A Holiday In Paris

Traveling to Paris without knowing much was not a good idea, so you do not make the same mistake I wanted to share some tips with you so you can spend more time enjoying Paris. This city is worth a visit and do not think all French people are rude , they are not.
You need to have a holiday in Paris

I am 40 years old and just had my first taste of traveling overseas with my daughter and two other ladies. Our first stop was Paris, now I must point out that my daughter Kaleena has been a bit obsessed with anything to do with Paris for a few years so we stopped in at Paris for her and me . We have 3 days and a case of jet lag to see as much as we can.
I must say arriving in the most visited city in the world I was shocked at the state of the airport ,it needs an overhaul.
The taxi service is expensive and they don't like to take more than 3 people, they charge extra for each person and extra luggage. Next time I would catch the metro from the airport or a bus and save a lot of money to spend elsewhere in this wonderful city.
Seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time was breath taking and very surreal that we are actually here.
As soon as you put your bags in your room get back out there and take in as much of this city as you can , we went in the middle of August so the weather was not to hot and not to cold although I would be happy to spend a summer in Paris.
I would recommend you stay near Sorbonne University , this is a good reference point when booking accommodation ,this is where all the cafes and good eating places are and you can walk along the river down to the Eiffel Tower.

  The things we learned after traveling around Paris in 3 days is amazing really considering we have never traveled before.
If you are going to go up the Eiffel Tower and who would not do this if you are in Paris , get there early in the morning around 8.30am is good but be prepared you will still have to wait as all the tour groups get first preference .

Be ready for security checks , it is like going through an airport but at least you know you will be safe all the way up the top.
Please do not speak to the gypsies , they are very sneaky and cunning. You will be able to spot them and the first thing they do is ask if you speak English. Do not answer , just ignore them and hold your bag at the front of your body with it done up at all times when in the high tourist areas.

You will also get swarmed by people selling statues and scarves etc they just keep coming up to you all around this area.
They also sell fake handbags stay away from these guys as you don't want to get caught buying a fake.
They have a lot of random police raids on these guys as most are in Paris illegally , I must say it was funny when you heard the police sirens and they packed up and ran for their lives. We did see some get caught.
If you buy water from a guy on the street make sure the seal is intact before you hand over your money also the food around the Eiffel tower is not to badly priced , our favorite was the fresh baguettes and the crepes.
If you can get your head around how the metro works this is a very cost efficient and quick way to get around , but be prepared to get on and of a lot and change trains. Also you very rarely get a sit so not suitable if you are unable to go up lots of stairs or stand on a very fast moving train.
The metro runs on time and waits for no one so be quick getting on and of.

My suggestion would be to buy a hop on hop off bus pass, it is valid 24 hours a day and goes to all the popular stops,I wish we did this as we could have gone out at night and taking in the different scenery.
This is another point I have to share with you, go out at night and make sure you see the Eiffel tower light show, we missed it but it is amazing around the tower at night.

My daughter was lucky enough to have dinner at the Eiffel Tower for her birthday, the food was amazing and the service was perfect, we sat near the window and all I can say is magical. You can pre book this on the internet before you go and allow time to get your pass to go up the tower and the line up for the lifts to reach the restaurant. A lot of people go up the tower at night so it is very busy coming down as well.
If you can avoid catching taxis please do as they can be rude and will over charge you if they can or take you the long way.

Montmarte Is worth the trip, as you will be going to the highest point of Paris and the views are well worth the effort. This little area of Paris is
full of artist with their work on display for you to buy or just admire , also you can have your portrait drawn by one of the many artists. If you are going to do this make sure you walk around first and have a look at their work as they can be very differing in styles.
You will find plenty of eating places and gift shops hear so you will not get bored.

The Louvre was a surprise for me , the size was a lot bigger than expected. Allow time to go inside , we did not get to do this due to our time frame and once again the line ups were long and it was reasonably warm to be standing out in the sun. What an amazing building , I just cant get my head around how they built some of these buildings without the machinery we have today. The detailing is incredible and so perfect.I couldn't help but try to picture all the workers building and carving all the statues and buildings.

Champs Elysees is also one place you need to go, be prepared for the walk up the narrow spiral stair case. It is a long way up but once again the view is amazing.
I am sure you can tell i like Paris by now and I would go back in a heartbeat if I could afford it.

Walking along the Siene river is a great way to discover Paris, if you are walking towards the Tower from the Notre Dame walk on the right side of the river , we found the views to be a lot nicer than the left side. Please take your time for this and allow time , you will stop so many times along the way to take photos and detour of a little.

You will not be bored in Paris that is for sure, we only saw 3 days worth but you could easily fill in 2 weeks traveling around. Euro Disney would be a place to go if you are taking children with you, my choice would be to go with your partner as it is a very romantic city. One thing you can do is take a padlock with you and go to the bridge of love.
This is how it works , write or engrave your names on a padlock and lock it on the fence along the bridge , then throw the keys in the river. You kiss and make a wish and then hopefully your wish will come true. Most couples do this at night.

Luxembourg gardens are worth the walk around, very peaceful and pretty, how lucky are the locals to have this at their doorstep. Chairs are provided all around the gardens as well as play areas for children. A nice cafe is also situated in the gardens so the time you spend here is up to you.

The cruise can be done during the day or maybe you would like to try a nice night cruise with dinner included, by choice I would do both , night and day in Paris is a totally different feel.
The different choices of boats is huge so maybe have a look around first and check out the prices.
Paris views by the river are spectacular , you see so much more than going by bus or foot. It is a good chance to try out your photography skills as well , you need to be ready and you will find that there is so much to see you may have to go twice.
We did not know about this one so check this out , what a great way to go , Batobus offers a different approach to cruising the Seine, operating as a water shuttle, with eight stops in a circular route along the Seine. You can buy a ticket for 1, 2, or 5 days of unlimited stops.

If you are not there in the middle of summer I suggest a scarf and light jacket and even an umbrella, it can be a bit breezy on some of the boats and you just do not know when the rain will start.

Although I missed out on the night cruise I could imagine the Eiffel Tower looking amazing as usual with all the lights on and showing of as it does.
Please leave some comments on your experience of your cruise.