What things should i deffinatly do and see while i'm in Paris??

Question

Spring break! And my 2 sisters, my parents and i are going to paris!!! What are the must do's and must see's? Both my sisters are older than 12 so they'res no issues with maturity and as for me i'm 16 and way into the artsy stuff, history and..well we all love to shop.

got any ideas for us? any of you ever been?

Answer 1

The Louvre, Eiffel Tower, a river trip along the Seine, Monmarte, Notre Dame for sure.

Answer 2

I was just in europe 2 years ago and i had a BLAST!! of course, you are gonna want to see the eiffel tower, then to the Arc de triumph, the shan ze louise its the famous strip where all the celebs go shopping and they have a ton of cool stores, then you should also go on this boat tour, they take you to see things you otherwise cant see by foot.. also the famous art museum but you would need a couple of days just at that place alone b/c theirs soo much to see. You will have a blast, its been the best place ive ever gone too!!!

Have fun!! hope this helps

Answer 3

Well you should see all the standard tourist sights if for no other reason than you can "one up" most of your friends when you're watching some TV show or a movie which is set in Paris by shouting "I've been there!"

So yeah, go see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, The Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur, the Opera Garnier, etc etc.

You should also give at least some time to the major museums (the Louvre, Musee D'Orsay, Centre Pompidou, Cluny Museum) so you can drop names of famous painters and works of art when you take art history in college. It'll be worth an extra grade and impress the professor when you tell him that you really thought Davinci's Madonna and Child with St.Anne was a cooler painting than the Mona Lisa (they are in the same exhibition room at the Louvre).

I assume that as you will be with the parental units your freedom of action is limited.

So here is some stuff they might let you do:

1) Check out the big plaza in front of the Centre Pompidu (Which contains the Museum of Modern Art). On most sunny afternoons you'll find all sorts of street entertainers there. Among these will almost always be some guys doing big involved audience participation comedy bits. When they call for volunteers (and they always do) don't hesitate to stand up. The fact that you probably don't speak French will be NO problem. These guys tend to be very good and very funny. You'll have a great time and if you can have someone snap a picture you'll have a great story to tell when you get home (and a photo to prove it).

2) If you have a skateboard bring it along and head over to the Forum des Halles (which is only a few blocks from the Pompidu). You'll find a lot of young skate board enthusiasts hanging out there. A chance for a great photo of you doing a 180 frontside ollie in the Parisian equivalent of the Mall.

3) At ten p.m. every Friday night thousands of people gather in the the Place d'Italie and proceed to rollerskate thru the streets accompanied by a special Police unit to clear the way and keep them safe. Here's a little website about it: http://www.inlineonline.co.uk/paris.htm

4) Go to the movies. The French love American movies and in many theaters they show them in English with French subtitles. Its fun to watch something, especially comedies, and see how people react who don't speak English.

5) Shopping in Paris is a major activity.

Check out the big department stores...heres a list: http://www.parisinfo.com/paris_shopping/...

Go out to the flea markets...here's a list of them: http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/Par...  The Puces de Saint-Ouen is, in my opinion, the best.

Answer 4

There are lots of things to see

Just walking around is nice and there are lovely builings and monuments (eg Alexander III bridge has some lovely gold statues across it and Napoleon square(?) with an egyptian monument ) and the large park (forgotton name).

Places to see are of course the Eiffel tower (you can walk up it...but I took the lift...much easier), you have to walk up other structures like the arc de triumphe...but the views are great (Sacre coeur also has great views ,but its not essential).

THe Louvre has some neat things to see and you can leave and come back later in the day if you get tired of walking around.

I loved saint chapelle, a church that has full lenght stianed glass windows on all walls.  Its really lovely.

Notre Dame is also good for a looksee and you can go (a small fee) into the vaults which have lots of gold stuff they used in the past.

You can go for a boat ride on the seine (and see the side of Notre dame, which is more spetactular than the view from the front).

You can also go out to Versailles to see it (or get a guided tour which takes you out there etc).  Its the largest palace in the world and although a lot of the rooms are sparcely furnished (apparently it was taken in the revolution) there are huge paintings on celilings and some massive ones on the walls as you leaveit.  outside the gardens are massive.

I personally didn't do much shopping, so you will have to get someone else to tell you about that.

Answer 5

first get in a fly-boat ( bateau-mouche). their fares are nice and you will see a good part of paris from the river seine view. Notre dame is a must(the hunchback...) the eiffel tower (nice view from the top ) the champs elysees ( shopping!!) and the parc des princes on saturday night (thats the stadium where the paris soccer team plays, that'll show u how passionate the french can be) then go to  montmartre ( very romantic spot) ... but shortly before dusk , hit the champ-de-mars... you will see the eiffel tower slowly lit up.

Answer 6

I just came back yesterday, live in Holland, but go often. Definitely Eiffel tower, Louvre, Notre Dame and the left bank(Saint germain de Pres) just a 20 minute train ride( very simple) Versailles with its gardens, on weekends Saturday evenings the fountains (many) in the garden are lit, fireworks and music, amazing. The castle and gardens take a day. Enjoy!

Answer 7

I just got back two weeks ago.  I would suggest a few things.  First get a museum pass so you can jump in and out of the museums without having to pay for each ticket.( also you can run into the Louve from the rear entrance which will save you tons of time)  Second,  get on the open area bus( the red one) because it will drive you around to all the main spots.  My favorites were the Louve, the Arch de Triumphe, Notre Dame.  Just seeing the Eiffel tower is awesome.  Rodin's thinker statue can be seen from the bus and his museum is right beside Napolean's tomb.    I would also recommend a day trip to Giverny to see where Monet painted Water lillies which is beautiful and/or a day trip to Caen to see the Normandy sites from World War II.  The museum there is awesome and very moving and quite frankly something I think everyone needs to see.   The catacombs are there and they are creepy and cold but cool to see.  I highly recommend the book Paris for idiots because it helped me out SO MUCH.  Enjoy

Answer 8

The one thing you should most certainly do is have the attitude that you will be back.  Do not try to squeeze every moment with museums, cathedrals, etc.  There are SO many things there to see and do and so much history, you will go crazy if you decide that you must see everything.  I would recommend making sure you have plenty of time for people watching, cafe sitting, and enjoying the Parisian lifestyle.  Of course, you will see so many monuments and museums, it will be great.  Just really try to have the attitude that you can't get to everything, that that is okay, and that you will do it next time you are there.  Take time for the things like a boat ride on the Seine and just walking and sitting in gardens, etc.  It's one of the most amazing cities in the world and one of my favorite places to be.  Enjoy and bon voyage!