Paris - London (May 3 - May 20)

Paris

This was one of those trips where you end up saying “Yeh Dil Mange More!”. We spent a good 20 days between just these 2 cities and yet felt we could have stayed a little more. These 2 cities have so much of History and Culture, one can get overwhelmed with the information. Every street, every stone of a building has a story. One just needs time, patience and of course money to explore these cities.

This trip was planned for good 19 days – 9 Days in Paris and 10 Days in London. We planned and did all the bookings ourselves (with out any travel agents support). It was fun, exciting but time consuming (we spent about 1-2 hours every day for a month). One can get overwhelmed by the information on the internet. But if you love travelling then it is fun. I and Pankaj enjoyed every bit of planning. We felt we have experienced the entire trip even before we went there.

 

For Paris, we used the Ah! Paris http://www.ahparis.com/ (this was suggested by one of my friend) to book a service apartment. For London, we went with Chelsea Service Apartment in South Kensington, London (one of my cousins has stayed here and had recommended this place).

Tips for Paris

•  If travelling with family (especially kids or senior citizens) book short vacation homes (service apartments)
•  Choose an apartment closer to Metro and which is not on higher floor (most old buildings do not have elevators and it can get difficult to climb the stairs. Also choose an apartment within the city limits and closer to attractions. Most points are centrally located.
•  Buy metro card based on your stay duration. 
• Paris is best explored by walk. All most all the important places in Paris are walking distance from Metro station. Use metro and bus service to the maximum
• Buy Museum pass – this will work out cheaper as it covers entry to many tourist attractions. This can be purchased at FNAC store. Find the FNAC store closer to where you stay
•  Disney Land tickets are best purchased online.
• Purchase visit to Eiffel Tower tickets online.
• Check out http://www.parisnet.com/parispassfaq.html  for more details
• Fill your water bottles before you step out (if possible carry multiple bottles).  Water is more expensive that wine here L
• Carry some packed food – especially if you are a vegetarian and travelling with kids
• Learn to speak atleast few basic words like meat/no meat, how to go to a place etc. Most people here don’t speak nor understand English. It can get very difficult.
• Carry umbrella and a light jacket
• Avail Audio guide wherever available. They are worth it - even if you have to pay. Many places the audio guides are free.
• Lot of museums, after a point all seem same. There is too much of information. Choose which you would like to cover based on your interest. The visits to museums can be very tiring.

Must See

• Louvre
• Versallies (don’t miss the musical fountains)
• Eiffel tower
• Notre Dame
• Palace Garnier
• Arc De Triumph and Champ Elysisses
• Disney Land (if travelling with kids)

This was our itenary

Fri 3rd May 2012

Check-in to service apartment. Buy museum cards and metro card. Relax .

Fri 4th May 2012

1.    Walk to Eglis St-Eustachce

Huge Pillar and Arches at Eglis St-Eustachce Church

This is a huge church and also pretty old. It is very well maintained. Try and visit in the morning. The sound of organ is very melodious.

2.    Walk to Royal Palace

10 min walk from Eglis St-Eustachce.  Entry to this palace is not permitted. The palace has a huge garden which is very well maintained with maneuvered trees and beautiful fountains. We took a small break here.

3.    Walk to Louvre museum

10 min walk from Royal Palace is Louvre Museum. Have the tickets purchased in advance or best option is to go with Museum Pass. You will need a minimum of 1 full day to cover atleast the major attractions of the museum. Collect the maps from the Information help desk and plan your day on what to cover. The museum has 3 wings and it is very tiring. Wear comfortable foot ware – snickers.  Carry enough food and water. Eatables and drinks/water are pretty expensive inside the museum.  If you are travelling with very small children, avoid covering all parts in one day. It can get overwhelming and irritating for smaller kids.

The garden/Jardians are beautiful in the evening. Stay back after sunset around Louvre to see the lighting and view of Eiffel Tower lit with thousands of light bulbs. It is worth an experience.

Information
Opening hours: Monday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday: from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Wednesday, Friday: from 9 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.
closed on Tuesday. Rooms begin closing 30 minutes before museum closing time.

Entrances to the museum

·         Pyramid and Galerie du Carrousel entrances: every day (except Tuesday) from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. starting from July 1, 2012)

·         Passage Richelieu entrance: every day (except Tuesday) from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays)

·         Porte des Lions entrance: every day except Tuesday and Friday. Opening hours: please contact us at +33 (0) 1 40 20 53 17 (except Tuesdays).

4.   La Defense (Monument)

La Defense (monument) is walking distance from Louvre - right behind the gardens. 

Sat 5th May 2012

1.    Versailles

A must see attraction when visiting Paris. It is full day trip from Paris. Their is direct train - RER from Paris to Versailles. From the Versailles station, the palace is a 10 min walk. Visit all the sites and also plan for the visit when they have musical fountains. They also have a musical show, which is typically in french. Hence we did not opt for the show. The musical fountains and palace are really beautiful. The palace is rich in architecture, the paintings and all the antiques are well preserved. The grandeur of palace is unimaginable. 

Museum Pass site (http://en.parismuseumpass.com/musee-musee-national-des-chateaux-de-versailles-et-de-trianon-64.htm)

The PARIS MUSEUM PASS includes access to all unguided tours, open according to the season: the "Grands Appartements", the Hall of Mirrors, the King's Bedchamber, the Queen's Bedchamber, the Dauphin and Dauphine apartments as well as those of Louis XV's daughters (weekends only), exhibitions, the Trianon Castles and the Estate of Marie-Antoinette.

Sun 6th May 2012

 1.    Notre Dame 

Check the timings before planning a visit. It is recommended to start early if you wish you climb to the top of Notre-Dame. There is a limit on the visitor who are allowed and queue can get pretty long unless started early. The views from top are amazing. This is a very old church but beautiful. The high ceilings, huge hand painted windows, the richness of the church and history leave you speech less.

Also visit Place De la Concorde (square with obelisk where Marie etc were guillotined.

•  Notre Dame Cathedral – 9am to 6pm
• Tours De Notre Dame (10am to 6:30 daily)
• Crypte Archeological Notre Dame are covered in the museum pass (10am to 6pm)

2.    Ste-Chapella

•  9:30 to 6pm, 400m from Notre Dame, backside road of the crypt
•  Paris museum pass covers this

3. La Conceiergerie

•  (9:30am to 6pm, 100m from Ste-Chapella)
• Paris museum pass covers this

 From La Conceriergere, walk to Pont Neuf bridge (400m away, built in 1607). You can experience some ice-creams which Paris boasts about.

4. Palais Garnier (opera house, plan for guided tour, check website)

Must visit palace. Superb opera house. It is very rich, unimaginable. This not covered in the museum pass. At the helpdesk ask for a guided tour. It is worth a visit.

5. Arc De Triumphe

Take the metro to Arc De Triumphe which is open form 10am to 11pm. Get a ticket to visit at the top (Paris Museum pass covers this). Visit to top is only through stairs and can be challenging for elderly and small kids. Visit around sun set is good - as you will get a view during the day and also when lights come on the busy streets of Champ Elysses and Eiffel Tower. 12 roads meet at this arc and it looks superb.

6. Champ Elysses 

After visitng Arch De Triumphe walk through Champ Elysses street to experience the downtown of Paris. Best time is early evening after sunset.

Mon 7th May 2012

 1. Basilique du Sacré Coeur de Montmartre

One can take a metro to this place. This place is different from other parts of Paris. You see hawkers selling on road side, lot of people gambling on road side. This is not covered by Museum pass – cost is 5 euros.

Moulin Rouge is 1.2km walk from the basilique, but shows are in the evening and very expensive. If you are travelling with kids, can visit this :(. 

2. Centre Georges Pompidou (Place Georges Pompidou)

This is  covered by Museum pass. Unlike other museums, this has all modern art. The building itself is pretty different. Can be skipped. This was very close to the apartment we stayed, hence visited this place.

Tue 8th May 2012

 1.    EGLISE SAINT GERMAIN DES PRES

2.    Rodin Museum 

If you are fan of Rodin, this is a place to visit. The museum is not very big and can be covered in 1-2 hours. The sculptures are well maintained in the open garden

3.    Orsay Museum 

4.   Eiffel Tower

Open all days till 11pm.  Check the lift operation and book your tickets well in advance. Tickets can be booked online. 

5.    Bateaux mouches River cruise

This can be covered while visiting Eiffel tower. No need to  book in advance.  Go to the cruise place at Pont de l'Alma, Paris, France (900 m from Eiffel Tower). Frequent trips are available and you can choose as per your convenience

Wed 9th May 2012

 1.    Bois de Vincennes (8km from apt)

http://en.parisinfo.com/paris-sightseeing/explore-the-parisian-south-east/in-and-around-the-bois-de-vincennes/

Palace- 10am to 6pm all days.  

Chataeu De Vincennes is covered by Paris pass. Park is 9:30am to 8pm (3 euros)

2.    Pantheon 

3. Musée de l'Orangerie (for water lilies) 

4. Saint Louis chateau

Beautiful castle at the end of metro line

Thu 10th May 2012

Special Disneyland Paris Ticket Prices - Only available online

• Disneyland
• Walt Disney Studios: 10:00-22:30
• Disneyland Park: 10:00-18:00

Both the Disneyland and Studio are excellent, though much smaller in scale than the parks in Florida USA. Studio is open for longer duration, check the show times and plan your day. The park and studio are not far apart. It is better to purchase a combo ticket as you will have sufficient time to cover both the parks.

Fri 11th May 2012

We look a train Euro-Star from Paris to London. This was a unique experience, especially the thought that for some time we would be riding into the underground tunnel in the sea. The trains ride was fun, but the moving from the metro line to Euro line in the metro station was very tiring. We had not imagined that the station would be so huge and so many levels. With all the luggage moving on escalator which are huge and very fast moving was an overwhelming experience.  

Book the train tickets well in advance as the prices steep up as the day of travel gets closer.