Paris Trip - things to do

WeegyAVLover

Right all...

As part of the wife's 40th Birthday celebration I have booked a trip to Paris (there is a trip to Australia in the offing but that is not until 2017).

We have been a few times and we have been to the Montmartre's Sacre-Coeur, Arc de Triomphe, Crazy Horse as well as loads of shopping.

I am looking for something else to do but not sure what else to do.  Now no doubt we will spend some time shopping and we are only there Friday to Sunday.  But just looking for something different that I may not think of.

There is the obvious go up the Eiffel Tower but the queues are usually mental, also any recommendations on some place to go for a meal?  Paris is some place we love and know that good food is easy to come by so that is less of a problem, just in case anyone has a recommendation.

Cheers in advance.
Col

wardmj1

I have always wanted to do this but never got the chance! Looks awesome!

Homepage The Catacombs: Official website

KyleS1

You can do a fantastic night walk (on your own, no guide needed) from Notre Dame to Arc De Triomphe taking in most of the best sights. Doing it at night is so much better than in the day. Just print a little map. You can get some great street food at St Micheal (right next to Notre Dame), then take a leisurely stroll.
I work in Paris quite a lot and always do this walk whenever I go as it is amazing. You will see Notre Dame (all lit up), St Michael street food area, a walk along the Seine, the bridge of locks (although most of the locks are gone now), the Louvre, lots of fancy buildings, Champs Elysee, Arc De Triomphe, and a bunch of other stuff that I can't remember the names. You will see the Eiffel Tower from many different places too. And it's all free!

AMc

We took my father in law who is a wheelchair user.  We were jumped straight to the front of the queue at the Eiffel Tower and we both got free entry to the first level   
Obviously you need a wheelchair for that to work .

I would say the Tower is worth the pain, but bear in mind your ticket gets you to the first level then you have to queue again to get a ticket for the top as capacity there is much lower than the first stage.  When we were there they closed the second ticket office for an hour to deal with capacity but as we had the wheelchair we weren't allowed to go higher anyway.

If you want a good view of Paris then the Montparnasse Tower is probably worth a look.
Montparnasse Tower 56th Floor Observation Deck - Paris | Viator

As Paris is deeply wheelchair unfriendly we used a hop on hop off bus by "L'open Bus".  Their routing was IMHO the best but their drivers were ... terrible.  Sold us a 1 day ticket when we needed 2, then blanked me when I asked him to fix it.  Talking on the phone while negotating the Arc d' Triomphe
We also waited an incredibly long time at Montemartre for one of the last buses back to the centre, eventually giving up and heading off by foot - at least it was downhill.

So I wouldn't recommend the bus.

We did do the Seine river cruise from the Eiffel Tower bridge which was very pleasant and relaxed and nice to have a sit down after trooping the streets.   I'd definitely do that again.

We had a nice "typically French" meal at La Poule au Pot, 9 Rue Vauvilliers, 75001 Paris, France between the Louvre and Des Halles.  They have plaques of all the famous people who've eaten there (presumably) which is quite amusing.  Food was great and if you want to do snails or frogs legs they were available.

DJT75

"Jumped a queue"
"Hopped on & off buses"
"Heading off by foot"

Are you sure he needs this wheelchair? [emoji6]

Agree on the night walking. Had a great night strolling from Notre Dame, along the river, up to the arc, then back down & crossed over the river to the tower just as they switched the lights off. Stopping for beers along the way.

AMc

We were the ones doing all the walking and pushing.  Paris cobbles and curbs are not designed for accessibility and he grumbled at every bloomin' bump and jolt.  
Poor bloke is 84 and can just manage a few steps.  One of the charming bus drivers closed the doors on us when he boarded at the level access rear door, leaving him clinging on for dear life while we ran to the front door to get on and catch him.  None of them would press the button to lower the bus to allow us to wheel him straight on
The last buses on those services are not late at all, it was may be 6.30pm but we had to walk from Monmartre to Des Halles pushing a full size man in a wheelchair with little wheels - not fun and we only stopped for dinner
Still it was a "bucket list" treat for him and despite his moaning he had a good time.  I'm sure you'll have more fun

Dony

Depends on where you are staying but in addition to the above you could go to the Augustus Rodin museum or Pere Lachaise cemetery.

WeegyAVLover

Watch out for the smelly pond life on the streets who will rob you with skill or maybe with aggression.

Paris has become about the worst anywhere for this sort of thing. Far worse than it used to be.  There was even a strike by Eiffel Tower staff in protest at the epidemic levels of aggressive begging, distraction robbery and violence accompanying robbery, against tourists and also against staff there.

You cannot now wear a day pack on your back and relax. Don't think a wallet is safe in a jacket pocket. Not in Paris.

Paris has gone down the toilet and they let it happen.

DPinBucks

I wear a backpack but that is for water and a top or a coat nothing more.  Wallet, keys money are in my trousers/jeans/cord pocket, being a bigger la, most of clothes are "under tension" so anyone slipping their hand in their is in for a struggle.