the time. It was packed, but loved it anyway. Could have spent MUCH more time there than we did. Next time we%26#39;re in Paris will go back. Want to go into the Montmartre Museum and then spend a LOT longer strolling the marvelous little streets. We went from there to Pere Lachaise. The Anvers metro will take you directly to the Pere Lachaise or Gambetta stops. See Pere Lachaise if you can work it in - absolutely stunning and like an outdoor museum itself!
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On sunday I would visite the place des vosges and the jewish quarter, go to rue des francs bourgeois , extremely nice .
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Hi, Im glad you have posted this mail as I am there in early November for a long weekend (Fri-Monday). I was looking into Restaurants for a nice romantic weekend. Would anyone on this forum have any recommendations for in and around the Paris centre. Im staying in the Latin Quarter.
Also would you recommend any shows or Moulin Rouge to go to in the evening?. Your help would be appreciated.
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1. don%26#39;t even keep track of all those museums - limit to 2 per day maximum (even that is a lot of museums)
2. Montparnasse - you had extensive lists of things to do in all the other areas, but only %26quot;Montparnasse%26quot; and then a note to return the next day if needed. But what do you want to see in Montparnasse? Suggestions are:
- Tour Montparnasse - great overview of Paris, including the Eiffel Tower
- Catacombs (but really, not a %26#39;must see%26#39;, just interesting)
- Cimetiere Montparnasse - not as famous as Pere Lachaise, and really, it%26#39;s more fun if you%26#39;re looking for specific famous graves
- Famous %26#39;literary%26#39; cafes, ie. Dome, Select, Coupole
- there are a handful of %26#39;minor%26#39; museums in this area, but save that for another visit
I like and stay in the area, but it doesn%26#39;t really have the first tier attractions, so curious what you think is there...
Also, it would really be best if you left one day %26#39;blank%26#39;. You will need a rest day, or a bad-weather day, or a shopping day, or a %26#39;catch up%26#39; day. Loosen up the schedule a bit. Plan to come back.
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%26quot;My husband has diabetes and his strict diet allows meat, fish, salads, cheeses, and the like (no baguettes or chocolate for him!)%26quot;
Breakfast is the hardest meal for a diabetic in Paris. The usual French breakfast is baguettes and jam, yogurt, and orange juice (coffee is OK).
Your husband does not need to worry there are diabetics in Paris too! You can tell your waiter about his eating restrictions and they will adjust for him. The cheese plates in place of dessert are just wonderful!
With all the walking your husband is going to do to see all the sites you have planned, make sure he has some kind of quick snack on him in case he gets low blood sugar.
Also the French do not usually eat the evening meal until 9:00 pm, so he may have to adjust insulin injections or eat a small grocery snack.
Be sure to carry a quick sugar just in case. Orange juice container may be taken away from you if you go into a museum. They do not allow fluids mainly for the security of the art (ie. some nut may put an acid in the bottle and toss at a painting!).
He probably has taken Diabetic Classes already so he should just brush up on the travel information he was given.
Carry on his meter/strips and medication. Get a note from his doctor to take needles on the airplane. A health note is good also along with a copy of his medications and doses. Also make sure you bring his meter information (call 1-800 # now and get the International # in case meter malfunctions).
Make sure you carry food or snack on the planes coming and going in case of plane delays.
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