Just one day in Paris? Make sure you don’t miss anything important

Paris In A Day: How To Make Sure You Don’t Miss Anything Important

Paris is not a huge city but there is quite a lot of amazing things to see there. Seeing all of those landmarks and museum can take a lifetime of course, for those who surprisingly doesn’t have that much time to spend in our city, this article will help you out seeing the most of Paris in a day. Enjoy – Paris in a day: How to make sure you don’t miss anything important.

At 8 am

Of course you’ll have to get up early if you want to admire all the Parisian landmarks. Trust me; there are many! First of all, I would recommend starting with a typical Parisian breakfast. You can stop at a café to drink an orange juice, dip your croissant in a café au lait -milk coffee- and order some tartines, (baguette bread with jam), or find a nice bakery near your hotel and enjoy a French croissant while heading to your first stop. The French breakfast is a big tradition for us!

One of Parisian’s most favorite café for breakfast is Angelina, a place famous for its delicious hot chocolate and its bakeries. It is located at 226 Rue de Rivoli, next to the first stop, and it opens at 7.30 am.

I believe the best starting point would be the Place de la Concorde, on the Southern Bank of the Seine. It’s my favorite place in Paris. In fact, I think it defines “Paris in a nutshell”. From here, you can enjoy a beautiful panorama of Paris’s most famous sights.

At the end of the Champs-Elysées, you will get amazing views of the Eiffel Tower, the Seine and the Arc of Triumph. It is a great location to see all greatest landmarks and it will let you feel the atmosphere and the beauty of Paris.

You can also see the National Assembly, the roof of the Grand Palace made of glass, and the golden dome of the Invalids. At the centre of the Place de la Concorde, you’ll enjoy the 3300-year-old obelisk, a gift from Egypt in 1831 and the two fountains built in the 19th century. Not only will you start by seeing the most important landmarks in just one look, but you will also understand the city plan of Paris, made of large avenues, look-alike stone-made buildings and divided into two banks by the Seine.

Want to know everything about Paris’s most famous sights? Get a free guided tour (tip-only) of Paris Landmarks and make sure you don’t miss anything ! Tours daily at 10am. Learn more on Discover Walks.

At 9 am

You can continue your visit by crossing the Concorde Bridge. Enjoy a walk along the Seine, on the Quai Anatole France. After a 20 minutes walk, you will arrive at the Orsay Museum.

If you want to visit a museum but only have a day, you’ll have to choose between the two most famous museums: the Louvre and the Orsay. My advice is to visit the Orsay museum. It’s smaller and less crowded than the Louvre. Plus, it has a great number of Impressionism paintings – an art movement born in Paris in the neighbourhood of Montmartre. This museum is built in an ancient train station. It’s easy to get around and is so impressive to see.

You should buy your tickets online some time before visiting the museum, so you can skip the line. Alternatively you can also book an Impressionnist Montmartre Tour which includes a ticket to the Orsay Museum.

At noon

Cross the Royal Bridge to enter the Garden of the Tuileries, a typical French garden, and admire the Louvre, one of the world’s largest museums and the former residence of French kings. Enter through the Lion Gate if you chose to visit the Louvre and not Orsay, as the line is shorter than at the Pyramid entrance.

Make your way over the Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge of Paris, and cross it to come to the heart of Paris: l’île de la Cité – The Cité Island.

At 1 pm

You arrived at the Ile de la Cité. That was quite a walk and you must be a little tired. On the island, you can find a small café where you can have your lunch.

I personally enjoy the Caveau du Palais, a good restaurant located on the Place Dauphine, one of the oldest places of Paris. You’ll spend about 25€ for starter, main course and dessert.

At 2.30 pm

After a break, you will be happy to pass by the Conciergerie, a former royal palace and prison in Paris, to reach the Cathedral of Notre-Dame. I think you should take some time to get inside the cathedral. You won’t regret it!

If you want to learn more about the Secrets of Notre Dame in 75 minutes, you can join our free guided tour (tip-only) of the area ! Tours daily at 1pm.

Meeting point of our Notre Dame Tour in Paris

At 4 pm

The discovery of Paris is not complete if you haven’t taken the Parisian subway at least once. Go to the station “Cité”, next to Notre-Dame, and take the metro to Saint-Germain-Des-Prés. It’s on metro line 4, direction Porte d’Orléans. You are now on the Left Bank of Paris.

Just like legendary writers like Sartre, de Beauvoir, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Stein or Joyce, enjoy a drink in a historic café next to the Church of Saint-Germain. The Café de Flore is the most famous one but it’s also expensive! You can also stop at Pierre Hermé, on the Bonaparte Street, 5minutes from the metro station, to enjoy a macaron, a famous French pastry.

Discover Walks Paris runs a Saint-Germain and the River tour every day rain or shine at 5pm from April 28 through October 15. You will find more information on our website.

At 5 pm

You can take the metro line 4 again or walk to the Montparnasse Tower. Most Parisians don’t really appreciate this building. It’s not really pretty. But the good thing is, if you go to the top of it, you’ll enjoy an amazing view of Paris. An awesome view over Paris with the Eiffel Tower and the Montparnasse Tower out of the picture!

That’s why I strongly recommend that you go to the top of the Montparnasse tower and not on top of the Eiffel Tower. Plus, the line is shorter; remember that you only have a day! As day turns into night, don’t worry, the view will be even prettier with the city lights.

At 8 pm

To end this amazing walk in Paris, you can have dinner next to the Opera Garnier at the restaurant Le Lumière, located at 1 rue Scribe. Le Lumière is one of the best restaurants around and the inside is beautiful, with its roof made of glass. You’ll spend about 45€ for starter, main course and dessert. For a cheaper price, you can enjoy good food at the Bistro Volnay, at 8 rue Volney. You’ll spend about 38€ for starter, main course and dessert. Then have a last walk at night, strolling a typical Right Bank “haussmanien” avenue.

You now know what to see to fully enjoy Paris in a day and how to make sure you don’t miss anything important! I hope this article has been helpful to you! If you need further information, please, let us know.

> I advise you to read this article which presents another program of visits to Paris in one day as well !

> Paris in two days? This article is made for you!

À bientôt!