I recently spent 10 days in Europe on a Girls’ trip with one of my best friends. On the trip, we visited 3 cities in Central Europe, Paris, Salzburg and Munich. Our first stop on our trip was Paris. We bookended our trip in the City of Lights with a day at the beginning of the trip and a day at the end.
Eat– Paris is definitely a food city! Between the incredible restaurants and patisseries there is no need to go hungry. I could eat the chocolate croissants every day!
Comptoir de la Gastronomie – This place was recommended to us and didn’t disappoint. We had a long leisurely lunch here and enjoyed our french food with a few glasses of wine and champagne. We started with a meat platter and bread. I had the duck shepherds pie and my friend had the Foie Gras Ravioli and we ended our rich meal with their warm chocolate pudding. If you don’t have a reservation, be prepared to wait!
La Cochon a L’Oreille – We ate here after waiting at Gastronomie. After waiting an hour and a half, our table still wasn’t ready and we were starving so we just went across the street to this restaurant. It was a wonderful intimate restaurant with great french food!
See – Two days is a far cry from the amount of time you need to see Paris. Instead of exhausting ourselves and trying to see too many sights in such a short amount of time we picked a few highlights and took our time. This way we had a better time and got to really experience the city and the culture. This is my travel strategy anywhere I go. I would rather see a few things and really enjoy them than rush myself to see all the sites.
Our first night there we stayed near the Arch de Triomphe and! Champs de Elysee so those were easy to see. We walked along the shopping street and had a great time window shopping. Naturally, we had to see the Eiffel Tower. We went to the Palais de Chaillot which is a spot famous for its view of the Eiffel tower. We took lots of pics and then wandered on. We ended finding another area that was less crowded and took more pics of the Eiffel Tower. These ended up being my favorite pics.
One of my favorite ways to see a city is at night. Our last night of the trip was also in Paris and after resting for a bit in the afternoon, I decided to take a walk around. I went to Notre Dame Cathedral, walked along the Siene river and then went to see the Louvre at night. After wandering for a bit I finished my night with a drink at a small restaurant by our hotel. These moments are my favorite and the reason I love to travel so much.
Hotel Victoria Chatelet – Our second night in Paris, which was the last night of our trip, we stayed at the Hotel Victoria Chatelet in the 1st arrondissement. I loved the location! The Louvre, Siene River and Notre Dame are all within very close walking distance. The hotel is a little quirky with rooms that are shaped kind of odd. But it was nice and the bed was very comfortable. I would definitely stay here again when I go back to Paris.
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