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So you are off to Paris, but you only have a day to explore. In today’s post, I’m going to share some of my favorite places that I believe are a must-see if you are on a time crunch. There’s so much to explore in this city, but it’s still possible to do a lot in just a day. I will warn you now that you must be ready and willing to walk a lot with little breaks, but you will be happy you did. After studying abroad in Paris for a summer, I fell in love with not just the city, but the people, art and food. Last fall, I went to London as a travel ambassador with Black Girl’s Travel Too, and had a blast. There were a few days we had to ourselves away from the group, so my friends and I decided that we would take a day trip over to Paris. This was such a big deal to me as I hadn’t been back since that amazing summer abroad. I couldn’t wait to see the Eiffel Tower, eat a crepe, and speak a little French along the way. Plus, it was the first time many of my friends had ever been to Paris, so I wanted to show them a good time.
The first thing I did when preparing our our trip to the City of Love, was write out a list of the places we for sure wanted to see. We jotted down every tourist hotspot along with amazing places I discovered while there for school. After the list was finished, we broke it down into the places we knew we could cover first by prioritizing those at the top, and left the other things towards the bottom in case we had more time. Once I got to London, I sat down with my favorite gal, Rebecca of @miss_munchins_cc, to get a map around the city which I’m going to share with you today at the end of this post. You’ll be able to download the guide to Paris in a day, which includes some extra places you may want to visit. I did deviate a bit from the map being that I lived in Paris for a summer, so I knew more of how to get around. Plus, there were places that we wanted to visit last minute that weren’t initially on our list. Feel free to do the same, but the guide is very helpful with what lines to take for various sites if you are traveling by metro (aka subway). The subway lines on the list are color coordinated with the actual lines to make it easier for you. Thanks to Rebecca for that!
So let’s get started… Here’s a list of our exact Parisian itinerary:
- Breakfast at Le Relais Du Louvre
- Toured the Louvre Palace
- Visited Musee Du Louvre to see Mona Lisa & lots of beautiful art
- Shopping on Champs-Élysées
- Arc De Triomphe – walked to the top for amazing pictures of the city
- Picked up yummy macarons from Laduree
- Dinner on Champs-Élysées (can’t remember exact place, but they had great pizza)
- Found local crepes
- Did some last minute shopping before heading back to London
Please note that we did do lots of photo shoots along the way at each stop, so it took us a bit longer to cover Paris. If you don’t plan on doing that, then you’ll have time to cover a lot more amazing sites which can be found on the free download I’m giving you below.
Like I mentioned, the first place we stopped in Paris was at the restaurant, Le Relais Du Louvre. This place was absolutely delicious for breakfast and they give you LOTS of food. I can taste the yummy french croissants now! The plus side to this is that it’s right by Musee Du Louvre, which is where you can see Mona Lisa and so much other beautiful art.
Directions to restaurant: 3 rue du Louvre, 75001 Paris, France
One of the most exciting stops to me after the Eiffel Tower was at Laduree. With their amazing Macarons, chocolates and desserts, I had to leave the diet back in America. It’s a great place to dine, but we didn’t have that much time to stay and enjoy it. Instead, I decided to pick up some sweet treats to take back to London with me.
Directions to Laduree: France, 75 Av. des Champs-Élysées, 75008 Paris, France
At the very top of the Arc de Triomphe are the best views of Paris, like the beautiful picture we captured below.
Directions to Arc de Triomphe: Place Charles de Gaulle, 75008 Paris, France
Of course, the Eiffel Tower is a must when visiting Paris. I snapped this quick photo with my Soft Pink Style & Travel Girl Passport Cover in front of it that made a great Instagram moment. It’s not your typical Eiffel Tower pic, but it’s a creative capture from my experience & perspective.
Directions to Eiffel Tower: Champ de Mars, 5 Avenue Anatole France, 75007 Paris, France
Well I hope you enjoyed my recap of Paris in a day! Be sure to grab your FREE guide to taking on the City of Love below. Also, I want to hear from you. Let me know if this post was helpful to planning your next trip to Paris.
