Need to know how to do Paris in 4 days? And need to get the most out of your trip so you don’t miss anything? Make sure you read my ultimate guide to Paris in which I will tell you how I saw all of the spots in 4 days. I had a lovely long weekend in Paris with my parents back in July and it was amazing. I can’t believe the last time I was there was 15 years ago! I was just desperate to go back there.

DAY ONE:

ARC DE TRIOMPHE

We had arrived in Paris around midday due to a delay of our flight coming in and also having to land later than expected as a plan hadn’t cleared the runway in time. So we had from midday to explore Paris on our first day. Once we had checked into our lovely hotel, we headed out to find somewhere to eat. We stopped at this lovely cafe on a quiet avenue for some lunch. I ordered their Spicy Vegetable Pasta and a nice cold drink as it was so warm. We looked at our maps to find the best spots to visit and came up with our plan for the rest of the day.

Our first stop was the Arc De Triomphe, which was about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. I can’t believe it’s been 15 years since I last visited Paris and yet it still blows my mind how beautiful this city is. We didn’t go to the top of the Arc De Triomphe as we’ve already done it but we walked around and gazed at it’s beauty. The roundabout around it is always a hive of energy with so many cars and traffic going around. There is also plenty of stops to catch the Hop On Hop Off buses if you’d like to catch one around the city.

CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES

Once we’d checked out the Arc De Triomphe we headed down the Champs Elysees to look at all of the shops. We went in a few to have a look and get out of the hot sun. Dad wanted to look in Adidas so we stopped in there for a little bit to cool down and refill our water bottles up from their water machine. The Champs Elysees is typically a long stretch of shops ranging from budget to high end which leads a straight path from the Arc De Triomphe right down to the Louvre.

EIFFEL TOWER

The Eiffel Tower has to be one of the most iconic landmarks around the world and it’s always the centre of every love movie. Everyone knows Paris is known as the City of Love! It looks a lot smaller than you think it is but once you get up close, it looks much bigger. We stopped near the Eiffel Tower to catch some shots of it, but again didn’t go up to the top as we’ve done that before. (I may go back to Paris again to go to the top again, who knows!)

Dad stopped at a local French bakery and picked up some baby Nutella doughnuts for us to eat.     From our stop at the beautiful Eiffel Tower. 

We stopped at a cafe near the Eiffel Tower for cold drinks to cool down and relax. Before we headed back to shower for dinner. Once we got ready for dinner we decided to eat local. We stopped at this lovely Italian restaurant called La Locanda. There was an awful amount of police around our area. Which got us worried it was another terrorist attack but it was just for a football game.

There was a game on that night, the finale of the African Cup of Nations which was Senegal vs Algeria. A huge amount of the population in Paris are from Senegal and Algeria and they always tend to cause trouble. The police were around to protect the Arc De Triomphe as they always start fires near it and cause damage. I don’t think there was much damage but there was a lot of celebration and noise going on that night.

For dinner I ordered their Vegetable Pizza and then Dad ordered their Coppa amarena for pudding. We shared and it was super yummy, before heading back to the hotel for some sleep.

DAY TWO:

PALACE OF VERSAILLES

We had a full day out on Saturday and decided to venture to the wonderful Palace of Versailles. I had heard of so many good things and recommendations to go and see it. So we decided to whilst we was there. When you’re there and you get the chance I recommend you do it. If the palace isn’t enough to wow you, the gardens are pretty amazing as well.

It got a little bit confusing with the trains so I do recommend you get a taxi. You may struggle with the trains in Paris as most of them do not make any sense. But after a little bit of asking locals who kindly helped us, we made it there finally. We had pretty much most of the day to explore in the beautiful weather.

We checked out the start of the gardens before heading into the palace on our timed entry. Whilst in the palace you’ll learn all about the history behind it’s residents and the changes the palace went through during each period of time. You’ll be surprised how many changes and different things it housed during it’s time. It was home to Napoleon, Marie Antoinette, it even houses the parliament and an opera house as well.

The Palace of Versailles is the most beautiful building I’ve ever seen!

Once we had walked around the palace, we headed back outside to see more of the gardens. But was told we had to enter via another entry so we left and walked around to the Dragon Gate. Before entering the gate we stopped in a little cafe for a cold drink. During which is started to rain which totally caught us off guard but it didn’t rain for long. We then entered via the Dragon Gate to see the rest of the gardens before heading home.

For dinner we stopped at a restaurant called La Maison on the off chance to get some food. It started off as just drinks but we wanted to stay for dinner as the food looked lovely. Me and my mum shared baked camembert and then I ordered their Warm Goats Cheese salad which was delicious.

My mum ordered Salmon and Ratatouille which I tried a little bit off it. My Dad also had baked camembert and also steak for his main course. We then moved onto another restaurant for drinks. I ordered their berry cheesecake, before we headed back to the hotel.

MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT MY TRAVEL GUIDE TO FRANCE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

DAY THREE:

Our third day we had half of the day with my Dad before he headed to another part of France. Which is just outside of Paris for his works trip to a French bakery. We had breakfast local, I bought a bagel and a cookie from Bagelstein as I really wanted to try one of their bagels for breakfast. Whilst my parents had a continental. (That’s one thing I miss in Paris, is they never do a full english breakfast – ANYWHERE!)

PLACE DE LA CONCORDE

After breakfast, we headed to Place De La Concorde which is part of the straight line from the Arc De Triomphe and Champs Elysées. We saw lots of retro cars and sports cars driving up and down the concorde driving people up and down and also lots of cars parked up around the concorde. We had a little wander around taking pictures and checking out all of the amazing cars before heading to the Louvre. We also walked through the Jardin des Tuileries to get to the Louvre. The gardens are absolutely beautiful filled with water fountains, lots of pretty flowers, a massive ferris wheel and so much more. It’s the perfect place to relax and have a picnic on a beautiful sunny day.

LOUVRE

Once we explored and wandered through the gardens, we reached the Louvre which hasn’t changed a day. We took a few pictures but didn’t go inside as it was so busy and we’ve done it before. Plus Mona wasn’t there to say Hi to! (She was being cleaned in another building).

There was so many people taking selfies and pictures in front of the Louvre, you can tell why everyone loves it. I would like to go back to the Louvre to see it all again, especially when Mona is back in the house!

After we’d checked out the Louvre, we walked a little further as my Dad wanted to find the oldest bakery in Paris. We stopped nearby for a little bit and had a cold drink before my Dad headed off for his trip. I was checking Google Maps that the Hard Rock Cafe wasn’t far and was about a 15 minute walk from the cafe we had drinks at so we had to check that out.

I’ve always wanted to visit one in every city I’ve been to, if not pick something up from the merch shop. I picked up a lovely burgundy hoodie from their shop to add to my collection. My Dad came with us before he caught his train and me and my Mum headed on to find Moulin Rouge.

MOULIN ROUGE

Me and my Mum were both gutted at how expensive the tickets were to see a show, but we wanted to see the building before we left. We took each others photos outside the building and had a little wander around their shop which isn’t far and was on our way to the Basilica De Sacre Coeur. I would really like to book a show of Moulin Rouge one day and experience it, hopefully sometime in the future!

BASILICA DE SACRE COEUR & MONTMARTRE

We walked up the small hill and the flights of steps to get to the top to see the basilica. It’s been years since we last saw it and it looks just the same. But it was lovely to see it again and all the talented painters that are located in the small square nearby which you can buy their work. We didn’t go inside as it was so busy but it was lovely to see the basilica and the great views of Paris you can get from being up on the hill.

We then headed back down the hill and walked through Montmartre which I’d heard great things about. It was a very quirky area filled with amazing artwork and murals on the walls of nearly every building. It was so hot, we decided to stop for some ice cream before catching a taxi back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.

EIFFEL TOWER AT NIGHT

We caught a taxi back to the hotel to get ready before we went out for dinner. Our legs were aching and it was still so hot, so we decided to rest and get a taxi. Once we got ready for dinner, me and Mum walked back down to Champs Elysees towards the Eiffel Tower as we wanted to see it lit up at night.

We had a bit of time to kill before the lights went on, so we decided to have dinner beforehand. I’m not going to mention the restaurant as we weren’t very impressed with the service or the dishes we ordered for the price we paid. It was far too overpriced for what it was and the service was terrible.

Once we’d paid our bill, we headed over the road to see the Princess Diana memorial again which still doesn’t feel real. We took a few more pictures before the lights came on which is normally around sunset. Lots of photos later and into the hour, the sparkly lights came on. They last for about 10 minutes and then come on again every hour until about 2am along with the searchlight on the top as well.

DAY FOUR:

LATIN QUARTER

It was our final day in Paris and it was just me and my Mum before we caught our flight home. We stopped at a local cafe for breakfast before heading to the Latin Quarter. We caught a taxi there to save our legs and it was so hot as well. Our taxi driver dropped us off in the middle of the Latin Quarter and walked down several of the lanes and roads to explore. We came across quite a few quirky shops and restaurants.

NOTRE DAME

After exploring the Latin Quarter, we came to the Notre Dame after walking through several rows of shops and cute cafes. The Notre Dame doesn’t look too damaged after the fire that sadly struck it a couple of months ago, only a small amount of scaffolding could be seen from the front.

It is currently having it’s spire repaired and put back into place after lots of funding and donations from all around the world. Again, we didn’t go inside as we were struck for time and we’ve done it before. Although I’m hoping to go back to Paris again and do everything properly without being rushed in 4 days.

SAINTE CHAPELLE

Our final stop of the day before heading back to the hotel was Sainte Chapelle. It’s said to have the biggest and most beautiful stained glass window in Europe. Sadly we didn’t get a chance to go inside but we saw it from the outside. You do have to pay to enter the chapel but it’s said to be gorgeous inside and so worth doing if you have the time and do not mind paying.

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A FEW FAQ’s ABOUT PARIS:

How much money do I need to spend?
In the 4 days in Paris, I spent around £215.78. This was on food & drink, train tickets, a few things for me and also the trip to Versailles (which I will explain more in this post).

Is Paris expensive?
Paris is rather expensive compared to other city breaks, it’s even more expensive than London. I would recommend saving up as much as you can before you go because pretty much anywhere in Paris is expensive and around about the same prices but nearer the main attractions like the Eiffel Tower it was more expensive. To get an idea of how expensive it was, a Diet Coke was £9, a cocktail near the Eiffel Tower was about £17 (even a cocktail not near the Eiffel was about £9) and a pint of beer was £15.

What were your favourite parts of Paris?
I loved Montmartre and the Latin Quarter, I really wish I had longer to explore those areas. And obviously how could you not love the Eiffel and Arc De Triomphe. Also the Palace of Versailles was my favourite which is just outside of Paris. One of my collegues at work recommended to visit there, he said it was breathtaking and definitely a highlight of his trip.

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