Eurostar to Paris

From Gare du Nord you can be almost anywhere in Paris in less than half an hour by Metro. 20 minutes to Notre Dame. Taxis will take you longer because of surface street transit. You can look at Metro routes at www.ratp.fr.

Hi nathalie.

Buy your eurostar ticket 89 days ahead of time. Travel on a tues, wed, or thurs for cheaper tickets.

A good way to do a daytrip, and actually see quite a bit( I said see, not really do) would be to Eurostar in, then just walk out of Gare Du Nord and hop on and off bus tours, L'Open Tours, as it sounds you will just be able to tour around the city, jump off here and there, and end up near station again.They have a stop right by the Gare du Nord, there are three routes, so transfer from that route then to the the Grand Boulevard one,, my favorite, and covers most sites.

Google L'Open Tour Bus Paris,( site is in english and bright yellowy green), and find site, it has a map that will show routes( goes right by Gare) . It is 26 euros for day pass. You could just metro and bus it, but, for a daytrip this would be dead easy, you wouldn't have to think , just enjoy.

Paris is worth a daytrip, but you will be sorry, as you want to return for a longer trip!

Since you have so little time, I would suggest thoroughly planning your day. Not necessarily minute-by-minute; more of a morning-afternoon-evening activity. Tell yourself you won't be able to see anything and then beat your expectations :) I did a day trip to London (20.5 hours to be exact). It was not nearly enough to see the whole city, but I managed to sit in on Prime Minister's Questions with Gordon Brown, take cheesy pictures in front of Westminster Abbey and in one of those red phone booths, enjoy the Thames, visit Hyde Park, go to the National Portait Gallery, see a horror play in Theatreland, have drinks in an English pub, and catch my train at Waterloo for 5:30AM.

It's not quite the recommended way to visit one of Europe's greatest cities, but it can work ;)

Mondays and Tuesdays museums are closed--some on each day. Focus your attention on what you want to do. If you travel to Notre Dame, you can walk almost everywhere else from there. Walking is often quicker than bus or even Metro when going to sites within central Paris. The Rick Steves books have excellent walking tours for various parts of the city. If you prefer to ride, the hop-on, hop-off buses can be a good choice for looking at the major sites in Paris; my experience is that the buses go very slowly and make long stops. There is a Metro stop at Gare du Nord. You could buy a bunch of tickets and zip around Paris by Metro. Getting to the Eiffel Tower requires some walking from Metro stations. The Hop-on, Hop-off buses stop close to the tower.

If you zip around Paris all day on the metro, between the sights you will be spending a lot of time underground, and doing a lot of walking besides.
I think the time can better be spent above ground, walking. I would start at Notre Dame, walk the islands, cross the Seine. Perhaps take the metro only to the Eiffel Tower, (a bus or taxi would be better).
The metro is great but for one day -- stay above ground!

For a day visit I too would recommend the Hop off/on bus tours. These buses are a great option for a quick visit.

THANK YOU all so much for your input....I think we are definitely going to do it. I know it isnt a long time but I think my husband and son will be thrilled at the thought of standing under the eiffel tower! and I wont be too sad at giving up a little of my time in London!

Nathalie, I've done the Eurostar from London to Paris 2 times and love it. You will have fun, I'm sure.

We'll be traveling from London to Paris on 4/19 and returning to London via Brussels 5/3. Prices for 2 are $196 standard class and $348 leisure class. Is leisure class worth it? We had first class passes in England a few years back and the extra service was really terrific on the longer rides.

Thanks!