I will have four days in Paris with my parents and spouse. What should we do?

Question

my parents have never been and cannot walk a tremendous amount

Answer 1

You can check this website http://123phototravel.blogspot.com/2008/...

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Good luck

Answer 2

Luckily, Paris has a very dense public transport system and there is almost no place in central Paris that is more than a few blocks from either a Metro station or bus stop.

Further, many sights are in very close proximity to each other. For example, Notre Dame and Saint Chapelle are seperated by only a wide plaza and a city block and the Conciergerie is around the corner from Saint Chapelle.

EDIT:I will now compose an itinerary for you and post it here  in sections as I write it for you:

Morning Day One

Well, on the first day take the Metro or RER to the St. Michel stop. When you exit the station you'll be on the banks of the Seine and should be able to see Notre Dame on the Ile de la Cite, the island in the river where Paris began centuries before the birth of Christ.

By way of orientation, you will be on the Left Bank which is south of the Seine and in northwest corner of the "Latin Quarter" which is the 5th arrondissement. The Right Bank is to the north of the Seine and the Ile de la Cite. The Eiffel Tower, which can be seen from many vantage points is to the west. So facing the Eiffel tower your left is south and your right is north. From where you stand at this moment you are facing north across the river and the west is to your left.

As your father is a military history fan he might recognize the large rather plain building across the river and to the west of Notre Dame as the prefecture of police which the Resistance seized during the Paris uprising against the n**i Occupation.

Cross the river and walk towards Notre Dame. In the plaza in front of Notre Dame you'll find the point zero marker from which all distances are measured in France. Notre Dame itself is a "working" church and the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. Entry is free to the church itself but the "treasury" and the bell tower have entrance charges. Although the view from the bell tower is very nice the walk up is quite difficult and the lines usual quite long so I presume you should skip this. The items in the treasury are interesting but probably not worth either the time or the admission fee.

Now walk back across the plaza, cross the street, and continue walking along the quai to the next street, turn right and the courts building (Palais de Justice). Hidden inside this large structure is Saint Chapelle, a marvelous little church built by Louis IX to house the Crown of thorns. There will almost surely be a line to enter but it is well worth the visit.

When you exit, continue walking north until you reach a bridge that crosses over to the Right Bank. Don’t cross but turn left and you will reach the Conciergerie, a medieval castle that was the headquarters of the Grand Concierge, an important official of the King’s court. During the Revolution it was turned into a prison and Marie Antoinette was held here. You can view her cell and the small courtyard where condemned Royalist prisoners awaited the tolling of a small bell that announced the arrival of the tumbrels that would take them to their death on the guillotine.

When you exit continue walking in the same direction until you reach the next street. Turn left and you’ll find the Tavern Henri IV. This might be a good moment to have a glass of wine and a light lunch. The taverns owner is a real wine expert and his choices are always excellent. The food, although very nice, is an afterthought and limited to a few quiches, a sandwich offering or two and some cheese plates. It’s a very pleasant and authentic place. Try it.

After eating, cross the street and you’ll find some stone steps leading down to a small park at the very top of the Ile de la Cite. Here is where Jacques de Molay, Grand Master of the Knights Templar was burnt at the stake on the 18 March, 1314 at the order of King Phillip IV with the connivance of Pope Clement V. As the flames consumed him he proclaimed his innocence and called upon the King and the Pope to meet him before God in judgement. Both would die within the year.

You should now be able to see the dock where the “Vedettes de {Pont Neuf” depart from. You can now take a relaxing little cruise that will further help orient you to the city as the boat heads west on the Seine to view, among other things, the Eifel tower. The cruise is one hour long so you can relax and sllow lunch to settle. If you go to their website you can print out a coupon that will get you a discount on the fare. You may also buy the tickets online. http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/

Day One Afternoon

Now you need only cross the Seine heading north, take a left along the Quai Louvre, continue on to the rue de l’Amiral de Coligny, turn right and the entrance to the courtyard of the Louvre Museum. The rest of the day should be spent in the Louvre and even at that you will have only enough time for a glimpse at some of the highlights. Rather than trying to see everything (which is simply impossible) take the time to sit and take a serious look at some of the most famous pieces. You may wish to take some time and puruse the museum websit to familiarlize yourself with the layout and determine what you want to see.  http://www.louvre.fr/llv/commun/home.jsp...

Day Two Morning

You’ve lready seen the Eiffel Tower from the Seine boat ride but today you can get a closer view. Ordinarily I suggest that people take in the view of the Eiffel Tower from the Trocadero across the river. But the walk down and across the river to the tower itself is rather long and may be beyond the comfort level of your parents. Its certainly longer than four city blocks which I am using as the maximum your mother can comfortably walk. So I’ll assume that you go directly to the tower.

Its really impressive just to get under the thing and look up. You need to do this to get an understanding of how big it is. Getting up in the tower usually entails some serious waiting on line. Whether its really worth it is difficult to say. Most people rave about the view although my personal opinion is that the time and expense just isn’t justified. Its up to you.

After the Eiffel tower walk under the tower and away from the river where you’ll find a taxi stand. Public transportation from here to our next destination is a problem (it takes longer to walk to the and from the appropriate stops than the distance of the ride) and the cab ride will be short and relatively inexpensive.  Ask the driver to take you to Les invalides and specify the entrance on the Avenue de Tourville. The distance is about a kilometer.

Les Invalides was built by Napoleon to house his wounded soldiers. On this site there are three things to see. The French Army Museum, the tomb of Napoleon and the Museum of Models and Maps. That last is something missed by most visitors but is really quite interesting as it has three-dimensional models of France’s fortified cities. The exhibits were created for the French military and were not open to public view until the 1950’s.

The French Army museum is fascinating, not the least for its description of the French surrender to the Germans in WWII as “France changes her tactics.” Also, take a look at the models of French and German tanks. They are made on different scales to conceal the fact that French tanks were actually larger, better armored and had heavier guns. http://www.invalides.org/

This should take you thru the rest of the morning and into the early afternoon so you might consider having lunch in the Museum's cafeteria.

Day Two Afternoon

Walk back to the Avenue Tourville and turn left to the Boulevard des Invalides. Cross the Stree and turn left again walking to the rue de Varenne. Turn right and walk about ¾ of a block to the Musée Rodin. http://www.musee-rodin.fr/ This is a very pleasant and easily managed museum. If it’s a nice day the Museum gardens are a treat with both gorgeous flowers and sculpture. It’s a very relaxing place to be.

Now walk back to the Boulevard des Invalides, cross the street and find the entrance to the Varenne metro station. Take the metro marked Direction : Gabriel-Peri-Asnieres Gennevilliers one stop to the Invalides station and transfer to the RER C marked “Direction : Massy-Palaiseau” and take it to the Musee d'Orsay stop.

The Musee D’Orsay is housed in the former Gare D’Orsay and is a lovely museum showing the impressionists.. You should spend the rest of the afternoon here.

Answer 3

I guess sightseeing cruise is the best option:

Sightseeing Cruise

River of Seine is one of the most popular symbols of Paris. The boat trip is one of the best ideas to combine the sightseeing and the sunset over the city. On http://en.vedettesdeparis.com you can book a boat just for you, the company can help you select the best time and catering options.

The article is how romantic Paris can get, but I think you need exactly this Sightseeing Cruise if you can not walk too much.

I got it from here:

http://blog.lessno.com/archives/151

Answer 4

Easy!

You should go on one of the classic Paris July 4-day part-walk/mainly drive - but pick up enthusiastic walkers - subway/bus/boat live jazz chocolate factory tours.

There are so many operators of these tours that you should have no difficulty finding one that also incorporates a significant military history element.

Bon voyage!!!

Answer 5

OK - Must sees are:

The Eiffel Tower (Given)

Musee de Louvre

A boat ride on the Seine

Dinner at a French Restuarant

Answer 6

You can rent a "velib'" it's a free service bike in paris, it's wonderful to ride in paris as slow as you want and not to get other people annoyed. The first hour is free and then it's very cheap. You have to see Montmartre (wonderful) with its tiny paved streets and the view on lightned Paris is awesome. As the others have said, french restaurant, Eiffel Tower (but you have to kinda like queuing up), the Invalides, The Alexandre 3rd bridge, L'obelisque de la Concorde. Avoid to rent a car to drive in Paris, the Parisain way of driving is soo agressive, not for the average amrican who is stressless while driving (cliché). Just use the subway, you buy a 24h ticket in the morning and you're free. Ther's plenty of little restaurant whiwh are very romantic and cheap, 25€ per persons is for a very good meal. If you're bored of paris, you can take the train and go to deauville, it's beautiful, just 2h in the high speed train.

Be careful on the Champ Elysés, ther's lot of poor people from the surbub who steal purses.

Enjoy !