Paris Travel Guide, France

Paris, the city of love, fashion and perfume has been receiving visitors for decades. They come here to discover art, history, a way of life, romance or to discover themselves.

So much has been written about Paris that it would be hard to write anything new, still there are a few things that might arouse your interest.

There are so many sides of this city that it would take more than just a vacation for you to discover all of them.

First of all it is the capital of perfume. You can get perfumes in every street, the market if full of intriguing scents and if you don’t find your favorite here you won’t find it anywhere. Of course their quality varies, but if you go for something unique there are shops that sell the same perfume for years to people that refuse to change their favorite scent and here you can try some really special perfumes. You don’t have to go only for brands known all over the world, there are some perfumes known only by Parisians and if you want to taste a bit of the way they live, try the ones they use. With so many perfumes around you might have the impression that the whole city has a scent of its own.

Perfumes and love have definitely something in common, it could be the reason people fall in fall faster here than anywhere else! Romance is in the air!

And with some masterpieces of architecture around like the Louvre, Notre-Dame, and the Eiffel Tower the picture is complete.

After you have visited all the major attractions and remained deeply impressed by them the next step would be to discover the other side of Paris, the side known by the locals and not by the tourists. You will be thrilled to discover them and feel like you have discovered a secret that is hidden from tourists. For example there is a place in Paris on a hill where there is a little vineyard and wine has bee produced for decades by a conscious owner who wanted to preserve tradition. The wine is excellent and you will be able to say you tasted some of the city’s “blood”.

Parisians are great wine drinkers just as all French are but be aware and don’t let yourself be tricked into drinking some poor quality wine, ask a local’s opinion first then order your drink.

Visiting the city centre is one thing but you definitely have to go to see the neighborhoods which are worth discovering one by one as each of them have their own story to tell, their own secrets to reveal. On your tour you can meet a lot of interesting people and maybe some of your own nationality as there is of mix of cultures and almost every country has a “representative”. No wonder they choose to live here who wouldn’t? Most famous people have a residence here.

Paris is an expensive city and if you want to spend some quality time in some quality shops or clubs you have to prepare a big budget for your trip. But that’s not to scare you away, Paris is the city of artists and everybody knows that at the beginning of their career they don’t have a lot of money and still manage to survive and create in Paris as they use it as a source of inspiration.

Of course there are downsides of the city but they are so minor compared to the glamour around that they pass unobserved.

When you go to Paris don’t do what all the tourists do and eat what they eat, visit what they visit, but if you want to feel like a real Parisian do what the Parisians do and get an insight of their life, then you will be able to say that you know Paris!

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Read our members' reviews about Paris

• You will need a lot of time in Paris
  review by erato posted more then 30 days ago
  Paris is just as beautiful as they say. The whole city, the streets, the buildings. Although, I didn't like the contrast between the old buildings and the very modern ones next to each other. The city was also extremely crowded, there are very many people and cars on the streets, at the...
• What to know about the Notre Dame Cathedral
  review by cipristb posted more then 30 days ago
  The Notre Dame Cathedral is one of the most recognized historic monuments in France. It is located on Ile de la Cite, its construction began in 1163 and lasted until 1250. The Notre Dame Cathedral is considered the darkest gothic style cathedral. The building is 130 m long, 35 m in height, 45 m...
• Weather forecast for Europe
  review by travelgrove-editor posted more then 30 days ago
  France - Paris Spring time is great to visit, as the city is pleasantly warm but not too hot. The southern regions are nicer in the summer time as you want to hit the beaches. Autumn can get cooler and there can be a bunch of rain. The Alps and Pyrenees offer great skiing and January till...

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Read our members' travel tips about Paris

• The bank of the Seine
  travel tip by erato posted more then 30 days ago
  The public transportation in the city is not as reliable as one would think. For me for instance, last time the trip to the airport took more than one hour instead of the average 45 minutes (from Gare de Lyon in the city center to the...
• Luggage lockers
  travel tip by erato posted more then 30 days ago
  If you travel with large luggage, you can leave it at the luggage locker of one of the train stations like Gare de Lyon, Gare du Nord, Gare d'Austerlitz. If one is not opened, you can ask about the other at the information stand and walk...
• Eiffel Tower by night
  travel tip by danpop posted more then 30 days ago
  If you want to see something breathtaking, watch the Eiffel Tower every hour from dusk to 2 am (1 am in the winter) as 20,000 bulbs twinkle brilliantly for five minutes. The view will surely make you love Paris even more.

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