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Suggestions required in Planning 3.5 day Itinerary

Dear All

I am arriving on 22.05.2017 by Eurostar from London and will reach Paris by 11:30 am. We [me and my wife] will go to Hotel thereafter near Gare Du Nord and from afternoon, we can be out for 3. 5 day trip.

I have identified following places:

  • Eiffel Tower followed by Evening Cruise, Notre Dame, Luxembourg gardens, Shakespeare and co, Louvre, Galeries Lafayette, - Tuileries, Champs Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur/Montmartre, Disneyland Paris

I need help in planning my 3.5 days.

Also, should I opt for :

A] 1 day Mobilis ticket and 10 Ticket Carnate ; or

B ] Navigo Visitor Pass [ I am arriving on Monday] ; or

C] Paris Pass for 4 days

I am ready to add/ subtract some attractions, to make the trip easy and memorable.

Thanks in Advance.

Regards

Ravi Bhardwaj

Posted by
21155 posts

I am not a fan of the Paris Pass as it is very overpriced. Get the Paris Museum Pass by itself, the 2-day version, but if you are only going to the Louvre Museum for one day and no other museums, skip that and just get a one day entry for the Louvre. As far as transport, the Navigo Decouverte Semaine may be a good option if you plan on going to Disneyland for a day, and want complete freedom to travel about Paris on public transit. Getting two 1-day Mobilus and a carnet will be a little less than the Navigo, but not much. The Navigo is convenient enough to supercede the few extra EUR you would save doing it the other way.
When and how are you leaving Paris? If you are flying out, the Navigo is definitely the way to go.

Posted by
4 posts

Hi Sam

I am leaving Paris for Amsterdam on 25th Evening by Train. We are a couple. Any suggestion on the itinerary. Thanks.

Posted by
16547 posts

As Sam said, the Paris Pass is ridiculously overpriced so skip that one. The Paris Museum Pass can be a good buy IF you want to see (and have time enough to see) enough of what it covers to justify the price. Right now, you only have 2 attractions (Louvre and Arc de Triomphe) that the pass includes so it's not a good choice unless you can add more.

The pass is good for consecutive days so you couldn't buy a 2-day pass, use it on Tuesday, go to Disney on Wed, and then use the pass on Thursday: you'd need to plan to have two full days in a row to sightsee central Paris.

You'll also need to plan around days some attractions are closed: the Louvre, for instance, is closed on Tuesdays.

What I'd skip? Champs Elysees. Personally I think it's one of the most overrated activities in Paris. Shakespeare and Co. is really only of interest if you're a bookworm. I'd also skip Disney unless you have children along: not very much "Parisian" about this American brand!

What I'd add? Sainte-Chapelle (!!!), Musee d'Orsay (open Thursdays until 9.45pm), Musée de Cluny, Pantheon. Along with the d'Orsay, make use of other later-night openings to stretch your sightseeing time. The Louvre is open late on Wed. and Friday, and the Arc every day April - Sept until 23:00.

I'll also agree with Sam that if you're flying out of Paris, Navigo would be a good choice: it covers journeys to both CDG and Disney.

Pre-order tickets for the Eiffel:
http://www.toureiffel.paris/en/

Posted by
16547 posts

Yes, they sell out far in advance so I figured you were too late.

You could look at buying for the stairs to 2nd floor when you get there (not sold in advance) and then buying a ticket on the 2nd floor for the lift to the top.

To be honest, we skipped going up in the tower as there were other places to get great views of Paris without pre-reservations. The view from the top of the Arc de Triomphe and the Towers of Notre Dame were both very nice. We didn't feel as if we'd missed anything by choosing different options, and enjoyed seeing the tower from the Trocadero at night and from Champ de Mars (the park in front of it) during the day.

Posted by
4 posts

Okay , thats fine then - else I thought I lost opportunity to go up the tower in this visit - but generally what is the cost difference in the advance ticket and purchasing on the spot

Posted by
16547 posts

but generally what is the cost difference in the advance ticket and
purchasing on the spot

Tickets for the stairs are not the same thing as what you were trying to purchase in advance. Tickets you buy in advance are for the lifts from ground level to 2nd or 3rd floors. You can try and buy those tickets when you get there but it means wasting time standing in a VERY long line. Tickets for the stairs are not sold in advance, and you will not be using the the lift from the ground to 2nd floor: you will climb to that floor: 704 steps. You can choose to go no higher or buy an additional ticket on 2nd floor for the lift to go to the third (which will involve a queue).

You may very well find that 2nd floor is plenty high enough without purchasing another ticket for the summit.

Info on the website:

http://www.toureiffel.paris/en/preparing-your-visit/rates-and-visiting-conditions.html

This may be helpful as well:
http://www.secretsofparis.com/heathers-secret-blog/how-to-skip-the-lines-at-the-eiffel-tower.html

Posted by
183 posts

Best view of Paris - which includes being able to see the Eiffel Tower - is from the otherwise garish looking office tower at Gare Montparnasse....and not only are there virtually no lines, you don't actually have to look at the Montparnasse Tower.......

Posted by
1155 posts

What herron said. Go up Montparnasse Tower. They even give a discount on admission if you show them Rick Steves' guidebook. :)
Been to Paris three times now and never been up the Eiffel Tower.
Definitely skip Disney unless you have some Disney fetish you need to satisfy. We enjoyed the Musée de l'Orangerie, to see Monet's waterlilies. It's on one side of the Tuileries so do that while you're there. And don't miss Sainte Chapelle. They offer concerts some evenings that are a great way to see it leisurely, and without lines.
https://www.classictic.com/en/special/concerts-in-la-sainte-chapelle/216/

Posted by
7175 posts

You might like to tweak or get ideas from my five day plan making use of a 4 Day Paris Museum Pass**

Wednesday
•Arc de Triomphe** (open 10am)
•Place de la Concorde & Madeleine
•Palais Garnier Opera
•Tuileries Gardens & Orangerie Museum**
•Louvre Museum**
(Closes late Wed,Fri at 9.45pm)

Thursday
•Sainte-Chapelle** (open 9am)
•Cluny Museum**
•Panthéon**
•Luxembourg Gardens
•Musee d'Orsay**
(Closes late Thu at 9.45pm)

Friday
•Pont Neuf
•Notre-Dame de Paris (open 8am)
•Place des Vosges
•Picasso Museum**
•Centre Pompidou**
(Closes late at 10pm - ex Tue)

Saturday
•Invalides (Dome Church)** (open 10am)
•Rodin Museum**
•Eiffel Tower
•Trocadero Gardens
•Musee Quai Branly**
(Closes late Thu,Fri,Sat at 9pm)

Sunday
•Pere Lachaisse
•Sacré-Coeur & Montmartre
•Evening Seine Cruise