Paris at Christmas

[c9]

1_2_ready_go and I just booked an impulse trip to Paris for Christmas. For those of you who have been, what is on the non-negotiable list? Also, where in god's name can we stay without having to take out a second mortgage?

Comments

[thespos]

I have been to Paris three times, twice during warmer weather, once during cold.

Now, you're Canadian, so I am assuming a higher tolerance for cold. :-P

I would say that the Louvre would be on the must-do list, both because of the amazing things you will see there and the fact that it is indoors. You should also go and see the Eiffel Tower and l'Arc de Triomphe, because you just should. L'Arc de Triomphe is on the Champs Elysses, and you'll have a lot of shopping you can do there, too.

As for keeping things cheap:

• Try http://www.parishuttle.com/ to get to and from the airport. Very reasonable (in my research) against taxi or rental car at €20 per person. There is also a secure feeling in knowing you have that part of the trip covered.
  
• When I went the first time, I secured a Carte Orange, which gave me unlimited use of the mass transit system, but I am not sure if it is still offered. At the time, it was like FF30 per person. Paris is very walkable if you map things out, and the bus and metro system is extensive. Even without the Carte Orange, I don't think it is terribly expensive.
  
• On my first trip, I stayed in St. Denis, just outside the city. On my last two trips, Le Grand Hôtel des Gobelins, located in the 13e arrondissement, just outside of the Latin Quarter and near le Place d'Italie. Tons of cafes, restaurants, and even convenience stores and a large supermarket, maybe a block from the hotel on Boulevard St. Marcel. It's not the city centre, and the rooms aren't huge (see http://quinnlu.net/album for Paris 2007), but the room rate can include breakfast. You will probably get a better rate through Hotels.com, as I know I didn't pay what their website is asking, and it did include breakfast.

If you do stay at Gobelins, try to get the "superior" room. Enormous bathroom, separate water closet, more windows, and you can actually walk around the bed. The pics I have up are their "standard" or "economical" room, and it was way, way tiny.

Hotels.com may have holiday specials and such, so I would definitely advise giving them a look. You will likely find something closer to the city centre that will work better for you. I selected Gobelins primarily for its proximity to where I was working, which turned out to be the best situation for me when the transit strikes hit. :-)

[bartok.livejournal.com]

Surely you must already have the cafe where Amelie worked on the itinerary?

[1-2-ready-go.livejournal.com]

I just found it in the guide book tonight. Yay!

[jpman.livejournal.com]

The Louvre. It was the only thing I liked about Paris... the crèpes were good too.

[jpman.livejournal.com]

Oh, and I liked Versaille. Indoors, so should be warm. I reccomend the audio tour, both for Versailles and the Louvre.

[senhor.livejournal.com]

Here's a link to Josh's post after our trip to London and Paris. We hit up all the major attractions, and I'd say pretty much all of them are non-negotiable. We stayed here, which was nicer than I expected. Our room had a view of the Eiffel Tower from the balcony, and a kitchenette, which helped to save some money by letting us not eat out for every meal. The bed was a pull-out, but it was still pretty comfortable. We paid about CAD125/night for the room.

::envious::

[jdhorner.livejournal.com]

everything he said.

(including the jealousy)

[sarah-sosiak.livejournal.com]

I could go on at length (I've been there thrice, once last Christmas), but the first big recommendation I'd have is to find an apartment instead of a hotel. Less expensive and you're likely to land in a non-touristy neighbourhood. I think we paid about €80 / night last winter. We were out in the 15th arr. where as tourists we were a welcome novelty at local cafes, and was convenient to one of the main train stations (I can't recall which one off the top of my head) which made getting around really easy.

I lived there for a few months

[(Anonymous)]

I like WALKING around Paris, in my opinion its the best way to see it and its fun. If you get a pocket compass, you can pretty much walk anywhere and there are lots of metro entrances everywhere. I like Montmartre and Notre Dame and walking around Pere-Lachaise but its all personal preference really.

Re: I lived there for a few months

[c9.livejournal.com]

Walking and the Metro were totally obvious for us, but it's surprising how many people are giving us advice saying "don't rent a car"... it's stunning how common the idea is that renting a car would even make sense to someone. But I guess maybe we're used to being in a city with major transit, rather than some suburb?