Prior to arriving to Paris, make sure you:

• Print and check off THIS International Travel Checklist

• Try to avoid traveling to Paris in July and August if you can!

• Check times/days for attractions you'd like to visit (some places you would think would be open every day will be closed on a day you wouldn't expect)

• Reserve your tickets to attractions and make dining reservations (info and links below)

• Learn some French (this goes a long way when speaking to locals):

  • Bonjour (bon-joo) – hello 

  • S’il vous plaît (sea-voo-play) – please 

  • Merci (mare-see) – thank you 

  • Pardon (par-don) – excuse me

  • Désolée (dez-oh-lay) – sorry

• Purchase and break-in really good walking shoes for your trip. (You most likely will be walking 15,000-30,000 steps a day!)

• Consider purchasing anti-theft travel gear like THIS

• Get used to saying "Bonjour" when you enter a place. It's rude not to in Paris. 

I recommend:

• Fly into Charles De Gaulle Airport (CDG) or Orly Airport (ORY) - Try to sleep on the plane! Consider bringing melatonin to help you fall asleep. Also, book a flight that leaves later in the day, closer to your normal bedtime. You may be arriving in Paris EARLY which means you'll have a full day before going to bed that night. Even a few hours of sleep on a flight can go a long way to help with jet lag. 

• If you have not already, convert some US dollars into euros. HERE is a guide to know what to expect with Euro banknotes and coins. You may need some at businesses that don't accept credit cards and possibly coins for public toilettes, so make sure to have some banknotes and coins on hand with you as you travel.

• Travel to Paris 

  • CDG Options: Click here for a video on how to travel by train from CDG or schedule THIS great private transfer option. 

    • There are a lot of FAKE TAXI DRIVERS approaching travelers at the airport. DO NOT USE THEM!!!!

  • ORY Options: Take a taxi from ORY to Paris - Learn more HERE including how Paris requires set prices for taxis coming from the airport.

• Head to your hotel, check in (make sure to say Bonjour!) & hydrate often (helps with jet-lag)

I don't recommend planning anything nor reserving any dining for your first day/night of your trip. You don't want the added stress in case something happens and your flight or transportation is delayed for any reason. Plan for there to be a flight delay so that if you do manage to get to your hotel on time, you will be getting "bonus time" which you could use to go explore and stumble across a place to eat.

9:00 am - Enjoy breakfast at your hotel! When purchasing your hotel, don't worry about getting the breakfast included option (if offered), simply pay for it out of pocket on this first day as you will be enjoying breakfast at other locations later. 

10:00 am - Ride the Metro from the Opéra station to the Ecole Militaire station. The Bonjour RATP app is SUPER helpful in getting you from point a to point b. I use the Bonjour RATP app for the metro (including purchasing my tickets through the app) and use Google Maps for walking directions.

10:30 am - When you get off of the Metro, stroll along the Champ-de-Mars and head towards the Eiffel Tower. If you want to go up to tour the Eiffel Tower, make sure to book your tickets in advance (as soon as possible) from the official website HERE (get the 11 am pre-booked ticket to go along with this itinerary). Lines can be very long, and pre-booked tickets can help you skip part of the wait. Plus, if you're going during the peak season, they'll most likely be sold out!

You can download the Eiffel Tower Visitor's Guide on your phone to guide you through what you are seeing HERE.

Once you are done with the Eiffel Tower, walk to Rue Cler to explore and make your own picnic basket for lunch! (If the weather isn't nice, try out one of the restaurants instead!)

If you decide to make your own picnic, head back to the Champ-de-Mars to enjoy your picnic with a view of the Eiffel Tower. Also, make sure you're drinking lots of water. 

When you have finished your picnic, head to Musée d'Orsay taking the bus line 69 from Champ de Mars (all the way on the left of the picture above) to Gambetta - Japon (all the way on the right), and back to Musée d'Orsay. You'll get a scenic tour past places like the Musée du Louvre, Notre-Dame, and Opéra Bastille all while staying close to the Seine River and seeing views of the Eiffel Tower along the way. All for approximately $3/person! Just make sure to get off at the Musée d'Orsay stop!

Explore the Musée d'Orsay (CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS) where you can find art by Cezanne, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh and more! The museum has a great website HERE to help you find what you are most hoping to see by simply putting the artist, subject, or object into the search bar. 

Once done, head back to your hotel to rest and/or freshen up before going to dinner at Le Soufflé (make sure to get dining reservations in advance!). 

8:30 am - Skip breakfast at your hotel and eat at Café Nemours or Café Marly instead.

10:00 am - Walk to the Louvre and meet your guide for your Semi-Private Tour - CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS (I recommend the 10:30 am option).

The Louvre boasts such an extensive collection of artwork that even spending just 30 seconds glancing at each work of art would take approximately 100 days (if you never stopped to sleep, eat or use the restroom). Because of this, you'll want a tour guide directing you to all of the most popular pieces, plus this tour includes your ticket for admission. 

1:00 pm - After your tour, you'll have built up an appetite. Walk through the Domaine National du Palais-Royal where you can find the Colonnes de Buren (black and white striped columns) as well as walk through the Jardin du Palais Royal as you make your way to Le Grand Colbert where you can enjoy a delicious lunch! 

2:30 pm - Next, take a peak in the beautiful Bibliothèque Nationale de France across the street (you'll have to go through security, and you won't be able to take photos inside) before walking through Galerie Vivienne & Galerie Véro-Dodat on your way to the Louvre-Rivoli metro station. Take the metro to the George V station. 

3:30 pm - On the Champs-Elysees, walk toward the Arc de Triomphe (NEVER cross the round-about!!! There is a tunnel to get there as seen in the picture above.)

4:30 pm - Visit the top of the Arc de Triomphe (Get your tickets to visit the top HERE or at the ticket office located inside the tunnel.)

Around 5:30 pm - Put "Basilique du Sacreé-Cœur de Montmartre" into the Bonjour RATP app and take the metro then funiculaire to visit the Sacré-Coeur Basilica. This is a place that many pick-pocketers like to frequent, so be aware of all of your belongings while you are at this site, especially when you are on the funiculaire.

After you visit the iconic church and enjoy the beautiful view of Paris, head ino Montmartre Village and enjoy the shops and artists in areas like Place du Tertre. 

7:30 pm - Enjoy dinner at one of the delicious restaurants in the village before taking a taxi (using G7), Uber or the metro back to your hotel.

Another option would be to walk or bus to Bouillon Pigalle for cheaper French fare. Just make sure you have a reservation so that you don't wait in the long line outside, and don't go too far west of this restaurant. Let's just say it's not exactly family-friendly. 

Leave the hotel and walk to the Opéra métro station, take the metro to the Arts & Metiers station, then walk to Café du Marché des Enfants Rouges and enjoy a delicious breakfast.

Explore the Marché des Enfants Rouges and wander through Le Marais (you can find Place des Vognes, grab some macarons from Carette and take a glance at Hôtel de Sully). To add a little more fun, enjoy some ice cream at Berthillon on île saint-louis!

Walk to the Notre-Dame Cathedral and enjoy the newly renovated cathedral. Make sure to check out the Point Zéro marker out front! This marker was installed in 1924 to represent the offical center of Paris and is the point all road distances in France are measured by. So, you could say that Notre-Dame is the heart of France!

If you want a truly unique experience at the Notre-Dame Cathedral, check out their concert series! They typically host a musical concert every Tuesday night and you can find the schedule HERE. My husband and I did this and it was a dramatically different experience than simply walking around the cathedral during the day. This allowed you to sit and enjoy the atmosphere with beautiful music. 

Next, walk to and visit the Sainte-Chapelle (CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS - make sure to go up to the second floor).

Walk around and select a place to eat for lunch at Pl. Dauphine. There are cute shops and several places to choose a delicious lunch from.

After, cross the bridge and visit the iconic Shakespeare and Company book shop if it's open!

Next, wander in Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Take a break at the Café de Flore or Les Deux Magots (learn some of their history here) before visiting the Church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés (one of the oldest churches in Paris) and sit back and relax at Jardin du Luxembourg.

Research what time sunset will be tonight, and try to be on the Pont des Arts (bridge) about 30 minutes before that time. 

After you enjoy the sun setting over the Siene River, head to dinner at La Jacobine for traditional French dishes. (Make sure you get dining reservations weeks before!)

After dinner, walk to the meeting point for your Seine cruise (CLICK HERE TO BOOK). You do not have a specific time for your cruise. They usually depart every 30 minutes, and you want to be a little early to make sure you get a good seat enjoying the views of the City of Lights at night from your Seine River cruise. (Also, double check when their last sailing will be so you don't miss it!)

When you're done with your river cruise, take the metro, bus or taxi/uber back.

Enjoy breakfast at a cafe near your hotel, or Angelina, before enjoying one of the following options...

If you have time, visit to Champe-de-Mars and enjoy the Eiffel Tower at night! For a sweet treat, try the Amorino (ice cream shop)!

If your flight isn't until later in the day, have the front desk of your hotel hold your bags and indulge in one more stroll around the sights and sounds of Paris. Purchase any last-minute souvenirs and gifts to take home, just make sure they will fit in your luggage! 

Take THIS private transfer from your hotel to the Charles de Gaulle International Airport (or take a G7 Taxi to ORY) or the metro. Make sure you are there at least 3 hours before your flight is scheduled to leave! They can turn you away if you arrive within 2 hours of your departure time! 

A Quick Note: To help me keep creating these travel guides, some of the links in my itineraries are affiliate links. If you book through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This simply helps me continue to do the research and planning to help you with your next big adventure! Thank you for supporting my small business!