7 Day Paris Tour June 9-15. Fitting in Catacombs and Arc de Triomphe

I honestly do not think the Catacombs on top of your Versailles day make much sense even if you come back early. The day you'd be the closest is Day 2 but I think that is a Monday, right? and Catacombs are closed. The RER train that runs to Versailles does not go near the Catacombs. You'd change to the Metro to get there using Lines 4 or 6 and getting off at Denfert Rochereau.

I would probably do the Catacombs on Day 6. IF you wanted to do the Orangerie which they suggest on the afternoon you do the Orsay, you could do it on the Monday afternoon as they are closed Tuesday.

You could do the Arc de Triomphe on your Versailles day. They are open every day and are open until later in the evening. I would NOT do a timed entry for this. You can use your Museum Pass and should be able to get in.

Pam, thank you for your suggestions.
We will not be using a Museum Pass. Would you them suggest using a timed entry for the Arc de Triomphe on our Versailles day? Or is it possible to purchase a ticket once there?

You can go into google maps and put your hotel, hit the directions button, put the Arc de Triomphe, then make sure you're using the CAR mode to approximate how long it will take to go there in a taxi.

Thank you! At 77yrs. this trip is forcing me to be computer savvy!

Carol B, we just left Paris. Become just a bit savvy by downloading the G7 Paris taxi app. It’s so user friendly. (Similar to Uber.) It was such an easy way to get a taxi pickup wherever you are, to get you where you want to go within the city. (Maybe beyond but we just used it in the city.) Every car showed up within a few minutes, and always in pristine condition.

Thank you!

"We will not be using a Museum Pass."

I looked at the "What's Included" on the Best of Paris. Back when I took this tour, a 6-day Museum pass was also included but it is not specifically listed now so I'm sorry if I gave you wrong information.

You do not need to book ahead for the Arc de Triomphe.

Are you arriving a day early for your tour? Or will you have any time afterward?

No problem. I called the Rick Steve's customer service line and they were very helpful in telling me about the time's most mornings and tours will end. Thursday seems to be best for the Arc de Triomphe. We are arriving a day early (Saturday) at 1pm. So we have all of Sunday also until the meeting get together. I'm not sure how the jet lag will affect me-
Thank you for your response. Everyone has been very helpful.

I’d probably do the Catacombs on Sunday AM, perhaps mid to late morning. Then you can go back to the hotel and put your feet up a bit.

If you’re concerned about jet lag, I was successful with using the Timeshifter app last summer. Others have not had the good results I had. I had absolutely no jet lag going or coming back home.

Pam

Thank you. I'll look into Timeshifter.

I’m in Paris on the tour right now. You use the metro extensively while on the tour to get from place to place as a group. I do not see it working if you plan to taxi while the rest of your group is on the metro. Taxi’s take much longer during busy times.

This is a very active tour with many steps (15,000) and sets of stairs (18 on average).

Let me know if you have any questions.

Hello Carol,

We didn't take the specific tour you are taking, but we did stay almost a week in Paris after our Best of Europe in 21 days tour.

First, let me say, don't be afraid to use the Metro. It is efficient, fast, and reliable. You will get a metro lesson from your guide, but there are also phone apps that can help you plan your route between sites.

We traveled to Versailles on a free day and returned to Paris for a sunset-timed entry to the Montparnasse Tower. This shows that it is possible to spend the day and return for another event. It was a long, busy day though. I wouldn't recommend Montparnasse personally because it was crowded, full of screaming kids, cocktail bar was closed. It wasn't the romantic environment it was presented as, but we did get to see pretty views of the sunset over Paris (although it took a lot of pushing to get to a spot).

I recommend checking online for the specific day of the week so that you can verify which sites are open (and operating hours). I highly recommend visiting the Catacombs. You walk through at your own pace, but you purchase a timed entry that can only be purchased 7 days in advance. We purchased our tickets while we were on our tour.

Hope you have a wonderful time in Paris!! We loved it and look forward to returning again.

Thank your for your response!

We did Versaille and the catacombs on one day and it worked great. We only had enough time to do the guided tour at Versaille and a short walk-around outside but the train back to town and metro connection was easy. We also used a “Tour Guy” skip the line tour that was great.

Thank you!