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Just returned from an excellent trip to Paris with my wife and 17 year old daughter. I think I mentioned the plans here somewhere before we left. Spent 2 days in Versailles with my Parents (Temple mission) before spending 4 days in Paris. Versailles is an underrated place. The palace is a great place to spend a couple of hours, but probably not more than 2-3 max, imo. The gardens are never ending, and were worth several hours of walking around. Unfortunately, the bikes and golf carts weren't available to rent, so we were on foot for our garden exploring. The downtown area of Versailles is very nice, with plenty of little shops and some decent restaurants, from what I could see. 2 days there was about right for us (for both the town and for hanging with the parents).
In Paris we stayed in the Latin Quarter this trip. Absolutely loved it there and would highly recommend it as a launching point for seeing the city. Limitless restaurants and shops withing very short walking distance of our hotel, which was also a short walk from Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle/Conciergerie, the Musee D'Orsay, and the St Germain des pres area. There are also several metro stations nearby for getting everywhere else in town.
We were looking forward to spending more time in the Montmartre area, which we did, but half a day there was plenty for me. The Place du tertre was very fun to walk around for an hour or so, but I was a little disappointed with the montmartre area in general. We found a great spot for lunch there, but the area wasn't nearly as vibrant and interesting there as I was expecting. I would prefer a short visit there to see the sights, in exchange for more time in the Latin Quarter and Le Marais districts.
Musee D'Orsay was every bit as good as advertised, and was more enjoyable than the Louvre, imo. Saint Chappelle was amazing, but I was surprised at how small (and overpriced it was). Half an hour and we were ready to go. Don't get me wrong - its got the most amazing stained glass I've seen, but its 30-100 feet in the air and the chapel is really quite small.
Saw a number of the other touristy sights, some of which we had seen before. But the best part of the trip for us was just roaming the neighborhoods and finding cool streets to explore. The food in Paris is amazing (with the exception of Beef Tartare, which is disgusting but I can now say I've tried and survived).
In Paris we stayed in the Latin Quarter this trip. Absolutely loved it there and would highly recommend it as a launching point for seeing the city. Limitless restaurants and shops withing very short walking distance of our hotel, which was also a short walk from Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle/Conciergerie, the Musee D'Orsay, and the St Germain des pres area. There are also several metro stations nearby for getting everywhere else in town.
We were looking forward to spending more time in the Montmartre area, which we did, but half a day there was plenty for me. The Place du tertre was very fun to walk around for an hour or so, but I was a little disappointed with the montmartre area in general. We found a great spot for lunch there, but the area wasn't nearly as vibrant and interesting there as I was expecting. I would prefer a short visit there to see the sights, in exchange for more time in the Latin Quarter and Le Marais districts.
Musee D'Orsay was every bit as good as advertised, and was more enjoyable than the Louvre, imo. Saint Chappelle was amazing, but I was surprised at how small (and overpriced it was). Half an hour and we were ready to go. Don't get me wrong - its got the most amazing stained glass I've seen, but its 30-100 feet in the air and the chapel is really quite small.
Saw a number of the other touristy sights, some of which we had seen before. But the best part of the trip for us was just roaming the neighborhoods and finding cool streets to explore. The food in Paris is amazing (with the exception of Beef Tartare, which is disgusting but I can now say I've tried and survived).
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