Long Stay in Paris tips
If you are coming to Paris for more than 1 week, you will surely want to be prepared for your long stay in this city. Since you are coming for a long stay in Paris, you have the chance to become a very city expert!
Long stay in Paris, bits of advice for everyone
- 1. Take your time.
What I suggest to who is coming to Paris for more than one week is to take the time to enjoy what planned. Take your time! Even if you are in Paris for ten days, you can apply my Paris in 1-week program by resting more and taking the time to appreciate everything you are experiencing. If you have one week is okay to plan a full-day exploration of the city. But, if you have more time, you can be sure that you won’t lose anything if you rest a bit more.
- 2. Explore Paris neighborhoods and more
I always recommend going to Paris neighborhoods too to those who are in the city for more than 2 days. I think that some places are to visit too, once you are in this area of France. The neighborhoods of the city offer attractions to see as well. Just think about Versailles or Mont Saint Michel! Plus, if you want to do a very special trip of the day, think about spending 1 day in London during your holiday in Paris!
- 3. Be more careful about your suitcase…
Once you are in Paris for a long stay, don’t waste your time buying things that you could have brought with you. If you are planning to travel to Paris for a long stay, I suggest paying a lot of attention to what will be in your suitcase. Consult my suitcase guide for every season of the year and note down what to put in your luggage!
- 4. … And pass issues as well
Since you are coming to Paris for more than 1 weekend, I think it is very useful don’t waste your time studying information that you can collect here as well. After finding your accommodation, you need to be prepared for transports! Note down which transports pass is the best for you. Last but not least, collect information about museums in Paris, and pass for them too!
- 5. Spend your money to the fullest
Living on a budget even during your holiday is not very relaxing. But, by paying attention to useful information about Paris, you can save some money and spend it as you prefer. If you are in Paris for a long stay, you can visit many museums for free, without buying a ticket or a museum pass. Plus, you can visit lots of attractions for free anyway. Also, I suggest considering many attractions in the city there are always free, its parks!
- 6. Book your coworking station in time
Many people come to Paris for a long stay if they need to work. Also, people come to Paris for many business travels or meetings. If it so, you might need a comfortable and quiet place where to work. It is always good when this place is not your accommodation! That is why I have selected the top coworking spaces in Paris that you can book in time. Most of them are addresses to note down anyway since they are coworking stations where you can also just stop and have coffee in a cozy place!
- 7. Use unconventional transports
Tourists and travelers always prefer to move around Paris by metro (i.e. underground or tube). I think Paris by bike is way better! If you want to know how it is to live like a local in Paris, you should definitively try bike-sharing or bike-rentals services. That is how you can move around the city, taking the time you need to discover all the best secret spots in Paris!
20 things to do and to see in Paris
Now that you know all the functional information to plan your long stay in Paris, you are ready to know what to do once you are in the city!
Lists can help you figure out what to see in Paris and which are the things that you want to do first! Plus, here you will find also fun facts about Paris!
1. Take a walk to the Flower Markets
Even if you won’t be in Paris as long as you need to enjoy the flowers in your apartment or accommodation, take one of the most colorful walks you’ll ever take in at least one Flower Market. I think that the best one to see in Paris is in Louis-Lepine square, in arrondissement 4!
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2. Walk along the Seine
If you don’t want to go on a cruise on the Seine, just walk along the river. You can admire the attractions of Paris during your walk, enjoy amazing views and doing some shopping to the stands that are there. You can buy a book or pictures of Paris or other souvenirs.
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3. Pompidou Center without spending there all-day
If you don’t have a lot of time to visit museums but you still want at least one exhibition of contemporary art to see in Paris, go to the Georges Pompidou center and look for temporary exhibitions! You will see something that you won’t find anywhere else without spending all day in a museum.
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4. A Green Pause
Whether you’re in Paris for a day, for a week or a month, remember to not lose the chance to live the parks of the city. Parks in Paris are both landmarks and attractions. Figure out and see which one is the closest to your accommodation or to the places you want to go to. Just imagine taking a pause when you spend days moving around the city!
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5. Breakfast in Batignolles
If you want to eat something special for breakfast, go to the Batignolles district! It is the place to see in Paris if you want to taste croissants and other unique recipes and dishes of French cuisine.
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6. A French aperitif
The aperitif is the moment of the day when you can drink something and taste some appetizer relaxing before dinner. If you want to do an aperitif in a very French style, go to rue de la Roquette and choose the coffee bar you like the most!
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7. Admire Monet
If you go to the Orangerie Museum, in Tuileries gardens, you will have the chance to admire amazing paintings by Monet to see in Paris. you can’t miss this possibility. Even if usually you are not into art, you will understand that you are in front of masterpieces.
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8. See the city from above
Take the Montmartre funicular (also known as cable car) and admire Paris from above. You can also do a picnic in the Buttes-Chaumont park that is in the same area. Plus, you can also visit the famous Sacre-Coeur church! Paris from above is not only by the Eiffel Tower.
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9. Take the metro
The underground is to see too in Paris! It is an attraction because of its historical importance.
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10. Hot-air balloon tour
If you want to see Paris from the sky being in the sky, just take a Hot-air balloon from the André Citroen park! The tours start at 9 a.m.!
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11. Paris undergrounds
You can explore also the Paris subsoils by visiting its ancient sewers! They are very important in the history of the city and you can go there by visiting the Musée des Egouts de Paris, in arrondissement 7.
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12. A quick visit to the Louvre
When you are in Paris, you can’t go back home without visiting attractions such as the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre. What you might not know is that you can plan a personalized visit to the famous Museum by downloading an app that helps you plan your visit and the artworks you will see!
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13. Attend an auction in Drouot
If you want to buy a very special souvenir or you simply enjoy auctions, go to Drouot! It is the most important place for auctions in the city. Usually, they start to exhibit the objects in the morning while the actual auction begins at 2 p.m.
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14. A very special art shop
Père Tanguy was a man who had the courage to open a shop where he uses to sell modern paintings that were not initially accepted by the public. Those paintings were by Cézanne and Van Gogh. It is an important piece of the history of Paris! The shop is in Rue Clauzel, in arr. 9.
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15. Statues of Liberty in Paris
In 1886, the artist Colmar Fredéric Auguste Bartholdi and the architects Viollet Le Duc and Gustave Eiffel decided to build a double of the American statue of Liberty to celebrate the brotherhood between the to Peoples. Now, Paris host 5 statues of Liberty. One is in the Musée des Art et Metiers, another one is on the Ile aux Cygnes. The other three are in Musée d’Orsay; on Alma barge and in the Luxembourg Gardens.
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16. Sniff at the perfume museum
Visit the Perfume museum in rue Scribe, arrondissement 9. The museum itself is an interior design masterpiece and you will enjoy perfumes of all Epoque!
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17. Try yourself at the counterfeit museum!
Are you sure you can distinguish an original object from its false double? Try yourself in rue de la Faisanderie, where you can see counterfeits. The most ancients date back at 200 b.C.!
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18. Declare your love
If you are in Paris with your partner, go to the Pont des Arts: it is famous for the most romantic declarations of love!
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19. Go to an event in the Centquatre
Centquatre is a contemporary art gallery where concerts and performances take place! It is a very peculiar space that I recommend visiting especially during an event.
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20. Seek for a jazz club atmosphere
Take a chance to see a real jazz club in the 20s style by going to the Caveau des Oubliettes. If you stay in Paris for more than a few days, take a look on this page about the best jazz clubs in Paris too. Even if jazz music is not your favorite, you will surely enjoy the cozy and bohemian atmosphere!
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10 things to avoid in Paris, good to know for Long and Short Stays in Paris
Even if I love dreaming about what to do in the city, I have to admit that you also need to know information about what to avoid in Paris.
Whether if you are coming long or short stays, you will surely need to know the 10 things to avoid in Paris.
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- 1. Avoid going to restaurants without having read the price list first. It is always better to have an idea of what you are going to eat and how much it will cost.
- 2. Don’t buy single tickets for transports. Take a look at transports pass and discover which is the best for you. You will save money and you will move faster.
- 3. Remember of not putting your money near your ticket. When coins get in contact with metal, the ticket demagnetizes.
- 4. Another thing to avoid in Paris is taking a taxi all the time. It is ok if it is very late at night or if you are taking it just one or two times during all your stay in Paris.
- 5. Be skeptical if somebody offers you a very cheap iPhone or Ipad. If you go to the beautiful flea market in Saint Ouen don’t buy cheap iPhones and Ipad offered to you in the streets. They probably are stolen and could not work.
- 6. To avoid in Paris are certain areas at night. Bois de Boulogne, Barbès-Rochechouart, Chatelet-Les-Halles, St. Denis. They are ok during the day.
- 7. Don’t go shopping in Champs Elysées: there is only big companies shop that you can find in every corner of the world!
- 8. When you are in the city, remember that to avoid in Paris is having dinner in Montmartre. In that area, there are lots of tourist restaurants that are not designed for tourists at all! They are very expensive.
- 9. Don’t buy portraits. Montmartre is very common in meeting people who want to paint you a portrait. They are so expensive, and they are not worth your money!
- 10. Be aware of certain people that ask you if you speak English. They often make this question to ask for money in your language then.
…And more
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