Exploring the Magic of a Weekend in Paris

Recently, I had the opportunity to take my first trip to Europe. I've been holding out for some grand European adventure but in the current phase of life we are in - two weeks away (sans kids) is not realistic. My husband had to go to France for work so we made a long weekend out of it and it was just perfect. We had three full days to do all the things and had the best time.

Cost - his plane ticket was covered by work, and I used airline miles and hotel points for our stay since this was a VERY spontaneous, unplanned, unsaved for, vacation.

Day 1 - We were on the direct flight from Cincinnati to Paris which was great. We had no issues and arrived at 7:30AM Paris time. We uber'd to the hotel, dropped off our luggage and started off on our adventure.

We stayed at the Moxy Paris Bastille which is right on the border of the 3rd and the 11th. I wanted a hotel in that area because it's very residential. I wanted to be around Parisians doing Parisian things. They had a geat hotel breakfast and all the staff spoke English.

Our first stop was Notre Dame, which we walked to from our hotel. Neither of us had been prior to the fires but were very excited to see it. To visit Notre Dame you need to make a reservation ahead of time. Reservations open 3 days in advance. There is a line to wait in if you don't have reservations but even at 10:30AM it was VERY long. We did not do a tour, we just went in and wandered around. We had seen the 60 Minutes episode going over the restoration so we did have some background information. The cathedral is breathtaking and the art inside that they were able to restore is just incredible. I know every American says this after returning from Europe, but it really is amazing to see things that are SO old. That kind of history just doesn't exist in America.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Next, we walked from Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower stopping for lunch at a cafe along the way. We did not go to the top as I wasn't sure how we'd be feeling after not much sleep on the plane so I didn't want to buy tickets/reservations for anything our first day. We just sat on the ground and enjoyed the beautiful day. There were lot of people having picnics around us. It was quintessential Paris.

La Tour de Eiffel

By now we had walked about 4 miles and been awake for 24 hours and were starting to crash. We uber'd back to the hotel to check-in and take a quick nap. For dinner we walked to a nearby Italian restaurant for pizza.

Day Two - We had to set our alarm to make sure we didn't miss our tour of The Lourve, which I booked through Viator. This is my best advice for anyone going to Paris and considering the Lourve. Get a tour. Both of us agree it would have been a waste of time without someone explaining things to us. Neither of us really know anything about art but we can appreciate it when we see it. It was soooo helpful to have a guide. Turned out to be our favorite part of the entire trip. The Lourve has over 10 miles of galleries and can be overwhelming.

After our tour we meandered back towards Le Marais for our food tour. This was a highlight for me as well. There were 10 total people on the tour (all of whom were lovely and fun to spend the afternoon with), and we went to 8 different food stops most of which where very "hole in the wall" local type places I would have never ventured into. Everything was SOOO good and not "french food". Of course there were croissants and macaroons, but there was also Moroccan food from the open air market and a deli sandwich in the Jewish district. As our guide said "we eat more than just snails and cheese."

For the evening entertainment, we had an evening cruise down the Seine. It was the perfect way to end the night and see the city of lights in all its glory. The boat is timed to pass the Eiffel Tower right at 8:00 when it started sparkling. It was really magical! Fun story: there were two college aged girls that boarded the same time as us that were from Ohio - about 5 minutes from where live! What a small world!

The Eiffel Tower All Lit Up

Day Three - The Bastille market is one of the largest markets in Paris so of course we had to go since it was about one minute from our hotel. It is huge - you can buy anything there!

We had nothing planned for our last day but still a few things to check off our list. We went to Musee de l'Orangerie to see the Monet Water Lillies and then walked down Champs Elysees for some shopping, lunch, and a selfie with the Arc De Triumph.

We really lucked out in that the weather was phenomenal. We were there in early March and it was low 60's and sunny every day we were there. It was cold before we got there, and cold after we left.

All in all, we loved our time in Paris and I'm so glad I went for it. I've said this before when it comes to vacations. Go as far as you can go, for as long you as can afford it. If that's one night away at the hotel down the street so be it. If it's pitching a tent in our backyard - do it! Plucking yourself and your loved ones out of the day to day makes conversations happen, relationships grow, and memories made. Even if it's just a night or a weekend.

Happy traveling!