First Trip to France - 7 Nights

You really need 4 nights if it’s your first time in Paris. This gives you 3 full days for the sights. Purchase a 2 Day* Paris Museum Pass.

Day 1
•Eiffel Tower (Opens 9:30am)
•Sacré-Coeur & Montmartre
•Evening Seine Cruise

Day 2*
•Arc de Triomphe (Opens 10am)
•Palais Garnier Opera
•Tuileries Gardens (and Orangerie perhaps)
•Louvre Museum
(Closes late Wed,Fri at 9.45pm)

Day 3*
•Sainte-Chapelle (Opens 9am)
•Notre-Dame de Paris
•Luxembourg Gardens (and Pantheon perhaps)
•Musee d'Orsay
(Closes late Thu at 9.45pm)

If you are not interested in most museums, you do not have to purchase a Museum Pass.
If you are interested in hiking and so forth, you could reduce your time in Paris. I would not try to go anywhere else.

You'll find a lot of things to do in Paris. Stay in a nice hotel and enjoy yourselves.

First trip to France! How exciting! You have many, many people here willing to lend a helping hand!

Let us know what it is that you enjoy doing. Do you like museums? If so, what kind? Paris is a world-class city. I've been there many, many times and I still explore new places each time. Let us know how we can help.

Oh my gosh, there is so much to see and do in Paris besides museums. Please don't cut any of your time there.

"Paris is always a good idea." --"Sabrina," 1995, spoken by Julia Ormond

“Paris est toujours une bonne idée”.

"It's always a bonny day in Paris." - Anonymous Scotsman

You don't say what you will be doing in Italy, but by the time you get to France you could very well be sick of churches and museums - that happens to us on every trip!

What about a day trip to Reims from Paris for champagne and the WWII Surrender museum?

Just to pile on: you wouldn't get to see much if you are just stopping for a night enroute.

Here's something to consider. Paris is the center of France's transportation hub. If you like, think of a day trip you could take if you are bored with Paris.

But you know, you won't be.

I like that Karen, you tickled my funny bone of Scottish ancestry.

@David, Thanks so much for the suggested itinerary - really helps. Think we will skip the Museum Pass. We are more outdoor people, but will definitely visit 1 or 2 museums while in Paris.

@Alexander, Thanks for your comment. We prefer the outdoors instead of museums, but we also feel it is necessary to include only the most important once to our trip. (Louvre Museum and Musee d'Orsay). Will definitely visit the Eiffel Tower, Sacré-Coeur & Montmartre, Arc de Triomphe, Notre-Dame de Paris, Luxembourg Gardens, cruise on the Seine. We love hiking and exploring on our own, discovering beautiful back streets and picnic with scenic views. Open for any suggestions, we will be staying in the 11th Arrondissement

@Adam, Thank fro your comment. With our 10 days in Italy we will do 3 days in Rome (Colosseum / Vatican City), 3 days in Sorrento (including daytrip to capri and bus trip on Amalfi Coast), 2 days in Cinque Terre (hiking), 1 day in Venice (Doge's Palace / Saint Mark's Basilica / Piazza San Marco). 2 full days in Chamonix (Mont Blanc 2 day pass to explore Aiguille Du Midi / Mont Blanc), then off to Paris for 4 days. Think we have a good balance between outdoor and indoor activities / sights.

What time of year are you travelling?
You should have a Plan B for a picnic in Paris.

If you examine the prices of the Museum Pass against the real admission fees, you might come out ahead. You can purchase them at the Tourist Information desk at CDG. You can also re-enter.

We will travel between 13 May and 2nd of June 2018. We will be in Paris from 29 May - 2 June. Would you suggest perhaps a 2 day pass? (currently €48).

My husband and I recently returned from our very first trip to Paris. I am a huge museum person- I went there with high hopes for visiting several sites in one day and on some days 2 museums...That was an unrealistic goal if you want to enjoy yourself and not be exhausted. I barely broke even on my 4 days museum pass and we even went out to Versailles. My husband actually skipped one museum day with me so his ended up not being worth it. Also, in December it didn't seem like the "skip the line" benefit was necessary either. We literally just walked into the Louvre. . .But if you'll be there in May/June it might be crazy so even if you're 'breaking even' on the ticket prices, the perk of the skip the ticket line may be useful. We also spent more time indoors because it was so cold when we were there.

I do envision if you guys are outdoorsy people you will want to spend more time in the gardens, suggest doing a picnic. Walking and biking tours may be of interest. And like others have said, with only 4 nights, definitely do not reduce and do not suggest a day trip outside of Paris as there is so much to do in Paris itself. We were there for a week and there is still so much we did not cover.

Bon Voyage!

My 2 cents:

If you're trying to maximize what you can see in the time you have - I'm not sure I'd agree with David's itinerary.

The Eiffel Tower and Sacre-Coeur are nowhere near each other. Just as the Arc de Triomphe and Palais Garnier aren't that close. I'd do the Eiffel Tower and Sacre Coeur on the same day - they're relatively close. And you can combine it with a walk down the Champs d'Elysee. I know there are metro stops that can take you from one place to another - but for a first time visitor - that can be a tad intimidating - especially if transfers are involved.

If you are going to visit the Louvre, the d'Orsay, etc - then a museum pass will come in handy. It will also grant access to Ste Chapelle and the rooftop climb at Notre Dame if that interests you (as well as many other sites).

If Versailles is something you want to see - you'll basically need to allocate a full day to that - and the Museum Pass also comes in quite handy there, too.

I would stronlgy encourage you to make a list of 'must see' sites and a list of 'would like to see' sites - and try to group things together that way. For us - those lists would include the D'Orsay, Notre Dame, Ste Chapelle, The Eiffel Tower, Montmartre, the Orangerie (a must if you're a Monet fan), the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, the Tulieries Gardens, etc. But we've been there 5 times - so its much easier to see all those places along with some 'lesser known' sites like Pere Lachaise or the Marmottan museum. And then group the places you want to see in geographic areas. For example, Palais Garnier and Montmartre aren't too far apart. On our first trip - we did do a Seine river cruise - but in hindsight - its not something we'd do again.

And I will say - please don't pack your schedule so tight that you miss out on just leisurely strolls through the Tulieries Gardens or the Luxembourg Gardens or along the Seine. Stroll through the Marais - its close to Notre Dame. Just go enjoy and don't worry about having to see 'everything.' I was 50 the first time I went to Paris - you've got alot of years ahead of you to go back and see what you may have previously missed. And one of the great things about visiting Paris - as you've already learned - is you can incorporate it into a trip somewhere else. Train travel is wonderful. We've done Paris and Amsterdam, Paris and Tuscany, Paris and Dijon/Lyon/Barcelona, - and one time we even took a 24 hour sidetrip to Bruges.

Go. Have fun. And if you enjoy it - promise yourselves you'll go back.