Dream Paris

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Dream Holiday to Paris

 Paris is my dream city. Paris is one of the most beautiful cities on earth .Paris needs no introduction its synonymous with food, culture,fashion and architecture

Best time to visit

There is no “right” time—warmer months mean picnics and parks, but also crowds. During colder months skies are grey, but there are fewer tourists. There are events year-round, from outdoor summer concerts to holiday extravaganzas in the winter.

Where to stay

For most people, going to Paris is the trip of a lifetime — so it’s all the more important to carefully choose where you stay.

Paris is a large city by European standards, with tourist attractions and museums that are scattered along the Left and Right Banks of the River Seine.

What's more, the city is served by three airports (one to the north, one to the south, one in the distant exurbs) and more than half a dozen major railroad stations.

This makes the question of "Where do I stay?" trickier than it might seem at first glance. To find the right answer, you need to consider factors such as:

• How long are you in Paris?

If you're in Paris for a week or two, "neighborhood appeal" may be the most important consideration in where to stay. But if--like many tourists--you're spending only three or four days in the city, a location that's easy to reach from your arrival or departure point (such as an airport or railroad station) may be equally important.

• How much do you have to spend?

Hotels in rich, fashionable quartiers are likely to cost more (all other things being equal) than hotels in middle-class districts. Restaurants, cafés, and bars will also tend to be more expensive. If you're trying to control expenses, stay away from the kind of neighborhood featured in movies like 

• Best Neighborhoods to Stay in Paris

Everyone wants something different on their trip to Paris, but I think most people like being in a quintessential Paris neighborhood — a place where you can buy fresh baguettes and marvel at the wrought-iron balconies.

Paris is divided into 20 arrondissements (neighborhoods) and they are numbered in a spiral, the center being Ile de la Cité, the island in the Seine home to Notre-Dame. Neighborhoods with lower numbers are closer to the center; the 12th-20th arrondissements are the outer edge. Parisians refer to the neighborhoods by their number.

   

• Best Overall: The Marais (3rd/4th)

The Marais, in my opinion, is easily the best neighborhood to stay in on your trip to Paris. It’s central. It’s got several attractions, like the Centre Pompidou and the Hotel de Ville. There are lots of wonderful restaurants and cafes, the architecture is magnificent, and the shopping is superb. In fact, I think the Marais is the best shopping neighborhood in the city — there are tons of independently owned boutiques as well as luxury shops and wonderful markets.

The Marais was historically home to marginalized communities in Paris, including the LGBT community and the Jewish community, and as a result it’s got a nice cultural mix to this day.

• St. Germain (6th)

If you’re looking for Left Bank Paris, the neighborhood of Hemingway and Camus and Sartre, St. Germain is a nice option and my other favorite neighborhood in which to stay. While it definitely has its share of tourists, you’ll find wonderful (and longtime famous) cafes, interesting little shops, and streets full of life. The Jardin du Luxembourg is nearby, and it’s close to Notre Dame and the Musée d’Orsay as well.

• Montmartre (18th)

Why does Montmartre have an asterisk? It can be wonderful, but you need to do a little extra research to make sure you’re in the good part. While much of Montmartre is the village-like urban neighborhood depicted in Amélie, some parts are seedy, especially around the Pigalle area. Rue Lepic (pictured above) and its side streets are lovely; Boulevard Clichy near Pigalle and further east is full of sex shops.

The best way to know if you’re in a good part of Montmartre? Google Streetview. Take a look at the neighborhood before you book accommodation.

• 9th

The 9th arrondissement won’t be on a lot of lists — it isn’t big on attractions, and while it’s very Parisian, it’s not as famously charming as other neighborhoods. I didn’t give it a second thought until I stayed at my friend Marie-Claire’s apartment in the 9th and saw what a great base it made for exploring Paris.

The 9th is a residential zone with the Opera and the Galeries-Lafayette department store on one end and the edge of Montmartre on the other end. As a result, there aren’t a lot of tourists here (a rarity in central Paris!). There are lots of restaurants, bars and cafes, and there’s lots of life without a single establishment pandering to tourists.

• Ile Saint-Louis (4th)

If you want to be in the dead center of Paris, yet a place that doesn’t feel like Parisian Disneyland, Ile Saint-Louis is a great choice. It has a wonderful feel — almost like its own small town — and even though it’s next door to Ile de la Cité and the massive crowds of tourists visiting Notre-Dame, Ile Saint-Louis is almost a world away. The shops aren’t bad, either.

• Belleville (19th/20th)

Looking for hipster Paris, the Williamsburg of Paris, the Paris of tomorrow? Head to Belleville. Belleville is a historically working class neighborhood home to many different ethnic communities. Like many big cities in the world, Paris is gentrifying rapidly, and Belleville has become the zone for artists and entrepreneurs to set up shop. Here you’ll find slightly lower prices, lots of interesting small businesses, and a fabulous selection of ethnic food.

Where to Avoid

Don’t stay outside the main 20 arrondissements. You’ll be far from the center and while many of Paris’s surrounding suburbs are lovely, some of them are the most dangerous areas in Paris. Whenever you hear about riots and violence in Paris, it’s usually in these rough suburbs.

Don’t plan your stay around being close to a certain attraction. Paris’s metro is easy and efficient enough to navigate your way anywhere — you don’t need to stay within walking distance from the Louvre in order to visit the Louvre.

“Near the Eiffel Tower” actually isn’t that great. The neighborhoods near the Eiffel Tower are upscale residential areas. They’re fine, but they’re expensive and a bit boring, in my opinion. Besides, you can see the tower from all over the city.

“Near the Champs-Elysees” is worse. Definitely go to the Champs-Elysees at least once, but it’s filled with shops you can find anywhere and it’s absolutely swarming with tourists. It’s Paris’s Times Square.

Don’t stay in a hotel near the airport. Unless it’s for one night only and your flight leaves at 6:00 AM the next day. Paris’s two airports, Charles de Gaulle and Orly, are both far outside the city.

PARIS TRANSPORTATION

Paris, like most dense cities, is most easily conquered using public transportation. There are even many people who live in Paris and don’t own a car. Most visitors to the city are smart to avoid renting a car and sticking to public transportation to get around – but if you’re planning lots of day trips into the countryside, to places where train and bus service is more sporadic, then having a rental car for some portion of your Paris visit might be a good option for you.

Train Travel In & Around Paris

Almost all of the Paris public transport system is run by the RATP the bus, métro (underground) and suburban tram routes, as well as lines A and B of the RER suburban express railway, which connects with the métro within the city centre. National rail operator SNCF runs RER lines C, D and E, and serves the Paris suburbs (Banlieue), and French regions and abroad

Paris and suburbs are divided into six travel zones; zones 1 and 2 cover the city centre. RATP tickets and passes are valid on the métro, bus and RER. Tickets and carnets can be bought at métro stations, tourist offices and tabacs (tobacconists); single tickets can also be bought on buses. Hold on to your ticket in case of spot checks; you’ll also need it to exit from RER stations.

FARE AND TICKETS

• A single ticket T+ costs €1.90, but it’s more economical to buy a carnet of ten for €14.50.
• A one-day Mobilis pass costs from €7.30 for zones 1 and 2 to €17.30 for zones 1-5 (not including airports).
• A one-day Paris Visite pass for zones 1-3 is €11.65; a five-day pass is €37.25, with discounts on some attractions.

One-week or one-month Navigo pass (passport photo needed) offer unlimited travel in the relevant zones and is delivered as a Navigo swipe card. A forfait mensuel (valid from the first day of the month) for all zones costs €73; a weekly forfait hebdomadaire (weekly Carte Orange valid Mon-Sun inclusive) for all zones costs €22.15 and is better value than Paris Visite passes.

METRO & RER

The Paris métro is the fastest and cheapest way of getting around. Trains run 5.30am-12.40am Mon-Thur, 5.30am-1.30am Fri-Sun. Individual lines are numbered, with each direction named after the last stop. Follow the orange Correspondance to change lines. Some interchanges, such as Châtelet-Les-Halles, Montparnasse-Bienvenüe and République, involve long walks. The exit (Sortie) is indicated in blue. The driverless line 14 runs from Gare St-Lazare to Olympiades. Pickpockets and bag-snatchers are rife on the network – pay special attention as the doors are closing.

The five RER lines (A, B, C, D and E) run 5.30am-1am daily through Paris and out into the suburbs. Within Paris, the RER is useful for faster journeys – Châtelet-Les-Halles to Gare du
Nord is one stop on the RER, and six on the métro. Métro tickets are valid for RER journeys within zones 1 and 2.

BUSES

Buses run 6.30am-8.30pm, with some routes continuing until 12.30am, Mon-Sat; limited services operate on selected lines Sun and public holidays. You can use a métro ticket, a ticket bought from the driver (€1.90) or a travel pass. Tickets should be punched in the machine next to the driver; passes should be shown to the driver. When you want to get off, press the red request button

NIGHT BUSES

After the métro and normal buses stop running, the only public transport – apart from taxis – are the 42 Noctilien lines, between place du Châtelet and the suburbs (hourly 12.30am-5.30am Mon-Thur; half-hourly 1am-5.35am Fri, Sat); look out for the Noctilien logo on bus stops or the N in front of the route number. A ticket costs €1.90; travel passes are valid. 

BATOBUS

River buses stop at: Eiffel Tower, Musée d’Orsay, St-Germain-des-Prés (quai Malaquais), Notre-Dame, Jardin des Plantes, Hôtel de Ville, Louvre, Champs-Elysées (Pont Alexandre III). Boats every 25 minutes in high season (Mon-Thurs 10am-5pm, Fri-Sun 10am-9.30pm), every 40 minutes in low season (Mon-Thurs 10am-5pm, Fri-Sun 10am-7pm).

A one-day pass is €17(€11 for Pass Navigo holders) with unlimited hop-on, hop-off. €60 for an annual pass (€40 for Navigo Pass holders). Tickets can be bought at Batobus stops (08 25 05 01 01, www.batobus.com), RATP ticket offices and the Office de Tourisme (www.parisinfo.com). 

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