mdtravel

I'm getting tight on time and am going to need to drop some of the sites below. I know it is subjective and I know it depends on what I like, but what ones would you either drop for sure or not drop at all?

Carnavalet
Conciergerie
Hotel des Invalides
Jardin des Tuileries
Jardin du Palais-Royal
Jardin Luxembourg
Jardin Tuileres
Marmottan Monet
Opera Granier
Orangerie
Place des Vosges
Pompidou

jody

you can scratch the Orangerie..it's not open and won't be for the foreseeable future. You can walk thru the Tuileries on your way to somewhere else..there's not much else to do there except walk thru.

Pompidou Center is not one of my favorites , but a lot of people enjoy it.

Travelnut

1. drop the Conciergerie (but maybe add St Chapelle, if it's a sunny day)

2. Orangerie is still closed

3. drop one of the 'Jardin des Tuileries'

The 'best' of your list (IMHO, of course) are:
- Jardin de Luxembourg
- Place des Vosges (you could add Musée Victor Hugo, since it's in one of the bldgs forming the square)
- Musée Carnavalet
- We really liked the military museum at Invalides, but I thought I read somewhere that part of it was closed right now..? but you could stop by to see Napoleon's tomb

The Marmottan is very nice and smallish, near a nice city park

Haven't taken the tour of Garnier, but want to. Haven't been in Pompidou since the reopening, but it was interesting then. If you want to drop that, you could add Musée Picasso to your Place des Vosges segment.

Travelnut

You were looking for something to do after Montmartre, but here you're saying you need to cut some things..?

I don't know how energetic you are, but I could start a day by walking thru Jardin du Palais-Royal to Place des Vosges, then Musée Picasso, maybe lunch, then metro up to Montmartre to finish the day (sunset over Paris kind of thing). You can find a Montmartre 'walk' from numerous sources to find Sacre Coeur, Place du Tertre, the vineyard, 3 moulins (one is Rouge) and do some intense people-watching.

isabel

You asked for opinions - so here's mine:

Keep - Jardin des Tuileries, Jardin Luxembourg, Opera Garnier, Place des Vosges, and Jardin du Palais-Royal. Can you tell I like gardens and squares? They can take as little or as much time as you have, but they are most definitly worth seeing at least. Paris does gardens and squares so very well. And Opera Garnier, which I never bothered with till my 4th trip cause it didn't really interest me, well it was wonderful, absolutely beautiful.

Christina

Personally, I would drop the Carnavalet and the Pompidou for museums. I wouldn't consider the Tuileries a major destination and would drop it if it is for you -- it seems you are bound to pass it at some time if you are near the Louvre and Champs-Elysees. The l'Orangerie museum is closed, as others noted.

hppycpl

I love the pompidiou!

SuzieC

I'd add St. Chapelle, I always go the the Carnavalet and I'd simply try to eat at the restaurants around the Place des Vosges...(Personally, have not as yet seen the Hotel des Invalides or the Marmottan Monet. Saving that for next trip...) I enjoyed the Opera too, I don't like opera necessarily but the building was glorious... oh to have been THERE in its day!

clevelandbrown

We skipped the Carnavalet since neither of us reads French and we are more interested in art than history. In that neighborhood, Place des Vosges was wonderful, and I would definitely see that and enjoy the neighborhood.

My wife enjoyed the Conciergerie; I didn't, but at least it didn't take long. Almost next to that is Ste. Chappele, with gorgeous stained glass. See it even if it is not a sunny day. Also in that neighborhood (at the Metro) is a bird or flower fair that is very interesting. In fact, on foot, Isle St. Louis, and Isle de la Cite (Notre Dame, the fair, Ste. Chappele, and the Conciergerie, makes a very nice half-day walk.

Enjoy your trip.

We walked by the Hotel des Invalides, but didn't have time or inclination to go in. Again, our preference is art, not history.

You have a lot of jardins on your list; I would strike off some of them if you are pressed for time. To me, there was little memorable about Jardin Luxembourg, and Jardin des Tuileries, and the adjacent Place de la Concorde were more pleasant, and closer to some other sites, such as the Louvre.

I think the Orangerie is still closed, but the Marmottan has a wealth of impressionist work, and I would not miss that (although the Orsay would be my first choice for that type of art).

We didn't get to tour Opera Garnier, but everyone speaks highly of that tour. We did view it from outside, and I would keep it on the list.

I thought the Pompidou was very interesting architecturally, but many complain that it doesn't fit into the neighborhood. The art museum had only very modern art, but was well worth seeing, and you can get a pretty good view of Paris from the top floor.

ChatNoir

Drop: Pompidou,Jardin du Palais-Royal,
Conciergerie.

Marmottan Monet takes awhile to get to.

Hard to really give you good advice without knowing what else you are doing.

bob_brown

All of the items on your list are secondary objectives for most people. Any of them could be dropped without a second thought.
The Musee Marmottan is vital only to Monet fans. It is interesting, but I would not rate it an A level attraction even though I like Monet.

Place des Vosges is a nice square and park. But I would not rate it as an A level attraction either.

All of them on your list are nice, good solid objectives. But if you don't make it to one of them, I would not worry or fret about missing it.
(Unless you have a very big personal reason for being there._

Underhill

Drop the Carnavalet and the Pompidou. If you go to the Musée Marmotan, pay a visit also to the Musée Nissim de Camando, which has a marvelous collection of 18th-century objets d'art, carpets, furniture, and pictures. The two museums are in roughly the same area.

I'd also skip the Pompidou and the Conciergerie. If this is a first visit and you like art, why aren't the Musée d'Orsay and the Louvre on your list? Or do you have those scheduled already and the places you listed just what's left to decide on?

111op

It's scary, but I've not been to more than half the places on your list.

Where else are you going? In other words, what're the things that you've decided are must-sees?

mamc

I would be sure to see the Luxembourg Gardens, the Marmottan, the Opera Garnier, the Place de Vosges and the Tuileries in that order. If it is not on your list, the first thing I would add is Ste. Chapelle. The Hotel des Invalides is impressive from the outside and I love Napoleon's tomb but otherwise not a must. If you are pressed for time, drop the rest of the things on your list.

elaine

Hi
I'm finding it hard to make recommendations because I don't know how many days you wil have, but I'll take a stab.

I saw the Carnavalet years ago, haven't been back, maybe some day again.
It's primarily the history of Paris, and when I was there (again, years ago) there were a few exhibits that were mildly interesting but it didn't knock my socks off. I'd save it for a 2nd or 3rd trip to Paris, unless that's what this one is. It may be since you haven't listed many of the usual first-timer sights.

Tuileries is a stroll through, spend a few minutes or a half hour before or after the Louvre (oops, which I notice is not on your list.) Or before or after the Opera Garnier Palais Royal (which is either browsing in the shops in the covered arcade, or admiring the central grounds, but again, not a riveting destination otherwise.)

Opera Garnier is lovely, and there are guided tours at selected times.

Place des Vosges is one of my favorites, architecture is stunning, again it's a stroll and sit for a while, unless you are also dining there, or visiting the Victor Hugo museum or something. It's fun to watch the children playing in the sandbox. It is easily combined with a walk by the Pompidou, which has art that is mostly not my cup of tea.

Jardin Luxembourg has activities and children playing and puppet shows and the Medicis fountain. Unlike some of the others, people are actually sitting on the grass or benches and enjoying themselves at leisure, rather than just walking through.

For me, the Marmottan is a priority, has been on all my visits to Paris but one, but that's because I think the art is breathtaking, and unlike some other museums,it is small and inviting and not overwhelming. I start smiling as soon as I walk in there. When you get off at the La Muette metro stop, you will walk through a pleasant park to get to the museum.

Invalides is pretty impressive, for Napoleon's tomb, and the other monuments.
I haven't been to the Museum of the Army (or is it Military) so I can't comment on that.

Beatchick

I would drop the Conciergerie. I've been to Paris 3 times & have never had a strong desire to go. But I go to Ste-Chapelle every time! I'm somewhat of a history buff, too, and still the Conciergerie does not draw me.

I love the Marmottan and think you should keep it. But it is out of the way & if you don't have time, regretfully, I say to drop that one. There's nothing really around it to incorporate into a sidetrip to that area. There's the Place du Trocadero but it's a fer piece to walk, there's the Allee des Cygnes, again you'd probably have to take the Metro to get there. There's Maison du Balzac but again a long walk. Oh well, save it for that next long trip. I had it on every itinerary each trip but wasn't able to get there until the last (3rd) trip when I made sure I went there FIRST! And it was worth the wait.

I'd trim the Jardins to 2.

The Invalides I think is worth one trip but I didn't really care for it. It was cool to see Napoleon's Tomb but the rest of the museum didn't appeal as I'm not a WAR history buff. Maybe I'll go with my son this next trip.

The Carnavalet is pretty cool but it is MASSIVE & takes forever to get thru & can be somewhat confusing (which side am I on? how do I get out? have I made it to the other side yet?).

I love the Place des Vosges & think it's worth it to see the apricot sunset glow on the buildings as the tiny kids practice their "football" moves under the watchful eye of maman while drinking un cafe at a cafe - and there are some nice cafes/restaurants around there.

Geez, I wish I was back in Paris.

stormygirl

I would also drop Conciergerie. And I would drop the Garnier only because I don't think it should be toured, I think you should wait and attend a ballet or opera there for the full and true experience. If your not into modern art drop the Pompidou but you can still go in and go up to the top floor and have lunch, dinner or a drink at Georges and enjoy the view. I've been to Paris 5 times and haven't gone to the Invalides. I think the view of the gold dome is best from the Rodin Museum and the Eiffel Tower.

StCirq

Interesting differences in opinion here. I LOVE the Conciergerie and the Opéra Garnier (the tour of which, I think, is fascinating, and which explains a lot of things you would never, ever see or know while watching a performance).

Personally, I would drop the Carnavalet and the Pompidou. I'd walk by the Pompidou and check out the performers and artists in the Place de Beaubourg, but unless there is some really good exhibit inside, it's not worth it.

Have you considered starting off your trip to Paris with a viewing of the Paristoric film at 11, bis, rue Scribe at the Opéra, right behind the AMEX office? It gives a beautiful and detailed overview of what Paris has to offer, and for a first-time visitor might help you narrow down what you want to see and do.

As for Les Invalides, one does just go in and bend over and ogle that tomb (watch for pickpockets - this is a classic place for them to steal your wallet), but if you're even the slightest bit interested in French history, it seems to me you need to go see Napoléon. Besides, the Museum of the Resistance, around the corner, is a little gem.

McBetsy

There is lots of advice and now my sage contribution. A good walk for a first timer to Paris is the straight walk between the Arc de Triumph and the Louvre. This will include the Tuileries. Stop for lunch along the way. I would go right before or just after seeing the Louvre.
There are several eateries around the Place de Vosges from the very exclusive, (L'amboiserie) to Salons de The. Ma Bourgone is an historic cafe right on the square with pretty good food and really cute waiters. The Marmottan is a great little museum that will only take an hour or so to see. It is sort of off the beaten path but it is in a great arrondisement with a beautiful park and some interesting shops near the Metro. See the Opera Garnier, it is stunning. The Palais-Royal has limited opening hours, be sure to check. If you love modern art, don't skip the Pompidou, if you don't care one way or the other, skip it. People really like the Carnevalet, I love history, but everthing is in French, (go figure) and I didn't get much out of it since I don't know the language.

duckling

No ones mentioned, it but what about the Paris Museum Pass? Are all these places you mention available with the Pass..and is the Pass worth getting for a 2 or 3 day stay?