Can't make it over there til 24 May for a long weekend or any of the next 2 weekend after that. Looking for feedback on people that have experance at that time and what I can expect. Thanks.
Posted by
Corvallis OR
7158 posts
I've only been there in May and August but from listening to others, Paris is always busy, sometimes more than others but it's never NOT busy. How it affects you depends more on where you want to go and what you plan to do. Crowds can be worked around as can weather (too hot, too cold, too rainy), you just have to be creative and flexible.
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
Hank,, what is "busy"... Paris is a city that millions and millions of people live in ... so everyday is "busy".
Sites are visited year round,, but of course it tourist travel has some slight slumps,, november, first week or so of December, january, feb and march,, picks right up in April, with June and September being highest hotel occupancy( many people are suprised that September is so busy, but its trade show and fashion week season) . I have been last week of May,, also in june, july, august, september and october.. I found it started to mellow out a bit in October.. but its not like a city like Paris is ever quiet. My advice is to not care about it,, accept you may not be the only one in a line up, build enough time into your day to day sightseeing so that if you have to deal with crowds and lines you don"t stress out about it.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15781 posts
The only thing I've noticed is that, when I've been there in early June, there are lots of school field trips to museums and similar sights. That may affect your days before/after the weekend. I don't know if late May is any different. That's around the time of the Roland Garros tournament. If you are a tennis fan, you may want to time your visit for that. In addition to going to the event, there's a huge screen with a few bleachers in front of the Hotel de Ville to watch the games (free) and a clay court that you can play on (for a fee).