Paris v/s Florence

I suggest you spend 3 nights in either one.

That is almost a silly question. It would help to know where you are the day before. It is not easy or quick to get between the two cities so I assume you must be somewhere near the middle. It is like asking if you should choice an orange or a grape. Both are round but this where the similarity ends. Same for Paris and Florence -- vastly different and equally important to see. Pick the one that is easiest to get to from where you are. And plan to visit the other on the next trip.

Why silly?
I have not been there.
I will be in Paris, as I arrived the night before.I want to make reservations and I dont know if to stay 2 nights in Paris and take off to Florence,or stay 1 in Paris an 2 in Florence. I will be taking the overnight train from 6:52pm to 6:30am.

Where are you flying out of? Do you need to return to Paris?

Not at all, from Florence I wll stop in Rome few days,from Rome to Venice and return home.

Which city are you most interested in seeing (briefly)?

I would spend them all in one place personally because travel time, and trying to see "as much as you can" may be quite exhausting and not really worth the bother.

Meaning no disrespect, it is a silly question. You'll spend far too much time on trains. Skip Florence for this trip.

waddys, maybe you have travelled alot,, and are used to whirlwind trips,, but what you are describing sounds horrible to me. The reason is jet lag,, it always takes me a day or two to adjust.. I like to settle in and see things,, not just travel more.. so personally there is no way I would cram two major cities ,, so far apart,, into a tiny three day window.

Pick one. I can't imagine doing both so can't help much more then that.

Stick with just one. Many unknown variables make it difficult to recommend one over the other with such limited time for either city...I might suggest searching the internet for good information on one-day itineraries for each place. That might help you determine the highlights that can be done in a day and may help you make your decision. Of course, you’ll want to cover the predictable biggies, such as the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the Champs-Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, Accademia, and the Uffizi. I’m sure you know that each city warrants much more time, but if you only have a day or two, you may as well use it as wisely as possible. Once you decide, draw up an hour-by-hour itinerary and stick to it to get the most out of your short visit. Happy travels.

I go by with very little sleep, that does not concern me at all. I am young and energetic. I am going to be just fine. After all I can come back home to rest.

I am not planning to go to any mus. or churches, the most looking and it from outside.

I though about stopping by in Paris to see the tower and keep going. I am passing by, not killing myself trying to see all Paris in 1 3/4 day. I look at it like this, I need to stop to somewhere overnight anyway, why not one of the big cities.
It's equal a road trip from Florida to New York stopping overnight in North Carolina. You rest take a bath and look around. Now, unless I looked at the train scheduled wrong it takes 12 hours from Paris to Florence, my plan is to travel overnight and rest in the lovely train. I should be in Florence next day in the morning.

Is something wrong with that?

Well, you asked for suggestions and that's what you got. Have a good time whatever you decide.

Have you ever been to Europe before? Getting from place to place is not that simple. Pick one city and see what you can in those 3 days. Either one has more than enough to keep you busy for 3 days plus.

Happy Travels!

At first I thought your idea was not very wise; then I realized that I had done almost the same thing a few years ago. Since you know yourself, and we don't, I will go on your belief that you can function very well on little sleep. That being said, I would choose a couple of major sites in Paris and take the night train to Florence. Someone suggested that you make an hour by hour itinerary. That might be a good idea, or at least a version of that idea. Do make sure that you have some food with you on the train and plenty of water. Then you should be good to go.

I know we all love to tell each other to "plan on seeing 'it' on the next trip". But sometimes there is no next trip. I hope you enjoy your visit to Europe!

I though my question was very clear, I asked what was better if 1 night in Paris and 2 in Florence or if 2 in Paris and 1 in Florence. I did not ask for anyones opinion regarding my travel agenda. I going forward with my plans regarless of what people said. The only reason why I asked was because I don't know how close sites are from each other in these two cities. I was hoping to hear someone said go to Paris, in 48 hours you can cover more than in Florence or the opposite. I see it like this, we will stop in Paris have dinner in the Ifel tower and leave next day. What big deal!

Jo, thank you very much for your opinion. I do have plan to take a P2P train.
Thank you

Waddys: I am wondering why you bothered to ask for advice since it is apparent you do not need or want it.

James: As usual, nothing of interest to contribute.

2 nights Paris....1 night Florence...much more to see and do in Paris.

Paris, Paris, Florence.

Norma
I do want an answer, and you just gave it to me.
That was all I need, short and sweet.

Ok then, and Happy Trails to you.

waddys, Now, why would you ask for advice from complete strangers, and not want to get the reasons behind those opinions? You might as well go up to a dog on the street and see how many times he barks for Paris.

(oops, I must be feeling a little testy this morning.)

With all the respect, that will be my decision.
I thank you all for your input.

By the way read the original question. My decision was clear " I want to spend 1 night in one place and 2 in the other one"

All I need was provided, 2 in Paris 1 in Florence.
That was it!

My bad...I must have misinterpreted the original post, because I thought a choice needed to be made (i.e. Paris versus Florence or have to choose between Paris and Florence). Now that I understand your intent is to do both regardless of logistics, I agree with Norm and BG...2 nights in Paris & 1 in Florence. You might want to reference Let's Go...they seem to pack alot into single day itineraries. Have a good trip.

I went to both Paris & Florence in June. You can see everything you want to see in Florence in 1 well-planned day. You cannot see everything in Paris even if you stayed there the whole 3 days.

This is my first post here. Hope it gets through now.
I've also been to both places. Looks like you have your heart set on both. Don't blame you!
I spent only a day in Florance, but spending only a day in Paris would be so hard! There you have art, great food, everything! And, it's a much bigger city than Florance. I would choose to spend more time in Paris. Paris is the most beautiful city in Europe in my mind!

I made reservations!!
Two nights in Paris, one in Florence will be if GW.

First of all, to avoid jet-lag, I would take an Ambian to help you sleep on the plane and wake up in France ready to roll. Then, if you have to do Florence I'd try to fly there and make sure you have advance tickets for the Ufizzi and the Academia so you can skip the lines.
My personal preference would be to stay in Paris longer and do Florence on another trip. Both cities are rich in culture and it would be a shame to rush thru one.