Four days in Paris before river cruise, not sure which day trips to take!

If I had four days to spend, it would all be in Paris. You will have plenty of chances to see small towns later. Paris just has so much to see--worthy of a 4 day minimum.

When is your trip?

Is 11 AM the arrival time for your flight? If so, it will probably be a good bit after noon by the time you get on the train. Unless you magically catch the 11:57 train from the airport (which gets to Reims at 1:32 PM), I think you'll be on a train departing at 2:58 PM, arriving in Reims at 4:09 PM. You should wait to buy at least the outbound ticket until you arrive in Paris, in case you run into a substantial flight delay. The one-way walk-up fare looks like it will be 37 - 71 euros, depending on how lucky you are. A return trip to Paris, bought far in advance, might be just 15 euros.

I don't know where one goes for champagne-tasting in Reims, but I'm doubtful that getting into the city just after 4 PM is early enough. You'll have to ditch your luggage somewhere, I think. You've obviously been to Europe before, so I'm sure you know how you handle overnight flights. I can't imagine doing a champagne tasting late in the afternoon on my arrival day, but perhaps it is reasonable for you.

Traveling from Reims to Chartres by train requires that you first return to Paris, transfer to a different train station (with luggage under your scenario), then head out again. Most of the routings take 3 to 3-1/2 hours, and purchasing well in advance will get you a 31-euro fare (one way). If you have to postpone most of your Reims activities until Day 2 due to a late arrival and then head to Chartres, you'll probably arrive there too late to do much, which will mean a delayed departure for Paris on Day 3. An alternative might be to pick up a rental car before you leave Reims and drop it in or near Paris.

The trip back from Chartres is on a regional train that costs just 16 euros one way.

While you can do all of the above, to me it seems more like what someone might do on a second or third trip to Paris, not the first visit. I wouldn't plan to take a day out of a first visit to Paris to go to Chartres if I had only four days, much a second day to see Reims.

I'd recommend four nights in Paris with a possibility of a day-trip to Chartres (no early booking required to get the low train fare) later in your stay if you decide you want to do that. My bet is that you won't want to leave Paris.

I'd recommend four nights in Paris with a possibility of a day-trip to Chartres (no early booking required to get the low train fare) later in your stay if you decide you want to do that. My bet is that you won't want to leave Paris.

I totally agree with acraven's plan.

Thank you so much to all who have responded so far! Your expertise is much appreciated as your knowledge is quite vast! Those are all the fine logistical details that I'm not aware of and can make or break a trip. Thanks so much!

I love Chartres but on a short trip, would do Sainte Chapelle in Paris instead. The stained glass there is breath-taking.

I have a hard time envisioning dragging river cruise luggage around to Reims and Chartres. Not only are they in totally different directions, but also totally different train stations.
Why don't you get a hotel near Montparnasse, do whatever you can on arrival day but you are dealing with a 9 hour difference, go to Chartres day two because it's an easy day trip from the Montparnasse station, stay in Paris day 3 and continue recovering, go to Reims day four when you are half-way into the time difference. I can't imagine tasting Champagne on a jet-lagged sour stomach. Rather than buy a museum pass, I'd concentrate on fresh air in parks, gardens, cafes, do a bike tour, take a boat ride, walk the city, and seeing fewer museums in your limited Paris time. Bon voyage.

When is your river tour? You might want to keep on top of the news because some rivers in France, including the Seine, are flooding right now. You may end up on a very expensive bus tour.

Spend all your time in Paris. Stay in Montparnasse and the neighborhood will feel somewhat like a small town.

Thank you so much for all the info! We are leaving on the cruise on March 30th. Hopefully the rivers will be better by then!

We had a great adventure by booking the bike tour of Versailles. Very fun! We also did RS walking tours while in Paris. Download his audio walking tours. You can definitely spend 4 days just in Paris. We did and hardly scratched the surface. A great tour is a driven tour while in a vintage CV2. You will need to google this as they are not on viator. So much fun after dark.

Hi Laurie, you've gotten some very good advice here. Paris is wonderful and there's plenty to do for 4 days. Also consider that you may face jet lag the first day or two. Paris is a big city but to me it doesn't have that big city hustle (like New York). You'll have plenty of opportunities to wander along the Seine, walk through the parks, take in the scenery from one of the many bridges, or just do some people-watching from a café. I bet you will be visiting many small towns on your river cruise. Enjoy Paris.

Reims has 187,000 population, not exactly a small town. Chartres has 38,000, maybe a small town if you live in a big city. You've had good advice above. With four days I wouldn't leave Paris on a first visit. We went to Chartres for a day on our 12-day first visit, an easy train from Gare Montparnasse.

From CDG airport, Le Bus Direct can take you and luggage to Gare Montparnasse quickly and comfortably for 17 euros per person. Or a taxi for 55 euros combined, straight to your hotel.