Non Disney (?) travel - Going to Paris/France

[Shawn d]

So. BIG news. I was selected to purchase tickets to the Olympics next year in Paris. I initially got tickets for basketball in Lille, and rowing closer to Paris. I have hotel rooms lined up but admittedly, I am apprehensive going as I haven't been to Paris in 26 years.

Has anyone been to Paris and/or Lille recently? Any advice on train tickets/subway tickets. Don't know if/when I will be able to go to Louvre, Eiffel tower. Notre Dame

I would like to go to Disney Paris but I don't know if it will be possible as I am a Olympic nut as much as I'm a Disney nut

 

[mort1331]

So. BIG news. I was selected to purchase tickets to the Olympics next year in Paris. I initially got tickets for basketball in Lille, and rowing closer to Paris. I have hotel rooms lined up but admittedly, I am apprehensive going as I haven't been to Paris in 26 years.

Has anyone been to Paris and/or Lille recently? Any advice on train tickets/subway tickets. Don't know if/when I will be able to go to Louvre, Eiffel tower. Notre Dame

I would like to go to Disney Paris but I don't know if it will be possible as I am a Olympic nut as much as I'm a Disney nut

Cant help you,sorry....but wow,,congrats and enjoy

 

[BlancheNeige7]

What an incredible opportunity to see the Olympics and visit Paris! I've had the pleasure of visiting Lille, Paris, and Disneyland multiple times. Getting around is a breeze thanks to the convenient RER trains and the metro system. If I remember correctly, it took us about 30 minutes from our hotel in Paris to Disneyland, and the metro stop was just a short walk away from the park. Traveling to the tourist hotspots of Paris is incredibly easy with the metro.

Happy trip planning!

 

[PalmettoPath]

We were at DLP (stayed onsite) and Paris (stayed in St. Germain) a couple of years ago most recently. It's a big city as you know, so getting around is what it is. We took taxis/ride sharing everywhere we wanted to go. But all bets are off during the Games because it's going to be a zoo. We toyed with the idea of going then as well, but opted to pass for those reasons. But I'm sure it will be fun to be in the ambiance no matter what! It's just that it's a busy city for traveling around at the best of times, so it will be one of those trips to expect the worst (in terms of crowds and travel) and hope for the best. Managing expectations. There is a good fairly efficient train right to DLP, but that also depends on how much time you have in your schedule. I'm curious as well if DLP will have an influx of crowds then (or not) due to the general influx of global visitors descending on the area for the games. It's just one of those global fun events that will mean longer-than-normal crowds for everything. But still, a fun time to be there!

 

[Wayland10]

I just got back from two weeks in France a week ago, the last ten days in Paris. I also regularly lead groups of college students around France on food and wine tours! Subways are easy, get a metro card (refillable) or a book of ten tickets. Just be careful that the tickets don’t come into contact with ANYTHING magnetic or they won’t work.

If you want to go to the big tourist destinations, make sure to buy tickets online in advance, as they are timed entry and sell out early. Day of tickets are available, but the lines can get crazy.

Some things I highly recommend:
Do the Eiffel Tower after dark. The lights are amazing.
I doubt Notre Dame will be open by then (they say it will, but I seriously doubt it, they’re seriously behind schedule) so go to Sainte Chapelle or Saint Germain instead. They’re much prettier anyway.
Skip Montmartre on the weekends. It’s worse than Disney World at rope drop with a new ride opening.
Make dinner reservations early if there’s somewhere you really want to go. For a fancy meal I recommend Beefbar Paris. Great food, fabulous service, in an old Art Nouveau cafe. Fancy.
If they’re doing classical music concerts in the churches, go listen to Vivaldi at Sainte Chapelle.
There are great views of Paris from the top of the Galleries Lafayette.
If you want a day trip and like gardens, go see Monet’s garden at Giverny. It’s a short train ride from Paris, and unbelievably lovely!

 

[Wayland10]

One last thing- many, many things are not handicapped accessible, so if you have any mobility concerns do not rely on subways. There may be elevators or escalators, but half of them don’t work or are hidden away.

 

[starvenger]

So. BIG news. I was selected to purchase tickets to the Olympics next year in Paris. I initially got tickets for basketball in Lille, and rowing closer to Paris. I have hotel rooms lined up but admittedly, I am apprehensive going as I haven't been to Paris in 26 years.

Has anyone been to Paris and/or Lille recently? Any advice on train tickets/subway tickets. Don't know if/when I will be able to go to Louvre, Eiffel tower. Notre Dame

I would like to go to Disney Paris but I don't know if it will be possible as I am a Olympic nut as much as I'm a Disney nut

I'll be going to France (Lyon, Marseille, Nice and Paris) at the end of August. Hopefully can give you a report around then.

For now, I will say that, based on research, you're best off getting either a weekly pass (good from Sun-Sat) or just a "book" of 10 tickets for the Metro. The Visitor Pass is a rip-off.

There's some youtubers calles Les Frenchies that provide some good info.

 

[Shawn d]

I'll be going to France (Lyon, Marseille, Nice and Paris) at the end of August. Hopefully can give you a report around then.

For now, I will say that, based on research, you're best off getting either a weekly pass (good from Sun-Sat) or just a "book" of 10 tickets for the Metro. The Visitor Pass is a rip-off.

There's some youtubers calles Les Frenchies that provide some good info.

I have definitely fallen down a rabbit hole looking at the youtube videos for Les Frenchies LOL. Might be a four way tie for whether to focus on tourist stuff, food, Disney and the olympics

 

[Douglas Dubh]

Versailles can take up most of a day if you do the main building, the outbuildings, and the gardens.

i was just in Paris and we visited the Pantheon - it was pretty cool.

 

[starvenger]

Versailles can take up most of a day if you do the main building, the outbuildings, and the gardens.

i was just in Paris and we visited the Pantheon - it was pretty cool.

Versailles is definitely on my agenda. The palace is part of the museum pass, so might as well, right?

 

[Wayland10]

Versailles is definitely on my agenda. The palace is part of the museum pass, so might as well, right?

If you go to Versailles definitely check out the Hameau de la Reine, the fake village that was built so Marie Antoinette could pretend to be a milkmaid. It’s very Beauty and the Beast esque.

 

[Shawn d]

Versailles is definitely one place I would love to visit as I am a history buff. argh...too bad I didn't have a much longer time period

 

[Shawn d]

So, update on the post. I am counting down the days to my trip. I decided to book a couple extra days to my trip pre Olympics so I am going to hit up DLP.

With my Olympic plans, I was able to add on to my basketball tickets by grabbing a doubleheader - men's games in Lille (hoping Team Canada qualifies). Good chance I could see France and/or US) and getting some urban project tickets while I'm in Paris (thinking it will be like a fan zone) smack in the middle of the skateboarding, 3X3 basketball, break dancing, etc

 

[Lesverts]

A city during the Olympics is not typical of the experience. There will be less tourists, the Olympics usually create a depression of visitors because of the anticipated crowds that do not actually materialize. Just did a bit of digging and a bit surprised transportation to event venues is not included with tickets. Something that has been pretty standard with mutli-sports events since at least 2010. Also the Paris 2024 website says that their will be unique transport ation offerings to the venues and the current Paris Metro maps and schedules will not be reflective of the experience.

Paris ticketing has been a remarkably smooth process, I think the OC was very forward thinking in cutting out companies like CoSport and Ticketmaster from the process. CoSport was charging excessive premiums for tickets. When a swimming final is already 700 Euros, the extra fees were a bit much.

 

[Shawn d]

Believe me, when I saw tickets to swimming for example was 900 euros, that was a quick NOPE for tickets. If I was fortunate to get tickets to the opening ceremony, it runs till 11 which I can imagine will be torture grabbing the metro, plus, you're sitting outside in the dark as the athletes/boats go down the river. Will be interesting to see how they light up so people can distinguish countries

 

[Lord Manhammer]

I love the Olympics and love Paris and seriously considered signing up to try and be volunteers. Then I read about the crowds and Paris in August can already be pretty hot if recent experience tells us anything so I decided to watch from the couch. There is a great restaurant in the 11th arr. called Ober Mama which survived the pandemic. You'll need to get there around 19:00 when they open to score a reservation for that evening but it's worth it. Have fun and a bientôt.

 

[Shawn d]

So, its official. My trip is now going to include a day at DLP. I got the 2 Park Dated pass. All that is left now is to register the pass which I cant do yet. I decided to book a day there. prior to going up to Lille for the basketball. Ideally I would like to have 2 Days but I think with everything going on, I am going to be running around

 

[Susan2771]

Just wondering how your planning is going? We are planning on going in 2025, and I am in the heavy research phase. Have you had luck in booking accommodations yet? Will you be flying direct to Paris?

 

[starvenger]

If you're still looking for things around Paris, check out Les Frenchies vlog. Very informative and useful.