I'm going to Paris for 3 days in January with my girlfriend. We are in our early 20's, any tips,advice,etc ???

Question

The 3 days are: thurs, fri sat.
We are flying to charles le goulle airport.
Any suggestions about what area to get a hotel in. I was thinking about getting a hotel for around £30gbp per night to the north side of the city to cut down the commuting time from the airport.
We like going out drinking and lively pubs/clubs etc but we also want to keep it quite cheap if possible.
I've heard it can be very expensive to go out drinking and eating out. I've heard it can be around £8 gbp for a pint of beer? is this true? and if so, how can we avoid such high prices.
What's the weather usually like at this time of year?
Anything we should go and see?

Answer 1

The weather will most likely be a little colder than in England if that is where you are from.

As for hotels, DO NOT stay in the northern arrondissements of Paris, they are not safe and will be away from the main sites to visit, which are for the most part along the river. The center is only a few minutes more on the RER (commuter train). Stay in the 5th or 6th arrondissements. From CDG airport, take RER line B and get off (or get a connection with the métro) at Châtelet-les-Halles, St-Michel or Luxembourg, depending on where your hotel will be. Here is the subway website, click on the flag to display the page in English: http://www.ratp.fr/

You can find budget hotels at http://www.eurocheapo.com/paris-hotels-by-cost.html
Check under 75 € for the price and for the districts check Marais, Châtelet, Latin Quarter and St-Germain-des-Prés.

Yes it is true that drinks are generally expensive at night in touristic areas but here is a site listing cheap places with pints around 2-3 € (try to order your drinks during happy hour): http://www.panamo.fr/index.php?page=verbe&catego=boire

Answer 2

hey i am from Paris so here are a few tips:
we are rude, thats not a myth so please if u dont speak French say sorry coz if u start in English directly and assume everyone will get u well thats rude too!
then drinking is very expensive yes so u wont get pissed. thats not in our culture at all. the cheapest would be around St michel maybe, the latin area.
3 days only means u can just do the touristy stuff, effeil tower, champs elysees, louvre, montmarte and latin part. if u do that ull have a romantic idea of paris and will leave with lots of memories.
for 30pounds a night u wont get a nice place, just like london or any other cities. the cheapest is in the suburb but then u take the transport so it is up to u.
the best pubs are in the bastille area. lively and quite safe. taxi are expensive so be aware. and u can walk easily so yes good shoes and enjoy. i recommend to go to the restaurant rather than getting pissed. u can do that at home. enjoy

Answer 3

The best way (I think) to stay in paris is to splurge and stay down in the old historic quarter (arron. 1,2,3,4,5,6) and yu can walk to nearly everything and it can be quite romantic to walk along the Seine at night with all the lights from the buildings reflecting in the water. However, also cold and damp, so bring a raincoat, gloves and hat.
It you stay near St Michel area, there is direct RER train from CDG, and several metro lines intersect there as well. It is lively with cafes, near the student/university area, and within walking distance of Notre Dame, Ste Chappelle, Louvre, and other areas. You will pay more for a room, but being able to walk outside and immediately be along the river inthe heart of paris is worth it, and the direct train to CDG also helps.
Afternoon coffee in the cafe is 4-6 euros, so can be quite expensive. I find eating your luxury meal at lunch gets you more value as you get the same as at dinner for half the price, and buy from the markets for dinner and picnic in your room. Buy wine and beer there for far less than a restaurant and visit the places for atmosphere. The Louvre is open late Fri night, and has far fewer visitors if you want to go there. There are also concerts in a lot of the churches in evenings that are wonderful to attend; just check around for signs along the fences.
As far as sights, i would recommend Notre Dame, Ste Chappelle, and the Eiffel Tower as must sees, followed by Louvre and D'Orsay museums.

Answer 4

Drink wine instead of beer, it's cheaper.
You should go see the Louvre and the Musee d'Orsay.
You should also see the Eiffel Tower, and go up to Sacre Coeur in Montmarte for spectacular views of the city.
Cheapest way of getting around Paris is to get a 'carnet', which is 10 tickets for the metro (underground) and a map of the Metro. It seems like a complicated system, but it is in fact simple to use.
Find out what's on that's free. There should be some sort of Cheap Paris website out there.

Answer 5

Any suggestions about how to get to the hotel??? -> By RER to Gare du Nord and then line 4. I've heard it can be very expensive to go out drinking and eating out. I've heard it can be around £8 gbp for a pint of beer? is this true? ->Yes and no. Depends on where you're going. We drink beer in half-pint here usually. It will be from 2 euros to 5-6 euros in expensive places. What's the weather usually like at this time of year? ->Not good. What sights/places should we should go and see? ->The usual stuffs I guess. Eiffel Tower, some museums, walking along the Seine, Montmartre, les Buttes-Chaumonts (not famous but great park). What pubs/clubs should we go to? ->To drink and have fun with people of your age, go to Bastille and around.

Answer 6

Hey,

I'm a french guy of 20 years old. If u wanna have fun, here are some good adress: Le musée Grevin. La cité des sciences. Le Louvre. Le Jardin du luxembourg. Bateaux mouches sur la seine (Cruise on la Seine), These adresses are more cultural if u want to go out by night: Le duplex on Les champs elysées. Le nouveau casino (rue oberkampf), La suite. Le Buddha bar near le Faubourg Saint Honoré. The Ice bar ( a bar entirely in ice serving exclusively Grey Goose Vodka) The last one is my favorite.

Enjoy your trip in Paris!!!

Answer 7

Never been to Paris, but I've heard one thing that might help you get along a little better.
If you can't hide the fact you're Amercan and don't speak French fluently don't try to carry on a conversation in their language (at least with service personnel or attendees).
Most are educated to speak at least english quite well among other languages and may find it offensive and annoying to try to understand your frenglish when they could communicate much more easily with you in english.
Some of the guys there may however find your girlfriend's attempts at their language quite cute and amusing.
Perhaps all the more reason to refrain from parlez la francais.

Answer 8

The louvre L'arc de triomphe eiffel tour all the museums

Answer 9

Take lots of warm clothes, prob cold. Dress up nice!!! People in Paris are very elegant! Take lots of comfy shoes, lots of walking in Paris, especially in the museums --- they are MASSIVE! Oh, please learn basic French, you know...all the important stuff like PLEASE, THANK YOU! Etc. Au Revoir!!!

Oh, wanna save money...
eat French sanwiches, they are cheap and delicious!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/samihaha/20409811/

Answer 10

my advice is for you to take lots of condoms with you (you'll need them)