Cheap things to do in Paris/places to eat. Any recommendations.?

[NicoAndTheNiners]

I've paid for dd and her bf to go to Paris for a long weekend to celebrate the end of A levels. They're taking a Eurostar and staying at a hotel near the Gare du Nord.

I understand that the Louvre is free in the evening on the first Saturday of every month so that's some money saved as they both want to go there.

I'm sure they will want to go up the Eiffel Tower. Do you need to prebook?

Any other stuff to do which won't cost a fortune? They've got three nights and 2 full days plus an afternoon/evening the day they arrive.

I'm worried about food being expensive. They're both vegetarian and dd has coeliac disease which might rule out some of the cheaper eating spots. So no McDonalds!

And what's the cheapest way to do the metro as I'm guessing their hotel is a bit too far out to walk to the city centre?

Musée Picasso is free on Sundays.
The Pompidou is free on the first Sunday of every month, for everyone. It’s fun to ride the escalators and there’s a viewing area at the top. I’m pretty sure that the Musée d’Orsay is free too on the first Sunday.
The Sacre Coeur is free to go inside. There’s a small fee to climb the dome but it’s worth it.
It’s free to walk past the Moulin Rouge!
It’s free to walk around inside the Notre Dame and it doesn’t cost much to visit the crypt.
There’s an amazing bird market in front of the Norte Dame in Sunday mornings.
La Promenade Plantee is a nice walk weaving though the city. It used to be a railway but now it’s a pedestrian walkway/public garden a bit like the high line in New York.
Paris Plages is a fake beach that is set up just for the summer, with sand, deckchairs, parasols, ice cream stands and other beach activities. Completely free.
It doesn’t cost much to hire boats on the lake in Bois du Boulogne.

There are a few good cafes which sell gluten free crepes - Culture Crepes, Breizh Cafe and Creperie Broceliande. Biosphere Cafe is completely gluten free biospherecafe.fr/en/ and very reasonable.
I’d also recommend La Creme de Paris for a cheap eat www.lacremedeparis.com/en/menu/ and Cafe Mareva www.cafemareva-en.com/menu
Yummy and Guiltfree specialise in gluten free waffles - both sweet and savoury. www.yummyandguiltfree.com

Watching with interest as DH, DD (7) and I are off to Paris for 2d this week!

Oh it's a shame they're coming back on the Sunday!

The version of the High Line looks amazing and by the time they've done Notre Dame, Sacre Cour, Eiffel Tower and the Louvre and spent time bumbling around soaking up the atmosphere I guess that will pretty much fill up their 2.5 days.

Will bookmark the links for the gluten free food. Thanks, that's really helpful.

Louvre is free to people under 26 on Friday after 6.00 it's open late so you can get to see most things. At the moment under 26 EU citizens get in free but as they're going after Brexit who knows. They will need some ID though. Under 18 are free all the time if that applies to them. It'll probably be best to check the website nearer the time to see what will happen

Versailles is free for under 26’s, so is the Musee D’Orsay. The Versailles gardens are not free, but the palace is. Easy to get to by train.

Metro use it's probably best to get a carnet that's a deal of 10 tickets which they can get either from a machine in metro station or from the kiosk in most stations. That covers 10 individual journeys and they can use 5 each. I think that's about 14 euros. The metro is straightforward like the London underground with each line showing end station. If they get a carnet from the kiosk they should ask for a map which will make things easier but bring young they'll probably sort it on their phones

Noglu is a completely gluten free patisserie, worth a visit!

Thanks everyone. Have found a website where you can order the metro carnets from so will do that.

Good to know about the Louvre. They say they don't fancy Versailles.

The noglu patiserrie looks great, have added it to the list.

Might be advisable to book the Eiffel Tower as it gets busy, especially if you want to go to the top. Alternatively, you can get a good view of the Tower especially in the dark when the lights twinkle on the hour from the Montparnasse Tower which has great views of Paris and the tower. I think they've got a plastic ice rink up there at the moment!

Would recommend walking the banks of the Seine in the evenings as well, lots of people out walking.

I have never been to the Louvre, the queues put me off when we get there! Notre Dame is nice, queue moves faster than you think (we usually stay near there and walk over of an evening).

Love Paris, hope they have a fab time!

Le Refuge des Fondus on Rue Trois Freres, Montmarte. Excellent fondue and lots of fun! Wine in baby bottles.

The Tour Montparnasse is great and you can see the Eiffel Tower from there. There was no queue compared to the Eiffel Tower where people were queuing for hours.
Notre Dame queue may seem long but it is actually very quick and free to get in. After visiting the cathedral take a short soak to Ils Saint Louis for an amazing ice-cream at Berthillon.