Paris is like ice cream to me – I can never get enough of it. Traveling solo in the City of Love, I oftentimes am asked one question — “why?” Why would I bring myself to one of the most romantic cities in the world, completely alone? Admittedly, my first trip there I was nervous about feeling too alone. Instantly, I realized just how incredible Paris can be for solo travelers as it is for couples. Luckily, I’ve got everything you need to know about visiting Paris:
WHERE TO STAY
Personally, my favorite areas of Paris to stay in are the 8e arrondissement, 9e arrondissement, the 1e arrondissement. Yes, I’m a total Right Bank/Rive Gauche girl. The area of Paris to stay in best for you totally depends on what you prefer. Last trip I stayed near Place de la Bastille in the 11e arrondissement. While I enjoyed the area, I found that it wasn’t all that convenient to the locations I wished to visit. Keep in mind that staying near Place de la Bastille or the Arc de Triomphe may include some noisy nights – both areas are nightlife hotspots in the city. Here’s a quick arrondissement breakdown based on some of my past experiences in Paris:
1e Arrondissement
Right bank. Anchored by the Louvre Museum and Tuileries Gardens. Also in this arrondissement is the iconic Palais Royal and the Place Vendôme. If you’re a luxury lover, the Rue Saint-Honoré as mentioned in my shopping guide to Paris here, is also in this arrondissement. This arrondissement is perfect if you want to hit the landmarks of Paris, without the traffic and noise of the 8e. As there are several landmarks in this neighborhood, expect a lot of tourists and souvenir shops.
4e Arrondissement
Right bank. One of the 3 arrondissements that compose Place de la Bastille. This arrondissement has tons of shopping. It’s a great blend of small boutiques, brands unique to France, and international stores. It includes party of the ever-so-trendy Marais. The 4e is probably best known for the Notre-Dame Cathedral.
7e Arrondissement
Left Bank. Although I myself don’t find myself on the left bank often, I found myself in the 7e arrondissement several times on my previous trip. This neighborhood is best known for being home to the Eiffel Tower and Champs de Mars Park. Two of Paris’ best museums, the Musée Rodin and Musée d’Orsay also lie here, along with the bustling Rue Cler {a personal favorite of mine}. Les Invalides, the armory museum is also in the 7e, along with the Bon Marché department store. This is a fun neighborhood to stay in simply because it encompasses so much. It would be very easy to get lost in the 7e for the better part of a week.
8e Arrondissement
Right bank. Home to the Arc de Triomphe, the hectic Place de la Concorde, and the popular Avenue des Champs-Élysées. Also in this arrondissement is the Grand Palais museum. The 8e arrondissement is great if you want to have a little bit of everything by you. This neighborhood has shopping, landmarks, and a bustling nightlife. This arrondissement is not too far away from Trocadéro, to view the Eiffel Tower.
9e Arrondissement
RIght bank. This arrondissement is a great mix of tiny, winding Parisian streets and things to do. The 9e is best known for being home to the Palais Garnier Opera House, and luxury department stores Galeries Lafayette and Printemps. I personally also love this neighborhood for the tiny boulangeries and fromageries that you won’t find anywhere else. The 9e also has great proximity to the 18e arrondissement, Montmartre, without being completely on the hill. If you want to experience some of Paris’ best known spots without staying in tourist epicenters such at the 1e, 7e, or 8e, this is the neighborhood I would recommend. It’s close to everything, but separate enough from it that you won’t feel as though you’re constantly surrounded by souvenir shops.
11e Arrondissement
Right bank. One of the three arrondissements that lead to Place de la Bastille, this arrondissement is very trendy. If you’re staying near Place de la Bastille or Rue Oberkampf, expect a bustling nightlife and lots of street noise until 5am. Due to the nightlife, this area attracts a lot of young people. Find yourself in small boutiques and fun restaurants in this arrondissement. While I had a lot of fun staying here, I probably wouldn’t stay in this area again as it was a comparatively long distance to get to the 7e, 8e, and 9e arrondissements.
18e Arrondissement
Right bank. Also known as Montmartre, this neighborhood is absolutely charming. Landmarks include Sacré-Cœur, and the Moulin Rouge. Find yourself in absolutely amazing restaurants, and boutiques, and getting lost on tiny roads. Montmartre is also home to Paris’ garment district for any fabric lovers. While I absolutely love Montmartre, I wouldn’t stay there again simply because if you end up on the northern side of the neighborhood, it can be very far from the rest of the city {keep in mind that I like trying to walk a city as much as possible vs. taking the train or driving}. If you love Montmartre and still want to be accessible to the rest of Paris, I would recommend staying near or in the 9e arrondissement instead. Montmartre is on a hill, so expect a lot of up and down walking in this neighborhood!
WHERE TO EAT
PINK MAMMA
20bis Rue de Douai, 75009 Paris, France
This is my current favorite restaurant in Paris at the moment. Located in Montmartre, this is four floors of Italian restaurant, each floor with it’s own quirky, yet stylish to a t decor. I highly recommend the truffle pasta here, it also comes in pizza form. This place will have a line outside of it even at 3pm on a rainy day, so expect a well-worth-it wait.
Rozell Café
24 Rue la Vieuville, 75018 Paris, France
Also located in Montmarte, Rozell Café is a cozy crêperie with some of the best crêpes in Paris. This café is very small, however worth the Montmartre hike to get there. The owners are absolutely lovely and almost always present. More on the Rozell Café can be seen in my previous Paris travel guide here.
L’Éclair
32 Rue Cler, 75007 Paris, France
L’Éclair is a cocktail bar in the 7e located on Rue Cler. It’s absolutely charming and the epitome of adorable French style. The waitstaff is incredibly funny and the cocktails themselves are delicious and unique. Enjoy a stroll on the Rue Cler before or after, which is filled with markets and florists straight out of a storybook. L’Éclair is definitely one of my new favorite spots in Paris!
LANDMARKS
THE EIFFEL TOWER
It goes without saying that the Eiffel Tower is arguably Paris’ most iconic landmark. There’s two really good ways to see it:
TROCADÉRO
Have you ever seen photos of people sitting on what looks to be a ledge in front of the Eiffel Tower? Those photos were taken at the Place du Trocadéro. The Place du Trocadéro is located in the 16e arrondissement and is one of the best places to see the Eiffel Tower with a really clear view. Trocadéro gets VERY busy, so if you’d like photos without people in the background, I recommend going as soon as the sun rises. In some of these images it was actually snowing while I was there!
DRESS
Also in Trocadéro is the Eiffel Tower Carousel {Carrousel de la Tour Eiffel}, which runs from 10am until 8pm daily. It makes for a beautiful photo opp.
PARK CHAMP DE MARS
Park Champ de Mars is located in the left bank, and is likely the greenspace you think of when imagining picnicking under the Eiffel Tower. It offers an up close view of the tower, however it is significantly more difficult to get the full tower in your photos because you’re basically right underneath it. It is incredible and a great place to go at night to see the Eiffel Tower twinkling and lit up. Beware of pickpockets in this area especially.
Palais Royal
8 Rue de Montpensier, 75001 Paris, France
Palais Royal is probably best known for the iconic black and white striped pedestals in front of it. Unfortunately, the palace is no longer open to the public, however the beautiful gardens are still available to view.
DRESS | SHOES
ARC DE TRIOMPHE
Right up there with the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe is absolutely iconic to Paris. Like Trocadéro, you will need to visit as soon as the sun rises if you want to see it without swarms of tourists. If you’re thinking about going to the top of the Arc de Triomphe or the Eiffel Tower, I would recommend the Arc de Triomphe because it has a view of the Eiffel Tower from the top.
Rue Cremieux
Think a rainbow of houses when you think Rue Cremieux! Rue Cremieux is one of the prettiest streets in Paris, and perfect for a photo. Please be mindful that this is a residential street when visiting, so keep noise to a minimum and be respectful of residents. I wrote a full guide to visiting this street, which you can read by clicking here.
DRESS | SHOES
MUSEUMS
THE LOUVRE
Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France
No guide to Paris would be complete without at least mentioning the Louvre. This massive art museum would take me a full week to go through, so instead I’ll just say this: go. My first trip to Paris I only had enough time to go to the Louvre for all of three minutes to see the building and pyramids, and the moment I saw them I was instantly blown away. The building itself is beautiful, and photos simply do not do the pyramids justice. Across from the Louvre is the Tuileries Gardens, which are absolutely beautiful. The museum does get VERY busy. Even at 8:30 am there was a line maybe 50-75 people deep at the main entrance to purchase tickets. The museum opens at 9am daily.
MUSÉE RODIN
77 Rue de Varenne, 75007 Paris, France
The Musée Rodin is home to a truly beautiful collection of works created by French artist, Auguste Rodin. This museum also is the location of one of his most notable works, The Thinker, located in the museum’s sculpture garden. Apart from the art, the architecture of the building itself is absolutely gorgeous. The Musée Rodin is near the Musée d’Orsay, and the museums offer a pass to both museums at a discounted rate. Not far away is L’Éclair, which is the perfect post-museum spot!
SHOPPING
{Note: I recently published a shopping guide to Paris here, which is much more in-depth. This is a brief overview of some of my favorite spots.}
RUE SAINT-HONORÉ
The Rue Saint-Honoré is a fashionista’s dream. Flagship stores and truly opulent fashion make this road a landmark. Amongst my favorite stores on this road are Alexander Wang’s two story flagship, Chantal Thomass, the Chanel Flagship located just off of Rue Saint-Honoré on Rue Cambon, and the very first Louboutin store located on the nearby Rue Jean-Jacques Pierre.
COAT | DRESS | SHOES
AVENUE DES CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES
The Champs Élysées is perfect if you want shopping with a little bit of everything. The Champs-Élysées is home to luxury flagship stores for Louis Vuitton and Longchamp, yet also has Parisian high street brands Etam and Undiz as well.
GALERIES LAFAYETTE HAUSSMANN
40 Boulevard Haussmann, 75009 Paris, France
Galeries Lafayette is one of Paris’ most well-known department stores. While I personally don’t go there to shop as I prefer shopping at the designers’ individual boutiques {because they’re so unique in Paris!}, I do recommend stopping by to check out the beautiful stained glass domed ceiling.
PRINTEMPS HAUSSMANN
64 Boulevard Haussmann, 75009 Paris, France
Located just next to Galeries Lafayette is another iconic department store in Paris — Printemps. Printemps includes three buildings and over 25 floors of shopping. Stop by for unique views of Paris from the Printemps bridge connecting the buildings.
TRANSPORTATION
UBER
Uber is my transportation of choice in Paris simply because it is easy, and comparably affordable to other ride services in France. I would also argue that it’s safer than taking a taxi simply because you know that your driver is legitimate. Uber is Paris is just like Uber in any other major city, ride fares are about the same with the exception of Uber Pool, which I found to be more expensive than in New York, offering a smaller discount than in other cities {note: this is from seeing Uber Pool fares when booking Uber X, I did not book Uber Pool while in Paris so I cannot confirm final fare post-trip}. Use code “evap1241ue” for $5 off your Uber rides.
BOLT – TAXIFY
Taxify {now Bolt} is another popular rideshare app in Paris. Although Taxify was originally designed to call taxis to you similar to Gett in London, I found that the few times I called Taxify, each time it was a private driver, similar to Uber. I would recommend having both Taxify and Uber in Paris, as oftentimes one is less expensive than the other {example: I once has a trip come up at 17.92 Euro on Uber, and just 8 Euro on Taxify}.
MÉTRO
The Métro in Paris is a system of mostly underground trains, connecting the city. I found that the metro fare in Paris was just slightly less expensive than taking the subway in New York. Trains, on the other hand, are much nicer. The metro in Paris can be easy and efficient, depending on which part of the city you’re in. I found while staying in the 9e arrondissement that it was very easy to use, however while in Montmartre, it resulted in me hiking a bit to get to the nearest station. It is very easy to get overwhelmed by due to the different lines, however once in the central part of the city, an affordable way to get around. I do want to note that on a few occasions while in Paris, I took the metro around 8 or 9am and felt very uncomfortable by men in the subway. It’s not uncommon for a major city and it does also happen a lot in New York, however do exercise reasonable caution.
SAFETY
Like in any other major city, Paris has its fair share of crime. Prior to going for my first time, my friends told me horror stories of pickpockets and thieves. While I don’t think Paris is the crime-riddled city some make it out to be, it is still important to stay safe and exercise good judgement and caution when going out, especially alone. As I became friends with locals, the common theme was that for women to go out alone at night in Paris to bars or clubs, it was very dangerous, especially for foreigners. If you are traveling solo, I highly recommend befriending some locals to go out with or meeting up with other solo female travelers for nights out!
COAT {SIMILAR} | TEE | SKIRT | SHOES
Paris is easily my favorite city in the world, and I hope that you love it as much as I do! If you have any Paris favorites, leave them in the comments below so I can check them out on my next trip.
xx,
E
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Love Paris! Can’t wait to go back!
You look gorgeous! I love all these shots.
XO, Elise
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