Paris, the City of Light, is one of the world's most magical cities, a byword for romance, glamour and style. Its landmarks - the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, L’Opéra de la Bastille, Notre Dame Cathedral - are world famous.
Its 20 arrondissements spiral out from the middle of the city on the right bank of the River Seine, each one with its own personality. La Cite, part of the 1st District, is the historic heart of Paris, home to the cathedral and the Sainte Chappelle. The Latin Quarter is the traditional student quarter, centred on the Sorbonne and Panthéon, a district of cheap restaurants and charming old streets. Pigalle and Montmartre, the ninth and 18th arondissements, are where Paris parties. Le Marais is the Jewish quarter and the 13th district, Chinatown, is where Paris's large Chinese, Vietnamese and Cambodian communities live and trade.
Paris's sweeping boulevards, public squares, fine palaces, old townhouses, little market streets and hidden courtyards contain a wealth of attractions with more than enough to occupy tourists who have landed on cheap flights to Paris.
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Paris is known for its rain showers, but these are more akin to a light mist than a downpour. In the winter months, temperatures hover between 1 and 10 degrees Celsius (30-50 degrees Fahrenheit). Snow is not expected every year. Summers are mild with temperatures in the 20s (70s Fahrenheit).
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Peak Season:
Most travellers arrive on cheap flights to Paris between April and October. Although August is considered peak, it is when many Parisians leave the city on vacation. There are hotel discounts to be snapped up and less traffic, but you may find that most of the best restaurants close too.
Off Season:
Runs from November 1 to March 31.
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After disembarking their cheap flights to Paris Charles de Gaulle, tourists can whizz into Paris on the RER (suburban railway). Roissybus is also an option.
All the major rental car companies are represented at the airport.
There are also bus and train services from Paris-Orly Airport.
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Walking through Paris is an experience in itself. The city is filled with lovely walks through alleyways, squares, boulevards or river paths. Paris is very compact, so you can walk the whole thing if you’d like. But with so much to see, you might want to speed things up by taking the subway.
The Métro is the easiest and quickest way to get around even though it’s over 100 years old. You can find the stations by looking for a big yellow “M” within a circle. Most entranceways have Art Nouveau railings with archways labeled Métro or Métropolitain.
The RER suburban express lines and the Métro lines are colour-coded, but Métro lines are numbered while RER lines are lettered. If you’d like to stay above ground, you can take a bus into the early evening.
Buses move fairly quickly through traffic, since Paris has designated special bus lanes on the street. You can also take a taxi, but it will be hard to find a free one during rush hour.
Don’t bother trying to drive in the city. Between the dense traffic, confusing one-way streets, aggressive Parisian drivers and scarce parking, you’ll wish you had set out on foot.
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- Paris is made for strolling around. A great place to start is the Jardin du Luxembourg. Families with small children will enjoy the model boats, rides on Shetland ponies, puppet shows and playgrounds.
- Annual events include the Fête de la Musique, a popular, free event that takes place on June 21, the Journées du Patrimoine heritage weekend in September and the annual Nuit Blanche all-night cultural festival in October. The Bastille Day parade marches down the Champs-Elysées on July 14.
- For a month from July 21 Paris gets its own beach. The roads along the Right Bank of the Seine are closed to traffic and covered in sand and deckchairs for "Paris Plage".
- Most national museums, including the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay and Centre Pompidou, are free on the first Sunday of every month. If your cheap flights to Paris are not timed for this, the Paris Museum Pass offers free and unlimited access to more than 60 museums (just permanent collections) and monuments in and around Paris for a period of two, four or six days. The cost ranges from about €30 to €60. Children under 18 don't need a pass. You can buy a pass at participating museums and monuments, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, the Carrousel du Louvre Tourism Information stand and Paris Offices of Tourism.
- Monet's grand Nymphéas are on show in the Museum l'Orangerie in the Jardin des Tuileries. There are paintings by Renoir, Cézanne, Matisse and Soutine too. It's open every day except Tuesday, May 1 and December 25 between 9am and 6pm. Admission is free on the first Sunday of every month.
- Shopping: for clothes and accessories, head to the small boutiques of the northern Marais, rue d’Orsel in Montmartre or the atelier boutiques of rue de Charonne and rue Keller close to the Bastille.
- Père Lachaise cemetery, final resting grounds of Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison among many others is at its best in the autumn. Free maps of the famous tombs are available from the conservation office.
- There are free tours (in English) of Notre Dame Cathedral on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 2pm and Saturdays at 2.30pm.
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Charles de Gaulle International Airport (CDG) (website: www.adp.fr) The airport is 23km north east of Paris.
Paris Orly Airport (ORY) (website: www.adp.fr) The airport is 14km south of Paris.
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A New England native but explorer at heart, Melisse has lived in four U.S. cities, spent a summer in Hawaii, made her way through wine-producing regions in Australia and New Zealand, and traveled around Europe while studying abroad in London. She is the Content Manager for the U.S. and Canada at Cheapflights.