Our first time! I took four years of French in high school. I%26#39;ve read Fodor%26#39;s book, watched a few travel videos from the library, and trolled these TA forums to come up with this itinerary. Even used Google Maps to judge the distance and group things for each day.
I%26#39;m hoping to make adjustments now if I have to -- I%26#39;d rather hear about any problems before my trip than experience them first hand, know what I mean?
Merci en advance!
Day 1 (8/24):
* Arrive at CDG at 10am. Get Navigo Decouvertes there. Pick up a 4-day Museum Pass. Based on our %26quot;fatiguees%26quot;, we%26#39;ll decide on a) RER b) Air France bus --%26gt; Metro c) Taxi.
* Hotel is Classics Hotel Paris Tour Eiffel. It%26#39;s far from the hustle/bustle, in the boonies of 16e, but it%26#39;s a place to sleep (hopefully, based on the mixed reviews here on TA). We%26#39;re booked here until 9/3.
* Bus Route 72: Scenic route taking us past a good number of sites. Get off at the Champs and get used to busy Paris crowds.
* Metro to the Tour Montparnasse. We heard it has a better view of Paris than the Eiffel Tower.
* By sunset/dusk, we%26#39;ll hop back on the metro to get to the Pont Alma, and ride the Bateaux Mouche.
Day 2 (8/25) - Day trip to Chartres Cathedral. We don%26#39;t plan to use the entire day there, so whatever time we get back, we%26#39;ll spend in the Jardins or shopping... or just do nothing and watch Paris around us. :) Maybe try the other scenic bus routes?
Day 3 (8/26):
* Take on the triangle, starting with the Arc de Triomphe (first day of the Museum Pass), the Louvre, finishing with the Eiffel Tower (expecting the lines to be easier in the afternoon, as I read one thread saying it was lighter in the afternoon). Enjoy the Champs and the Jardin des Tuileries in between.
Day 4 (8/27):
* Sainte-Chapelle, Notre Dame, and the rest of the Ile.
* Musee de l%26#39;Orangerie. English guided tour at 2:30pm.
* Finish in le Jardin du Luxembourg.
* (Optional: revisit Louvre? Buy some local artists%26#39; drawings to bring home?)
Day 5 (8/28):
* Musee D%26#39;Orsay
* Jardin du Palais Royal
* Musee National Picasso
Day 6 (8/29) - Day trip to Versailles
* Last day of the Museum Pass. I guess we need to upgrade them to see the Fountains and rest of the place, but I was hoping to avoid the queues. (Anyone have suggestions?)
* Groupe F Fireworks show (hoping that the public transportation is safe enough after the show to return to the hotel.)
Day 7 (8/30):
* Won%26#39;t reload the Navigos - will switch to carnets because we won%26#39;t be in town much this week
* Start the morning at Sacre Coeur, head to Pere Lachaise Cemetery
* Back to Eglise de la Sainte-Marie Madeline and Eglise Saint-Eustache
* Complete the day at Galeries LaFayette and a round of shopping (mostly window, unfortunately).
Day 8 (8/31) - Day trip to Foundation Claude Monet in Giverny. Great website pics! We should spend a good part of the day there, but any extra/evening time will be bonus.
Day 9 (9/1):
* Musee Marmottan-Claude Monet (since we just visited his place)
* Finish up any shopping, any sights we haven%26#39;t tried, but hop on the late night Corail Lunea train to...
Day 10 (9/2) - Day trip to Lourdes
* Spend the whole day there, and hop on the late night Corail Lunea train back to Paris.
Day 11 (9/3):
* Check out of Classics Hotel and finish the trip in %26quot;style%26quot; (well, better than Classics anyway) - off to Vienna International Dream Castle Hotel near Disneyland Paris
* Too late to head into the park, so instead, take the local bus/shuttle to La Vallee Village for some outlet shopping.
* Get the wifey a well-deserve Spa treatment at the hotel. And relax (or pack early?)...
Day 12 (9/4) - Disneyland Paris, only the Magic Kingdom (after looking at the website, the Studio park didn%26#39;t really catch our fancy. But who knows? We should be able to upgrade the tickets if we feel like it. End the evening (and the trip) with a bang -- I%26#39;m expecting fireworks, Mickey, so load %26#39;em up!
Day 13 (9/5):
* Morning shuttle to CDG for the 12:15pm flight back home.
- OR -
(I%26#39;ve read there aren%26#39;t many places to get food near DL Paris, but I%26#39;d rather munch on patisserie food than the airline %26quot;food%26quot;)
* Early morning RER to Paris, load up at the patisserie (we%26#39;ll hopefully have a favorite by then), and then hightail it to CDG.
SUGGESTIONS WELCOME AND APPRECIATED!
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It%26#39;s great that you%26#39;ve done all your homework! The two things that kind of stand out to me in your itinerary are that 1) you don%26#39;t take into consideration any kind of jet lag that you may have upon landing--you just get right into your itinerary, and then you have a day trip planned for the very next morning. 2) You don%26#39;t seem to have too much planned for the Left Bank. I think a visit to the Pantheon and environs would be nice.
In addition, you%26#39;ve got the museums and gardens covered, but you might include more unstructured time for wandering. Including a street market or two would be a really great addition.
Have a wonderful time!
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I think day 5 you could add more too. You might get tired of all the museums too, you%26#39;ll be visiting a lot -- but as the previous poster mentioned, you are missing a few of standards: pantheon, les invalides, napoleons tomb. I was slightly dissapointed with the pantheon and napoleans tomb, but the military museum attached to it was fascinating.
If funds allow it, check out the %26#39;things to do%26#39; section for alternative things to do in paris. I enjoyed almost all of them, and fit it all into 4 days of paris. here is a post relating to my observances.
tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k28699…
Make a photo stop at the trocodero station, it has a fanstastic view of the eiffel tower:
…google.com/edg126/…5348810609893401458
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While it%26#39;s clear that you have done alot of research/homework, I do have problems with your plans for the end of your trip. In all honesty, I don%26#39;t think that a one day trip from Paris to Lourdes is at all reasonable - much too great a distance to travel for one day.
Also, I think that spending your last two days at Disneyland Paris is a rediculous expenditure of your time in France. Doi you really want to travel 6,000 miles (you live in California, home of the original Disneyland)to visit a place that features made-up castles, entertainment rides, folks dressed upmlike MickeyMouse etc. ...) when there are so many wonderful real castles and other historical sites that you can visit instead.
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Sorry for the typos but I am sure that you got the gist of what I was trying to say.
TA - That%26#39;s why we all keep asking for the edit option!
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I couldn%26#39;t agree more with AlpillesGal... drop Lourdes (too far for a one day visit unless you really like riding on trains) and Disney (if you are Disney fans, the US ones are supposed to be much better).
Take the time you save dropping the above to spend 3 days in the Loire Valley or perhaps Dijon in Burgundy or make a trip to Normandy.
You are spending a lot of time, energy and money to go to France so see France, not Uncle Walt%26#39;s Amusement Park! LOL
Just my 2 cents as a Francophile and Disneyphobe! ;^)
But it%26#39;s your choice... whatever you choose, have fun!
Rob
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On day 5 you might consider getting tickets to the Renoir exhibit at the Grand Palais. You should def buy them in advance because the lines will be horrendous. Have a look:
http://www.rmn.fr/Renoir-in-the-20th-Century
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(I%26#39;m writing this on my commuter train to work)
* I%26#39;ll look into adding more wandering time, and I need to find more info on the street market locations and hours.
* I was hoping that riding the Lourdes train overnight in a sleeper train would be nonconsequential, since we%26#39;d be sleeping, but yes, as a commuter, I know the trains wear you down. I%26#39;ll discuss it with my wife. I think the other parts of France mentioned would take more than a day though. Maybe on our next trip? I really do appreciate the feedback though; it%26#39;s given me lots to consider.
* Last night my wife and I pulled up French versions of our favorite Disney songs on the way home and had a blast. We%26#39;d plan on hitting up Tokyo DL too when we visit there too. Vive la difference!
* Thanks for the Exhibit link. At least if we don%26#39;t catch it in Paris, I now know it will come to LA in April.
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My only advise would be to remain flexible. No plan survives contact with Paris! Paris is so full of wonderful things that something is bound to take you off course a bit - go with the moment - don%26#39;t skip something interesting just to stick to the plan.
Have fun
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I agree with others who believe Disneyland would not be a good use of your days in France. And Lourdes is far, far away, not really a day trip. Only a couple of other observations: the Picasso Museum will be closing on August 23 for lengthy renovations; and of course the Galeries Lafayette is not open on Sundays (at least not yet--that may change soon I think).
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