I%26#39;ll be taking Eurostar to Paris on Saturday December 12, just for the day. I arrive about 11 AM and depart 7 PM. Any suggestions as to what I might do? Last year I visited the Louvre, D%26#39;Orsay Museum, Versailles. I like art, architecture and cultural places. I have thought of visiting Oscar Wilde%26#39;s tomb. Is it a worthwhile trip? How can I get there? Are there any other interesting off the beaten track places I might go and could someone recommend a good and moderately priced resraurant. I like food/wine also. Thanks!
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Concentrate on one area only - or else you will get stressed and forget to enjoy your brief stay.
Spend the day in Montmartre. (Forget about Oscar Wilde, he lies in the Père Lachaise cemetary which is scaringly big.)
Start on Place Blanche, go up to Place Clichy turn right into Rue Rachel. Visit the Montmartre cemetary, walk on the western and northern side of the hill. Stroll around Rue des Abbesses, Rue Lepic, Place Emile Goudeau, Avenue Junot, Villa Leandre, Allée des Brouillards..... Visit Musée de Montmartre in Rue Cortot.
Walk down the lovely stairs of Rue Maurice Utrillo east of Sacré Coeur, go up Rue Paul Albert, down Passage Cottin.........
have a nice day.
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From Gare du Nord to Place Blanche, you can take the 54 city bus:
ratp.info/picts/plans/gif/bus_paris/54.gif
However, I would suggest getting off at Pigale and taking the Montmartrobus up, and walking back down.
However if architecture and art are your interest, here%26#39;s what I would absolutely recommend:
From Nord, take a taxi to the Musee Jacquemart Andre [having the address written down to show to the driver]. The mansion is an architectural gem, the art collection varied and impressive. Then walk across the street and take the 22 city bus to Opera and visit the Opera Garnier. From Opera you can get back to Nord on the Metro with one transfer.
The most impressive feature in the mansion that is the JA is the double staircase in the winter garden. The architect came in second to Garnier in the competition to design the opera house, and this was his attempt to outdo his rival.
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I think the jacqemart-André is an excellent suggestion.
Since you have not apparently been there I would strongly suggest you visit the recently re-opened Musée de l%26#39;Orangerie. The Monet water-lilies are unforgettable and the rest of the museum is also stunning now that it is so beautifully lit.
Also as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity you might want to consider visiting the temporary exhibition of Titial portraits at the Musée du Luxembourg.
I don%26#39;t think I would recommend the Père Lachaise cemetery on such a short visit. It%26#39;s a bit out of the way and can be a real time-eater!
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Make that TitiaN portraits...
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Hi Chris. It%26#39;s interesting to see how everybody would spend their time differently with only 8 horus in Paris. Since you ask for off the beaten track places, I won%26#39;t give you any museums ... or not too many.
IMHO, Père la Chaise is a great destination for a visit to paris after you%26#39;ve already seen the primary tourist attractions. With a map and a guidebook you will have an interesting and eclectic cultural experience. Pere la Chaise is the final resting place of many famous artists, writers and musicians (Chopin, edith piaf, jim morrison, oscar wilde, gertrude stein, Abelard %26amp; Heloise, and many more). If you get a map it is pretty easy to find the spots of interest, and a guidebook is essential to getting full enjoyment out of your visit, as many tombs have special stories associated with them. For example, protruding part of Oscar Wilde%26#39;s tomb that the museum keeper found appropriate wound up as a paper weight on his desk for many years. You can go in the morning, spend 3-4 hours seeing your chosen sites (plan ahead for efficiency), eat lunch and have some wine in a brasserie close by in the 20eme (moderately priced and authentic). Then you%26#39;ll have time to do something else...
For the rest of the day you might want to visit the Picasso or Rodin museums. These can easily be done in 2 hours each and are quite worthwhile visits.
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Hey me too, I have 6 hours in paris on saturday - how long does it take to go to the Louvre??? Inclucing the wait to buy tickets?
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Hey me too, I have 6 hours in paris on saturday - how long does it take to go to the Louvre??? Inclucing the wait to buy tickets?
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Hi Nexxi, You could easily spend several days in the Louvre and not feel like you%26#39;ve seen it all. But if you have certain key things you want to see (e.g. Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Slaves of Michelangelo, etc) you can do it with 3-4 hours including getting tickets. I don%26#39;t think you%26#39;ll need more than 15 minutes to get tickets. But it depends which day and what time of year. On a weekday during the first two weeks in December the wait shouldn%26#39;t be long at all. Personally, with six hours, if you haven%26#39;t been to Paris before, I would suggest something like, Notre Dame, lunch/cafe in latin quarter and a stroll down the Champs Elysees.
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I just saw that you said Saturday. I don%26#39;t know how long the wait is, but probably not too long. Not many tourists this time of year.
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