And of course were could a European travel destinations line up start if not from Paris…
Aaah! The romance, the light, the history, the buildings and the FOOD!!!!
HOW TO GO THERE
I traveled in Paris a couple of times so far. You see, it is so close to Amsterdam so you can reach it either by plane, train or drive there yourself!
This time I went by car, during the Pinkersdaag days off.
Advice not to:
… travel on the Dutch/ Belgian highways on a long weekend. Traffic is too much for someone to handle. During these days choose the train. Not advisable to fly by plane once it actually takes much more time than the train.
Now if you are traveling from other cities, with no train service… fly!!!
If you choose the Thalys train however you try to book early. The earlier you book the cheapest the fares. One tip is if you are book early you can get great discount on the First Class seats!!
JE VOUDRAIS UNE CHAMBRE S’IL VOUS PLAIT!
The hotel I booked, I found on the booking.com website.
A very useful website but always read the quests’ reviews… sometimes the uploaded pictures are not what the case is. This was not my case though.
I stayed in this hotel the previous time I was in Paris. I liked it quite a lot so I decided to re-book there again. It is a boutique hotel, with small Parisian cute rooms, all designed accordingly and furnished from top to bottom with IKEA.
The staff is super friendly and actually speaks English (this is something you will not easily find in Paris). They were very eager to book us taxis and restaurants and also to let us stay a couple of hours over the check-out time without requesting for half a day extra fee on the room.
In the fair price of 130e per night they offered a decent breakfast in the breakfast area. A very cute and clean room in the basement of the building, with super friendly service.
Hotel Mayet, http://www.mayet.com/, is located in the neighborhood on Les Invalides. Easy to access by metro (two metro stations around the corner) and walking distance from good bistros and of course the famous St Germain des Pres area, if you fancy a drink! It is also walking distance from Notre – Dam and the Louvre if you really like walking!!!
ENOUGH SOLES TO MELT???
In Paris it is not really worth to take the metro since you’ll miss out on the best parts. It is better to walk through the city, so put your walking shoes on and start bright and early in the morning.
A LOT OF THINGS TO SEE.
One visit is not enough to see even the topline stuff.
Notre Dam
Eiffel Tower
The Louvre
Champs Elysee
Les Gardins du Luxemburg
Sacre Coeur/ Montmarte
Grand/ Petit Palais
Boat Tour
… are only the basic you need to see on your first visit there. Note that the queues in every of these sights are HUGE.
TIP: go on the websites of each museum and place you want to visit and book your ticket in advance. This way you usually escape the huge queues for tickets etc.
TIP: The Louvre: Run through it. If it is your first visit or you are not very much into art just have a plan of what you want to see. SEE: Venus de Milo/ Victory of Samothrace and Mona Lisa. Spend some time on the French paintings and the Greek-Roman Statues. They are awesome!
Two books I found super very helpful are the Lonely Planet guide and the Guide of Streets and Travel of Paris. With these two you will have a great overview of the city and you will walk around it really easy.
SOMETHING BAKED???
Eating in Paris is a delight… if you can avoid the very touristic restaurants…
Any bakery (boulangerie for the locals) can do! They do awesome sandwiches, half a baguette filled with great cheese and ham! And for the heck of it buy a plain baguette and carry it around, like Frenchmen do.
Before booking any dinner plans, I tried searching online and read reviews for the bistros. It worked. I managed to discover a couple of super cool places for dinner.
TIP: always go for the set menus they have. They come in very good prices and they are very fulfilling. In these menus you will usually find a couple of traditional French dishes and if you are into cheese, you’ll love the cheese-desert. Keep in mind to keep some wine in your glass to enjoy the cheese plate!
Bistrot L’Horloge on Rue de Cherche Midi.
Great place to eat and not very expensive. With a menu around 29 p.p. (excl. wine) you can enjoy really well cooked food and friendly waiters (who also speak English).
My all time favorite bistro is one on the hill of Montmarte. The best food I’ve tasted so far, in a progressively weird set up. The environment is like your grandmother’s kitchen. Worn out pinkish wallpaper behind old-school paintings and shelves filled with all these 60’s metal toys and books that smell old and wake up this growling sounds in stomach. The same one you always have when you visit your grandma’s house! Bistrot Le Poulbot on Rue Poulbot http://www.montmartre-paris-france.com/restaurant-montmartre-le-poulbot.php
Have a French dictionary in hand cause you’ll probably not be able to communicate in other languages. With a menu from 16,5e excl. wine you will some of the best dishes of your life in the heart of Montmarte, where most of the rest bistros offer the lowest quality in the most touristic price.
Also don’t forget to try the ice cream from AMORINO. http://www.amorino.com/. You will find those ice cream parlours serving flower shaped cones and cups, scattered through the city. Get the “yogurt” and “crema” flavor that shocked me, even though I have no sweet tooth!!!
Of course there are a zillion other things to visit, see, eat and enjoy in Paris. It is not a one-time visit city. You will need to go back again and again and definitely go there with your love. You will see the city through a completely different prism…
Monday, June 20, 2011
Travels Inc.
Long time ago blogger, but missing a subject for all this time.
Now I finally got it. I am going to write for my new hobby, one I do for fun but also for work… Travelling. Truthfully it is not a new acquired hobby. It is more like an old passion that I was satisfying anyhow, without understanding why I love it so much!
What I love about it is the whole action about discovering new places, tasting new flavors, drinking weird wines and meeting (weird?) people! Also the process of booking flights, trains, hotels and restaurants! An amazing search-game to find the best price on the best location with the minimum of information!
That’s my new subject then!
Behind the subject there is always the reason! Or reasons… you can read mine and understand what makes me tick.
I found out that while trying to prepare you next trip you can become the victim of all the “specialized” traveling agencies, with their package trips where everything is included in the lowest price you could ever imagine.
On the other hand you can just go for it and start your visit to the foreign city through a random book guide. There you can be mislead by all the businesses that have paid for this guide to be printed! All this businesses put their name ahead leading you to the most commercial and low quality restaurants/ bars and hotels.
Or you can get advice from friends who have been there. This is what works the best but if you are not keen in keeping pedantic notes you will end up paying a fortune on roaming costs! “Hey mate, what was the street that restaurant you told me about is located” … You’ve been there right!!
And of course, a million other things you will never see unless you … study!!! Yes it is a trip; you usually take it on vacation time! Vacation and studying do not really match together, understandable! But you need to do your homework before booking that flight. Go online, follow the travel channel (http://www.travelchanneltv.nl/) and read whatever falls in your hands regarding your destination!
Besides studying, talk to your friends who have been there. The ones that share your taste of course! Not the ones who will go for a wine tasting, when you are allergic to wine!
You can also talk to friends that have lived in your destination. This is more difficult to find especially when you are about to visit exotic destinations. But if you are lucky enough to leave or work in an international environment go for it, you will find that when asking people for their hometowns they are more than eager to give you information, even if they are just colleagues to whom you barely speak to during the week.
There are millions of other stuff you can take into consideration …
Anyhow I am going to try and write all the things I found helpful or less helpful and give you all the links that came across my way!!! (And since I am residing in the Netherlands most of the websites I know are the Dutch ones… )
Safe Travels
Mx
Now I finally got it. I am going to write for my new hobby, one I do for fun but also for work… Travelling. Truthfully it is not a new acquired hobby. It is more like an old passion that I was satisfying anyhow, without understanding why I love it so much!
What I love about it is the whole action about discovering new places, tasting new flavors, drinking weird wines and meeting (weird?) people! Also the process of booking flights, trains, hotels and restaurants! An amazing search-game to find the best price on the best location with the minimum of information!
That’s my new subject then!
Behind the subject there is always the reason! Or reasons… you can read mine and understand what makes me tick.
I found out that while trying to prepare you next trip you can become the victim of all the “specialized” traveling agencies, with their package trips where everything is included in the lowest price you could ever imagine.
On the other hand you can just go for it and start your visit to the foreign city through a random book guide. There you can be mislead by all the businesses that have paid for this guide to be printed! All this businesses put their name ahead leading you to the most commercial and low quality restaurants/ bars and hotels.
Or you can get advice from friends who have been there. This is what works the best but if you are not keen in keeping pedantic notes you will end up paying a fortune on roaming costs! “Hey mate, what was the street that restaurant you told me about is located” … You’ve been there right!!
And of course, a million other things you will never see unless you … study!!! Yes it is a trip; you usually take it on vacation time! Vacation and studying do not really match together, understandable! But you need to do your homework before booking that flight. Go online, follow the travel channel (http://www.travelchanneltv.nl/) and read whatever falls in your hands regarding your destination!
Besides studying, talk to your friends who have been there. The ones that share your taste of course! Not the ones who will go for a wine tasting, when you are allergic to wine!
You can also talk to friends that have lived in your destination. This is more difficult to find especially when you are about to visit exotic destinations. But if you are lucky enough to leave or work in an international environment go for it, you will find that when asking people for their hometowns they are more than eager to give you information, even if they are just colleagues to whom you barely speak to during the week.
There are millions of other stuff you can take into consideration …
Anyhow I am going to try and write all the things I found helpful or less helpful and give you all the links that came across my way!!! (And since I am residing in the Netherlands most of the websites I know are the Dutch ones… )
Safe Travels
Mx
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