Two days in Paris is enough to hit the icons without feeling like a sprint. This plan splits the city into a Right Bank day built around the Eiffel Tower and Champs-Élysées, and a Left Bank day centered on Notre-Dame and one great museum.
Two days in Paris is enough to hit the icons without feeling like a sprint. This plan splits the city into a Right Bank day built around the Eiffel Tower and Champs-Élysées, and a Left Bank day centered on Notre-Dame and one great museum.
Begin the morning at the Eiffel Tower, booking a timed entry to go up before the crowds build. From there, stroll or take the metro to the Arc de Triomphe and climb it for a skyline view down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. Spend the afternoon walking the avenue toward Place Vendôme, then use the late afternoon for the Musée d'Orsay, whose Impressionist collection is a manageable size for a first visit. Wrap up the evening with dinner in the surrounding streets before the tower lights up after dark.
Start on the Île de la Cité at Notre-Dame Cathedral, then step inside the nearby Sainte-Chapelle for its stained glass. Cross into the Latin Quarter and pass the Panthéon on the way to the Luxembourg Gardens for a break, with a detour through Saint-Germain-des-Prés and the Church of Saint-Sulpice. In the afternoon, choose either the Musée du Louvre or Centre Pompidou depending on whether classical or modern art appeals more, then finish the day climbing up to Montmartre and the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur for sunset over the city.