A couple days ago a friend wrote me asking for my suggestions for a trip to Paris. I put together some ideas for her and then realized I should write a blog post about my time in Paris! I got married in 2015 and we honeymooned in Europe. It was the most amazing trip of my life and I do plan to cover bits and pieces of it here eventually. We did a Mediterranean Cruise followed by spending time in Italy, France and Ireland. We spent 3 lovely days in Paris, though it was quick we still managed to squeeze in quite a bit. As they say, Paris is always a good idea!
3 Days In Paris
Where We Stayed
We stayed at Hotel Du Prince Eugene which is located in the 11 arrondissement on the east side of Paris. The hotel is located right next to Nation subway station which will connect you to where ever you need to go. The area felt safe and was relatively quiet compared to other more touristy areas. The rooms were small compared to North American standards but we had everything we needed, the space was efficiently used and the hotel was clean. The staff were friendly and were willing to answer any questions we had about how to get around. Overall, we would definitely stay here again!
What We Did
We managed to squeeze in a lot in our three days in Paris. The key to that was planning as much as we could in advance. We researched what we wanted to see in advance and booked the tours we wanted to do online.
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a must see in Paris. We bought tickets to go to the top and we did a boat tour of the Seine so we could see it from the water. We booked our Eiffel Tower tickets 60 days in advance when they went on sale. This allowed us to skip the ticket line and expedite the security process. The views from the top will take your breath away.
Paris Museum Pass
We bought the Paris Museum Pass to see a bunch of attractions for a low cost in Paris. You can buy the pass for a set amount of days and use it as much as you want. In most places it actually allows you to skip the line as well. We visited Notre Dame, sadly closed right now due to the fires.
We explored the Louvre, we were very lucky to have the pass to skip the line because we managed to go on the one free day of the month so the line was crazy. Seeing the Mona Lisa was incredible but she is way smaller then you would think!
We climbed the Arc de Triomphe, just as a side note there is an underground tunnel to get to it. Don’t try and run through the roundabout like we did. I am still amazed we didn’t die.
All of these attractions were included in the pass so it was well worth the money.
Other Things We Did
We sailed on a boat on the Seine. There are a ton of boat operators that do this so just find one that has a time that works for you. It was a beautiful experience to see all the gorgeous scenery of Paris from the Seine.
We did a night car tour with Paris Authentic in a vintage 2CV. You understand how Paris got the name City of Light when you see it at night. Our tour guide was so lovely and told us so many little stories about Paris that were fascinating. We got to see bits of Paris we never would have otherwise. I cannot recommend this tour enough.
Don’t forget to have a picnic in a park with local meats, cheeses, and breads you can find at shops. There is no greater pleasure then eating fresh French food outside.
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