Top Tips for Planning Your Trip to Paris Part 1
The Galerie Dior during a Paris fashion tour with Fashion Experience Tours
In the age of the internet with Instagram and TikTok, I see a lot of “best” and “must-visit” places in Paris touted by influencers and personalities with no fundamental understanding of the city, the layout or even the time things take to do. I have to laugh when someone makes a list on their first visit over a few days, offering their opinion as fact. I cringe when I see the same tourist spots suggested over and over when I know there are a million other places worth the time and energy. The one thing you never have enough of in Paris is time, but filling your itinerary with museums, Instagram hot spots, and TikTok viral locations is a recipe for burnout. Early on, I learned that Paris is best explored with a plan that’s loose enough for you to get lost.
I love making ticketed plans, like the Galerie Dior or the privatized museum tour at the Foundation Yves Saint Laurent, first thing in the morning. Lunch is planned on the terrace to take advantage of the lack of reservation needs, and the afternoons become loosely planned excursions through a garden like the Palais Royal or the covered passages nearby. Dinner should be reserved wherever possible, even on the same day, as restaurants can fill up fast and see their guests linger for many hours over coffee and dessert. Night walks are a wonderful way to see the city lit up in all its glory, including the glittering Eiffel Tower, which sparkles every hour from Sunset until 10 pm.
The Eiffel Tower during the boat cruise on my Paris fashion tour
One of the sites I like to use to plan my group tours is the official tourist page for the city of Paris: https://parisjetaime.com/eng/. You’ll find all the information you need to arrange visits to museums, restaurants, and tourist sites, and it’s a great place to discover opportunities you never knew existed, like the Fête du Pain (bread expo!) or the Beaujolais nouveau day (celebrate the wine harvest)! You’ll also find concert listings, special exhibitions, artist open houses, hotels, guided tours, tickets for landmarks and museums, free things to do and more.
Another indispensable tool in my kit is Google Maps. Not only can you use it to learn the lay of the land, but there are many helpful features to use when planning your trip. One of the best is seeing not only the location of a place you’d like to visit but opening hours, reviews, and you can even ask questions to be answered by the owner or other Google users. I always use the photos to see what the place looks like and to peruse menus, especially at places that may not have a functioning website. I have also been known to walk the streets via street view to see what other exciting things might be along a route I may not have considered. Of course, you can use it for Directions from one place to another, which is a great way to decide if you should take a metro or walk (so many times walking is faster!), but it will offer options for busses which can be a great way to see the city for the price of a ticket. There are many opportunities to personalize your map by saving locations to unique lists, and you can share them publicly or privately with friends and family.
While most of my group trip is already planned for my guests, there are still many opportunities to discover your very own special corners of Paris, and I am always happy to help. Paris is a metropolitan city with niche attractions, shops, and locations to round out your trip. It can be uniquely catered to your hobbies and favourite activities. Most people extend their trip a few days before or after, or even both, and I am available to help you add to your stay at the 4-star hotel I use for the group or help you find another hotel or location. I always include my extensive Goole map with lists of museums, restaurants, shopping and, of course, all the areas we will visit on our trip.
I hope you’ll consider joining me on my next fabulous group trip to the city of light, either May 10-17 or October 4-11, 2024! I’ve been working with my industry contacts to bring you even more behind-the-scenes exclusive opportunities, and I can’t wait to make you fall in love with Paris. Don’t miss it!