Planning a Trip to Paris:
Essential Guide and Tips

Paris hardly needs an introduction. It’s considered the most romantic city in the world – the city of love, art and culture, of romantic walks along Seine, views of Eiffel tower and the Parisian café terraces.

Paris – a Celtic settlement and then a Roman town became the largest European city during the medieval period. But what created the type of Paris we all dream of today was the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, popularity of its fashion and art. The city was fully redesigned in the 19^th century with wide avenues and beautiful façades.

Modern day Paris is very touristy – that’s for a good reason and unavoidable, when there’s so much to see and do. Despite this, the city has its charm, its art scene and café culture are still amazing. You just have to look beyond the extreme crowds and the modernization and you will find that magic. I created this guide with detailed tips and tricks to help you plan your first trip to Paris and navigate it without issues.

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How Many Days to Spend in Paris?

This is one of the first questions I get. And honestly, it depends on what you want to see and do. Honestly, no amount of time would be enough to explore all nooks and crannies, but to discover the major sites and get a feel what makes Paris the center of art and culture, you should allocate at least 4 days. That said even if you have a shorter time, you can still see a few highlights.

When to Visit Paris

Whichever season you choose, you will find a different feeling to the city. Whether it’s sunny, cold or rainy, Paris is worth it:

• Autumn season – September-October is one of the best times to visit Paris. There’s less chance of rain, the weather is mild, tourists are relatively less than in summer and for Christmas season and the colors are beautiful.
• Next best thing is Spring with its blossoms, awakening city but more chance of rains.
• Winter – while I hate cold and snow, in Paris there’s a lot to do indoors. Plus, it’s Christmas season with all its beautiful festivities.
• Summer does have festivals and mild evenings to walk and dance along Seine, but it’s also the heaviest touristy season, as in all of Europe. So I would avoid this time, unless you don’t have another option. It’s also unpleasantly hot and many Parisians leave the city.

Dealing with Crowds in Paris

First thing we all have to remember is that the crowds are nowadays simply unavoidable and central Paris is going to be busy, whatever you do. But there are small things you still can do.

• Firstly avoid summer, if you possibly can.
• Visit the major sites as early as possible. While most people get this advice, early mornings are still slightly less crowded. Lunchtime is another slight respite, as people go for lunch, obviously 😊
• Wander around the less popular streets, just a walk in Saint-Germain-des-Prés side streets was so quiet on our trip in May, while the main areas were teaming with people.

Transport in Paris

How to Get to Paris

As expected Paris has great transport connections. It is served by 2 major airports with the third not too far away (Beauvais is mainly for low-cost airlines). It also has 6 major Train stations with connections around Europe.

How to get from Charles de Gaulle Airport to city centre: You can take the RER B Train or Roissybus from the airport and connect to the metro to get anywhere in the city centre.

How to get from Orly Airport to city centre: Metro line 14 is the easiest way to reach the airport. Otherwise, there’s RER B train, as well as tram (slowest option).

How to get from Beauvais–Tillé Airport to city centre: Aerobus shuttles are the best way. The train is inconvenient given that getting to the station will require a bus from the airport.

How to get from Gare du Nord to city centre: If you are staying not too far, up to Le Marais area, like we did, you can even walk. Alternatively, metro lines 4 and 5 are very convenient.

How to get from Gare de Lyon to city centre: this train station is also very well connected with metro lines 1 and 14.

How to get from Gare de l’Est to city centre: Take metro lines 4, 5 or 7.

Getting Around in Paris

If you like walking and are able to, explore the city mostly on foot. For instance, on our 4-day trip once we stayed in Le Marais area and we took metro literally only twice.

If you decide to stay further from central areas, or prefer to save your energy, metro is a great option. Paris metro is very well-connected and efficient.

Buses are slower and can get stuck in traffic. Although if you want to watch the streets, it’s a nice alternative.

Taxis are pricey, as in most of Western Europe, but with an excellent public transport network, you really don’t need them.

If you are staying for at least a few days and know you will be using metro often, consider one of these travel cards:

Navigo Easy Card

This card costs 2 Euros. It can be used for metro, buses and trains. You can purchase it at ticket machines and ticket windows.

Navigo Découverte Card

It costs 5 Euros and can be purchased in metros at manned ticket windows. You have to write your name on it though and attach photo to it. with this card you can buy unlimited travel either for 1 day, 1 week or more. It covers all 5 zones, plus you can get to the international airports, to Versailles, as well as Disneyland with your pass.

Online Navigo Pass

You can get the app from Île-de-France Mobilités, as well as from Apple store and Play Store. You can use it for anything that either Navigo Easy or Decouverte card provide.

One thing you should be aware of about the Navigo app – I have heard many people complaining that the app didn’t work well, sometimes it didn’t scan the ticket and it created a hassle. Plus, you need a reliable internet for it to work. Even slightly slower internet may result in it not working.

The rail strikes are usually announced several days in advance. This is where you can check them. This should at least give you sufficient time to make alternative arrangements. However, metro strikes may not be known more than a day in advance.

Tour Options in Paris

If navigating public transport is too difficult and you are unable to walk a lot, you have several options:

Getting the Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off tours, or Tootbus Hop-on Hop-off, which would make getting around among the sites easier.

Various guided tours whether by bus or walking:

• This highly rated tour will provide you with Paris highlights in a day.
• You can even hire guides to help you navigate Louvre museum.
• Day tours to Versailles are also very popular.
• Food and wine tasting tours.

Where to Stay in Paris

Paris accommodations can be very expensive and cramped. Especially, if you are visiting in summer or you try to look in the most touristy areas of 1^st, 7^th and 8^th arrondissements. But honestly there are hardly any budget options closer to the center and in safe areas.

If you have no idea what I mean by arrondissement, you are not alone. I also didn’t know before visiting the city. Here is a great map to give you an idea what each arrondissement covers.

Here is the breakdown of your options:

• Budget to Mid-range options: Latin Quarter and Le Marais – 3^rd , 4^th , 5^th arrondissements are great neighbourhoods with wonderful food options, quirky.
• Most expensive and popular areas: Saint-Germain-des-Prés and 7^th arrondissement is the most expensive area. Only consider it, if you are able to splurge.

Some people will recommend using Airbnb, instead of hotels to save money. While yes, flats can sometimes be cheaper, I had a terrible experience with Airbnb in Paris. The place was dirty, the sheets smelled. I was dumbfounded, because it had hundreds of great reviews. Therefore, I advice to be very careful, if you opt for the apartments in Paris.

It’s best to look at various booking platforms – Booking.com, Expedia or Hotels.com. I found a great discount by comparing all fares.

Generally, tourists are always advised to avoid staying in 18^th , 19^th, 20^th arrondissements. Also parts of 10, 11 and 12. These aren’t necessarily unsafe areas. They just have more drug activity and thefts. We did walk from/to Gare du Nord for instance without issues, but during the day. It didn’t feel like a great area, with men standing in bunches on the streets. The feeling changed when moving southwards towards Le Marais.

Where we stayed: We stayed at Hôtel du Plat d’Etain, which I can highly recommend. It’s not cheap (hotels in Paris aren’t), but I did get a great last minute discount – it definitely was a happy incident. The hotel was close to Gare du Nord, as well as Centre Pompidou and half an hour’s walk to River Seine and Notre Dame. It was very clean. Plus, one interesting note – the bathroom was actually big, which is a surprise with the French standards.

Café Culture in Paris

As you probably already know, Paris can’t be experienced without visiting one of its many iconic cafes to sip coffee and people watch.

Here’s my detailed article about the city’s café culture and suggestions on what to visit.

What to Book in Advance in Paris

Sightseeing

Due to the huge number of visitors, some major sightseeing spots in Paris now require advance reservations.

Here is the list of major sites you have to book in advance:

Louvre Museum

Purchasing tickets in advance for Louvre is required. You won’t be able to get tickets on the day. Prepare way in advance. Even Paris Museum Pass holders have to reserve a timeslot to access the museum. You can purchase your tickets using the official website.

If the tickets are sold out on your dates, check third party websites, GetYourGuide and Tiqets have tickets at the same price, just adding a booking fee. If these are also not available, then they keep tickets for the tours – check GetYourGuide tour of the museum or this Tiqets tour, which has last minute availability.

Eiffel Tower

You can buy tickets for the Eiffel Tower at the official website. Purchasing tickets with reserved time slots in advance is highly recommended, as ticket queues can be hours long. Summit tickets do sell out online though, so book early – the reservations open 2 months in advance. If you don’t manage to grab the tickets however, you still have an option to purchase them on the spot but consider the queues.

If neither of these 2 options work for you, you can buy the tickets from the third-party website. They do offer tickets online on short notice, however with a big surcharge. Here are GetYourGuide and Viator options, which you can usually book last minute.

Versailles

Purchasing tickets in advance is required. You won’t be able to get them on the day. Purchase the timed tickets on the official website. You can also choose to purchase on GetYourGuide or Tiqets at almost the same price. However, tickets for morning hours sell out fast and getting them for the late afternoon means you won’t be able to see much.

If the morning tickets for your dates are sold out, you can consider taking a tour, which provides last minute tickets.

Catacombs

This is one more site, which requires online reservations. You can purchase timed tickets at their official website earliest 7 days in advance. Tickets do sell out quickly though.

If you aren’t fast enough and don’t manage to get the tickets on your dates, alternatives are the tours, which sell same day tickets, but are significantly more expensive.

Musee d’Orsay

This museum doesn’t require purchasing tickets in advance, like the other museums on this list. But the queues can be very long. Therefore, it’s still recommended to pre-book. Here is the official website to get your timed tickets. Alternatively, Tiqets and GetYourGuide offer almost the same price.

You also have an option to purchase a guided tour of the Musee d’Orsay.

Notre-Dame de Paris

While entry is free of charge, you can reserve your free tickets online to avoid queues. This is highly recommended.

Performance Tickets

Most performance tickets will need to be purchased in advance. For instance, Opéra Garnier tickets can sell out for the popular performances. Here is the official website to book.

Cruises

During busy periods also consider purchasing River Seine Cruises in advance, like this lunch cruise or this dinner cruise, which sell out. This is not needed, but probably best to do it a day in advance, to avoid waiting.

Restaurants and Cafes

Some of the restaurants and cafés also need to be reserved in advance, for instance the one on the Eiffel Tower – Le Jules Verne opens reservations 90 days in advance and you must book as soon as possible. There are also others, that may be all right to show up at, but best still be booked – examples include popular Café de Flore and Les Deux Magots, the oldest café La Procope.

However, there are numerous café and restaurant options, which don’t require reservation. Paris has abundance of choices at every corner. Therefore, don’t stress if you miss any cafes or restaurants.

Accommodation

Book accommodation in advance, especially if you are visiting during the busy summer season. On short notice, the hotels can become extremely expensive. Although in the less busy season you may be lucky. For our trip in Spring – May, the accommodation options I saw few months before the trip were quite expensive, so I decided to book Airbnb. This turned out to be the worst experience ever, as the place was dirty, the sheets smelled. So we had to leave and find a hotel on short notice. I found a hotel at a very decent price. I attribute this lucky occurrence to the rain – it was rainy half of the time we were there, so I just assumed some people cancelled their visits. However, don’t take this example, as a rule. It was more like a lucky exception.

Tips for Saving Money in Paris

A trip to Paris is a quite expensive affair, especially if we consider entrance fees, accommodation prices, restaurant prices, etc. However, there are a number of ways you could save. Here are a few tips:

Book accommodation in advance, but keep checking the rates for any changes

If you would like to visit many sites and do activities, consider using the Paris Pass or Paris Museum Pass.

Please, find the detailed guides and itineraries for each of the Passes in this article.

Use excellent public transportation in Paris instead of trying to hail taxis or hiring a car. Also buy Navigo card (the option depends on your length of stay).

Find less popular and less touristy restaurants and cafes. Going to Le Marais or Latin Quarter (while still touristy and crowded) and finding creperies for instance can save you a lot of money.

Free Things to Do in Paris

Paris has some excellent sites, which are completely free to visit:

• Churches and cathedrals, like Notre Dame de Paris (not including the crypt and tower), Sacré Coeur.
• Museums, like Petit Palais, Maison de Victor Hugo, Musée d’Art Moderne, Musée Carnavalet, National Archives Museum – Hotel de Soubise and others.
• There are a number of free events and festivals going on in the city. Keep checking Paris J’Taime website for the updates.
• Parks, including Jardin de Luxembourg, Jardin des Tuileries, Palais Royal Garden or Jardin des Plantes.
• Viewpoints, like the Galeries Lafayette terrace on the 6^th floor or Printemps Haussmann terrace on the 7^th Moreover, Sacré Coeur steps have amazing views. There’s also 9^th floor viewpoint from the Institut du Monde Arabe, which is also completely free.

Of course, this list doesn’t include the very obvious things, like walking along Seine or in Montmartre or browsing the beautiful artwork, which all are clearly free.

Here are some examples of the most popular sites:

• First Sunday of every month is free in several museums, including Musée d’Orsay, Musée L’Orangerie, Centre Pompidou (although currently closed).
• First Sunday of the months of November to March are free for various museums, like Versailles, Sainte-Chapelle and Musée Rodin.
• Louvre is free on the first Friday of the month from 6pm to 9pm. Honestly, this is by far not enough time, but if you are on a strict budget, it can be an option. You need to book free tickets in advance however.

The issue with the free admissions is that the sites are understandably crowded. Louvre for instance has reservations during free admissions, which limits the crowds. So does Musee D’Orsay. Although not every museum does. Once we were in Paris on the first Sunday of May. The queues were so insane, we simply didn’t even try getting inside any museums on that day.

Safety in Paris

Paris is overall safe for most visitors, but there are a few things you should know before your visit:

The major issue in Paris, as in other big cities around Europe is the pickpockets. The thieves are everywhere, but especially near the most famous sites and on crowded transportation. Consider having a money belt or a cross-body bag. For me personally cross-body bag works best, which I clutch, when I end up in extremely crowded places.

There are also minor scams you probably must have encountered in cities around the world. The scammers dump some trinket on you and demand money for it. Try to ignore them and don’t pick up any such trinkets – whether bracelets, flowers or whatever else.

As mentioned above, it’s best if you don’t stay in some arrondissements, as they can be dodgy at night.

What to Wear in Paris

I often see people stressing over what to wear in Paris not to stand out like a tourist. However, while the city is the fashion capital, it doesn’t mean you have to dress in designer clothes or like a model. Parisians themselves like classic clothes, simpler more muted colours. Just wearing nice and neat clothes is sufficient. If you prefer you can even wear sport clothes, it will just make you stand out a bit more.

Main suggestion is to wear comfortable shoes, as you will be walking a lot. That’s unavoidable in this amazing city. I wore flats, but you can find sneakers or anything tested and trusted.

Short Summary of the Paris Itinerary

Day 1 Highlights (Green Pins on the Map)

Start around Arc de Triomphe, then stroll the Champs-Élysées. Jardin de Trocadéro, then cross Seine to visit Eiffel Tower (you may consider skipping climbing it). Walk along the south bank of Seine all the way to Notre Dame and/or take a river cruise (depending on how much you can walk). End your evening in Saint-Germain-des-Prés or Latin Quarter.

With only one day in Paris, this route will show you some of the city’s highlights. In this case, you may also consider taking metro to Montmartre to get a glimpse of the neighbourhood.

Day 2 Highlights (Orange Pins on the Map)

Start your day early at the Louvre, then head to the Tuileries Gardens. Cross to the left bank to visit Musée d’Orsay, if you still have time. Alternatively, there’s Musée L’Orangerie.

Day 3 Highlights (Blue Pins on the Map)

Start in the Le Marais district – get your crepes 😊 Walk to Notre Dame, visit Sainte-Chappelle and maybe Conciergerie, cross Pont Neuf, walk in Latin district, visit Panthéon and Jardin de Luxembourg. Finish in Saint-Germain-des-Prés in the evening.

Day 4 Highlights (Purple Pins on the Map)

Use this day for Montmartre. Start at Sacré-Coeur, then wander around the neighbourhood. Heading down from the hill, don’t forget Le Mur Des Je T’Aime or marveling at the Moulin Rouge. Head toward the Opéra district and visit the Palais Garnier. If you love opera, you can visit a performance in the evening. Alternatively, you can go to a cabaret.

Here is my article with step-by-step itinerary for 4 days in Paris.

Extra Days: Day Trips from Paris

Versailles: The iconic palace requires at least one day and it’s a day trip from Paris. Including it in 4-day stay would be too tight, but if you have more days, this should be first on your list.

Other Tips for Visiting Paris

Museum Closures: Many sites you will be visiting will have one closing day. For instance, Louvre is closed on Tuesdays, so is Musée de l’Orangerie and Centre Pompidou. While Musée d’Orsay, Catacombs and many other sites are closed on Mondays. Although Eiffel Tower is open all year round.

Accessibility: Paris accessibility is in general good and developing. However, many metro stations lack elevators. You will have to double check in advance, before planning your itinerary. The official tourism website has relevant detailed information on accessibility.

Bag bags at the museums: Many museums and sites have limitations on bag sizes, usually backpacks aren’t allowed. But there are lockers. With the crowded museums however, I advise against bringing bigger bags to avoid locker queues. Tripods are often banned.

See Also

Paris Café Culture: From Historic Icons to Hidden Creperies

Paris cafe culture explained: tips for visiting, where to sit, and the best cafes, creperies, and patisseries to enjoy coffee, chocolate, and crepes.

Which Paris Pass Is Worth It? Honest Comparison Guide

Compare Paris Museum Pass, Paris Pass & Explorer Pass (Go City), Pass Plus & Klook. See inclusions, reservations, prices, & sample itineraries for real savings.

4-Day Itinerary for Paris

Hello I am Ket,

A traveler, planner, and sweet tooth behind Hit the Road Ket.

Travel isn’t just my passion – it’s a lifeline for my mental health. Having lived in three cities and explored 60 countries (and counting!), I created this blog to share my experiences, smart tips, and itinerary advice with fellow travel lovers.

I’m all about making the most of limited time, finding scenic routes, and turning every trip into something memorable – coffee in hand, of course.