4 day Paris Itinerary

Your first day itinerary seems a bit ambitious. I don't think allowing only one hour to get from the Orly to your hotel is enough.You can do some of it but perhaps not all.

It looks like you're coming in from Venice, so you shouldn't be exhausted on your first night, so a few activities are probably fine. It's hard to list sights you should cover - you're leaving out a lot of the basics...is it because you've been to Paris before? There's lots of smaller, very interesting city museums and other museums I might add to your itinerary, but it would be specific to your interests. When I'm looking to choose my sights, I make a list from my RS book and choose from there. I really liked the Musée Jacquemart-André, for example, but I wouldn't put it on a first Paris visit itinerary.

Notre Dame just gets a "stroll past" ? Also, you don't mention Musee d'Orsay.
I'm concerned you are not including some of the major sights of broad appeal.

Hi, Thank you all for your responses. We will be flying in from Madrid and will have rested a few days before
we get to Paris. I do want to go into the Notre Dame and we talked about Musee D'Orsay.

We spent hours just trying to get something on paper. Eiffel Tower, the Lourve, Montmartre, cooking class, Pont Neuf, river cruise....these are the things we definitely wanted to include.
I wish we had longer here. We have not been here before and are not working with a travel agent.

The walking tour includes: This walking tour usually includes the sites & the stories below and lasts on avarage 2 hours, but can change depending on the guide:
Pantheon – memorial of the greatest philosophers
The Sorbonne University
Bookstore Shakespeare and co.
Hotel Cluny – the first hotel in the world
Gardens of Luxembourg
The Church of Sainte Genvieve
The incredible and real story of Heloise and Abelard
From „Midnight in Paris“ famous spots
Hemingway’s and James Joyce’s houses
La place Contrascarpe
La rue Mouffetard
The oldest cinemas in Paris
…and much more!

I guess we should try to get into the Notre Dame the first night or Friday. The time is getting used up pretty quickly.

Keep the suggestions coming.
Thanks.

Your first day confuses me a little, not sure what "labyrinth" you're referring to, or why head south to rue Mouffetard that day if you'll see it on your guided walk the next day. Certainly go into Notre Dame while you're there. Other worthwhile sights nearby include the Archeological Crypt below the plaza (on the right as you face the cathedral entrance), and the Ste-Chappelle. The latter may involve too long a wait in line, since it's popular and located among the high-security court buildings. My first instinct about the evening boat ride was that you'd be too tired, but flying from Madrid means no jet-lag factor, so go for it! And, while I think an hour may be less time than you'll need from landing to hotel, you won't have to go through passport control since it's an in-Schengen flight.

Thursday looks good (I don't know Laduree Royale but hopefully it's close to Tuileries etc.). The Louvre can take a morning or several days depending on your interest and energy. In the time you have, just focus on a few highlights -- which don't have to be the most famous works.

Friday leaves you time for another museum if you're interested -- maybe the military museum at the Invalides, or the Orsay, or the medieval Cluny.

On Saturday, I'd go for the Marais over St-Germain, simply because otherwise you won't see it, and you should. Just walk through the back streets and check out the Place des Vosges. There's a nice restaurant there, Ma Bourgogne, that will surely have escargot if your daughter is still searching by then! But Paris is filled with wonderful food, so don't worry too much about where you eat.

A restaurant we liked in the St. Germain is called Le Bistrot du Henri, on Rue Princesse. And around the corner is a terrific gelato stand called Amorino.

Wednesday - tons of places to eat in the Latin Quarter, a goodly number in the Marais. When will you be there? Sunset today is at 9.51 pm and the days are still getting longer. It won't be dark until well after 10.

Thursday - When you rent the audio guides, you will probably need to leave photo ID as a deposit. Use your driver's license. Pay attention to where you rent them! You will have to return them to the same desk to get your DL back. Make a plan for the Louvre - it's huge. Their website has self-guided tours they call "thematic trails." I used the one "From Palace to Museum" once, it took me past all the "highlights" even though that wasn't the theme. Use the audio guide for more information on anything that catches your eye, but pace yourselves so you see everything you want to see.

About Wednesday....it MAY be too ambitious and you are right, we should wait until the tour to see it. We could try getting INTO the Notre Dame after we check into our hotel and then walk around the two islands. The labyrinth is something my daughter saw on the map, but it might not be worth spending the time to find it.

Thanks for the tips on the Lourve. We decided to spend the morning there and see what we can.
The Laduree Royale is the cafe that is popular for macarons. It is near the Tulleries...on the map anyway.

Suggestions for a nice dinner after our Latin Quarter walk. We finish at 5pm and we can eat in the Latin Quarter or another district if we don't have to do anything else.

Friday we have time to add in some other places so we left it with some time for that.

Saturday, Le Marais sounds good to me. Any other restaurant suggestions? I got one good already.

Also, on Saturday night, we won't need a big dinner because we will be cooking and eating a nice big lunch. Are there suggestions for somewhere in Le Marais for Saturday night that is not too pricey but delicious?

I'd follow a similar format for all 3 days, taking the time to enjoy a proper sit down lunch. This means a bar with snack suffices in the evening after a late museum visit.

Thu
Start at Cluny & Pantheon
Latin Quarter & St Germain Walk
Lunch
Luxembourg Gardens (take five to recharge)
Musee d'Orsay (open til late)

Fri
Start at Invalides & Rodin Museum
Right Bank Walk
Lunch
Tuileries (take five to recharge)
Louvre (open til late)

Sat
Start at Sainte Chapelle & Notre Dame
Marais Walk
Lunch
Place des Vosges (take five to recharge)
Pompidou (open til late)

You suggested: Thu
Start at Notre Dame
Latin Quarter & St Germain Walk
Lunch
Luxembourg Gardens (take five to recharge)
Musee d'Orsay (open til late)

Fri
Start at Rodin Museum
Right Bank Walk
Lunch
Tuileries (take five to recharge)
Louvre (open til late)

Sat
Start at Sainte Chapelle
Marais Walk
Lunch
Place des Vosges (take five to recharge)
Pompidou (open til late)

Hi, I like some of our current plans but certainly want to keep working on it.

WED afternoon: We arrive at ORLY airport at 2pm....so even if we don't get to the Notre Dame until 5pm (it is very near our hotel), we would have until 6:45pm to see inside of it. If we don't make it, then we can add it to another day.
I also found a tour of the Latin Quarter from 8-10pm? This could fit in if we aren't too tired. (We fly from Madrid to Paris this day)

THURS You have Latin Quarter. We will get a tour of part of the Latin Quarter during our market trip on Saturday during out cooking class. I was thinking we would finish walking around the Latin Quarter on Saturday (or do the late walking tour on Wed night?)and see Le Marais on Saturday since we are already in this area.

That leaves THURS and FRI free. We want to see the Lourve and the Eiffel Towel.
So Thursday, we need to see what is near the Louvre and
Friday we need to see what is near the Eiffel Tower, correct? Rodin Museum, Statue of Liberty

If we do the late walking tour on Wed night, then we will likely miss our river tour. We could move this to a different evening.

If you're going to walk around the Marais, a wonderful restaurant there (a few blocks from the Place des Vosges) is Chez Janou. it's got great food from Provence in southern France and is sure to have escargots for your daughter. They offer a huge bowl of chocolate mousse for dessert, which you can share. Gerard Mulot is nearby too, a pastry shop that offers incredible macarons - you can buy some for the road!

It would also be nice for you to gather supplies for a picnic from a market (look for a list in the RS book to see which ones are near your hotel and what days they're open). You can get fruits there, then go to a cheese shop (fromagerie) to choose a couple of beautiful cheeses, a patisserie for bread, and wine (the Monoprix supermarkets aren't bad). There are little parks at the tip of both islands in the Seine - or you can go down to the quais along the river.

Suggest that you leaf through the Rick Steves book as much as you can before you go to see what sights will appeal to you and your family. Study the maps too and you'll get a feel for this beautiful city that you're sure to return to!

If you're going to walk around the Marais, a wonderful restaurant there (a few blocks from the Place des Vosges) is Chez Janou. it's got great food from Provence in southern France and is sure to have escargots for your daughter. They offer a huge bowl of chocolate mousse for dessert, which you can share. Gerard Mulot is nearby too, a pastry shop that offers incredible macarons - you can buy some for the road!

It would also be nice for you to gather supplies for a picnic from a market (look for a list in the RS book to see which ones are near your hotel and what days they're open). You can get fruits there, then go to a cheese shop (fromagerie) to choose a couple of beautiful cheeses, a patisserie for bread, and wine (the Monoprix supermarkets aren't bad). There are little parks at the tip of both islands in the Seine - or you can go down to the quais along the river.

Suggest that you leaf through the Rick Steves book as much as you can before you go to see what sights will appeal to you and your family. Study the maps too and you'll get a feel for this beautiful city that you're sure to return to!

This is very helpful! She can eat escargot and I can eat mousse!
And I LOVE macarons!

There is a nice cafe in the Rodin Museum - we enjoyed a nice bowl of soup and pastry. Just a thought depending on when you go. We really enjoyed this museum as well.

Which Rick Steves book? Pocket Paris?

This is VERY helpful. Thank you for sharing.

I'm having the same issue! trying to fit everything in 4.5 days with 2 kids ages 7 and 9, luckily both myself and husband have been there few time before...
Tickets to eiffel tower all sold out!

"Which Rick Steves book? Pocket Paris?"

That depends. He has a Paris book, a Pocket Paris book, and a France book. You should have one of them, but which one depends on the rest of your trip. They are compared here (click "Is This the Right Book for Me?"): https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/paris-guidebook

The Gerald Mulot patisserie closed almost one year ago and was replaced by a place that sells factory-made bread and pastries, old chocolates, day-old sandwiches and Asian food boxes.

Chez Janou is overpriced for the quality, but tourists love the decor. All anyone ever raves about is the chocolate mousse, which is now rationed out by the waiter - the bowl doesn't stay on the table anymore.
I'd go around the corner to Carette on Place des Vosges, for a good lunch or brunch, instead.

I have decided to stay on Sunday in Paris, giving us 4 full days plus mid-afternoon and evening on the day of arrival.
Any extra recommendations? Plus if we leave on the early train, we can still have 2.5 days in Amsterdam. Everyone agree this sounds like a better plan?

I would vote for the Musee d'Orsay over the Louvre, especially if you like impressionist art.. The paintings are amazing. We found the Louve to be very huge. Hard to see the main sites in just a morning. It's worth getting a museum pass if you're going to several museums. Best to buy at a smaller museum where the line to buy wil be shorter.

Well, buzzkill!! Thanks for updating my info about Gerard Mulot, chexbres. I'm glad I didn't send Phyllis on a wild goose chase. My husband and I did think the food at Chez Janou was very good and we're frugal travelers as well. And that huge bowl of chocolate mousse was too much anyway. Have a great trip, Phyllis!

Another Draft on our itinerary for anyone who will read it! Thanks in advance.

WED- arrive at airport at 2pm. Arrive at hotel by 3-4pm (I added extra time)
We are staying very close to the NOTRE DAME which closes at 6:45, so we plan to go straight over there as soon as we check in.
(we are flying in from Madrid, not from the US).
Dinner--somewhere in the area...cafe meal? or Rue Moffetard, close by too.
RIVER CRUISE from Pont Neuf at 8:30. (Sunset is to be @9pm) so I hope this is good timing.

THURS- LOURVRE 9-12:30 (3.5 hours with audio guide....buy tickets ahead of time)
Tulleries, Musee D'Orangerie, Place de la Concorde, Ferris Wheel
LUNCH at Laduree Royale (I have heard their macarons are the best)
REST at a cafe in the afternoon
Late afternoon: Go to Musee D'orsay---Open late on Thursday
My daughter, 20, says she can handle two museums in one day. Comments?

FRIDAY- Mini Statue of Liberty (20 minute walk to Eiffel Tower) Eiffel Tower, Rodin Garden, Musee D'orsay if not on Thursday night
MONTMARTRE walking tour from 6-8pm Sandeman's

Should we visit the Eiffel Tower AFTER the walking tour or first thing in the morning?
Do you recommend the Hop on/off bus? The metro doesn't go to the Rodin.

We just couldn't figure out how to do this day without walking all day. And we are doing
a walking tour from 6-8pm this night.

Has anyone been to a perfume store in Paris? I read about one on someone's blog but can't
remember the name or if it is worth it to try to find it.

SATURDAY: Market/cooking class with Le Foodist....BOOKED already 9am-3pm
Visit Saint Chapelle, Rue Moffetard (both are very near our hotel, Hotel Diana
Walk around the islands
Need restaurant recommendations for this area

SUNDAY: LAST DAY IN PARIS
11 am Marais walk with Sightseekers Tour-Jewish History of Le Marais)
3-5 Latin Quarter Walk with New Paris Tours (we are staying at Hotel Diana in Latin Quarter, near St. Germain)
Musee Carnavalets garden.

Has anyone eaten at Les Papilles or Sola? Do you go by recommendations on Paris by Mouth?
My daughter wants escargot while in Paris.

THANKS.