My husband and I (early fifties, mid forties respectively) spent one week in Paris 29/9-6/10 - this was our first visit.
I won%26#39;t do a long Report as such but will just jot down some of our experiences and recommendations that may help other travellers. I did a LOT of research and used TA extensively and I%26#39;m very happy to say that everything went according to plan - even the weather co-operated!!
Firstly - Paris Vacation Apartments (PVA)...what a fabulous company - what a great apartment!! Having decided we would stay in Paris for 7 nights - the choice to then look for an apartment was a %26quot;given%26quot;. I trawled the internet over many months and ultimately chose PVA and their 2BR, 3rd floor Palais Royal apartment. The customer service we received prior to departure and then the support from the staff when in Paris was first class. The apartment itself actually looked better in real life than it did on their website!! We loved it and have no regrets at all about spending a fairly hefty amount of money on it - the large rooms, well-equipped kitchen, comfortable beds, massive bathrooms with full-size bath-tubs, windows that overlooked and opened to the Palais Royal Gardens with its central fountain....absolute heaven and I would stay there again in a heartbeat. The location, in the middle of the 1st, was superb...a bus stop around the corner, metro station two blocks away, 10 minute walk from Monoprix and with some good eating options close by. If you%26#39;re thinking about an apartment then do check out PVA - they have other apartments around the City, and I believe them to be fully trustworthy.
Now on to Paris:
1. Buy a Museum Pass - regardless of the cost, the convenience is worth every Euro! Especially at Versailles where the queue for %26quot;normal%26quot; tickets was outrageous!
2. If your days in the City even vaguely correspond - organise yourself a Navigo Decouverte (have a small photo with you - we did, but lost them, and then had to get change to use the photo booth at Gare du Nord...whilst banging around with two heavy cases!). Being able to quickly scan your pass for all metro and buses in the central area made getting around very easy with no worrying about whether it was worth using a ticket out of your carnet.
3. Before leaving home, do some homework in regard to the buses. Then, on arrival in Paris, purchase the %26quot;L%26#39;indispensable - le Petit Parisien, 3 plans per arrondisement%26quot;. This book gives you the street map, then the metro map, then the bus routes, per arrondissement and I used it constantly It was fabulous to be able to get around Paris by bus and actually see the city...we used them all the time and only went on the metro two or three times.
4. Again - before leaving home - do some %26quot;Google map - street view%26quot; homework. Just for the area around your accommodation at least! We arrived at our apartment and I was able to very quickly orientate myself and it was off to Monoprix - while my directionally challenged husband and brother (who was staying with us for three nights) tried to make out it was the other way...I knew where I was!! Again - a real time saver as the streets of Paris can be a bit confusing, even when you have a map in your hand!
5. Visit The Pantheon - not high on the usual tourist trail, but we all really enjoyed it...don%26#39;t forget to go downstairs to the Crypt.
6. If the weather%26#39;s good - have a little wander through the Luxembourg Gardens....the most conveniently located Park and nicer than the Tuileries.
7. As my brother is a bit of a World War II buff - we really enjoyed the Army Museum at Les Invalides. We visited Napoleon%26#39;s tomb and then went into the Museum and just concentrated on WWII. Very interesting to %26quot;see%26quot; the familiar events from the perspective of the French.
8. Don%26#39;t miss Opera Garnier - opulence overload. Just gorgeous.
9. Try to get to Notre Dame for an actual service.
10. Don%26#39;t be put off by pre-conceived ideas about the expense or %26quot;touristy%26quot; reputation of Les Deux Magots opposite the St Germain des Pres church. We enjoyed late afternoon cafe viennoises on an outside table - in fact, that pic is my new Avatar here on TA. The coffee was very good and the ambience was fun!
11. Versailles - it was OK. The size of the place and the events/history that you know have taken place here are the most heart-stopping moments. But was it sensational - not really. And if you don%26#39;t want to actually walk around the gardens for miles and miles then do what we did and hire one of the golf buggies (have your Drivers Licence). We whipped through the Palace and then arrived in the gardens just before 12 noon and immediately got a buggy and off we went for an hour - this was great fun and a really good way to get an overview (but you couldn%26#39;t go exploring as the route is pre-determined and the buggy stops if you deviate). BTW - by the time we got back at about 1pm there was quite a queue for the buggies.
12. If there is somewhere you particularly want to eat - even if for lunch and even if in one of the smaller bistros - then do make a reservation. We missed out on a few places I wanted to try (usually at lunch-time...and the worst was Sunday lunch in the Marais!!) because they were full by the time we arrived at about 1ish. I learned my lesson - having missed out on Angelina%26#39;s one day due to a massive queue...I rang and made a lunch reservation for 12 noon the following day. We still had to wait a few minutes for our table but when it was ready it was right in the window and just gorgeous...it was the only day of pouring rain and we sat there and enjoyed a leisurely lunch (Angelina%26#39;s special omelette, a glass of rose, and then their delectable hot chocolate...yummmm!) while at least 40 people queued out the door and down Rue de Rivoli!
13. Rick Steves%26#39; %26quot;Paris%26quot; book was the best one on the market (I purchased it on Amazon well before we left and read it cover to cover) - it was invaluable for much of our itinerary. Don%26#39;t stress about being %26quot;seen%26quot; hanging on to this book....I saw them everywhere, and I thought %26quot;there goes another peron who made a wise travel book choice%26quot; and I%26#39;m not even American!!
So I hope these %26quot;tips%26quot; may help some future first-timers to Paris - please feel free to ask any questions as I%26#39;ll be happy to respond. Cheers!!
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Very very nice!
agreed - garnier was simply thee most magnificent place i have ever seen in my life.
wish i knew of your tip on that bus booklet. we shyed away from taking the bus and got around solely on the metro (but did have the navigo pass)
enjoyed reading your tips!
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Thanks Nickles - glad you enjoyed Opera Garnier as well...just amazing!:)
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Glad you loved your apartment--we stayed a week at the 3-bedroom upstairs and absolutely loved it.
Being able to look out at the Palais Royal garden every day, and being in such a superbly convenient location was a highlight. I%26#39;d stay in the building again or rent from them in another location.
Thanks for the tips--all good ones. I didn%26#39;t know the rental carts at Versailles were on a specific route. Makes sense, of course, but I hadn%26#39;t read that before.
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Glad you loved your apartment--we stayed a week at the 3-bedroom upstairs and absolutely loved it.
Being able to look out at the Palais Royal garden every day, and being in such a superbly convenient location was a highlight. I%26#39;d stay in the building again or rent from them in another location.
Thanks for the tips--all good ones. I didn%26#39;t know the rental carts at Versailles were on a specific route. Makes sense, of course, but I hadn%26#39;t read that before.
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Tanya: thanks for the tips. we will use them in January, can you explain a bit more about your No. 2-the Navigo Decouvert? you start by saying if your days vaguely correspond. correspond to what, please? and what do you use the photo for? i am currently knee deep in tour books and maybe i just haven%26#39;t gotten to this subject yet but would love to know more about this topic. thanks very much
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