PARIS Itinerary help.. suggestions, recommendations, comments welcomed

Montparnase and Sacre Coeur are on opposite sides of town. Make it Montmartre and Sacre Coeur. You'll need four or five hours combined for the both.

On Eiffel Tower day, just do it once and do it at night -- lines are shorter and smog has blown off -- the view is tremendous.

On Louvre day, when finished there, exit through Tuilleries, walk Champs Elysses to Arc de Triomph since they all line up.

Lump Notre Dame, St Chappelle, Bastille, Pompidou into same day since they're close.

Jiggle in the rest.

Versailles is beautiful, i would stick with that, and also listen to Ed, great suggestions. Keep some time to just wander the city, and enjoy being there.

Good grief yes, the Batobus. Must have missed the cruise business trying to sort all your spots in my pea brain. Batobus is one of the all time deals. Doing it at night is even better. (One day ticket: shuttle during the day, come back and ride at night to relax.)

Listen to Ed!

Now for my random tips: Sacre Coeur itself is a 19th century church, and not of particular interest on the inside. I like to walk up to Sacre Coeur "the back way" past the Moulin Galette (made famous by Renoir in his painting - it is quiet, untouristy, and covered in wisteria) and enjoy the neighborhood on the way. I avoid the street "artists" when up there - this is the most conspicuously touristy bit of Paris, filled with hustlers with sketch pads. On a clear day, however, you cannot beat the people watching and the view. But yes- it is not near what we think of as "Montmartre" - it is high on Montmartre Hill, but if you walk FAST and don't look at anything while you're walking, it's almost an hour's walk from the Centre Pompidou (confusingly, the CP is in Montmartre!).

Another tip: when you check out the Centre Pompidou, also take 20 minutes to visit the Eglise St. Merry (78 rue St-Martin) which has (a)the oldest surviving church bell in Paris, cast in the 1330s and a survivor the French Revolution and (b)is a real neighborhood church in the heart of Paris, decorated with crazy modern artistic flair by its parishioners.

Your Saturday itinerary seems quite ambitious. St. Chappelle is GLORIOUS, but the lines are generally long, and you will need probably 3 hours. Tip: it is best with strong sun. Stained glass usually is. Notre Dame is close, of course, but the lines can also be very long. Those two, plus a crepe on-the-go are almost a full day.

St. Germain des Pres can also be a full day (or more!) Buci Press is utterly charming - as is the cafe with insane short modern bucket chairs right across the street. Excellent place for a Pernod.

I guess in general-don't let yourself get locked into an itinerary! Just wandering about, soaking it all in and meeting people is sublime.

Las thought-rather than a Seine cruise, buy a Batobus ticket one day and use it as transport amongst all the sights along the Seine. Two birds, one stone!

These replies are all excellent - but I would add one small comment to Kira's....

Do plan, plan, plan. Planning is part of the fun - enjoy it! Obsess (but in a healthy way) over your itinerary.

But once you're there, relax. Be flexible. Change your itinerary as needed. You will have done all the reading by then (although I read and re-read the whole time I'm in Europe). You'll understand the compromises you're making as you make changes.

Relax so that you can truly experience everything. Stay flexible so that you can be open to those experiences. Enjoy your trip!!

Libby - yes! Couldn't have said it better myself. My husband and I love the plotting and planning part almost as much as the trips themselves - I guess I wasn't being terribly clear or helpful with that bit.

So yes, plan plan plan - but then don't be afraid to throw the plan away if something wonderful and spontaneous comes up!