Paris Not Paris

Think about Krakow. It's much smaller, but seems to me to have much the same kind of overall vibe. Great museums, interesting and welcoming public areas....

Well Torino is called the Paris of Italy if that helps:) We spent a week there in late 2024 and loved it. Beautiful architecture including gorgeous porticoes, great food, plenty of interesting museums, and not very many tourists which is a bonus. KLM flies there making it an easy route via Amsterdam. We hope to return as there was much more to explore but health issues have sidelined us for now.

Maybe Vienna? Paris is my all-time favorite European city but I’m always looking for my “new” Paris. Museums, food, architecture, people watching. Easy to just be there. After a week, Vienna came pretty close. I joked to my husband that Vienna is like if New York and Paris had a baby who was compulsively neat.

Vienna....beautiful streets and buildings and palaces, wonderful museums and food, and MUSIC!

Well either Lyon or Nice are very French (like Paris), but definitely aren’t Paris, if that makes sense.

I have visited 84 foreign countries and found that more is better. Paris is great, but my favorite city in Europe is Rome.
There are many great cities to enjoy:
Florence, Venice, Munich, Vienna, Salzburg, Budapest, Krakow, Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Dubrovnik, Split, Athens, Istanbul, Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, Barcelona, Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Malaga, Bilbao, Lisbon, Porto, Arles, Strassbourg, Trier, Amsterdam, Brugges, Copenhagan, London, Bath, Salisbury, Canterbury, Oxford, Cambridge, Stratford Upon Avon, York, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dublin, and many more.

I’ll put in a plug for Budapest. I really like Paris but was in Budapest this past year for the first time and fell in love with it. It’s very charming, and just has a really cool vibe about it. Plus it’s much less expensive than Paris, which is a nice thing. 😊 The food is incredible no matter where you go, it’s easily walkable and an extra benefit is that if you’re 65 years or older, you can travel for free on all public transport.

There are tons of threads here on the forum about Budapest, so you may want to give them a look and see what you think. But I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t love that beautiful city.

Mardee, I hadnt thought about Budapest. Hmmmmm.

I love Paris. Maybe my second favorite capital city in Europe. A trip to Paris is never a waste of time. The closest thing to Paris in Europe is Budapest; my favorite city if that wasn’t obvious.

• Here is one comparison that I don’t totally agree with but it does make one think: https://www.wheretogoformyholiday.com/city-comparison3/paris-or-budapest-tourism-comparison-city-guide.html
• The most beautiful restaurant in Paris: https://youtube.com/shorts/JfqkenoYHS0?si=RGKA__mpwGLVVzBh
• The most beautiful café in the world; in Budapest: https://youtube.com/shorts/tJ7TvLF0ZZA?si=cerQlDpmnNjvrmJb and the second most beautiful: https://youtube.com/shorts/LPxtLozNqlo?si=EP_V4kFdEo13Bxye
• Budapest Opera House: https://youtu.be/oRfmIKhHB8Y?si=mu5w_LG9HrlyArAD
• Seine River Night Cruise: https://youtu.be/ZS43KkzLIYk?si=mkv6W-y5078VivKo

• Danube River Night Cruise:
  https://youtu.be/BuJGglkIo4Y?si=PH0uhnbaL4MHDAIm

• Anthony Bourdain on Budapest:
  https://youtu.be/0nd9DuDGCz0?si=aa0c19KaJHEtabkX

• Alice Cooper on Budapest:
  https://youtu.be/vApAmydLjjo?si=i2YOEeC4AqXSEf9x

• Favorite Tourism Video of Budapest:
  https://youtu.be/1nd5AtZIrTk?feature=shared

• Katy Perry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGJuMBdaqIw

I think going back to Paris is what you want. I thought I didn’t need more trips to Paris, having been there 6 or so times. But I learned I was wrong when we went again in October.

Time of year might matter and all my trips have been in October, shorter daylight, or May, somewhat lovelier. I prefer to avoid summer heat and crowds. I am not a fan of some tourist sites and do not need to see the Louvre or Versailles again. It is hard to pull myself out of town, but Giverny was special. And May would beat October, when I went.

There were new Paris experiences: staying in the 11 th. A concert in Ste. Chappelle. A walk with a Paris Greeter!

Buenos Aires is called the Paris of S.America but it wasn’t Paris. I have been to Budapest, Krakow and Lyon, as others mentioned. Each is lovely and easily worth two full days or three but not one is Paris.

I will add that Istanbul is magical…..Seville is delightful…and Lisbon/Coimbre/Porto should not be missed. These are only my opinions, of course. I also like Venice!

And when you want to talk Shanghai or Mexico City, beyond Europe, I’m game. I never consider myself especially well-traveled but I am beginning to think I may be. Very lucky to have visited these places and I hope all of you who want to, get to do so.

Thank you all for the suggestions so far. (We have been in Lyon.)

A little more about us. We are over 65, so free transit sounds great! We don't do night life. We do love flea markets and food markets. We do like Hop On Hop Off buses and walking food tours. And we especially like sitting at a terraced cafe slowly sipping a coffee.

Would two weeks in a city like Vienna or Budapest be too much? If we added a day trip out here and there?

Two weeks would not be too long. They are major capital cities with the cultural options (museums, performances, etc.) and great public transportation that implies. And there's beautiful architecture to admire in both cities. Budapest is quite a bit less expensive, and I think restaurants there are a better value; Vienna has notably more/better art museums. Both have good side-trip possibilities, though in some cases the day trips people mention will be places where I preferred to spend multiple nights.

Note that the central European capitals (also including Prague) can be warmer than one might expect toward the middle of the year. Don't be tempted by a charming lodging place that's not air-conditioned. And you might do some weather research to see whether you like your odds better the first half of May.

Budapest weather -- May 2025

It's really important to look at data for multiple years. Use the pull-down box at the right, just above the graph, to switch the month/year displayed. Use the Search box at the upper right to change the location.

acraven is correct. Especialy on the weather in Budapest. Her link pretty much tracks the range show in the WeatherSpark website. In May of the last 3 years the temperature has been over 75F 17 of 93 days and above 80F about half that many times. So summer has arrived, but I would still suggest a light cover, especially early in the month when daytime temperatures are closer to 65F for a high.

My barber that is now deceased once told me he always vacationed to the same place in the mountains of North Carolina.
He never did a vacation other than ONE place.

Sorry, variety is the spice of life. I love Venice and have been there 6 times. Been to Paris 4 times. But I lived in Germany for four years and did a lot, then more when I retired 15 years ago.

I say do MORE places, the World is loaded with many great places.

I was going to suggest Budapest, also.

Lisbon is another favourite of mine.

Two weeks in Vienna? I could fill that, no problem.

Last April, my husband (male 63) and I (female 67) spent 8 nights in Vienna, including a pleasant day trip to Bratislava. We felt that we had only scratched the surface. Two weeks would have been great because then I could have gone to the fabulous Saturday Kettenbrückengasse Flea Market twice. And, visited more museums, eaten more apple strudel, sat in more parks.

Thank again for the suggestions. Anybody else have recommendations?

Another vote for Vienna BUT !! Being hooked on Paris , Vienna and Munich , I'm going back after multiple visits to each , for two weeks apiece ( All three ) in Late Autumn .

We enjoy walking and taking the bus with an occasional official taxi. We like museums and galleries but also enjoy sitting and watching people.

Berlin with over 170 museums and over 300 galleries might be an option for you, especially the museums and galleries plus the mix of being a metropolis and being a village in detail. The various neighborhoods (Kieze) have their own vibe or even not. And everywhere you will find cafés and restaurants to sit and watch the life passing by, e. g. at Savignyplatz, Kurfürstendamm, Kollwitzplatz, Bergmannstrasse, and so on. Near Potsdam is worth a day trip with own attractions like emperor palaces (not only one) and private collector's art museum Barberini. The weekly and flea markets on weekends are places to visit. A lot of events invite always to participate.

One thing to mention: Berlin has a significant French footprint as well since a lot of French Huguenot followed the invitation of Friedrich Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia (Edict of Potsdam). Still today you will find French sounding addresses and places, e. g. Gendarmenmarkt or Bellevue Palace.

Thank again for the suggestions. Anybody else have recommendations?

You've been provided good suggestions for just about every major city in Europe. If none of them sound appealing, go to Paris! Many in this forum visit on repeat and never lose interest. Or split your time between there and another city - worst case you don't go back there. Good luck!

Are you planning to be 2 full weeks in one place?
I visited Copenhagen a couple of years ago and loved it. The architecture will remind you of Paris but I found people in Copenhagen much more warming and friendly. Lots of great museums and several small towns nearby for a day trip. Very walkable. Great weather for summer (not too hot). Food is fantastic and great place to people watch.

Vienna would be very similar to Paris and easier to fill for 2 weeks.

I'm heading to Budapest and Krakow for the first time later this summer and can't wait. But only for a few days in each as part of my eastern Europe solo trip.

I would have absolutely no problem filling 2 weeks in Vienna, with a couple of days trips. But there is no law that says you couldn't do both Paris and Vienna - a week in each on a multicity ticket perhaps?