Your Paris starter pack
What's shut on which day, where the free toilets are, and what's worth your time.
14 audio tours · 456 toilets · 575 drinking fountains
Cover: Paris from above the Galeries Lafayette, the Eiffel Tower behind. Photo: Ricardo Antoniassi / Pexels
Paris, day by day
- Monday
- Closed: Musée d'Orsay, Musée Rodin. The Louvre, calmer than at the weekend.
- Tuesday
- Closed: The Louvre, the Orangerie, Versailles palace. Orsay and the parks.
- Wednesday
- Closed: Nothing major. The Louvre, open until 21:00.
- Thursday
- Closed: Nothing major. Orsay, open until 21:45.
- Friday
- Closed: Nothing major. The Louvre, open until 21:00.
- Saturday
- Closed: Nothing, but everything is busy. Shopping: every shop is open.
- Sunday
- Closed: Most shops outside the Marais. The Bastille and Raspail markets.
What can ruin the day here: Closures. Most national museums shut on Tuesday, some on Monday, and many small shops and restaurants close for weeks in August.
How far ahead to book, in summer
Winter needs about a third of these lead times. Example lead times, not checked yet.
Paris, quarter by quarter
Six quarters you can walk. Tap one on the map.
Marais
Medieval lanes, galleries, falafel. Good for: Shops open on Sunday. Careful: Busy on Saturday afternoons.
Saint-Germain
Old cafés and bookshops; the posh Left Bank. Good for: A long coffee on a terrace. Careful: Prices, not people.
Latin Quarter
Students, the Sorbonne, the Panthéon. Good for: Cheap lunches. Careful: The menus on Rue de la Huchette.
Montmartre
Steep lanes and a village feel. Good for: The view, and the back streets before 9. Careful: The bracelet scam on the Sacré-Cœur steps.
Canal Saint-Martin
Footbridges, locals, bars. Good for: A Friday evening by the water. Careful: Late at night towards Gare du Nord.
Île de la Cité
Where Paris began. Good for: Sainte-Chapelle on a sunny morning. Careful: Pickpockets in the Notre-Dame crowds.
Is it worth it?
Paris has more famous sights than a week can hold. This is about value for your time: what is worth a queue, and what looks better from outside.
Example prices, not checked yet.
Prettiest streets and views
The centre is flat, so the views come from the few hills and the rooftops. The free ones below are as good as the paid towers, and they come with the Eiffel Tower in the picture.
The Luxembourg Gardens
23 hectares · free · open from about 7:30 to dusk Maps
Paris's favourite park. Pull up one of the green metal chairs, they're free. Toy boats on the pond, shade under the chestnuts, and paid toilets by the Orangerie.
Eat well, skip the traps
The trap is easy to spot: a menu in five languages, a waiter calling you in, a view of a monument. Walk one street away from the sight and prices drop. Lunch is the best value: most bistros do a set two-course formule at noon.
Where to go out
Bars fill after 21:00 and most stay open until about 2:00. The east side, Canal Saint-Martin and Oberkampf, is cheaper and younger than the centre. Pick a mood. Any order.
Scams you'll meet
None of these is dangerous. They all work by getting you to stop, so keep walking and they lose interest.
| Scam | Where | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| String bracelet | Sacré-Cœur steps | Hands in pockets, walk on |
| Petition | Eiffel Tower, the Louvre | Don't sign, don't stop |
| Gold ring | Along the Seine | Say it isn't yours, keep going |
| Shell game | The bridges | It's rigged; the crowd is in on it |
Water and toilets near you
456 toilets (407 free, 308 accessible) and 575 drinking fountains around the tour routes.
The grey street toilets (sanisettes) are free. The green Wallace fountains are drinking water.
Toilets and water: © OpenStreetMap contributors, 2026-10-25.
Toilets and water: © OpenStreetMap contributors, 2026-10-25. Tap a point for directions, or a number to zoom in.
Walk or take the metro?
The centre is small. Most quarters are 15 to 20 minutes apart on foot, and walking is often as quick as the metro once you count the stairs and the changes.
| Between | Walk | Metro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marais and the Latin Quarter | 15 min | 14 min | Walk |
| The Louvre and the Eiffel Tower | 45 min | 25 min | Metro |
| Opéra and Montmartre | 30 min, uphill | 15 min | Metro |
| Saint-Germain and Orsay | 10 min | 12 min | Walk |
Most metro stations have stairs only. Buses are step-free.
Your week in Paris
| Café crème | €4.50 |
| Metro ticket | €2.50 |
| Lunch | €19 |
| Dinner | €40 |
Per person, without flights or accommodation. A weekly Navigo pass beats single tickets from day 3. Example prices, not checked yet.
Quick answers
- What can I only do here?
- Watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle for five minutes on every hour after dark, from Trocadéro.
- Anything I shouldn't do?
- Walk into a shop without saying bonjour, or walk in the bike lanes.
- What if it rains, or it's hot?
- Rain: the covered passages such as Galerie Vivienne. Heat: churches, and the Seine banks at dusk.
- Any day trips?
- Versailles, 45 minutes on the RER C; Giverny for Monet's garden from April to October.
Our audio tours in Paris
Each tour is the walk in order, with the stories told at every stop. Compare our 14 tours.
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In a bundle · save 41%Bundles in Paris
4 tours3 tours3 tours2 tours
