Paris

Paris: What the Guides Get Right and What They Consistently Miss

Paris receives 40 million visitors a year, which creates an entire ecosystem of tourist-grade experiences running parallel to the city that Parisians actually use. Knowing which is which saves money and produces a better trip.

The Monuments

The Eiffel Tower is not overrated. The scale surprise when you approach on foot from the Champs-de-Mars is real, and the view from the second level at night (the first level is fine; the summit has better views but worse atmosphere) is genuinely excellent. The issue is logistical: queueing for the lifts without a pre-booked timed slot can take 2 hours in July. Book online (at paris.fr/lieux/tour-eiffel), buy the second floor ticket, go in the late evening when the crowds thin and the illuminated city is at its best.

The Louvre is too large for a single visit and most people try to do it that way. The queues for the Mona Lisa are a specific experience of disappointment: the painting is smaller than expected, behind thick glass, and surrounded by people photographing a photograph they could have seen at higher resolution on their phone. The Louvre’s Dutch and Flemish collection (Vermeer, Rembrandt, de Hooch) is better than its Italian collection and sees a fraction of the visitors. The Objets d’Art galleries on the first floor, covering French royal furniture and decoration, are extraordinary and usually nearly empty.

Notre-Dame Cathedral was seriously damaged in the April 2019 fire and has been under restoration since. The exterior scaffolding is still present as of 2025-2026 but the cathedral has reopened in stages; check current access before planning around it. The interior, when accessible, has the most significant medieval stained glass in Paris.

Neighbourhoods Worth Walking

Le Marais, the district on the Right Bank east of the Centre Pompidou, has the best walking of any Paris neighbourhood. The Rue des Rosiers and surrounding streets form the historic Jewish quarter; the Place des Vosges (1612, the oldest planned square in Paris) is surrounded by arcaded terraces with bookshops, cafes, and galleries beneath. Victor Hugo’s house on the square is free to enter and worth the 30 minutes.

Canal Saint-Martin, in the 10th arrondissement, is where Parisians under 40 go on summer weekends: sitting on the canal banks with wine and food from the neighbourhood’s bakeries and wine shops. It’s not a tourist attraction; it’s the city using its public space. Rue de Lancry and Quai de Valmy have the relevant density of good food and drink options.

Belleville, further east, is the city’s most genuinely multicultural neighbourhood. The street market on Boulevard de Belleville runs Tuesday and Friday mornings and sells Algerian, Tunisian, Chinese, and Vietnamese food at prices that predate gentrification.

Food: The Honest Version

Paris has too many restaurants that survive on location rather than quality. Anything within 200 metres of the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre is almost certainly overpriced and underperforming. The brasseries on the big boulevards (Café de Flore, Les Deux Magots) charge you for the history; the coffee is fine but not better than any other decent espresso.

The things Paris does well that are also affordable: the boulangeries. A croissant from a serious boulangerie (Du Pain et des Idées in the 10th, Gontran Cherrier in the 18th, Laurent Duchêne in the 13th) is materially different from what you get from a chain or a tourist bakery. The baguette tradition (the Meilleur Ouvrier de France competition for bakers is taken very seriously here) means good bread is available at every serious bakery and costs about €1.10.

For dinner: Le Comptoir du Relais in the 6th is a good bistro that books out weeks ahead for dinner; the counter at lunch is first-come and very good value. Septime in the 11th is the current standard bearer for modern Parisian cooking at reasonable prices and books out months ahead. Frenchie Wine Bar on Rue du Nil (11th) does excellent natural wines and small plates without the reservation problem of its parent restaurant.

Metro and Getting Around

The Paris Metro is excellent. Line 1 covers the main tourist corridor east-west. The RER B connects Charles de Gaulle airport to the city centre in about 35 minutes (around €12.50) compared to taxi prices of €50-80 depending on traffic. Buy a carnet of 10 tickets or use the Navigo card; single tickets are inefficient if you’re travelling more than once.

Walking between places on the Île de la Cité and adjacent arrondissements is often faster than the Metro for short distances. The city is largely flat and its bridges are worth crossing on foot.