Plan me the perfect 48 hours in Paris

[myfearofeverythinginside]

im off in March!

Staying just outside of Paris technically, in a well connected hotel.

The only real bucket list items for me are the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre.

I like walking and photography. Help!

Catacombs

Are they worth it?

im aware the louvre will probably take up a whole day, and im willing to sacrifice a day for it because its my dream

You absolutely MUST pre book everything. Now. We went to Paris in April this year and had a wonderful time, but it’s totally different to years ago when you could just decide what you wanted to do, stroll up to the door, queue for 5 min and buy a ticket and walk in. Eg for the Louvre, we had 11am tickets, arrived at 10:50 outside the pyramid to find a huge line already formed behind the 11am queue, and the back of 10:30am queue still going in. Some people already lining up at the 11;30 queue. Eiffel Tower we pre booked and went straight in, but if you hadn’t the signed said the wait time was at least 45 min.

This shouldn’t put you off going, just be organised and buy tickets as soon as they go on sale for the dates you will be there. Places are t that crowded inside. Getting near the Mona Lisa is a zoo, but there are dozens of rooms with amazing stuff that have virtually no one in them.

I love the Rodin museum with its lovely sculpture garden - small and uncrowded. And Notre Dame post-restoration is beautiful- much nicer than it was before. You can’t easily get tickets to that but we went first thing in the morning and didn’t queue for long.

Second the Rodin museum. The ET queues were a joke when we went on the late May BH.

I’ll start booking now!

I don’t want to go up the ET, just take a look. I’m scared of heights 🤣 I’d also like to go to the museum with Monet’s water Lillie’s

The Picasso Museum—small enough to navigate in just one visit and laid out chronologically so you can see how he progressed as an artist. I’ve never forgotten visiting it!

I think my issue is I could happily spend the entire weekend just in art museums. But I know there’s so much to see!

Musee d'Orsay is great. I preferred it to the Louvre but it depends what sort of art you like.

I don’t think I could forgive myself if I went to Paris and didn’t see the Mona Lisa

You must prebook if time is tight. Look at the passes for multiple attractions for good value. I’d recommend a dinner cruise and notre dame plus I’d consider other museums to add like the army museum which you don’t need to prebook if weather is t favourable for walking (I love sitting in jardin de Luxembourg

Well, you can obviously look at the ET at any time -- I recommend doing so from across the Seine from the Trocadero. Around the ET itself isn't interesting. And honestly, even if you are very interested in art, I would skip the Louvre and leave it for a longer trip. It's enormous, crowded and overwhelming and seldom a particularly pleasant experience unless you have time and go and see targeted parts.

Think about what periods/movements you like and go to more manageably-sized museums. I'd suggest the Musée D'Orsay, the Orangerie (which is just across the river from it, and which has Monet's Water Lilies in the basement), the Musée Rodin and/or the Musée Marmottan (more Monet).

The Tuileries (where the Orangerie is, with the Louvre at the other end) is a lovely park, but my favourite is the Jardins du Luxembourg, which is a quintessentially charming Paris park, with fountains, boules, pony rides, a marionette theatre etc. Pére Lachaise cemetery is also a wonderful place to walk around, as if the Ile de la Cité (where the renovated Notre Dame is) and the very charming Ile St Louis (have a glace Berthillon). All wonderful to photograph.

You could see if there's anything that appeals to you on at Opera Bastille for night time.

A dinner cruise will be going on the list!

I promise you, it is an entirely underwhelming experience, however keen on Da Vinci you are -- a small, brownish canvas behind bullet proof glass, viewed from the back of a crowd of people holding up their mobile phones.

Then do. It's your holiday. Do whatever you want to do.

The Picasso museum and the bikes you can hire for 24 hours are great for getting around.

The Waterlilies at the Orangerie are really worthwhile, it is extraordinary seeing them in the flesh.

My recommendation is to go and have a cocktail in the Hemingway Bar at the Ritz. You need to get there early but it's a perfect pre-dinner activity for the late afternoon. It opens at 5 and I would recommend arriving 20 minutes beforehand to be sure of a seat (it's pretty tiny).

The Jardin du Luxembourg is lovely. We like the toy boats.

I actually really loved the Mona Lisa. We were lucky enough to get fairly close.

Oh, and if you fancy cheap, reliable food, falafel on the rue des Rosiers in the Marais is always my fallback. The Marais is also a nice place to walk around -- lots of small shops, bars and restaurants, good museums, and the Place des Vosges.

I know but there’s so much to do!

Monet is a must, I’ve ordered a travel guide off Vinted and I’ll be researching to hell and back!

Not what you want but - Skip the Louvre go to the Rodin museum for a chilly picnic and the Musée d’Orsay instead. The Mona Lisa is a crushing disappointment.

Paris is incredibly walkable. The Eiffel Tower is fine - just walk under it and over the bridge (we have an apartment 5 mins walk away so it’s our constant land mark when we walk across the city).

The Musée d’Orsay is much better than the Louvre- the Mona Lisa is actually not very interesting up close 😬

Have I been to Paris before in this scenario, or do I need to tick all the tourist boxes?

going to a hybrid of the two -
I would go early Saturday morning to the Jardins de Luxembourg. I would get breakfast at Bread and Roses, then walk to Notre Dame, via the pantheon. I would go round Notre Dame, have a quick potter through Shakespeare & Co, then I would have un petit café and something small to eat at Les Deux Magots. Cross the pont des arts and you’re at the Louvre. Personally I wouldn’t bother going inside, I would go along to the musée picasso and the musée canavalet but ‘à chacun son goût!’ Then I would go to chez janou for chocolate mousse. By now it’s early evening so I would head to Montmartre - you could get the Metro from where you are - the 5 and switch to the 2 - or walk along to Les Halles and just get the 4. Have a look at the Sacré Coeur, and see the Moulin Rouge dinner show at 7. Grab a drink after at Les petits flèches and then call it a night.

Sunday I’m going to French Bastards for breakfast then to the Musée d’Orsay nice and early (it opens I think at 9:30?). Lunch of soufflé at le Récamier, and then I’m going to Le Bon Marché to browse and pretend I’m rich! After that, un petit café at Cafe de Flore and some people watching before I have to head home.

I’ve never been before. I like art, so would love to see some of the most famous pieces!

I really liked the Mona Lisa, and would definitely say it is worth seeing. I found it much more interesting in real life than it is as a reproduction. Same with the waterlilies.

I adore the D’Orsay and the Orangerie for Monet’s Water Lilies. Visit both every time I go to Paris.

The Louvre is just too bloody big for me.

Love a trip up to Sacre Coeur for the view across the city.

I really enjoyed the hop-on-hop-off bus.

The Grand Palais has some excellent exhibitions and is a beautiful building it has Matisse recently - don’t know if its still on. Opposite is the Petit Palais which is free to go in and very beautiful. Then you can walk down the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triumphe. You can see the ET from across the river.