Can you see everything in six days of sightseeing in Paris? Maybe, if you can go 24/7. For most of us, that would probably be a no. For those of us who are, let’s say, a bit more mature, I would say that’s a definite no. There are so many wonderful sights to see in Paris and to see everything would take quite some time. But, with a little planning, you can pack in a lot of sightseeing in Paris into six short days.
Our First Visit to Paris
Art and I went to Paris back in the late 80’s and saw everything we had on our list at that time, except for the Louvre. We had reserved the last day of our trip to visit the Louvre, and sure enough, the museum workers were on strike and the Louvre was closed. Talk about disappointment. But we were in Paris, so it wasn’t hard to find something else to do. If you haven’t traveled to Paris before, be forewarned; strikes are just a way of life there.
Taking Advantage of Being in France
Visiting Paris was not the primary focus of this trip. We had rented a boat and were going to cruise the rivers of the Burgundy region for a week. Since four of our group of six had not been to Paris before, we thought it would be a shame to be so close and not make the effort to see it as well.
Things Have Changed
Things in Paris have changed a lot since Art and I were last there. It is a lot more crowded, but that seems the be the case everywhere we go now, so it’s not surprising. We noticed an extraordinary number of people from the Middle East, but then remembered about the immigration to Europe from the war zones. Perhaps the most surprising thing was the number of pizza shops; both in Paris and the small towns and villages we stopped in as well. We didn’t come up with a rational explanation for that. We joked that pizza has become the national food of France.
Sightseeing in Paris: Planning Ahead
We combated the crowds at the major attractions by pre-purchasing our tickets. In most cases we still had a wait, but it did help to shorten the length of time. Purchasing the head of the line passes is definitely worth the extra money if you can afford it.
Our group arranged to get together a few months before our trip so we could decide exactly what we wanted to see while we were in Paris. Our trip was planned so that we would stay in Paris four days prior to our boat rental, and two days after. We decided that we wanted to go to the Normandy beaches to see the WWII D-Day landing sites; we found a day tour from Paris for that. The Louvre, Eiffel Tower and Versailles were the other places on our must-see list in Paris.
Pacing Ourselves
Since everyone in our group is now officially a senior citizen, we try not to over plan our days. We knew the Normandy trip would be a long day, so we were prepared for it. That was the only really long day we had planned in our itinerary. Otherwise, we had only one major attraction planned for each day.
Contingency Plans
We did not schedule anything for the last two days in Paris. We know that things happen and even the best laid plans can go awry (i.e. strikes). So, we left those days as make-up days in case we were unable to do any of our planned sightseeing during our first stay. We knew we wanted to see the Basilica of the Sacre-Coeur in Montmartre, but it was the one thing we decided we could miss if it didn’t fit in the schedule, so we left that for our final two days.
Be Flexible
We only had one monkey wrench thrown into our plans, and which we were able to work around. There was a transportation strike on the day we were to go to Normandy. Fortunately, we had a great Airbnb host and he forewarned us about the strike, so we were able to work around it. I’ll go into more detail about that in another post.
Successful Sightseeing in Paris
Our extra efforts paid off, and we got to every attraction on our must-see list, as we had them scheduled. (You can read the details of our visits below.) We even made it to Montmartre on our final two-day stay. The keys to success are, plan ahead, don’t try to do too much in a day, and be flexible. By pre-planning, you can see everything you really want to see in six days of sightseeing in Paris.
Trip to Paris Video
Basilica
Sacre Coeur
This beautiful Basilica, built in the late 1800s, is definitely worth a visit. You can walk or take a tram, bus or the funicular up the hill to Basilica. We got off the subway and walked up the side streets and steps to the Basilica. We had metro passes and the funicular is included with the pass so we could have taken it. Honestly, we simply forgot about the funicular. But the walk was good, and we enjoyed it just the same.Free Admission
The Basilica is open from 6 am to 10:30 pm every day and there is no charge for admission. You do have to go through security before you can enter. There was only a very short line to enter when we arrived around noon on a Monday. The Basilica is amazing. Photos are not allowed, so I don’t have any of the interior. However, there is a beautiful video tour of the Basilica on their website.
Versailles
This was one case where purchasing our tickets paid off. Again, I had looked up information to see when the best time was to visit this attraction, which was Thursday, and it worked with our schedule.Easy Journey
The trip took about an hour from our Airbnb in the northern Paris suburb of Gennevilliers. It was not a complicated journey, just one change of trains, and we were there before we knew it. We went to the meeting spot for our tour, and after a short wait walked over to the palace with our group.Faster Entry
There were long lines at the standard entry point. We went into the group tour entrance, which had a much shorter line. There was still a short wait but getting our audio tour devices and through security was quick and easy. Then we started off on our tour of the palace.Absolutely Worth It
Visiting the Palace of Versailles is so worth the time and effort. It is amazing. The hall of mirrors; the marble, the paintings, the history, the expansive gardens; worth every penny of the admission price. It is much larger than I imagined, it felt as though we walked forever! Do wear comfortable shoes on this tour. You can purchase a guided tour, but the audio tour was very good. You should definitely consider adding this to your sightseeing in Paris ‘must see’ list. The six of us ended up touring the palace at different speeds and consequently were separated. We kept in touch with one another via texts. One couple decided they wanted to spend more time touring the gardens. The other two couples met up and headed back to Gennevilliers and we all met up at the house later that evening.
The Louvre
I had read about all the frustrations of people visiting the Louvre. The long lines, the waits to get in, even with head of the line tickets. So, I did a little more research to find out the best times to visit the Louvre. I did find an article that said that visiting during one of the two days (Wednesday and Friday) the Louvre is open in the evening is the best time to visit. Even seeing the Mona Lisa was easier at those times. When we looked at our schedule, Wednesday was the only day we could visit in the evening. Unfortunately, that was the day we arrived in Paris after our overnight flight. I contacted our Airbnb host to see if we could get into our house early, and Francis was gracious enough to accommodate us. That meant we could get in the house early, eat, get cleaned up, and head off to downtown Paris in time for a 6 pm entry into the Louvre.Walk Right In!
We had no trouble getting to the Louvre on time, and sure enough, there were no lines to get in. We actually got in a few minutes prior to our scheduled entry time.Finding Mona Lisa
However, getting to see the Mona Lisa was another story. Unfortunately, the guide we picked up in the Louvre, said the Mona Lisa was in a different wing than it was. I knew there was some construction going on and the painting was in a temporary exhibit, however, I expected the guide to provide the correct information. We eventually figured out where we needed to go, so we headed over and got in line. It wasn’t evident when we first got in line, but it was a very, very long line. It snaked up over three or four floors of the building and moved ever-so-slowly.Mona Lisa – At Last!
After about a 45-minute wait, we finally got to see her. It was not the best of circumstances, but we saw her, and got the photo to prove it. As it turned out, they were getting ready to move the Mona Lisa, and it was the last day she would be available for viewing for a while. We were told that is what caused the long line. The rest of the museum was not crowded; we were able to see everything we wanted before returning to our Airbnb.
Normandy Beaches
D-Day Tour
This was our big tour during our stay in Paris. Due to the transportation strike, we had to take a taxi into Paris to reach the meeting place for our tour by 6:45 am. There is a café at the meeting point, and fortunately it was open. We arrived early and had a quick cup of coffee or tea and a pastry before the tour vans arrived.Advantages of a Small Group Tour
We chose a small group tour as we wanted a more intimate experience and so we could see more on our tour. As luck would have it, we were able to have a van to ourselves. Essentially, we had a private tour. I booked the tour through Viator, but the company that actually provided the tour was Blue Fox Travel. Although I didn’t know it when we booked the tour, Blue Fox only provides English speaking tours. Our guide, JB was French, but married to an American; he spoke English very well, even the American idioms. JB did a great job of keeping us ahead of the crowds. On our three-hour drive from Paris to Normandy, we arrived at the rest stop before the motor coaches arrived. The same with our arrival at Omaha Beach. We were the first group to the restaurant for lunch. The Overlord Museum was practically empty when we got there. We watched the motor coaches arrive as we were walking into the visitor center at Pointe-du-Hoc. JB had our timing perfect all day long, yet we never felt rushed at any time.Visiting the American Cemetery
As we were on our way to Normandy, JB provided a great deal of history about the area. He also asked us questions to find out more about our interests and what we wanted to get from our tour. After talking with us for a while, he asked if we would like to wait to see the Normandy American Cemetery until the end of our tour, so we could be there for taps. He said it would add about another two hours to our tour, but he would be happy to do so for us. We all agreed that was what we wanted to do. Being at the cemetery for taps was the perfect ending to our tour. We were glad that JB offered us that option. We were so pleased; our tour was more than we had hope for. Yes, it was a very long day, but it was absolutely worth the money and the time.A Magical End to Our Day
On the way back to Paris, JB had one more option for us. He could drop us off where the tour started, or he could drop us off at Place du Trocadero. Where we could see the Eiffel Tower as the lights came on, just after sunset. As JB promised, seeing the Eiffel Tower with it’s sparkling lights was truly magical and the perfect ending to our day.
Eiffel Tower
Let’s face it, you haven’t been sightseeing in Paris if you haven’t seen the Eiffel Tower. We saved this tour for the Saturday of our stay. We once again made our way to central Paris. There was a small glitch, in that the metro stop we wanted to get off was closed for repairs. We got off at the next stop, and then the three people from our group that were going on the tour made their way to the meeting point. Unfortunately, they arrived a few minutes late, but the worker was kind enough to put them with the next available group.Tower Tour
The tour guide was excellent and provided a good overview of the area and the history of the tower. Even though they had head of the line passes and jumped the larger line, they still had a bit of a wait for security. Then they made their way up to the first level. The guide stayed with them up to this point. When they were ready to go up the rest of the way to the top viewing platform, they were on their own and had to wait in line for the elevator, both on the way up and back down.Worth the Time and Money
Their tour took about three hours all together. They said it was excellent and worth the money and time. They also said it was worth the extra money for the skip the line privileges. From watching the lines to get in from the park where we waited, I would guess it would have added at least another hour to the tour to do it without the skip the line ticket.Waiting Below
The three of us who waited at the bottom of the tower found a bench and had a great time watching the goings on. As it was Saturday, the Parisians filled the park with blankets and picnic baskets. There were families and couples, it was, obviously, the place to be!Beware of Scams!
We also observed the scam artists who make the Eiffel Tower their place of business. The girls who want you to sign a petition (and will then pick your pockets while you are distracted) and the shell game. We watched the shell game for quite a while. They would play for a while, then the operator would close-up the game when an authority figure would walk by. We identified the shill as she was at every game and was the only person who ever ‘won’. We observed her as she took her lunch break and then when the operator showed up, she took her place in the crowd. I was amazed at how many people would actually bet on the game, not realizing they were being taken.
The weather was perfect, so waiting for those who took the tour was quite pleasant!
Seine River
Hop On Hop Off
Cruise
After we all met up at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower, we headed on over to the Seine River Hop On Hop Off cruise. We had pre-purchased these tickets as well but needed to turn in our vouchers for actual tickets, which was easy enough. Although the boat was crowded, there were enough seats for everyone. We took the boat down to Notre Dame where we got off and walked around the area. We were amazed at how much work is already being done to restore the cathedral after the fire just five months earlier. I know everyone is anxious to bring this historic landmark back to its glory.Sightseeing in Paris Made Easy
This boat ride is a great way to get around Paris as well as see the sights. There are numerous different providers of the Hop On Hop Off Seine River cruises. The company we were with, Batobus, offers both one- and two-day passes. The ride doesn’t include any commentary as do the hop on hop off bus tours. The one-day pass worked out perfectly for us. Make sure you read the complete description before you make your purchase; know what you’re getting. The weather on the day we were there was beautiful, but the boats are covered so inclement weather won’t ruin your cruise.Latest Posts
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