Travel Guide: What To Do In Paris

Before I head off for my next international trip this weekend (Iceland!), I had to make sure to share my full Paris travel guide for what to do and see. I already shared my eating and drinking guide but when not having a croissant or champagne, there’s SO much to do while in the City of Lights! Breaking down my favorite spots and activities below!

WHAT TO DO IN PARIS

Explore Montmartre

We stayed up near Montmartre and loved how quiet the area was, but still packed full of Parisian sights.  Walk around and visit Sacre Coeur, as well as see all the local artists painting along the cobblestone streets.

Take A Bike Tour

One of the favorite parts of our trip was the bike tour we did! This was such an amazing way to see so many sights at once, plus what’s more Parisian than biking through the city?! We did this tour that was about four hours and included visiting the Eiffel Tour, the Seine, the Alexander III Bridge and even a lunch break in the Tuileries. Our tour guide did an excellent job of sharing unique facts and most importantly, guiding us through Paris traffic!

Shopping

It isn’t a trip to Paris without some shopping right?! Our favorite two areas to walk around were Le Marais and Saint-Germain, which are both packed full of designer shops but also unique stores. Some favorites were a gorgeous candle shop Kerzon (thanks for the rec Meghan!), Merci and Barthelemy for all your cheese shop dreams! Another special moment was purchasing my Chanel bag from the original Chanel store at 31 Rue Cambon. Even if not purchasing, it’s a must for every designer lover to walk around the stunning store!

Jardin des Tuileries

Nothing felt more Parisian than walking through the gorgeous gardens during our visit. We wandered through here a few times, soaking up the fall colors as well as the gorgeous topiaries and flowers among the tree lined paths.

Palais-Royal

This Instagram-worthy spot features graphic black and white sculptures in the courtyard, and then surrounded by some small shops and a gorgeous garden. A fun spot to stop for some photos and take a break!

There are SO many incredible museums in Paris. We decided not to visit the Louvre as it’s a whole day activity and have heard horrible reviews of it lately so we chose to do some of the smaller museums instead to maximize our days. Biggest tip is to make sure to buy your tickets in advance! This helps with cutting lines and being able to map out your days more accurately. Here are the ones we visited during our stay!

Picasso Museum

Located in the Le Marais area, the Picasso Museum is a great way to break up your day of shopping in the area. The museum is in a gorgeous structure and easy to go through in about a hour and was surprised how much I loved it.

Musee de L’Orangerie

My favorite museum of the trip, this tiny museum houses huge paintings from Monet. Located in the Tuileries, we visited her after being at Monet’s gardens all morning so it was wonderful to see the pieces after being surrounded by the inspiration.

Opera Garnier

If you’re looking for the Paris glitz and glam, this is a must. We didn’t end up making it to Versailles during our trip and this was such a perfect way to still see all the over the top décor. This is the opera house Phantom Of The Opera is based off and was a great place to escape the rain for an hour and explore.

Musee D’Orsay

The Musee D’Orsay is the largest museum we visited and had a great mix of different artists and exhibits, so good for a lot of people’s different interests. My favorite was seeing all of Degas’ paintings and sculptures. Definitely buy tickets before as the line was still super long to get in!

Visit Monet’s Home and Gardens

Our one day trip from the city was heading to Giverny and visiting the former home and gardens of Monet. We did the half day tour, where we met our group at the tour guide offices in the center of the city and left by bus around 9 am. The bus ride was about a hour and a half and we picked up croissants and coffee near by to enjoy on our way there. Once you arrive, you are able to take your time and walk around his home, the flower gardens and the lily ponds at your own pace. It was truly breathtaking and definitely one of our favorite activities of the week. We were back in Paris by 1:30 pm so we still were able to pack in so much for the day!

Find all my travel guides here

Professional Photos: IHeart.Paris