AIBU to ask about what sights to see/things to do in Paris?

[PamplemousseRouge]

Hi everyone (or bonjour!! )

So I'm going to Paris later this week, and was wondering if you had any ideas on what sights to see or activities to do while I'm there?

There's obviously all of the very well-known sights to see like the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe (hoping to try and go up it while I'm there!!), Sacré Coeur, but I'd be really interested to hear if you have any other ideas on what to see please? Particularly the less well known parts of Paris, or hidden gems :)

Thank you!! :)

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You could have a wander round the 'passages' at the foot of Boulevard de Montmartre. Lots of tiny Art Nouveau indoor shopping arcades. A warren of them, with cute independent shops of curios and sweets and cards.

Take a boat along the Seine too. Gteat way to see the city lit up at night. You don't need t go on a raucous Bateau Mouche - you can buy run around tickets for the Batobus and use it to get from Notre Dame to Musee D'Orsay during the day, then use it again for a night trip.

Look out for the goat gardeners at Louvre - they have goats trimming the lawns. Very cute.

Live from Chartier ... I live on the next street !

Ooh, we came back from Paris on New Years Day (should have been NYE - thanks Air France!). I didn't find it anymore threatening (although we stuck to main paths, not unbeaten tracks) and the additional security actually made me feel safer. Be prepared to be security checked going into any area that attracts crowds
Lots of beggers on Champs Elysse but nothing could deter us, it was beautiful (but very cold and foggy), we even had snow on the last day.
Hope you have a lovely time OP

Do you like jazz? Paris has some great live jazz venues. If you'll be there on a Tuesday I can recommend Autour de Midi et Minuit (rue Lepic, near Pigalle) street level is a restaurant but in the v. parisien basement it's live jazz and Tuesday is free enrry, I think it starts around half nine. Loads of great little bars and restaurants in the area too: Les Caves Populaires is a scruffy but great wine bar and very reasonable prices.

Loved Chartier( went this summer) my kids loved it too.

Thanks everyone!! Love this thread

Thanks for your recommendations Zou :) I do like jazz, and the place you've suggested looks great! I've already booked a concert at Le Duc des Lombards on Tuesday, and it looks like that finishes at 9ish, so I'll pop up afterwards to the bar you've mentioned to see the other concert.

Oh also sorry I hadn't mentioned so far, but I'll be staying in the 9th arrondissement, fairly close to the Moulin Rouge and Montmartre, I think.

Do keep your suggestions coming if you've got any more!! I've got lots on my Paris to-do list now

Go to Crazy Horse if you're there for a romantic weekend... champagne and canapés !
Lunch at l'avenue, dinner at l'atelier or maison blanc, cool cocktails at mama shelter (and reasonably priced, cool hotel rooms), splurge on cocktails at mandarin oriental outside under a blanket- parfait!

(Can you tell my trips tend to revolve around food/drinks?!)

Oopla, I didn't RTFT so forget the romantic weekend suggestion, but i'd still highly recommend Crazy Horse!
Ooh, I love Paris this thread is making me tres jalouse. You'll have the best time!

My absolute fave is to just stare at the eiffel tower when the lights are sparkling... I will never get bored of it!

Definitely Shakespeare and Company book shop near Notre Dame. Amazing book shop featured in Hemingway's writing. Me and DH loved it, kids weren't so keen :)

Agree with PP about the Eiffel Tower and its lovely 5 minutes of sparkling every hour. My husband and I go to Paris often but we're always thrilled to see it!

LuLu Whites is a great 'speakeasy' style cocktail bar with gorgeous decor, again near Pigalle. Their cocktail menu is very original and delicious, if a little on the pricey side. They also do free live jazz on Tuesday nights but it gets packed unless you arrive early. Really great, fendly service.

The little 'train' around Monmatre (departs from in front of Sacré Coeur) is cheesy but actually a good experience IMO. The Dali museum in Montmartre is cool too.

Restaurants: Le Tir Bouchon (Châtelet, great menu and ambience but variable service), Glou (I think Rue de Temple, great service, small but great menu, great wine selection by the glass).

If you love steak, Black Dog in Châtelet is a real experience. Front part goth bar, back part steak restaurant. They do a 1kg steak if you fancy a challenge! It's expensive (€70?) but if you go on your birthday (with ID) you pay however many years old you are in euros...

My favourite walking route is Notre Dame - Hotel de Ville - Louvre - Tuileries - Concorde - Invalides - Eiffel Tower.

The queues for Versailles have been crazy recently due to increased security checks. Doesnt make a difference of you buy your ticket online or not. I'd skip it, or just do the gardens, or do Fontainebleau instead.

Ahhh just had the BEST meal ever at l'Artiste, a little bistro in the 11th, by Père Lachaise. I ordered a café gourmand for dessert, and they brought out 3 HUGE desserts (raspberry cheesecake, crumble, crème brûlée) with the coffee!! I definitely got a few judging looks as I ploughed my way through

Went to Père Lachaise cemetery as well, which was incredible!! Couldn't believe how big it is! The cobbled paths were a bit awkward to navigate though!!

Ha that reminds me of the time we went to a little restaurant in Versailles. Dh ordered a chocolate mousse however our schoolbook French obviously didn't pick up all the details. As when it arrived it was the size of a mixing bowl. People were walking past the window, pointing and laughing

Hahaaa!! That sounds like my idea of heaven!! How was the chocolate mousse?

Catacombs!

Keep us update OP, I'm having a boring quiet night in so would love to live vicariously through you!

You must go to the Moulin Rouge if you are staying so close. Are you planning on going?

I just love Paris, even if it does smell like a toilet.

It was fabulous but I think his embarrassment affected his enjoyment!

I've never noticed it smelling like a toilet! Enjoy OP.

Hi again, everyone!! So I explored the 11th today, and then walked up from the apartment I'm staying in to Montmartre (takes less than 20 minutes!!) It was gorgeous, but the uphill walk to get there was a killer!! Tomorrow I'm thinking of going of exploring the 1st, 2nd and 3rd arrondissements (with plenty of refuelling stops ), and then birthday cocktails on the Mandarin Oriental roof terrace!! We shall see if that goes to plan - today was absolutely FREEZING!! Does London get that cold??

London's thawed today but was freezing over the last couple of days. Sound slike you're having a fantastic time, OP.

Pimmsy I used to live in an apartment above Chartier. Which street are you on? Love that area of Paris. And love Chartier.

Have you done the Eiffel Tower yet op?

My suggestion is nowhere near as cultured as lots of them! But if you're going to the Eiffel Tower anyway, it's worth keeping an eye out for the police arriving. You get all the sellers of the keychains etc dotted around the ET (and the bit at the top mainly...no idea what it's called but the 'viewing platform' area) with all their stuff spread on the ground.

Then the police turn up periodically and put on a show of chasing them away/trying to catch them. So all the sellers grab up their stuff and high tail it away, jumping over the steps and every which way, with the police shouting and running after them. We've seen it happen every time we've been and it's like a free 5 minute Carry On sketch, it's had us in fits every time. Never seen one caught though! Little things!

Oh dear, woke up with a headache and the mother of all sore throats today!!! So trying to sleep it off and take it easy. And it just happens to be my birthday :( do you think it's wasting a day if I try and sleep it off as much as I can? I'm planning to rest for a few hours and then see how I feel just to make the most of the other few days I've got left, rather than overdoing it today and having a rubbish next few days!! What do you all think? Sorry, I know it's a tiny problem to have in the grand scheme of things, just annoying though!!