Travel Tips for Your First Trip to Paris!

If you’ve read Pictures and Plane Tickets for a while, then you already know that we are quite partial to adventures in tropical destinations. We love the beach, scuba diving, swaying palm trees, mai tai’s, and that overall feeling of being on island time; so you can imagine our surprise when Paris came in and swooped us right out of our flip-flops. 😉

With its history, fascinating architecture, world-class museums, famous castles, and new surprises waiting to be uncovered around every corner, we were drawn in like sailors to the sirens call (without the disastrous consequences, of course). 🙂 We loved the energy and vibe of the city and during our visit we felt the pull to be out exploring as much as possible. (Because who really needs sleep anyways?) 😉

So with the Paris vibes still going strong, I wanted to take a moment and share my favorite Paris travel tips with you. These tips helped to maximize our vacation time, make local connections, and depart with memorable experiences; so enough of the rambling, let’s get to the list:

1. Purchase Tickets in Advance
   No matter how much time you have to explore, nobody wants to spend their day waiting in lines — and unfortunately, The Louvre, Versailles, as well as the Eiffel Tower all have notoriously long lines. Because we purchased our tickets well in advance, we were able to maximize our time and bypass every long line.
   
2. Je parle un peu français
   Meaning, I speak a little French. Cody took French back in high school, however, he only remembered the more “interesting” phrases; you know, the ones teenage boys laugh about, and the ones I probably shouldn’t share here on the blog. 🙂 So, before our trip, we both spent a little time learning a few basic phrases:

   Hello! Bonjour/Bonsiour
   Goodbye! Au’revoir
   How are you? Comment allez-vous?
   Wine, please. Vin, sil vous plait.
   I’m vegetarian. Je suis vegetarien.
   You know, all the important stuff. 😉

   In our experience, a friendly smile, a genuine attempt to learn their language, and an interest in their life and culture went a LONG way. The sweet woman at the bakery across the street from our hotel even took the time to help us learn new french phrases every morning. 🙂 Those mornings are some of my favorite memories of Paris.

   

3. Wake up Early
   I know, I know. You’re on vacation. Who wants to wake up early on vacation? However, before you completely tune me out on this tip, give me a chance.
   During our trip, we decide to wake up early so we could explore the city without the crowds. We explored the grounds of the Eiffel Tower, Trocadero, Palais Royal, and the Louvre before most people had ordered their first espresso of the day; and as we stood near the Eiffel Tower watching the sun rise higher into the sky, we looked around and felt as though we had the entire city to ourselves. Not only was it refreshing to have some space, but we were also able to capture some incredible photos without the crowds.

   

4. Watch the Eiffel Tower Sparkle
   Every night at sunset the Eiffel Tower lights up and glows for the entire city to see. What some people don’t know however, is that for the first five minutes of every hour, the Eiffel Tower also ‘sparkles.’ It is magical. And a must-see while you’re in the City of Lights.

   

So are you ready to book a trip? 🙂

Have you been to Paris? Share your favorite travel tips below.