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Paris + day trips in April (3 days)

I have a few questions regarding trip logistics in Paris. My 15 year old daughter and I will be staying at a hotel (near the Champs de Mars/ Eiffel Tower/ Unesco) for 3.5 days in Paris. We will arriving on a Monday at Orly at 4 PM, departing Friday CDG at 1 PM/ This will be her first trip to Europe and she's very excited to "see it all". She's a very appreciative traveler and not at all a "typical teen". :-) I speak fluent French and have traveled to France a few times. We both love art, photography, different types of food and castles and are traveling on a budget with only carry-on luggage.

  1. What's the easiest and most cost effective way to get from Orly to our hotel and back to CDG and how much time would I need to calculate for the transport?
  2. What are some things we could do in the evening, after our check-in at the hotel which may be around 6 PM? We will have spent 3 days in Madrid before then so won't be very jet-lagged.
  3. I'm a big fan of "hop-on, hop-off" buses to get a great overview of a new city without having to walk too much. Should we plan on spending 2 days exploring the city by bus or one day on the bus and one day on the "Batobus"? I've taken the Batobus before and loved it. Should we buy tickets for the Louvre ahead of time to avoid the crowds?
  4. I'd love to go on a day trip and am debating between Giverny and Versailles. I don't suppose both are doable in one day together, correct? How long would it take us to get to Giverny and/ or Versailles if we use public transportation?
  5. Is there an area in Paris that is known for great ethnic food, such as Maroccan, Algerian, etc.?
  6. Any other recommendations for making this an amazing trip for my daughter and me?

Thanks so much!
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Posted by
4603 posts

I know you don't have much time but i would go to Chartres to take Malcolm Millers tour-as difficult as it is to imagine Chartres without him, that day will come. If you're going during the summer and can change your plans to spend the night in Chartres, the light show is wonderful. Also, Our 20 yr old daughter still talks about how much she enjoyed the Secret Food Tour we took in Paris last July.

Some of the art museums have evening hours one night a week, which would maximize your time.

Posted by
8553 posts

Giverny and Versailles cannot be done together. If you choose Versailles either have the museum pass or get tickets ahead (you can get tickets at FNAC and perhaps other places) You will have to stand in a long security line so get there about half an hour to 45 minutes before the place opens and you will be in the first group to go in. Since you have the ticket ahead you will then not have to get in the ticket line. This is ideally and all day trip: enjoy the chateau, then the gardens (there are restaurants at the foot of the gardens) and then head over to the Trianon and Hameau. There is a little train that will take you there if you like which is at the garden entrance by the chateau. (the ice cream kiosk at the exit of the gardens has really great ice cream -- I mention this because that is usually not the case with kiosks. I had really great rum raison glace here)

You should on arrival get a Navigo Decouverte. This will cover all your travel for the week except for the Orlyval which is massively annoying. It is only 30 Euro for a cab to anywhere on the left bank (35 to the right) so I would just go ahead and get a cab in to make things easier. The ND requires a postage size head shot; you can just print it off on your computer -- 25/30mm) The card is 5 Euro and the charge for the week is about 21 euro. It will take you anywhere in the Ile de France including Versailles and to the airport CDG when you leave. You can use it on the RER B. Those two trips alone pay for the card. The ND won't get you to Giverny as Vernon is in Normandy.

I loath the batobus and you like it -- so use your own judgment there. I am also not a hoho fan; it can be a good way to just move around seeing major sites, but it is not good transportation -- you wait forever for the things. I'd use the ND to zip here and there on bus or metro and then walk a lot in the area.

I have eaten at Morracan restaurants in Batignolles and in the Marais but can't advice if there is an area where they cluster. You can buy a nice roasted lamb head to go in the Chateau Rouge area FWIW.

If you will do several museums the pass will let you use special entrances at the Louvre, Orsay and Orangerie. The Louvre tends not to be a line problem if you enter through the Carousse. The problem is security not tickets; there are numerous ticket machines and manned kiosks under the pyramid once you get past security. I'd want to visit the Orangerie and the Orsay so the museum pass would be worth it to me.

In the evening. My husband is an amateur singer and so one evening we went to Belleville to an old touristy cafe called Le Vieux Belleville where people have dinner and then sing along with a chanteuse -- it is touristy but when we were there nearly all the tourists were French. We had a good time and the food was fine -- not a culinary experience but good standard food.
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2011/10/09/le-vieux-belleville-non-je-ne-regrette-rien/
You should be able to tell from the snapshots whether this would be fun or too hokey for words.

Parisians tend to dine late and so you can easily book a nice restaurant for 8 pm and enjoy a leisurely dinner. There are some places with stunning rooms e.g. Bofinger, Le Train Bleu, Les Ombres and many traditional bistrots and brasseries (Rotonde and Coupole in Montparnasse are examples.) We also liked Chez Dumonet- Josphine which has lovely beouf bourguignon as well as classics like hanger steak and duck confit. They also have a really nice grand marnier souffle to share. After one of these nice meals plan to stroll back to the hotel. Paris streets are full of people at this hour and Paris is wonderful at night.

Some favorite evening strolls for me include around Notre Dame and along the river or up the Champs from Concord and across Pont Alexandre -- at the top of the hour you can see the Tower sparkle.

Posted by
1441 posts

Paris City Vision, http://www.pariscityvision.com/en/visitmonetshouseandgardensingivernyvisitthepalaceofversailles, offers a combo tour of Giverny & Versailles. They also offer separate tours to the sites or you can do Versailles on your own.

I would only do a 1-day HOHO with your limited time in the city. I will be doing it myself at the end of May.

Paris Walks, http://www.paris-walks.com, offers tours at a reasonable price within the city.

Enjoy your trip.

Posted by
5196 posts

Versailles will take the better part of a full day even if you get an early start and use public transit which is a breeze. Since you both love art, consider the Orsey Museum -- I personally like it better than the Louvre but that's just my love of the impressionist speaking. With only three days I'd suggest devoting only one day outside Paris itself. We also enjoyed an evening (after dark) cruise with Vendettes du Pont Neuf that really gave us views unlike any others in our prior trips. Don't rule out using the Metro to get around -- fast, efficient, inexpensive, and it will get you just about anywhere. Rick Steves has (I think) a small guide book just for Paris you might want to check out for details.

Posted by
498 posts

Sounds wonderful for the two of you. Whatever else you do that first evening, you must go see the Eiffel tower sparkle on the hour. I think 9:00 or 10:00 would be good to target. When we went with our granddaughters we stayed in the area where you'll be and we ended every evening with a visit to la Tour Eiffel.
I agree with janettravels44 that strolling around Notre Dame should be on your list. And, like TC, I prefer the Orsay over the Louvre because of the Impressionists on display there. You might want to dip your toe into the Louvre just to have seen it, but it's immense, so you can barely nibble at it in the time you have. Based on the area where you'll be staying, I would also suggest a visit to the Rodin Museum (a nice place to eat lunch as well as to see sculpture).
I always recommend getting a Paris Museum pass, to make quick stops easy (and pre-paid) and because you can find bathrooms all over Paris with the Pass.
As a big Monet fan, I loved seeing Giverny, but I don't feel the need to do it again. Versailles, on the other hand, is so big and has so many facets that we've gone back several times and will again. The combo tour mentioned by brushtim wouldn't give you very much time at either place. It leaves Paris at 8:45 am, returns at 5:15 pm. Subtract actual travel time, plus the "lost time" of getting to the bus on time, waiting for others and so on, and you'll have around 2 or maybe 2 1/2 hours at each place. That might be okay if you just want to dip your toe in. I would recommend Versailles over Giverny unless you consider Giverny a must see. You can easily get to Versailles on the RER.

Posted by
8553 posts

One thing about the Rodin museum -- you can get entry to the garden which has a food stand, seats and lots of sculptures for a couple of Euro -- I am not a huge Rodin fan and for me that would be plenty of Rodin for a 3 days stay in Paris. If you love impressionists then the Orangerie (which takes only a few minutes for the Water Lilies) and the Orsay (must have ticket ahead or Museum Pass to avoid lines) might be priorities. But you have very little time so decide what is vital to you -- what your daughter's dream of Paris is and focus on those. Less is more.

Posted by
5 posts

Merci for your most helpful tips! So many fabulous choices!
I can see that the Navigo Decouverte and the museum passes will be essential. Paris-Walks.com has some great tours coming up and my daughter is very excited about the "Chocolate tasting" tour. :-)

A la prochaine.
Daniela