Whether you think of Paris, France as the City of Light or the City of Love, you’ll come away with an increased appreciation for life like we did.

How long to stay?

Paris, France is a huge city with a lot to see and do. We always thought of the city as only perfect for those who love art and museums. We later came to appreciate the city as something more than that. While there are plenty of museums to check out, the place is a foodie’s paradise and there is plenty to do with children. That last part is important because children might not have quite as much interest in appreciating art at their young age.

If it’s your first time to Paris, we’d recommend coming for five nights. It might seem lengthy, but that gives plenty of time to explore the city and also some time for daytrips. Potential daytrips include Disneyland Paris, Versailles, and Reims (in the Champagne region). We wanted to go to Reims ourselves but will most likely check it out on a subsequent trip.

You could also go to Normandy if you have interest in World War II, but we’ve heard there isn’t much there aside from a memorial. It’s probably something to consider doing as part of a tour. We’ve heard Normandy (where the U.S. landed as part of the war) is more impactful to Americans than it is to the French.

What we did in Paris, France

Eiffel Tower

We’ll start off this segment with perhaps the largest tourist trap. Over six million visitors will scale the tower to gain views over the city. The price to go up varies based on which level you plan to visit and whether you want to take the stairs or the lift (€14.50 to €36.10). Why do I consider this a tourist trap? There are plenty of hawkers around the base of the complex, it’s generally extremely crowded, and the Parisian skyline isn’t impressive. Watch your pockets because attractions that bring the tourists also bring the pickpockets.

Paris is a fairly flat city–at least in the area immediately adjacent to the Eiffel Tower, so you can see for miles from the second floor. You’ll get a different angle from the top, not a materially different vantage point.

What we enjoy the most of the Eiffel Tower is just admiring it from afar. And if you happen to be here for a special event, the Eiffel Tower gets lit up in fireworks, which is neat. The Eiffel Tower is iconic, but we recommend admiring it from afar and not scaling it.

The Louvre

From one heavily crowded attraction to another. In a city full of museums, the Louvre is the most popular museum in the city in the world. Given all the impressive artwork inside, I wouldn’t go so far to call this a tourist trap, but you will be fighting the crowds. You’ll want to book your tickets in advance. If the lines to get in by the pyramid at too discouraging, consider the Richelieu entrance by the Rue de Rivoli, near the Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre Métro station. It’s intended more for groups and members, but they might also accept reserved ticketed guests at times. Worth a check if you’re in line anyways.

Once inside, you’ll find famous artworks like the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. You’ll find crowds around each, but otherwise it’s not too bad once inside the museum walls. If you love to study art, you could stay here most of the day. More casual art viewers could still be here for two hours, but it’s not a place I would take younger children. Yes, children under 18 are free (adults are €22), but there’s nothing there to entertain the younger ones. Teenagers interested in culture and history would be fine here.

Musée de l’Orangerie

While we liked the Louvre, we actually loved l’Orangerie. Not only is it cheaper (€12.50 adults, children are free), it’s significantly less crowded here. The thing to see here are Claude Monet’s Water Lilies, arranged in a way that makes you feel like you’re in the middle of the art, looking out towards it. Pictures don’t do it full justice–it’s something you’re just going to have to experience yourself.

Musée d’Orsay

Paris, France is full of all sorts of museums, but we only want to devote time to discuss three of them. The third is d’Orsay, which specializes in Impressionist and post-Impressionist artwork. The list of artists you’ll find here is impressive: Claude Monet, Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Vincent van Gogh. If you’re an art lover, you might even find it more impressive than the Louvre. Admission will run you €16 for adults, children are free.

Just a quick note: if you plan to come and visit museums and other landmarks, you might want to consider the Paris Museum Pass. However, do yourself a favor and do the math on it. With all of these passes, determine your list of what you’d be willing to visit and pay full price for first. Then compare your list against what the pass gives you to determine if it’s a deal. Don’t just buy the pass and visit places you had no intention of going to just to get “value” out of the free admission.

Arc de Triomphe

At one end of the Champs-Élysées (an avenue with plenty of restaurants, shopping, and entertainment) is the Arc de Triomphe. At roughly 200 years old, the Arc de Triomphe was commissioned in the Napoleonic Era, intended to be used as a symbol for the army. Underneath the arch is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a tribute to World War I. Along with the Eiffel Tower, it has become a symbol not just of Paris but of all of France too.

Entering the Arc de Triomphe will cost you €22 in high season, €16 during low season, and it’s free for children under 18. There are sculptures and artwork to see inside. If you’re interested in just climbing to the top to see the Champs-Élysées from above, you’ll get a nice view from the top. Honestly, we find the view here equivalent to the view from the second floor of the Eiffel Tower but without the hordes that come with the Tower.

Notre-Dame Cathedral of Paris

A place of worship, the Notre-Dame is open to everyone for free with a reservation in advance. It was built roughly 860 years ago, making it one of the oldest buildings in Paris, France. You can enter the premises both to attend a service or to visit and admire. Even if you don’t actually enter its walls, you’ll find it’s a local gathering point where people just spend an afternoon enjoying its ambience.

It was subject to a terrible fire that damaged the building quite badly and closed for years for repairs. However, after six years of careful restoration, the Notre-Dame is now open again.

Disneyland Paris + Walt Disney Studios

Want a daytrip out of the city to spend time with the family? Disneyland Paris is a decent choice. You’d be forgiven if you thought that Disneyland Paris is actually in Paris (it’s about 20 miles away, accessible by train). At the Disneyland Paris campus is also Walt Disney Studios, a smaller experience with more unique rides. We’ve visited all Disney theme parks, and would rate these two as below your average Disneyland. That said, we did enjoy Walt Disney Studios more than Disneyland Paris despite its size, and we wouldn’t be opposed to returning.

The ride list at Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studios features many options that can be found at other locations. But there are some unique twists on rides, like Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril, a rollercoaster that is pretty fun.

I always like it when Disney draws upon its films set locally to develop rides that fit the area, like Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy. It’s currently closed (set to reopen in 2026 after refurbishment), but hopefully it will reopen as we remember it: a fun trackless ride that takes you through the life of a mouse chef.

• For more details from our time at the Disneyland parks in Paris, check out our dedicated post.

Palace of Versailles

Opulent. Extravagant. Lavish. All words that can be used to describe the Palace of Versailles, a worthwhile daytrip outside Paris city limits accessible via train. As with many other sites in the major Paris area, don’t be surprised to see crowding. You’ll want to get your tickets reserved in advance (pricing from €21). Once inside, you’ll see probably more gold than you’ve ever seen before in your life. It’s utterly impressive how they’ve maintained the grounds.

It was a royal residence for centuries but has since become a glorified museum full of French history. When you’re done exploring the inside, there is still more to explore around the palace grounds. It’s beautiful and absolutely worth a visit.

Where we ate in Paris, France

Madame Brasserie

There are two full-service restaurants in the Eiffel Tower: Jules Verne and Madame Brasserie. Since we had the kids with us, we weren’t going to dine at Michelin-starred Jules Verne on this trip. Instead, we went with the much more approachable Madame Brasserie, and absolutely were not disappointed. Years ago, the restaurant only served what the wait staff could describe as “tourist food”. These days, the food is something they can be proud of.

Reservations are highly recommended, and dining here grants you access to a priority line to get up the Tower faster. If you do have a need to go up the Eiffel Tower, dining here is probably our preferred way of visiting. While the restaurant is on the first floor, you can take the stairs up to the second floor viewing platform quite easily.

The food was excellent, prepared with care and mixed with exquisite flavors. We polished off everything. The dinner at Madame Brasserie is delicious and we would absolutely consider coming back (but only if we have another desire to go up the Eiffel Tower).

Bateaux Parisiens dinner cruise

There are a couple of major cruise options if you’re looking to explore the Seine River. We’ve tried Bateaux Mouches (but not for meal service) and Bateaux Parisiens (for a dinner cruise). Between the two options, go with a dinner cruise. It’s nice enough to be on the water, but the elegance is amplified significantly if you choose to dine on the water.

These dinner cruises start with a nice tour along the water. The earlier it is in the day, the nicer the pictures will tend to be (obviously). When you’re inside the boats, the glass is rather reflective, so you might consider stepping outside to take a better shot. Evening cruises will also tend to take you to the spot where you can see the miniature version of the Statue of Liberty. No, this isn’t the Las Vegas Strip…

Still, expect to dress up for dinner when you’re on the evening cruise. In our case, we actually were here for National Day (a.k.a. Bastille Day). The special holiday cruises are extra nice because of the fireworks over the Eiffel Tower at the end. Also on board was live music and plenty of alcohol. Somehow (and Jenn and I differ slightly over what happened) we ended up getting two bottles of wine included in our meal, plus several glasses of champagne.

As for the food, we were fans. I doubt it was just the alcohol talking, but we loved every bite of the pre-fixe meal. But, yes, you can blame the quality of the photos on the alcohol, as Jamie Foxx and T-Pain would say.

Harry’s New York Bar

There was a time in her life where Jenn was all about the drink known as French 75 (champagne, gin, lemon juice, simply syrup). So, while we were in Paris, France, we decided to check out the place commonly attributed to having created the drink: Harry’s New York Bar.

There is all sorts of decor from the United States within its walls. (Go Bruins!)

As for the drink itself? Perfection. While we could have stayed and enjoyed more than just a drink, that’s really all we wanted to do. It’s a good place to come and relax at the end of a long day exploring the city. And, really, living the local life can be appealing (this was before kids questioning us why we’re just sitting around drinking).

Berthillon

One of the most famous ice cream shops in Paris, France is Berthillon. It’s practically around the corner from Notre-Dame, making it a good one-two combo. Go to Berthillon to get ice cream and then relax on the grounds around the Notre-Dame (if you didn’t already finish your ice cream by the time you get there). The ice cream here is rich with high quality, natural ingredients. There are plenty of flavors and you’ll be hard-pressed to walk away without trying multiple flavors.

McDonalds?

I leave this as a question mark because why would I suggest McDonald’s in a place like Paris? It’s not for the savory food, which mostly will remind you of any other McDonald’s. Instead, it’s more for the macarons they sell. To be honest, they’re not the best macarons money can buy. But, they’re actually not bad for the price they cost, which ranks amongst the cheapest possible in Paris. We ate the macarons at Ladurée and also at McDonald’s and found that McDonald’s actually stood up reasonably well. However, be sure to eat these while fresh as they seemed to not last as long as the Ladurée version.

Where we stayed in Paris, France

Hyatt Regency Étoile

We enjoyed our stay at the Hyatt Regency Étoile, aided by friendly staff and a pretty good lounge. The hotel isn’t the best in terms of location (about a 20 minute walk away from the Arc de Triomphe), but it’s not that far from a metro stop. The hotel is attached to a shopping mall, which does open up some options if you’re looking for a quick bite. It’s currently a Category 5 hotel in the World of Hyatt program (free nights are between 17,000 and 23,000 points).

The suites are technically large enough to accommodate two adults and two children, but it might require chatting with the hotel. In our case, the hotel moved us to a family room to make things a bit more comfortable for us.

As referenced, the lounge is an asset. It can get crowded, so come early if you’re able to. During breakfast service, we found the food to be of great quality. For evening service, we found it too crowded to be pleasant and so didn’t prioritize coming here. After all, since this hotel is kind of out of the way of everything else in the city, it didn’t make sense for us to specifically come back to the hotel just for evening service.

Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme

One of the fabled properties under the Hyatt portfolio, the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme is an impressive hotel. I have to admit that when we first stepped inside the hotel, we immediately felt out of place. This was our first truly luxurious hotel stay, and we felt woefully underdressed. Looking back, the ambience is a bit on the stuffy side compared to other Hyatt hotels. This is a Category 8 hotel, with free nights costing between 35,000 and 45,000 Hyatt points.

As you’d expect with a hotel of this caliber, the quality of the stay–from the bedding to the shower to pretty much every detail–is superb. It’s also located on a cute street, which can make for some decent people-watching if you’d like.

Breakfast is included if you’re a Globalist, which is awesome. You can choose to dine downstairs at Café Jeanne, which is an excellent choice between the service, setting, and food itself.

Or you can also dine in the comfort of your room for free as well if you have Globalist status. If you’re not, it’s an excellent use of a Guest of Honor award to try this property out. Just be prepared to pay the price.

What is your favorite activity in Paris, France?

Suggested reading:

• Other destinations we’ve visited
• Why I Like World of Hyatt
• Exploring Paris With Children