Paris and Nice - ADVICE NEEDED!

In June I'm going to France with my boyfriend, and the first stop is six days in Paris, followed by three days in Nice. I'm hoping to get a tiny taste of everything I can in that time (we're taking an easyjet flight between the two destinations, that takes 1.5 hours).

In Paris I'm staying in a B&B in Montparnasse 10 minute's walk from the Jardin du Luxembourg, and in Nice I'm staying in a hostel just outside (within walking distance) of the town centre, so accommodation's sorted. I'd be traveling mostly on foot, and train (I have an unlimited Eurail pass for the month) and am really trying to stretch my buck for all its worth, although will splash out (within reason!) for once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

I'm mainly interested in getting to see the "real Paris/Nice" and even though things like going up the Eiffel Tower is a must, I'm hoping to avoid the exceptionally touristy places. Although we do really like art, museums, and churches, we'd much rather, for example, have a quiet wander through a small side lane gallery, than spend two hours in a packed queue at the Louvre. We're both relatively young and fit (though not athletes!) and are happy to hike about a bit.

I'd like to know from people who've been there, if the following itinerary is doable, or if I need to cull it down, or indeed could afford to add to it. Also, have I left anything off that's a must see, or do I have anything on there that's missable? Here's my list:

PARIS

Left Bank
Montparnasse – Cimetiere Du Montparnasse (see Beckett, Satre and de Beauvoir's graves), Jardin du Luxembourg, St Sulspice, Montparnasse Tower; St Germain – walk along streets and squares like St Germain des Pres, Place des Vosges, rue de Verneuil, and go to the cafes ‘The Flore’ and ‘Deux Magots’; The Latin Quarter – have a good wander around here, must go up The Eiffel Tower.

Iles
I'd like to have a good look at Notre Dame on the Ile de la Cite, and a good wander around the Ile Saint-Louis

Right Bank
The Louvre (even just from outside if crowds are crazy), Tuileries, Champs Elysees, Arc De Triomphe; Marais - have a good wander around here, Place des Vosges; Montmartre – Sacre Couer (go in and have a good look around and climb up to the top), then wander down Place du Tetre, past the Vineyards, Au Lapin Agile, Moulin Rouge, and the windmills on rue Lepic.

Also, Cimetiere Du Pere Lachaise is a must see, and a night time cruise up the Seine is cheesy I know, but I'd like to include that one night as well, plus at night Jazz Clubs and Latin Clubs, and at least one drink at The Ritz Bar.

Possible day trips if there's time (I'm imagining I could do at least one of these, or am I crazy?)
Versailles and Chartres (either separately or in the same day); Giverny; Dijon; Rouen; Mont St Michel (although that's a much longer travel time than the others, so am thinking probably not)

Nice
Antibes followed by Cannes in one day; Monaco; and possibly but probably not realistically St. Paul de Vence.

Whew, that took ages to type, my thanks to anyone who reads it - all comments, critiques welcome - lemme have it!!!

Cheers

You say Paris to Nice takes 1.5 hours by Easyjet. That might be the flight duration but it'll take you 40 minutes or so to get out to CDG and you'll need to be at the airport an hour before take-off even if you check-in online (more if you need to use the desk) add another hour or so to get from the airport in Nice and your 1.5 hours turns into something more like 4.5 hours.

You've got a Eurail pass, why fork out for a plane ticket to gain about an hour over the 5 hours 40 minutes the TGV train would take from Paris to Nice centre to centre. You also miss out on the countryside flashing by if you take the plane - the top of one cloud looks pretty much like any other!

As for seeing the "real Paris/Nice" there is absolutely nothing wrong with the places you've listed - all top sites - but don't expect to see many French people there apart from those employed in tourism. The list you have provided are all on the tourist bus/must see lists for Paris.

Hi Stevegerms,

Thanks for the response - good point about the 1.5 hours turning into 4.5, you're absolutely right. i was just looking at it as X travel time vs X travel time, but the train station is right smack bang in the middle of town in both places as opposed to the far reaching airports. I've just looked up the fares and we'd only have to pay an additional $12 for the 5h 32m TGV service (this will save us about $200) thanks for that - forgive my ignorance, it's my first big trip overseas ever. (I was actually under the impression the TGV was super expensive for some reason).

So is the actual train trip quite scenic between Paris and Nice? (There's one at 08:04 to 13:36, so we'd be in daylight and able to see it).

Then as far as not really being amongst "real Paris/Nice" can you give me some suggestions of what/where is? I'd love to hear some ideas.

Edited by: munkitots

Hello again. Look, for a first time in Paris you would be insane not going to the places on your list. They are just as much the real Paris as anywhere else. In fact if it wasn't for places like them Paris would not be the place it is.
Just relax and enjoy what you can.

I have enjoyed my visits to the Louvre, but if I had time for only one art museum in Paris I'd pick the Musee d'Orsay. I love the Impressionists.

Both the Chagall Museum and the Matisse Museum in Nice are wonderful!

After you've been to Monaco you could take a hike along the beach from there to Cap d'Ail and then catch a train back to Nice.

If you have some spare time in Nice, want to relax and see something different, cross from Cannes to the Iles de Lérins, take a walk around St Honorat, take a dip in one of the tiny coves, lose yourself in the "forest"....

One place you certainly don't want to miss is the Sainte-Chapelle which is on the Ile. It is orders of magnitude more impressive than Notre Dame. It is also small and about 5 minutes walking distance from the Notre Dame. It's the place that I remember the most from my week in Paris.

Six days in Paris don't actually give you a lot of time: you could spend a month there and still miss out on a lot. If you want to do a day trip, you probably could do Versailles and Chartres in the same day, but if I were you, I wouldn't try: it would be too tiring. Chartres is a charming city (with one main attraction), that deserves at least a full day to allow you to enjoy the charms of a small French town, while Versailles takes a half-day. They are both quite a bit closer than the other locations you mentioned (~1 hour away). Dijon is about 4 hours away; you would spend most of your day just travelling.

Edited by: tavi

Adding to my previous post. If you don't already have them, buy the Lonely Planet Paris guidebook and the Lonely Planet Provence & the Cote d'Azur guidebook. They have a good mix of the obvious tourist attractions plus some things that are more off the beaten path.

Hi TimothySolberg,
Thanks for the museum info - will definitely check all three of them out. The Musee D'Orsay seems more popular in general opinion than the Louvre in many cases, interesting! The actual building looks incredible.
Also the Cap d'Ail idea's now on the list too, it looks like a nice sandy beach area from what I can find on the net. Are there any sights there to look out for, or id it more of a nice cruisy place to wander? How far away is it?

and

Hi Micolett,
Iles de Cervis - GREAT idea, that's now on the list too, it looks right up our alley from what I can see. Thankyou!

and

Hi Tavi,
Saint Chapelle looks gorgeous, we will add that, especially if it's within walking distance of other things we'll be taking in. How I WISH I had a month! Maybe this trip will get all my touristy Paris sight-seeing out of the way, and on my next visit I can delve into the more inner sanctum-y stuff. I can't WAIT! When you've visited, which area do you base yourself?
Also, you're the third vote not to try Chartres and Versailles in the same day, so that's been scratched. I will try and do both separately for sure now. I think they're both bigger areas than I had envisaged.
In regards to Dijon, you say 4 hours to get there? I was thinking more like 1.5 hours each way by TGV. Is this incorrect? Is Dijon worth visiting do you think?
_________

...and to everyone who's taken the time to answer, you've all been fab, and your answers have really helped develop a slightly nervous, first timer's, travel plans - MERCI - I'm so glad I found this forum! :)

I haven't taken the Monaco-Cap d'Ail walk myself. I read about it in my LP guidebook and in several posts. I believe it's a fairly secluded area because some posters have mentioned that skinny dipping is allowed. According to viamichelin.com, it's a 4km walk.

Tim

hi munkitots,

My post is not going to help you but I want help from you. I wanted to ask you, Can you pl tell me - how much would you be paying for the BnB at Paris. I intend going in April this year and we are a couple and 1 child. I too am researching places to visit in Paris etc, so your post has been of help to me. Thanks.

Hi timothysolberg,

Oh cool! Perfect for a hot day after a long walk, hehe ;)

Hi S.Karry,

In hindsight, I think maybe research which area you want to stay in first (which arrondissement - the closest to where the things you're interested in are), then you can narrow down your searching a LOT.

The B&B we found is in Montparnasse (14e), and is about 80 euros a night (a very basic double room, with private bathroom, breakfast included). There's a really good website here, which is where we found our place, that has tonnes of B&Bs listed (I think it's an agency). You can also search by area, which I found handy: http://www.bed-and-breakfast-in-paris.com/Dicillin.php? .

This one was also on our list, Hotel de Lille Pelican (in 1er), and came well rated : http://hotels.france-bookings.com/hotel/fr/hoteldelille.html?label=gg_en_bh_230223-france-paris-hotel-de-lille&ef_id=1511:3:s_c48722b079523fb2c3e587c97050ed67_788682077:dVtKv9B6MjYAADyCP6wAAAAK:20080203020641

Also there are these in Marais (3e), that have good recommendations on several sites, which are more hostel style places (three in Paris), but we were turned off by the fact they have a curfew between 1am and 7am: www.mije.com

In Montmartre (9e) there are a few decent sounding hostels also:
www.villagehostel.fr
www.woodstock.fr

Hope this helps - I have more if you need them ;)

Edited by: munkitots

If your're willing to stay for a week, you can rent an apartment for fairly cheap. We got a one-bedroom apartment 1 minute from the Pompidou Centre, with a living room, kitchen and bathroom for about 90 euros a night the summer of 2006. It's nice, since there's no curfew or anything, and you can save some money on food by using the kitchen. Here's the website

http://www.apartment-in-france.com/

As for Dijon, I haven't looked into taking the TGV there. I know it's about 4 hours on the highway...