Can we wing it in Paris?

[BorgQueen]

First time in Paris, me and DH for my 60th and I don’t really want a rigid itinerary.
We are visiting Sunday- Thursday in August, staying on the Left bank across the bridge from the Louvre at the Da Vinci hotel.
I’ve booked the Louvre for the Wednesday first thing and a table at the rooftop bar at The Pullman hotel on the 1st night so we can see the Eiffel tower sparkle. Other than that, I really don’t know because it all depends on the weather, it might be blazing hot or it might not, but I don’t want to be rushing around.
St Sulpice and Luxembourg gardens are a strong possibility, as are Petit Palais, Bon Marche, and Notre dame. DH fancies Monmarte/ Sacre Coeur, I’m not fussed because I’m not great on steps or hills ( or crowds for that matter).
I want relaxed flitting about between nice cafes and a trip on a batobus down the Seine.
I thought about Palais Garnier and Galeries Haussman but from what I’ve read , you can’t move for idiotic instagrammers.
Any suggestions for places to get out of the heat ( or the rain if we’re unlucky)? Bonus if they’re free.

You don’t mention visiting the Musée D’Orsay, but if you do plan to visit I would strongly advise booking in advance. I didn’t & had to queue for over an hour on a weekday in June, so goodness knows what August would be like. Also, be prepared for ‘fermé le Lundi’, it’s still very much a thing in many places.

Book the Eiffel Tower. We didn’t and there was no tickets on the day. Had to keep going back.

The most favourite thing I have done in Paris was to do a day tour to Monets Garden, then we went to L’Orangie to see his water-Lillie’s painting. It was mind blowing.

Sacré cœur was well worth the visit but - and you don’t need to plan it well in advance - would 100% recommmend pre booking the night before / morning off as you can go straight in at your booking time - ie no queuing - and it’s bananas outside if you don’t. Enjoy!

You can't really wing it at museums, the big ones all need reservations. Similarly Eiffel tower. Places like Montmartre and sacre coeur you can just go, no need to book. We also really enjoyed Monet's gardens in Giverny, we stayed overnight in Giverny as we were heading on to Normandy afterwards and I wanted to be there for opening, it's a long day trip from Paris. You don't mention Versailles, always worth a visit.

Find any café where people from offices are heading and have whatever they are offering for lunch!

Another vote for Versailles. I think you can go around the gardens/Trianon for free without booking, but have to book and pay for the palace itself. A nice morning/afternoon out weather permitting.

I know it might sound odd, but I thoroughly enjoyed the Pere Lachaise cemetery. Might not be to your taste, but it is a fascinating place.

A stroll around the Marais and the Canal St. Martin areas is enjoyable too.

The old shopping arcades are lovely and good rain or shine.
https://www.parisinsidersguide.com/arcades-of-paris.html

Versailles is a heck of a lot of walking, both inside and the gardens. Literally miles if you walk from the Chateau to the two Trianon palaces, around their gardens, Marie Antoinette's Hamlet and back to the Chateau. I think there was a little shuttle bus but you're restricted by the timings. I wouldn't want to do it in the height of summer.

Interior of Opera Garnier is stunningly beautiful. I went years ago before Instagram, so don't know what the crowds are like now.

Carnavalet museum is free for the permanent collections:

www.carnavalet.paris.fr/en

You don’t mention Norte dame which definitely needs booking. We booked hop on/off boat the morning of doing it, but dinner on a boat was booked weeks before, there is an old market ‘end ant rouge’ which looks amazing. We were there for 2 days last August and it was hot, we used the metro (walking lots) and stopped lots for drinks and ice cream!!

Not fussed about Versailles, not in the heat of August anyway. I had to go for August because I had easyjet credit to use up.
Probably do Les Invalides over Orsay, the covered arcades are definitely something I’d like.

You can visit some of the smaller museums without booking. I have never had to book for Cluny and it never seems busy, Carnavalet is very interesting as is Les Pavillions de Bercy. Last time I was in Paris I went to a museum of taxidermy which was fascinating and we were the only ones there!

There's Paris Plage every summer: lots of free places to swim (not rule free though!), including in the Seine. There's stuff happening in various places along the Seine, too.

I have enjoyed a free outdoor film screening in Parc de la Villette- it was some years ago, wonder if they're still doing them?

If your inner child enjoys splashing in fountains on a hot day, then Trocadero is the place to go - and it has the best views of the Eiffel Tower.

You may have to book the big museums in advance, but we walked straight into the Rodin Museum last August, and it has beautiful shady gardens.

I suppose the ultimate place to escape the extremes of Parisian weather would be the Catacombes, but those you do have to book in advance.

You can avoid the steps by taking the little funicular railway up the Butte de Montmartre- it costs the same as a single metro ride.

I also recommend Sainte Chapelle- it's absolutely stunning, but it's not one of the big 4-5 sights that everyone has to see, so hopefully not too crowded. You can buy a combination ticket with the Conciergerie (they're both actually in the Central Courts of Justice complex, interestingly enough).

Oh, and pop into the arcades of the Palais Royale opposite the Louvre.

Montmartre: used to be a little bus from Place Pigalle - saves you walking up the hill.

Sacre Coeur: most people are round the front, looking at the view and getting pickpocketed, but there's a small park behind the church.

Frankly, Paris is so beautiful it's easy just to spend time wandering around different neighbourhoods and seeing what you discover. I love coming across shops that aren't common in the UK - seem to be a lot of musical instrument shops, and shops selling windows - I guess because so many people live throughout the city centre, people are in the market for new windows!

Do you have a Google account? You can pin places of interest in Google Maps and build up a picture of what is near each other in different areas.

Don’t forget a Bateau Mouche trip. Lovely way to see Paris.

oops just realised you have got a boat trip on the list.

Vedettes de Pont Neuf are the nicest (and smallest!) of the boats, and as you'd expect, they depart from the Pont Neuf, so close to Notre Dame and the Louvre.

The Galeries Lafayette (Haussman) has a lovely rooftop bar, too.

Another vote for the Rodin Museum, it's a stunning place and much less crowded than others.

It entirely depends on where you want to visit. Palais Garnier needs booking in advance, as do the majority of the museums. You don't need to book Notre Dame you can just join a very long queue.

It probably depends on whether you are the sort of person who feels they need to fill their visit with activities every moment of the day, or whether you are a more relaxed person who is happy to sit outside a cafe and soak up the atmosphere. My favourite thing in Paris was riding around on the top of the hop-on-hop-off bus and just taking in all of the beautiful buildings. We visited the Louvre which we pre-booked and Notre Dame, which we just joined the queue outside. It moved pretty quickly but continued all the way round on the inside, very busy. This was in April, I don’t know how much busier it’s likely to be in August. A tip on prices and eating out - we found several places in the Latin quarter where you could get a 3 course meal for under €20, but just round the corner we had paid €18 for a beer and a coke.

If you don’t like crowds, I wouldn’t go up the Eiffel Tower. I did a few years ago (in August) and it was rammed with people, including the lifts.

We booked the Notre Dame tower and the Catacombs. Didnt go near Eiffel tower or Sacre Coeur. Winged it for meals and found good places in Le Marais mid afternoon as opposed to evening.

Really recommend the Rodin Museum - it also has a lovely garden that’s a respite from the heat on a sunny day. Also another vote for Sainte Chapelle - go first thing on a sunny morning to make the most of the stunning stained glass; queues build up quickly and it’s best to be there before it gets too busy. If there’s anything on at the Louis Vuitton Foundation it’s really worth a trip there - we strolled through the Bois de Boulogne last year to the David Hockney exhibition and it was a real highlight. Really enjoyed the Musee Carnavalet as well - you can combine with a wander through the Marais and the streets in the Village St Paul.