HTG Guides: Paris, France

So you’ve read the four parts of my Paris write-up and now you’re thinking, “man, Paris sounds good!” You’d be right, of course. Paris is good. But to get the most out of it, you need to do a bit of planning. Here’s how I did it.

Booking

I booked the whole trip through Eurostar.com. For £208.41, I got return travel on the Eurostar from London Waterloo International to Paris Gare du Nord in second class, two nights in the three-star Novotel Paris Gare Montparnasse (hotel taxes included), a Galeries Lafayette 10% Discount Card, a Paris Visite pass for 3 days of unlimited travel on the Metro system (zones 1-3) and a trip up Europe’s fastest lift to the top of the Montparnasse Tower. Bargain!

Why so cheap? Well, being 24 years old helps. In Paris, there’s plenty of discounts to be had if you’re under 26, from public transport, to going up the Eiffel Tower. Being over 60 is also rather handy. Eurostar also cut the cost by keeping everything electronic. Booking confirmation arrives by email only and you have to pick up your tickets at the station and your Paris Visite pass at an office in Paris (not too much trouble). Unfortunately, I don’t know how the cost breaks down. I only know that the Eurostar fare was an unbelievable £41.00, which makes the hotel around £70.00 a night, which is pretty good. The Eurostar website is very easy to use and the entire booking process was completed efficiently.

Accomodation

I stayed at Novotel Paris Gare Montparnasse. You can read the official blurb at the Novotel website or you can read my own opinions.

Itinerary & Tips

I was only in Paris for two nights, yet I managed to see everything I wanted to see. While my itinerary may not be right for you, you may find it useful in creating your own itinerary by knowing what you can feasibly visit in a short space of time. I’ve bundled in a few tips that you may also find helpful.

Day One

• Arrive at Gare du Nord at 14h17. Catch Metro to Gare Montparnasse and check-in at hotel. Find out what all the switches do.
• Catch the metro to the Eiffel Tower (BirHakeim, Line 6) at 17h00ish. If you’re fit, take the stairs to the first level. The queues are much shorter, it’s cheaper (over 25’s €4.00, under 25’s €3.10 compared with €4.50 for the lift) and it isn’t that far (328 steps). If you want to go up a bit further to the second level, you can buy tickets from a machine (cards or cash) on the first level. Spend a few hours enjoying the views and exploring the small museum (free entrance) and shops. While you’re relatively safe from pickpockets while inside the tower, trinket sellers and beggers are rife in the surrounding area. However, so are the tourists, armed guards and police so you don’t feel at all threatened. (Full Eiffel Tower entrance fees).
• Cross the river and go see the tower from the Trocadéro. Again, mind out for trinket sellers. They’re all keen to make a sale, but most, if not all of them are polite about it. Those who are commonly known as the “Romanian Gypsies” will ask you if you speak English. Just say “non” in your best French accent. I found they stopped asking me if I carried a copy of Le Monde around with me.
• Go back to the hotel, put on Disney channel which oddly, flicks between French and English, and soak in the bath.

Day Two

• Wake up fairly early and set off at 09h00. Buy a pastry and a drink from one of the many cafes in the Montparnasse area and eat on your way to the Montparnasse Tower. Contrary to what some say, eating on the move is not frowned upon by the French. Lots of people do it.
• The Montparnase Tower opens at 09h30 to 23h30 and boasts terrific views of Paris from a viewing terrace on the 56th floor and on the roof. Entrance for adults is €9.50 (rather expensive, but well worth it). Visitors should head for the covered walkway, up the steps to the left of the main entrance.
• Walk from the Montparnasse Tower to Jardin du Luxembourg.
• Spend a few hours in Jardin du Luxembourg just wandering around and enjoying the atmosphere. Grab a chair and do some people watching, watch the elderly chaps playing petanque, buy a crepe from the stall, perhaps even sail a boat on the pond. Don’t forget to see the original Statue of Liberty.
• Walk from Jardin du Luxembourg towards the river. Cross the river to Notre-Dame. As usual, keep an eye on your belongings. Entrance to the cathedral is free.
• It’s lunchtime. There are hundreds of places to eat in the area. Take your pick. If you’re on a tight budget like me, head for Flunch next to the Georges Pompidou Centre. The atmosphere is cheap and cheerful but the food is good and the price is right. You pay for the main part of your meal and the vegetables are free and endless (you can go up for more as many times as you like).
• Walk to the Louvre via the Georges Pompidou Centre. I’m not an art lover (although I can appreciate it) so I didn’t go inside. I just went to admire the glass pyramids.
• Walk to Place de la Concorde through Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, then up the Champs-Élysées. Pop into a few stores. Watch out for the police on roller blades.
• Go below ground to the Metro and follow the underpass to the Arc de Triomphe. Admire the views from the top. Not many people selling Eiffel Tower key rings here, but plenty of beggers. Discounted entrance fee for students and seniors.
• Catch the Metro to La Défense (La Défense, Line 1). Have a wander around, enjoy the futuristic environment. Perhaps do a little shopping at the nearby shopping centre.
• It’s early evening. I went back to my hotel, ate dinner and ended the day in the bath watching films.

Day Three

• Another fairly early start. Leave luggage at the hotel and catch the Metro to Montmartre (Line 12). Don’t get off with all the other tourists at Abbesses. Get off at the next stop, Lamarck Caulaincourt. It’s a slightly longer walk, but it’s less crowded, much less tourist-focused and very scenic. Don’t worry about finding out the way. So long as you’re walking up the hills, you find the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, Montmartre main attraction.
• The Basilique du Sacré-Cœur opens at 09h30 and admission is free. It’s definately worth a look.
• After walking around the basilica, explore Montmartre. Be careful decending the main steps in front of the basilica. At the foot of the steps, their are groups of men who sell bracelets and their tactics can be rather intimidating. Also, the area is pretty seedy. I walked down another set of steps, adjacent to the main steps.
• Having explored for a few hours, catch the metro to Galeries Lafayette to buy souveniers. Only die hard shopaholics will enjoy Galeries Lafayette. It’s very busy, warm and claustrophobic.
• Make one last visit to your favourite spot before catching the train home. I chose the Eiffel Tower with a filled baguette.
• Catch the 17h10 Eurostar back to London.

Put Your Mind At Rest

While planning my trip, I spent a lot of time reading the TripAdvisor Paris forum (something I really recommend you do). What I found was that there were similar concerns about safety from others who were planning trips of their own. A few days after coming back from my trip, I posted this post in answer to those concerns;

Just got back from a wonderful short stay in Paris. I stayed at the Novotel Gare Montparnasse. It’s a fantastic hotel in a fantastic and convenient area. The Metro station Pasteur is very close-by and has two lines going N, S, E and W. Highly recommended!

Anyway, before I went, I read that there were recurring concerns from potential travellers. I’d like to help put some minds at rest.

BEGGERS
There are beggers. They tend to come in the form of Eastern European ladies. YOU CAN SPOT THEM A MILE OFF. They will always ask “Do you speak English?”, to which, you should reply “Non!” and carry on walking. I can highly recommend carrying a French newspaper around with you. I got asked twice in three days but when I started carrying a paper, they didn’t even look at me.

TRINKET SELLERS
There are trinket sellers at the Eiffel Tower and at Montmartre. They tend to shake a ring of Eiffel Tower keyrings which makes quite a loud ‘tinkle’ noise. They may invite you to look at their wares but none of them are agressive and on the whole, they seemed quite cheerful.

BRACELET GUYS
There are bracelet guys at the foot of the main steps at Sacre-Couer. The ground in that area is littered with bracelets. I saw them in action. If you want to avoid them but still see Sacre-Cour, take the Metro to Lamarck Caulaincourt and walk in through the back. The walk is lovely and you’re away from the tourist trap so it’s less crowded and the sandwichs are cheaper :). Plus, go as early as possible.

SAFETY
Paris is safe at all times of the day. There may be areas on the outskirts that are no-go at night, but on the whole, the centre is perfectly safe. I was on my own and felt perfectly happy wandering around.

METRO
The metro is really easy to get around on. So long as you know the line you wish to use and the direction you wish to travel in, just follow the clearly laid-out signs and you’ll reach your destination. Some of the passages between platforms did smell like wee but if you can put up with that, you’ll have no trouble and find the metro a joy to use.

Over To You

A hope you’ve found this guide helpful. If you’ve still got questions, I’d be happy to answer them. Either use the contact form to to communicate privately, or drop a comment on the box below.

Have a great trip!