Ah, Paris. The magical, fairytale, dreamland of croissants, stone architecture and a staggeringly tall metal pointy tower. And love, of course- can’t forget that.
Though I sincerely applaud spending as much time in Paris as you have available, it completely understandable if you wish to keep your visit short and explore other parts of France. Many people are not a fan of Paris (I’m not one of them), and some are just short on time. Worry not, for I have curated the most perfect One Day Paris Itinerary.
One Day Paris Itinerary- Morning
Let’s start this day off with a bang and wake up early. There’s nothing like wandering around Paris streets when everyone is just starting their day. You first stop, of course-
Breakfast at a Beautiful Parisian Cafe
You have options for this one. Paris is huge and there are so many different cafes you can visit. If you wander outside wherever you are staying and stroll along the streets, I’m sure you’ll find one that captures your eye. If not, no fear- I have suggestions.
Café de Flore opens at 7:30am seven days a week. It’s located on Boulevard St. Germain, a few minutes walk from Saint-Germain-de-Prés subway station. It’s also just a 20 minute walk across to river to your next destination.
Les Deux Magots sit right near the same location, also opening at 7:30am every day.
My third suggestion is Cafe dé la Paix, which opens at 8am and is located a few minutes walk from Quatre Septembre subway station.
Pick your cafe and go get yourself some delicious Paris breakfast and a morning coffee to jumpstart your day.
Visit the Louvre (from the outside)
Unfortunately, the Louvre is gigantic and really needs an entire day to truly explore. But we are still going to go see it from the outside and take a few glamorous Parisian pics.
If you chose one one of the three cafes I suggested, you can easily walk to this starting places. If not, hop on the metro and heads towards Palais-Royal-Musee du Louvre subway station.
Visiting the pyramid shouldn’t take you that long unless you take a bajillion pictures (which I totally suggest doing). After you take your fair share, it’s time for a little morning stroll.
Walk through Tuileries Garden
There is a big, beautiful garden located between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde. It’s an incredible walk that I highly, highly recommend. If you’re up for another coffee, stop at one of the outdoor cafes. If not, keep strolling and snapping lovely pics. The walk is only about 20 minutes.
Stroll down Champs-Élysées
If you keep walking straight, you’ll make it to Placa de Concorde, which borders Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
Continue along the avenue, one of Paris’s most famous streets. You’ll walk through the gardens in between Élysées Palaces and Petit Palace until you find your way to the main street. This is a major shopping hub of Paris with various international stores lining the road.
The walk is another 30 minutes, but you’ll be seeing some of the best sites in Paris. And right in this distance, you’ll be able to see your next stop…
Visit Arc de Triomphe
This beautiful arch is circled by cars all peeling off in different directions. Pause to take a couple photos before you cross the street (especially if there is construction).
Then, you can cross underground to get to the entrance.
Now you have a choice- you can either buy a ticket to go to the top of the arch, or you can continue on to your next destination.
One Day in Paris Itinerary – Afternoon
After you long morning walk, you’ll probably want to grab some food. First, head to the area of your next stop.
Take in the Eiffel Tower
It takes about 30 minutes to walk from the Arc de Triomphe to the Eiffel Tower. You can choose to ride the subway, but this can take 20 minutes, which really doesn’t save you any time. Also, the walk is through a very beautiful part of the 16th Arrondissement of Paris.
Long story short, definitely walk.
Once you get to the Eiffel Tower, you can choose to simply check it out form the ground, or you can pay to go to higher levels. Check this website for up-to-date pricing.
Lunch time!
It really depends on your individual budget where you decide to get some food. I went to a little take-away cafe nearby and got a ham sandwich, which I ate on the lawn next to the Eiffel Tower. If the temperature allows it, I definitely recommend this. There were a bunch of musicians playing and people lying about- the vibes were immaculate.
If you want to go to a sit down restaurant, there is also this option.
One Day in Paris Itinerary – Evening
After your lovely morning and afternoon site-seeing, there are a couple different paths you can take depending on where your interests lie.
1 – Architecture and History
View the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris
Due to the fire in 2019, the cathedral is currently close to visitors. However, you can still check it out from the outside and see the construct being done to rebuild destroyed segments.
Notre-Dame is an hour long walk from the Eiffel Tower, so I definitely recommend taking the subway- it’s about a 20 minute ride. You can hop on line 10 at La Motte-Picquet station and get off after 7 stops at Cluny La Sorbonne. From there, the cathedral is a 5 minute walk.
Explore the Pantheon
About a ten minute walk from the cathedral, the Pantheon stands tall and imposing over a beautiful cobblestone street. The Pantheon is essentially a crypt that holds the remains of prominent French citizens, such as Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, Marie Curie, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Èmile Zola, and more. I personally found it to be a really cool place to visit, but others may find it creepy.
2- Beauty and Heritage
Montmartre
Sacré Coeur
3 – Art
If you’re an art junkie, it would hurt to miss some of the amazing museums in Paris. You could either spend some extra time visiting the Louvre in the morning, or you can add some museums to your itinerary here.
Here are some of your options:
Musée d’Orsay
Holding an incredible collection of Impressionist-era art, the Musée d’Orsay is a definitely can’t-miss for our fellow art lovers. The beautiful itself, which was previous a railway station, is itself a work of art.
A full visit takes approximately 3 hours.
Musee de l’Orangerie
The Musee de l’Orangerie also boasts an amazing collection of impression and post-impressionist painting. One of its most famous is Claude Monet’s Water Lilies. There are other really big names here- Picasso, Matisse, Rousseau, and more.
One Day Paris Itinerary – Nighttime
Oo-la-la, the night falls over Paris, cooling off the temperature and heating up the romance.
Paris is a different sort of beautiful at night. Don’t miss some of these amazing activities.
See the Eiffel Tower (again… but lit up)
The Eiffel Tower changes completely at night… it’s not the same view. Instead, it shines and glitters with a jaw-dropping array of lights. It would be a shame to miss this beautiful site.
You may choose to eat dinner at one of the restaurants near the Eiffel Tower, or even on it.
Dinner at Moulin Rouge Cabaret Show
If you’re going to eat dinner, you might as well do it at Moulin Rouge. A classic Parisian cabernet show will top your day in Paris as you sip some champagne and bask in the historic building. Click here to see what’s included.
Dinner on a Seine River Cruise
For a bit more of a fancy experience, you may choose to eat a gourmet dinner while gliding along the Seine. You can watch the sunset as you enjoy some live music and drink yummy Parisian wine. Click here for more information.
PIN THIS PAGE!
Leave A Comment