My husband and I took our first Paris trip over Thanksgiving. We did London first and then took the Eurostar to Paris for 4 days. We went through Globus, so we had a 1/2 day guided tour and river cruise included which was helpful, plus transports to and from airport/train station - very helpful. We crammed so much into 4 days. Up at 7am to bed at 2 am- We%26#39;re young and didn%26#39;t want to miss out! Things we did: 2nd platform of Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, Sacre-Coeur, Notre Dame, Champs-Elysees, Montmartre, Versailles, shopped, ate a lot of pastries and drank a lot of espresso!
One of my favorite things was spending time on Rue Cler. The small street is closed off to traffic and lined with cafes, patisseries, wine shops, cheese shops, flower shops, etc. Just a really neat place to get a good taste of french life. Really great if you love food and all that goes with it! Few block from the Eiffel Tower.
Our 2 favorite rest:
Le P%26#39;tit Troquet - wonderful tiny place. Owned and run by one lady who is precious. The menu was wonderful and they have a set menu for about $30 each for a three course. I had the foi gras, lamb, cream brulee. My husband had the salad, tenderloin, chocolate cake. We loved everything there. We did not have reservations, but there was a table available, but res are suggested. We did wander aimlessly trying to find the place as it is on a side street that was not on our map! But it was worth it!
129 rue St. Dominique 01 47 05 46 44
Bofinger - This was recommended to us by a person here in the states that lived in Paris for 13 yrs. We had our not so %26quot;thanksgiving%26quot; dinner here! Again they had a 3 course menu for about $33 each. This place has been open since the 1850%26#39;s and is decorated more 1920%26#39;s era. We had oysters,artichoke soup, deer stew, salmon %26amp; seabream, mandarin ice cream. Everything was wonderful!!! Near the Bastille.
5 rue de la bastille 01 42 72 87 82
Our fav bakery was Maison-Kayser. There was one near out hotel so we went there 4 times. Yum!
We knew a tiny bit of French and used it, but everywhere we went people were willing to speak English - usually did as soon as they saw us. Restaurants brought us English menus as well. Found most Parisians to be very helpful and kind - not like we expected. We managed to navigate the Metro fairly well and found that to be the best way to get around (next to walking!). After getting over the first hurdle of buying tickets we were good to go. We just bought 2 carnets (10 tickets= about 10 euros) and that was perfect for us.
We found Rick Steves%26#39; Paris book most helpful! (Along with all the TA reviews!!!) Going in November was great, though a little rainy. But is was nice because there were no lines or waits at the normal touristy spots. I decided: It%26#39;s ok to be a tourist and see all the touristy spots. That doesn%26#39;t mean you have to be obnoxious. Be courteous, you are a visitor, but go see those things you want to see, just add some Parisian day-to-day culture in there too! And don%26#39;t be afraid to get lost!
Feel free to ask me questions if you%26#39;re going for a first trip! Can%26#39;t wait to go back!
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nashvillechick - sounds like a terrific trip! Thanks for the tips you included, especially the 2 restaurants. We are going to Paris for the first time in September. Just wondering where you stayed? (unless I missed it in your report........) Thanks.
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We stayed at the Novotel Paris Tour Eiffel- you can read my review if you click on my profile and see the reviews there. There are pics to go with it. I would not recommend it, but it was ok. (It was part of our Globus package deal).
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La P%26#39;tit Troquet sounds wonderful....you had me at foie gras! You gave the street address, but could you tell me what arrondissement or general area the restuarant is in?
Glad you had a great trip! I can relate to the early to rise, late to bed...I do that, too, when I%26#39;m on vacation. Otherwise, I feel like I%26#39;m going to miss out on something!! :) Turns out that I feel like I need a vacation when I get home! haha
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Did you use the Metro much, or at all?
If so, thoughts?
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Le P%26#39;tit Troquet is also one of my favorites in Paris. It is on Rue de L%26#39;Exposition in the 7th. It%26#39;s incredibly tiny. But the food and the welcome are phenomenal....
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I bet someone out there knows this: is rue de l%26#39;Exposition the little street on the corner of St Dominique where the restaurant Fontaine de Mars is?
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Rue de l%26#39;Exposition runs between rue St. Dominique and rue de Grenelle, close to the Champ de Mars.
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I%26#39;m pretty sure that%26#39;s it. Thanks. I%26#39;d like to try P%26#39;tit Troquet.
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It sounds like you really had a wonderful time and were able to take advantage of every minute that you were in Paris. I guess you were very lucky with restaurants and had delicious meals that would be considered affordable by my standards.
Just out of curiosity, which hotel did you stay in?
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Really useful review, thanks, we%26#39;re off to Paris tomorrow, so we%26#39;ll use your recommendations, we%26#39;ve already reserved at table at 1728 for Saturday night - looking forward to it
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