Paris is one of those cities that everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. I have to be honest here. I’ve been to Paris a few times now and it isn’t my favorite city. That being said, it’s still worth a visit. Here are my suggestions for how to spend three days in Paris.

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If you are short on time while visiting Paris, as I was on my trips there, you’ll likely need to prioritize the sites that you get to see.

For this itinerary, most of the major sites are just viewed from the outside. If you chose to enter the sites, the timeline won’t exactly work. Lines in Paris can be incredibly long.

As with almost any major city, one of the best things that you can do for yourself is to purchase all of your entrance tickets ahead of time. Not only with this save you hours of waiting in long queues, most of the time it saves money to purchase in advance.

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Day One

Morning

Parisians know their pastries and you should enjoy as many of them as possible during your trip! Start your morning off with a croissant and a café au lait. My favorite are the pain au chocolat – croissants with just the perfect amount of chocolate baked into the center.

After breakfast, begin your tour of the major sites that Paris has to offer. Because many of the well known sites in Paris are spaced out, one of the best ways to see Paris is by hop-on, hop-off bus.

Start your day early and take in the massive Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe and the high end shopping along the Champs Elysee. See the beautiful stained glass in Sainte-Chapelle and the famous gargoyles of Notre Dame. Check out the magical Grand Palais and the architectural masterpiece that is the Palais Garnier too.

Once you have had the chance to take your perfect picture at all the sites you’ve been dreaming about, end your route in Montmartre.

For lunch, stop at one of the many cafes in Montmartre to enjoy a classic Parisian lunch. Some of my favorites include a nicoise salad or ham baguette. After this, walk up to the beautiful Sacre Coeur and take in the stunning views of the city.

After lunch, finish visiting any of the stops on the hop-on, hop off tour that you might have missed in the morning.

Evening

All of this sight seeing and walking can be exhausting. To have a more relaxing evening, rest your feet after all that walking by ending your evening on a dinner cruise of the Siene. This will also give you a great opportunity to take some pictures with the Eiffel Tower all lit up at night.

You’ll enjoy a laid back evening of sipping champagne and enjoy a gourmet multi course meal as you cruise past some of Paris’ most beautiful sites.

Day Two

Morning

With the tickets that you pre-purchased, begin your tour of the Louvre. There are literally thousands of pieces of art for you to view, and not nearly enough time to see them all. Prioritize your favorite pieces and make sure to see all of them in your limited time there.

Make sure to check out the Mona Lisa, if anything, just to say that you did. You might be quite surprised to find out just how small she is at just 2′ 6″ x 1′ 9″. Chances are, you will have to wait behind a large crowd to get a good look at her. Even then, she is protected by both a panel of glass and a rope barrier to protect people from getting too close. It’s still worth waiting for the masterpiece that most people only get to read about!

My favorite piece is the Winged Victory of Samothrace located at the Daru staircase in the Denon wing. This breathtaking statue was located on the Greek island of Samothrace in 1863. It is thought that she was given as a gift to the Gods for being given sanctuary on Samothrace.

When first located, she was in fragments of 110 pieces, her head and arms have never been found. Although her exact origination is unknown, she is made of marble from Paros. When being pieced back together, plaster was used to fill in portions of her wings that have never been found.

For lunch, stop at one of the many restaurants and cafes the Louvre has to offer. It’s hard to beat sitting at a restaurant overlooking the Louvre and people watching the thousands of visitors the museum sees each day.

Once you’ve seen all of your favorite pieces, spend some time walking around the gardens outside of the Louvre. Use this time to see the Anne Frank Garden, Carrousel Garden, Tuileries Garden and the Palais-Royal Garden just to name a few.

This is the perfect time to get a crepe to enjoy while walking around.

Evening

Next, spend your evening watching a cabaret show at the iconic Moulin Rouge while enjoying a classic French dinner. While this activity is a splurge, you’ll regret not taking the time to see one of their famous shows during your time in the City of Lights. Their prix fixe dinner menu changes with the seasons and includes champagne and macaroons.

Day Three

Morning

From the closest train station to your hotel, hop on a train to Versailles. It’s located about an hour from Paris but it is well worth the visit. This enormous palace was the home of the kings of France from 1662 to 1789. Previous to this, King Louis XIV lived at the Louvre!

The palace, which began as a hunting lodge for the King, began it’s transformation into the masterpiece that it is today in 1661. At this time, King Louis XIV realized he could not expand the Louvre to the size of his liking while in the middle of Paris.

Here you can also learn of Marie Antoinette who lived here prior to her exile and subsequent beheading. See the small village and artificial lake which she commissioned to be built for her to escape the constraints of the royal life. Here, she would enjoy a simpler life before returning to her lavish life at the palace.

For lunch, eat at one of the restaurants located at Versailles or grab a lunch from a bakery in the morning and have a picnic lunch in the park at Versailles.

Evening

Once your train has returned to Paris from Versailles, take some time to freshen up before beginning an evening tour of the catacombs. Due to the cities overflowing cemeteries, the Catacombes de Paris began receiving remains from various cemeteries around the city in 1786 through nightly processions. The remains were used to fill on some of the tunnels that were collapsing due to overmining limestone.

Today, you can take a tour of the Catacombs lying beneath Paris. But keep in mind, they are just a small part of the many tunnels holding the remains of more than 6 million people.

Other Options

If you happen to have some additional time in Paris, here are a few more great options for your visit.

Disneyland Paris is located just 20 miles from Paris. If you are traveling with kids, this is a great option to add to your itinerary. For more information, check out my post The Ultimate Guide to Disneyland Paris!

Island at high tide and mainland at low tide, Mont Saint-Michel is an amazing day trip. It seems to rise right out of the sea and looks like it’s from the pages of a fairytale. Both the abbey and village are still inhabited to this day. You could easily spend a day checking out the amazing views, learning about the abbey and stopping is some of the shops and cafes here.

If you enjoy the works of art of Picasso, the Picasso Museum in Paris is a must see. The museum holds more than 5,000 pieces of art. It showcases not only his completed works but also sketches and notes from his creative process. Many of the pieces were donated by his heirs.

Paris has so much to see and do. I hope this helped you plan how to spend your three days in Paris!