A City Break to Paris
Paris is very easy to travel to from the UK, with cheap flights from budget airlines or a trip on the Eurostar taking just a few hours. The culture is greatly different to that of London or Manchester. There are many different regions of Paris – arty Montmartre; the food-orientated Latin Quarter; the upmarket Champs-Elysées and of course, the tourist havens of the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower areas. Practically in every corner of Paris you will come across tea rooms, quaint bars, cute cafes and very inviting bistros. Other regular stops are “crêperies” that sell pancakes, patisseries and of course, plenty of shops where you can buy clothing and accessories or a unique piece of art.
The museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art and Le Louvre, will take you at least a day each to appreciate, so, if you are only going for a long weekend then plan in advance. Also, buy your ticket for Le Louvre in advance online else you will find yourself queuing up for hours. From Le Louvre, you can walk through picturesque parks until you reach the “Arc de Triomphe”, and of course, featuring on the horizon throughout the city you will see the Eiffel Tower. The iconic tower must be experienced by all those not afraid of heights, but, beware of long queues in the busy season. At night you have more luck of avoiding large crowds and also to experience the full glory of the Tower lighting up and shining on the surface of river La Seine.
Guided tours or a hop-on-hop-off bus are good ways to get around the main tourist areas of Paris quickly. However, you will see more interesting and are more likely to discover hidden away places on foot with a little help from a map and a book of “Métro” tickets; ask for day tickets that can get you to places for a whole day. For example, venture past “Père Lachaise” Cemetery and you will find the final resting places of Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Proust or Jim Morrison.