Paris Vacation Tips

There is only one Paris, which is why so many have visited, and why so many more dream of being here, even for a little while. The French have centuries of history, a rich culture, and exquisite cuisine and wine, and live in one of the most beautiful parts of Europe. Parisians are deservedly and representatively proud of all this. After a few days, you’ll easily see why.

But at first, it will be a bit difficult to get around, especially if you do not speak French. This is why we offer you a number of Paris vacation tips which will be helpful for you.

20 Paris Arrondissements

The City of France is broken up into 20 Paris arrondissements, or districts, each with its own flavor and character. Paris Metro and rail stations are never far away, no matter what district you’re in.

1st The Louvre, the Tuileries Gardens, and the Royal Palace
2nd The St. Denis neighborhood and the pedestrian shops of Rue Montorgueil
3rd Elegant 17th-century palaces and the thriving Jewish district
4th Notre Dame de Paris, Ile de Cite, and the Centre Pompidou, Paris
5th Lively, intellectual home of the Sorbonne, Paris
6th Markets, music, galleries, and the Luxembourg Gardens
7th Invalides, Musée d’Orsay, and, of course, the Eiffel Tower, Paris
8th Fabulous Paris shopping along Faubourg St.-Honore and Champs-Élysées
9th 19th-century Paris and flair, and the old Moulin Rouge, Paris
10th “Real” Paris still exists in the 10th
11th The birthplace of the French Revolution, and home to the new Opéra Paris Bastille
12th Restaurants, shops, typically Paris cinemas, and a young and friendly population
13th Young, trendy Parisians pepper the 13th
14th Montparnasse, replete with markets and artists, is the “suburb” of the Latin Quarter
15th Lovely parks and exposition centers
16th The Trocadero, Serres d’Auteuil, and great views of the Eiffel Tower
17th The 17th is where Paris’ finest restaurants are located
18th Street artists, Sacre Couer, and the neighborhood’s famous crepes
19th The huge Parc de la Villette is home to outdoor concerts and cinema in the summer
20th Pere Lachaise Cemetery, eternal home of Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and others

At your hotel

Free Paris maps (see France map and Paris Maps pages for detailed information) and other information can usually be obtained in Paris hotel lobbies or from the front desk. Check in, freshen up, and, with your bags unpacked, your room key in your pocket, a city and Métro map, and a few spare euros, Paris is all yours!

Exchange rate in Paris

This issue of Paris vacation tips can help you to save your money, which is probably important to you during your France holidays. How much you get for your dollar depends on where you get your money changed. Your hotel or restaurant will probably take dollars in payment but you’ll get taken to the cleaners with the worst exchange rates. Even some Banks and “exchange stores” charge exorbitant commissions. We found that the area near the Paris Opera house has a wealth of exchanges to choose from. However, the rates posted outside different exchanges differed as much as 15%.

Public transportation in the City of France.

Spending those euros for a public transport ticket is another decision that saves money. It also helps you experience life as if you were a resident of Paris. There are high-speed rail lines, buses, and the Metro (subway). Anyone who has ever relied on public transportation in the U.S. would be delighted to use it here. The system is very well designed. Their Metro is fast, clean, and efficient. Many stations are works of art themselves, as are the decorative (some say tacky) “Metropolitan” signs and railings that signal the entrance to many stations. Purchase a Paris Visite card or a carnet (book of 10 tickets) for an even more economical ride. The system is set up so that you can get from almost anywhere in the city to almost anywhere in the city without more than one connection. It has 13 interconnecting lines. All transfers between lines are free and protected from the weather.

To do this like a pro just go to any subway ticket window and get the free transportation map of the city (le Grand Plan de Paris). Every route is numbered and the signs in the entrances to the train platforms list the name of the stop and the station at the end of the line. After you choose your destination, write down the name of each station you need to get on and off at. If you are transferring among multiple metro lines also write down the station at the end of each line (as if you were taking each metro to the end-of-the-line).

The turnstiles are tricky so it’s a good idea to watch how other riders are using them. The ticket is inserted into a slot in the turnstile to enter, then recovered and used to get out the turnstile at the destination. With a little preparation, anyone who can read a map will be going down Metro escalators confidently, looking about for the right gate to enter, and be moving about Paris with the speed and ease of a Parisian. And there is so much to go to.

Note: There are two things you must keep in mind when using the Métro. Métro directions are given using the name of the last terminal (in the direction you are headed) for the line you are on. Always know the name of this station. More importantly, always keep your validated card or ticket with you until you are well out of the station at your destination. If a Métro official or police officer requests to see your validated stub at any point along your journey, until you leave the station, and you cannot produce it, things can get unpleasant and fines can get high.

Around Paris

Some have spent lifetimes experiencing all that Paris has to offer. Before you set into seeing the big things, remember that there are little things around every corner, down every street, hidden in restaurants, churches, and parks throughout the City of Light. Of course, there are some things everyone should do, a few you should make time for if you can, and a few others you can skip. Here they are:

Top eleven tourist attractions in paris :

Eiffel Tower : If you’re interested in visiting Paris, then you already know quite well what the Eiffel Tower looks like. Still, it is very often first on the list of things to do, so make a little time for it. A ride to the top will set you back about $14, but you can take great pictures and get a snack. At night, the views of the tower and from the tower are fantastic and the lines are shorter.(see Eiffel Tower, Paris )

The Louvre, Jardin de Paris Tuileries : It could take weeks to see it all. Follow one of our Paris vacation tips: you have to limit yourself. If you’re determined to see the world’s most famous smile, be prepared to join the throngs oohing and aahing the Mona Lisa, and at least glance at the other great works by the artist that are all around it. Otherwise, the crown jewels, Greek, Roman, and Egyptian antiquities, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, Michelangelo’s Slaves, and so much more are at home at the world’s largest museum. The general entrance fee is about $11, but it’s half price on Sundays and most late afternoons. The lines to get in, then the lines to get screened, then the lines to get a ticket can be long, but brand new, electronic ticket kiosks recently installed have made the wait much, much shorter. Tuileries, adjacent to the Place de la Concorde, is ideally situated for a post-Champs-Èlysèes rest en route to the Louvre. They were designed by the same landscape architect that completed the gardens at Versailles. There is a new entrance to the Louvre at the Porte des Lions situated by the Seine. This entry takes you into new galleries just opened to the public with 17th- and 18th-century Italian works, Spanish masters and Greek and Russian icons from the 16th and 17th centuries

Pompidou and Musèe de Orsay, Paris : The energetic Centre National d’Art et de Culture, or Centre Pompidou, as it is commonly known, is a sight itself, with its guts (utility pipes and structural support) on the outside, painted in vibrant primary colors. Inside is a vast collection of Modern art, some of which complements the building itself. The Musée d’Orsay, one of the city’s star attractions, houses an impressive collection of French art from the mid-19th to the early 20th centuries as well as a model of a Paris neighborhood, which you can view from above standing on a glass floor. Admission is about $8 to $10 for each.

Sacre Coeur and Montmartre : Like many famous attractions in Paris (Eiffel Tower, Center Pompidou, I.M. Pei’s thing at the Louvre), Sacre Couer was the subject of some controversy when it was built because of its Byzantine design. But it’s a favorite among tourists (who flock for the view and spectacular interior) and locals (who hang out on the steps in front and be Parisian). Walk up or ride the funicular railway to the highest point in Paris, then climb the steps of the dome for even better views. Admission to the basilica is free; expect to pay a few dollars for a funicular ride or admission to the dome and crypt. Around Sacre Coeur is the Montmartre neighborhood (you’ve heard of its crêpes, oui?). The enlightening Musèe Montmartre will fill you in on a great deal of the history of the neighborhood, Sacre Coeur, and the city.

Rodin Museum, Picasso Museum : Thank heavens for taxes. The Picasso heirs owed the French government some dues upon the death of the master, but donated hundreds of little-known works by the artist in lieu. The government, in turn, opened a fantastic museum in the Marais. (And it actually looks like a museum.) The museum is also adorned with furniture and even framework by one of the Giacomettis (Alberto, Diego… it’s hard to tell). In a quieter part of town, the Musée Rodin is home to scores of sculptures by the father of Modern Art. Outside is a wonderful rose garden-set aside some time to sit and think, it’s a wonderful atmosphere out there.

Cathedrale de Notre-Dame : For years, guidebooks had a note warning readers to be extra careful of pickpockets inside. The situation seems to have been cleared up a little, but you can get stuck in a very dense crowd once inside. So use caution, just the same. Join the masses outside taking photographs in front of the nearly completely restored façade. Heading up to the take in the view from the towers? You may consider it Quasi-impossible, but you move up the stairs faster than you might think. Courage!

Latin Quarter, Montparnasse, Jardin du Luxembourg: The neighborhoods are each quintessential Paris in their own way. The Quartier Latin can be something of a tourist trap in the shops and cafès, but the atmosphere is authentic. Montparnasse has a similar selection of bookshops and cafès on the other side of the Luxembourg Gardens. Former Queen and ever the Florentine, Marie de Medici had the Jardin du Luxembourg built to remind her of the most elegant gardens of Florence, the Boboli Gardens at the Pitti Palace.

Pere Lachaise Cemete ry: Finding Jim Morrison can be a fun game. People watching is even better. Or, just grab a baguette and some cheese and have a picnic in this, the largest park in Paris. Admission is free, but you’ll want to spend a few dollars on a cemetery map, which can be purchased from a kiosk on one of the surrounding streets.

Les Invalides : The star attraction, Napoleon’s ornate tomb, is at home in this imposing 17th-century military hospital. Constructed by the (normally selfish) Louis XIV for injured veterans, the hospital was once home to thousands of former soldiers; it cares for only a few hundred. The Musèe de l’Armèe is one of the largest military museums in the world. Admission is about $8.

If you have time

Palace of Versailles : It’s a relatively short RER ride from the city out to Versailles. There is good signage indicating how to get from the station to the palace, which is very close by. The gardens, rooms, dècor, and teeming narcissism of Louis XIV are all on display. You could spend hours wandering the gardens. Look around corners, over hedges, and beyond walls for beautiful views. Entrance to the park starts at about $9 and goes up from there, depending on what part of the palace and gardens you want to see.

Opéra Garniér : Once the largest theatrical venue in the world, the Opéra Garnier is still superlative. There are no endangered damsels, no mysterious phantoms, but the place is still wildly entertaining, both during shows and otherwise. Don’t miss Chagall’s famous painted ceiling, which surrounds the chandelier.

Picnic : If you’ve planned ahead (you brought plastic cutlery with you from home and stuffed a small blanket in your knapsack) you can do entirely on a whim, whenever the mood strikes you, whenever a good location presents itself, and whenever you find a warm, crusty baguette just waiting to be broken in two. Find some nice, soft cheese to spread on it, then an inexpensive bottle of wine or some mineral water. A little fresh fruit and some chocolate rounds out your snack. Ooh la la!

Paris Vacation Tips on Dining

A Good Meal in Paris need not be a major event. You might treat yourself to one of the more expensive restaurants or brasseries, or enjoy a simple but authentic meal at bistro or famous Paris café. Either way, make sure you have given yourself enough time to linger and enjoy the meal, even if it’s a small one. Order dessert. Sip your coffee slowly. The French take pride in every meal they cook, serve, eat, and share; these are events that should be savored.

Eating in Paris, or anywhere in France, in many ways can be an experience just like eating anywhere else. You can get a great waiter or a crummy one, a fantastic meal or one you’d rather forget, get a great deal or pay too much. Here’s the trick: Stop outside the eatery before going in and check out the menu. Many, especially in Paris, are printed in French and English, but if not, study a few of the common words (chicken, vegetables, etc.). Prix fixe on the menu means that there is a selection of set meals for a certain price. One special tip to the food sensitive person is to take a French-English dictionary and translate the entire menu item before you order it. “Ragons de Veau sauce au porto” is not veal in a sauce but delicious anyway.

Many menus may also offer a la carte, in which case you’ll pay for each item individually. In France, tax is included in your bill, and tipping is a little different. Leave a few Euros to round up to the nearest five or ten-Euro mark.

As for the great/crummy waiter, there’s no tip we can offer you in our Paris Vacation Tips, but remember this: serving food in France is taken very seriously. Waiters are trained to be quick, attentive, and out-of-sight. You may think your waiter is not friendly, when, in fact, he or she is trying to be as professional and discreet as possible.

It is not recommended to stay for lunch or dinner at a Museum; the food is cafeteria tasting or worse. Only people who don’t care or are suffering from hunger do that twice. With a multitude of wonderful, reasonably priced, uncrowded places offering delicious fare, Paris is not a place to eat poorly.

In cafes and from street vendors, lower cost meals are available. They’re selling sandwiches of pate on crisp French bread or varieties of crepes for the best prices in City of France. Parisian workers crowd these places during the lunch hour because the food is good and inexpensive. Before noon or after 2 P.M. there are always tables available.

The bill in Paris restaurants includes the 15% tip for the waiter. Window seats sometimes cost more but they add a visual treat-you watch the constant parade of Parisians outside. And they watch the people inside the restaurants.

Paris Vacation Tips on Weather; Short Preparations for Paris Tour

First, leaving your hotel, put on a really good pair of walking shoes to feel comfortable in the Parisian streets. Walking in Paris means stopping often to look at amazing details and buildings. This constant stop-and-go will wear you down if you aren’t comfy in your shoes and corns are certainly likely to spoil your Paris holiday.

Paris, France weather is fickle in springtime and during fall: what starts out as a great clear day can turn rainy and chilly in the afternoon. Pack a sweater and a rain breaker if you are visiting during these seasons. Summer is usually fine (70-85°F); August is generally hotter (80-95°F). Winter is rainy and cold, almost as cold as in NYC. Keep this information in mind if you intend to travel here.

In any case, take your umbrella along, it may become your best friend — especially if you want to take pictures of everything. Rain and camera lenses don’t like each other.

Working hours

Shops : Tue – Sat, 10am – 7pm ; Food shops may open earlier

Banks: Mon – Fri, 9aqm – 4pm ; closing for lunch between 12pm – 2pm

Museums: 10am – 5pm, 6 days a week closing on Monday or Tuesday

Paris tour

Wandering around Paris by foot is wonderful but not a reliable way to get to any destination in a short time. If you intend to travel there for the first time, keep this point of Paris Vacation Tips in mind. There are great buildings and beautiful shop windows but what looks like only 1.5 kilometers on the map can take over 1.5 hours to traverse. The city was laid out over the last 2,000 years and there are only a few straight streets. Walking any distance usually requires zigging and zagging and constant attention to street signs and directions. No streets form any kind of parallel grid pattern. You can’t make four right hand turns and assume you’ll end up anywhere near your starting point.

Speaking about Paris shopping, you can probably skip famous Galleries Lafayette. Well, don’t skip it entirely. Many of the stores are very beautiful, and the displays, especially at Christmas time, will be worth a few snaps and flashes. But don’t give in to impulsive purchases right away. There is fine shopping throughout the city, and although you may find the occasional bargain item at Galleries Lafayette, chances are you could save a few Euros by picking it up elsewhere. It is not worth spending so much time.

Now, disregard the old notions about the American in Paris feeling an alien and the French or Parisians being rude. It’s simply not true… Well, it’s no more of a reality than it is in any other large city. Anyone who has been to France will give you this advice: if you know any French, use it. If you don’t, learn a little. Simple phrases will do just fine. Smile. You’ll catch more abeilles with miel. Yes, you’ll run into the occasional jerk, but you’d do that anywhere. Most people you will run into probably won’t be on vacation like you and may just be short on time. Overall, if you make an effort to learn a little and appreciate a little about the language and culture, you’ll win new amies, honest!