Believe it or not, I wasn’t super excited about visiting Paris. Dragged there by friends captivated by its romantic reputation, I braced myself for the rude Parisians, grimy streets, and overhyped attractions that I’d heard horror stories about. But Paris shattered every negative stereotype. The streets were clean, the attractions lived up to their names, and the people were kind and welcoming. Now, I can’t wait to go back. If you’ve ever doubted the La Ville Lumière, let my story be your inspiration. This is what to actually expect for your first time visiting Paris, France.
What to know before visiting Paris
Paris is known for its high fashion, phenomenal restaurants, and fantastic cultural tours. The city isn’t as laid back as other vacation spots. You definitely need to prepare for your trip by packing fashionable clothing and making reservations far in advance. I would recommend making reservations at least a month in advance of your trip. It is also important that you adhere to the city’s dress code, which isn’t always easy to figure out ahead of time.
How Many Days do you Need in Paris?
Immediately after arriving in Paris, we realized we didn’t schedule enough time. After being there for 6 nights and still felt like we had barely scratched the surface of what the city had to offer.
I would recommend visiting Paris for for least 10 days— although I feel like I could have easily done a month!
The city is incredibly dense with things to do and see including museums, historical landmarks, restaurants, and nightlife. Meals also take an exceptionally long time and so it’s not easy to jam pack days with activities.
Experience the Culture: Cultural Tours in Paris
The Louvre
One of the best parts of our trip to Paris was the 3-hour private tour we took of the Louvre. The Louvre is massive and crazy-busy. Navigating the 652,300 square foot museum amongst the 30,000 other daily visitors can be extremely overwhelming on your own. This is why taking a private tour was so crucial.
In addition to teaching us about the paintings, the tour also gave us the chance to learn about the “secret” bathrooms and get into the museum much faster. This tour was definitely a splurge for us as it was about $128 per person (for our group of four). However, it was beyond worth it for the experience we had. If you are interested, check it out on their website!
Context Travel is definitely the company to use when booking your private tour. Their tour guides have masters degrees in art history and are very experienced in the field. They offer tours all over the world, not only in art history but in other topics as well.
Our tour guide, Sylvanie took us through the major highlights of the museum including the Mona Lisa. She was also able to show us paintings that were of special interest to us, such as the famous French revolution painting Liberty Leading the People. She provided in depth answers to our questions and explained the symbolism of the art.
Wine and Cheese Tasting
Another highlight of our trip was the wine and cheese tasting class that we took. The course was taught by a Sommelier and it was $80 per person. The class was essentially a lesson on French geography through wine and cheese. The hour and a half course offered six glasses of wine and plenty of cheese! To check out this class, go to their listing.
The class began with a glass of Champagne and an explanation of how and where it is made. The rest of the session was structured according to the different regions of France. For example, our instructor paired Savon Blanc wine made in the Bordeaux region with a goat cheese that was also made there. His philosophy was that wines and cheeses that are made in the same geographic area tend to pair well together. This class was definitely a fun way to learn about the geography of France.
Visiting the The Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou is an art cultural center and museum inside of a surreal looking industrial building. There was this see-through tube that you could take an escalator up to see a breathtaking view of Paris, and enjoy an interesting comic exhibit. We enjoyed the exhibit, but we later learned we completely missed the part of the museum that had Matisse and Salvador Dalí paintings! The museum was a bit tricky to navigate so if you go there, definitely make sure that you explore all they have to offer.
Seeing The Eiffel Tower
We went to visit the Eiffel Tower at around 9:30 p.m., which was about 30 minutes before sunset. I would definitely recommend arriving an hour before sunset. We didn’t feel like we got enough time to walk around it while it was still light out.
There are many different locations where you can see the tower. We routed straight to the Eiffel Tower and ended up at Parc du Champ-de-Mars. This is right in front of it which didn’t make it easy to take pictures. The park was free to enter. I had a very pleasant experience… aside from the men walking around trying to sell things. They kept bothering us, asking if we wanted to buy champagne or tourist merchandise.
In retrospect, I wished that I had made a reservation at a nearby bar or restaurant so that we could have had a more relaxed experience. The bars and restaurants with a view of the Eiffel Tower are booked out really far in advance so definitely plan ahead.
A cool bar I found next to the tower is 10ème Ciel – Rooftop Bar Paris. If I were to go to dinner, I would have gone to Girafe. The main courses are between 35 euro and 59 euro. If I were to go to lunch, I would have gone to Les Obres which has a variety of set menus for different times of the day/week. The most affordable option is a 58 euro per person three course meal that is offered for lunch Monday through Friday.
The dining experience in Paris
In Paris, people really take their time when eating their meals. This leads to a very relaxing experience but it can be annoying at times. You have to flag down a waiter to get more water or ask for your check. They take their meals very seriously and the way food is treated reflects this.
When we first sat down at Les Papilles, we asked about getting some Green Chartreuse. Our waiter then told us that we should opt for wine instead. He explained that chartreuse is a “digestive” that we should enjoy with dessert. He said that eating it at the beginning would kill our flavor palette and that every dish served was lined up in a certain order by the chef.
We really appreciated that feedback. Up until that point, we had been ordering obscure cocktails with randomly chosen appetizers and entrees. His suggestion that eating foods in a particular order changes one’s palette really proved to be true. I have never been someone who enjoys blue cheese nor was anyone else in my travel group. But when it came time for the cheese course, three out of four of us enjoyed the cheese!
Our Favorite Restaurant in Paris
The best dinner we had while in Paris was at Les Papilles. Les Papilles has an atmosphere that invites you to relax, and dig in. The French restaurant has a set menu that allows for no substitutions. They do, however, have a vegetarian option. The 4 course meal is 45 euros per person which is very affordable for Paris.
Our starter was a sweet potato puree soup and the main course was lamb shoulder wrapped in eggplant. Then there was a cheese course of blue cheese and prunes, and a delicious apricot yogurt for dessert. Les Papilles is also a winery, we enjoyed a bottle of Gamay for 25 euros. Overall, the dinner was incredible. I enjoyed the fact that it was a fixed menu because it took away the stress of ordering from a menu that has unfamiliar foods. The dinner was also an informative way to enjoy French cuisine.
Our favorite crepe spot in paris
You cannot visit France without trying some crepes. If you aren’t familiar, crepes are a French specialty that resemble very think pancakes that are folded over on themselves and topped with Nutella, fruit, Eggs, or other toppings.
Le P’tit Breton was our favorite crepe spot in Paris. The restaurant was small and had a great vibe. We went in the evening so the lights were dimmed and everyone was drinking wine. I got the Marina which was a savory crepe with tuna, green olives, tomatoes, and cheese. It was delicious.
As a Texan, the best way I can describe it is being a quesadilla but with more interesting toppings. I am looking forward to trying to recreate it at home. The Mariana crepe was 10 euro and the glass of wine I had was 5 euro.
Nightlife Culture in Paris
There did not seem to be any designated nightlife districts in Paris. All of the bars were pretty far apart from one another and the clubs were even farther away. We went to two different clubs and they were a thirty minute drive away. When you go to a bar or club in Paris, you are expected to stay there all night. It isn’t a barhopping city the way our hometown of Austin is.
Our favorite bar
Daphne was our favorite bar in Paris. It was a divey, local spot that played some unexpected music. We were surprised to hear “I Love Rock ‘N Roll” as we entered. The cocktails weren’t the best but we really enjoyed the atmosphere and it felt as though we were having a true local experience.
Our favorite club in Paris
Our favorite club in Paris was the disco spot Club Carbone. Waiting in line to get in was suspenseful. We watched the group in front of us get rejected for not being dressed cool enough. The French women around us were wearing red lipstick, stilettos and oversized black blazers over their sexy club attire. I was wearing my Chelsea Doc Marten boots and black denim jacket over my club dress. When I got to the front, the flamboyant bouncer said to me: “I’m ok with the outfit but next time darling… do more!”
I danced my way past him as I was just happy to be let in. I had seen clubs like this in the movies but I had yet to experience one for myself. There was disco music playing and a wall of flashing lights. The collection of people inside were even more interesting as they had shed their high fashion mystic and let loose. It was super interesting to strike up conversation with people standing around us. There was a smoking room inside with red lights overhead.
Interesting speakeasy in Paris
When searching for a bar, we came across the speakeasy Rehab. Before going, we had no idea that it was a former opium den. It was underneath a hotel that is 140 years old, behind an unmarked door and down a spiral staircase. The decor was inspired by its history with antique furniture from the era— red Chinese lanterns, gold mirrors, and chandeliers.
Before going to this speakeasy, I didn’t know its history. I almost spat out my mezcal cocktail when I learned that I was sitting on an antique opium bed. What bothered me most about the place wasn’t its ghostly story but also its name “Rehab” which seemed to mock the space’s history of substance abuse. But depending on your beliefs, you may find this place interesting and worthy of visiting. Interestingly, they are a “zero waste” bar that reuses the infusion items at the bottom of the drinks.
Overall First impression of Paris
Paris is everything people say it is and more. Paris is many things, but it is most definitely not touristy in the way that other cities are. I found the city very classy and tasteful. It felt like the people there had a lot of pride in their culture and wanted to share it with us. None of us spoke a lick of French and this was never a problem.
I was afraid going into it that the people would be rude but this was proven to be untrue. I had heard a statistic that at any given time, there are twenty tourists for every local. Interestingly, I can’t find any article that backs this up! So apparently there are a lot of myths about the city. Paris really is everything that it is cracked up to be and we really enjoyed our stay there. I can’t wait to go back!
