Falling in love with Paris.
Paris has been called the most romantic European city, but that is not the breaking news. We talked to many of our friends who have been to Paris before, and it seems that everyone experiences Paris differently. Some went for the art, few went for the history or culture and many went for the Romantic canal tours. Mani is a novice adorer of unique architecture and the Eiffel tower had been on her short list of Paris. So because Iceland air had amazing travel deals we decided to stop over Paris for 4 days before going to Iceland and we were not disappointed a single bit.
HOW TO GET AROUND
For the explorer in you, you’ll have to sacrifice your feet. We explored most of Paris by foot as this helped us experience the city more than we would if we were on the subway. However, the subway system in Paris is very simple, fast and is easily accessible. We highly recommend taking the subway over uber/cab as it is less expensive and faster due to traffic.
TOP THINGS TO SEE
Apart from the famous Eiffel Tower here are some of our top-picks for a must see places when in Paris:
- Sacre Coeur in Montmarte
It is located on the top of a hill and is a climb to get up there. But once you are up there, it has some of the best views of Paris.- TIP: If you are on a restricted budget, we highly recommend stretching your dollar by choosing to climbing the Sacre-Coeur over other attractions for 6euros to have a panoramic view of Paris.
- Jardins du Luxembourg
Luxembourg gardens is a must visit place for various reasons. It is not just any beautiful french garden, it also happens to be the home of beautiful palace and has various fountains, sculptures to admire. Best of all, there is no fee to enter.- TIP: Don’t need for more than 1-2 hours if you are restricted on time. They have lots of chairs and cute spots so you can definitely add this as a stop over spot between other attractions.
- Louvre and Le Palais Royal
Even if you are not a museum person, we highly recommend checking the Louvre as it has some of the best architecture and views even on the outside. Another thing to not miss is the Pont des Arts bridge leading to the Louvre. This bridge has a a lot of modern art and sculptures for the artistic eye. - Palace of Versailles
Located a little outside of the core of Paris, Palace of Versailles and its gardens are definitely not to be missed on your trip to Paris. The palace is grand and filled with beautiful art all around. You can also see the replicas of the original rooms from back in the day. The best thing we found was the easy to follow guided audio tours that were included in the ticket price. The gardens are vast and we highly recommend taking your time here to explore all the spots on the map that is provided. The best time to start your garden tour is around 2:30pm as the singing fountains are switched on from 3pm to 6pm. The palace itself can get a little cramped because of the huge crowds but once you are in the gardens it is barely noticeable.- TIP: Make sure to take out one full day to fully see both the palace and the gardens. Also buy your tickets online to skip long lines. There are very limited food options once you are in the Palace, so make sure to pack your snacks and water. If you are not much of a walker or restricted with time, they have golf cart that can be rented in the gardens.
- Latin Quatre of Paris
A good spot to experience the local culture. This place is bustling with small local shops and restaurants. Best time to visit is on weekend nights when it is all lighted up with a lot of hustle bustle.
HAPPY BELLY
Since we were always on the go and on a strict budget, the best places we found to eat in Paris were the local cafes and the street crepes. The quiches and croissants at the local cafes were fresh and served our everyday breakfast needs. For lunch we would just stop by the street crepes and get one savory and one sweet crepe to share. For dinner, we would stop by local restaurants and get something small to share as we always snacked along the way to our attractions.
TIP: Highly recommend going to a local grocery store to pick up some yogurt and cheese. We are Torontonians found a huge difference between the taste in dairy products and stocked up on a lot of cheese and yogurt for snacks.
OUR ITINERARY: 4 days
Day 1: The River Seine, Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe
Once at the Eiffel tower,a walk across the bridge to River Seine is a must to view the beautful sunset. The Arc de Triomphe is a short 20 minute walk and offers some of the most beautiful panoramic city views.
TIP: The roof top at the Arc de Triomph is far less crowded that the Eiffel tower and gave us ample time to take pictures without being pushed around. The best way to end your night would be to grab some wine and cheese and relax by the sparking Eiffel tower at night.
Day 2: Jardins du Luxembourg, Notre Dame, Louvre and Le Palais Royal
These three attractions are all within walking distance of each other and hence can be all accomplished in one day.
TIP: Make sure you are wearing something below your knees and no exposed shoulders to go inside the Notre Dame. You could aldo go up to the top of the cathedral make sure to check their timings.
Day 3: Palace of Varsailles
Day 4: Sacre Coeur in Montmare
OUR STAYS
Airbnb: To save some money and to experience Parisian living, we decided to stay at a airbnb very close to the Eiffel tower. We stayed at a cute Parisian apartment which had a nice balcony overlooking the street surrounded with small local cafes and restaurants. There are a lot of cute places that AirBnB has to offer in the core of Paris which can make everything accessible. Based on your budget, you can pick and choose from various options.
TIP: Appartments in Europe are usually on the smaller side and very few buildings have elevators.
On our last two days, we decided to splurge a little and stay at a hotel. We stayed at the Hotel Duquesne Eiffel. Location was ideal, close to subway lines and had clean rooms. Our balcony had an amazing view of the Eiffel tower and we could open our balcony at night to enjoy the cool breeze and watch the glittering Eiffel towel while sipping on some champagne.
WHEN IN PARIS
Do wander at night. You will understand why Paris is called the city of love and the city of lights.
Do eat your heart’s content. We stopped at almost every local cafes and bakeries we could to grab a quick-bite. We found that every bakery in Paris had something different and sinfully-delicious to offer.
Do try to explore the smaller lesser touristy museums around the city. They are usually free and have no lines.
Do try to take some time out and enjoy a picnic in some of the local gardens of Paris. Maybe thats why this is called the most romantic place in the world.
Do try some of the local fruit and dairy products from the local markets. *growl* I’m hungry.
