Overall Romantic Experience *****
Paris is a wonderful destination for a honeymoon; it has more art, history and culture packed into its charming arrondissements (neighborhoods) than they have in most countries. You can stroll along the Seine, spend hours chatting in an intimate café, experience some of the best shopping on the planet, wander among the world’s art treasures, and enjoy the best food anywhere. If you are planning a romantic getaway, you can’t go wrong with Paris.
TIMING
You should time your trip carefully. Summer and fall have the best weather. April in Paris is a bit of a myth… it’s usually cold and damp then. August is also a month to avoid France. All the natives are on vacation, those remaining resent being there, and Paris in particular is flooded with tourists. May, June, September and October are the best months to visit Paris.
If you are just doing Paris you can schedule a week or so for your vacation; if you are trying to see another part of France along with Paris (highly recommended), you will want at least ten days. Two or three weeks is really the optimum; you can really explore the country in a leisurely manner and not feel stressed or rushed. There is such diversity in France that you can enjoy very different experiences just a few hours apart.
For a week or so in Paris, here is what I would do:
I would stay in the 6th arrondissement which is St. Germain des Près. It’s my favorite neighborhood in Paris, with several small and charming hotels, great shops, beautiful parks, and a fantastic open air market. There are also plenty of small jazz clubs and discos for nightlife. It’s a central location, convenient to everything, and you can walk everywhere.
I would take a couple of days and get the “famous sights” out of the way… Arc de Triomphe, Tour Eiffel, Notre Dame, Sacré Coeur, Les Invalides, Panthéon, etc. If you like museums, then of course you’ll want to do the Louvre, but there are several small museums that I like a lot more; the Rodin Museum and the Musée Marmottan (devoted mainly to Monet) are two of my favorites. If you are interested in history, there is plenty to keep you busy for the entire week. But please don't spend all of your days sightseeing. Spend some time just walking through the various neighborhoods and getting to know the city.
Rue Moufftard
One of my favorite streets on the Left Bank is Rue Mouffetard; if you go to the Panthéon, there is a church right behind it. From there you walk down Rue Descartes and that runs into Rue “Mouffe”. It has a marché (open air market) and then it has lots of little restaurants that are cheap and fun, often with a guitar player or other live music. I also love Rue Saint André Des Arts which is right off the Place Saint Michel. Another marché is on Rue de Buci, at the other end of St. André des Arts. You can make a great lunch by just walking around the markets, finding great cheeses, salads, fruits, prepared foods and of course, a pastry from a patisserie. The whole area of Saint Germain and Saint Michel is an amazing place to walk around; you’ll never get tired of it.
Place Dauphine is another one of my favorite places, it’s so serene and removed from the hustle bustle of the city. There are always old gentlemen playing pelote in the square and it’s just a nice place to sit for a while, maybe enjoy a picnic. It’s on the opposite end of Ile de la Cité from Notre Dame, near the Palais de Justice. And of course the Ile St. Louis is fun to wander through; be sure to stop at Berthillon for the city’s most delicious ice cream (“glace”) in an amazing variety of flavors. Place des Vosges is a beautiful square on the Right Bank, with a park in the middle. And Le Marais is a neighborhood filled with youthful energy, with lots to do and see. I love Sacré Coeur, I just think it’s the most beautiful landmark in Paris. And Montmartre is a charming neighborhood, although it’s changed a lot since I lived there… a little seedier now, and not someplace you want to hang out at night. (Forget the Moulin Rouge and Place Pigalle; they are tourist traps and totally not worth your time or money.)
HOTELS
St. Germain des Prés specifically and the Left Bank in general are my favorite locations to stay in Paris. I can recommend these romantic hotels in this area which are all charming, quiet, well-located and reasonably priced for their hotel class:
Hôtel de L’Abbaye St. Germain – We’ve stayed here twice and have really enjoyed it.
L'Hotel - Oscar Wilde's famous last resting place... before Pere Lachaise. Chic, hip, perfectly located... more expensive than some of the others but a great value for the price.
Relais Christine - Elegant, quiet, charming, also perfectly located in the heart of St. Germain. A true 4* property, perfect for honeymoons and special occasions.
Hôtel des Grands Hommes - Great location, many of the rooms have balconies which overlook the Panthéon next door and Sacré Coeur in the distance. Also close to Rue Mouffetard, one of my faves.
Hôtel Luxembourg Parc – Facing the Luxembourg Gardens, a lovely, quiet setting; highly rated by TripAdvisor.
My absolute favorite hotel on the Right Bank is the Hôtel Napoléon. It’s right near the Arc de Triomphe, just off the Champs Elysée. Great hotel in a great location!
SHOPPING
Galeries Lafayettes has always been my favorite but there are several other big department stores where you can spend a rainy afternoon. Check out Printemps, Bon Marché, and Samaritaine (which is right on the Pont Neuf and which has the best free view of Paris from its rooftop). The elegant boutiques of Paris are unparalleled; you can find the best of everything there. Stroll along the Faubourg St. Honoré and window shop, and also check out the boutiques in Saint Germain. At some point stop into Shakespeare & Co., an American/English bookstore on the left bank, overlooking the Seine, not far from Notre Dame. It’s been there forever and has served for decades as a classic meeting place for Americans in Paris. It’s another great place to spend a rainy afternoon; just find a book and pull up a chair.
Notre Dame de Paris
If you are there on the weekend you might wan to visit the Marché aux Puces (technically, a flea market) at Saint Ouen, which is enormous, diverse, and a great place to find some very cool souvenirs. The best way to get there is the metro, exit Porte de Clignancourt. It's a fun way to spend a Sunday.
DINING
Food, glorious food! It’s everywhere, and it’s all great! There are literally hundreds of wonderful restaurants in every price range; listing them is beyond the scope of this site. Of course you can and should dine at one or two temples of haute cuisine; be prepared to pay around $200 and up per person, especially now that the dollar/euro ratio is so terrible. But pay particular attention to the “baby bistros” which have been opened by the leading chef’s of Paris; some examples are Bistro de l’Etoile, Les Bookinistes, Le Petit Yvan, La Rôtisserie d'Armaillé, L’Atelier de Maitre Albert, La Rotisserie d’en Face, l’Obélisque, Market, Spoon, and l’Atelier du Joel Robuchon. There you can enjoy food prepared by 3 star chefs at very reasonable prices. Check along Rue Mouffetard (in the 5th) and Rue des Cannettes (in the 6th, near St. Sulpice church); both have numerous excellent, small, and reasonably priced restaurants, bars, and night spots. We also frequent the many wine bars of Paris, such as l’Ecluse, Willi’s, Le Tartine, and Bistro des Augustins. You can sample a huge variety of wines, most of which you will never see in the U.S., and enjoy great food… not fancy, just delicious and well-priced. Check www.gayot.com which is an excellent reference for restaurants in Paris and throughout France. There are so many restaurants in every price range, you’ll have a hard time getting a bad meal.
GETTING AROUND
Whatever you do... don't drive!!! You don't need or want a car in Paris. If you plan on touring the countryside, plan to pick up your car on your last day in Paris, then after your trip you can drop it off at the airport. (Even with the drop charge it's a better option than returning to Paris and then taking a cab to CDG.) The metro is great, very convenient and very safe; if you are there for a week, you might want to purchase a “Carte Orange”, which is a discounted pass for the metro and bus system. I also like taking the bus, there are stops everywhere and you get a great view of the neighborhoods, which you don’t get from the underground metro.
If you stay for a week, spend a couple of days sightseeing and then pick a neighborhood each day and explore it thoroughly on foot; walking is the best way to experience the city. If you take the map of Paris and draw a line between Sacré Coeur and The Bastille and the Jardin de Luxembourg and the Tour Eiffel and the Arc de Triomphe and back up to Sacré Coeur, you can pretty much see everything of importance within that circle. It makes it easier to focus your time and walking energy.
The best part of the city is not the monuments or the museums, it’s the people and the neighborhoods and going inside a supermarket and seeing what is there and peeking inside of courtyards and seeing life going on all around you. And all the time having the Tour Eiffel and Sacré Coeur and Notre Dame in the distance, reminding you that you are in the most beautiful city in the world.
