Paris Day Trip

We will be docking at Le Havre July 27, 2004 on The Jewel Of The Seas. Is it worth while to do a day trip to Paris? It seems like more driving than actual sightseeing.

Any suggestions? Thanx:confused:

Is it worth while to do a day trip to Paris? It seems like more driving than actual sightseeing.

Are you in that position? If not, then you're best off saving Paris for her own special trip - she's worth much more than a day and indeed much more than a week. There are plenty of interesting things to see in Normandy which are more suited to a day's visit. You'll find lots of those discussed on this board already, I think.

Hi josumello....We were on the June 24,2004 sailing of The Jewel of the Seas to The BI/NF. This is my review of our day in Paris........Debbie

Our first port was Le Havre .We booked RCCL tour Paris on your own… It departs at 9:00am. A tip for RCCL tours go a little early and sit as close to the Rep giving out the bus numbers as you can. Its better to be on one of the first buses. Some tours have 9 or 10 buses all going to the same place. You will stay ahead of the crowds on “Some” of the tours this way. We were on the second bus to leave. Our guides name was Michelle and she was most helpful. She spent time with each group leader .She asks what your plans are and what you most want to do or see .Hands out maps and gives directions. We told Michelle what we hoped to see in Paris and she helped us plan our day. We arrived in Paris at 11:30 The bus parks on the Avenue Gustave Eiffel right behind the tower…Our return time is 4:45 the bus is going to depart at 5:00. It’s a very short walk to The Eiffel Tower and we pay the 3.5 euros for the stairs (no lines). Our tickets said 11:45 am.. We climb to the first level and take lots of photos. We bought and mailed post cards to the family ~ 5 euros. If you mail them from the tower they have the Eiffel Tower post mark. Free/clean w/cs also. Then we climb to the 2nd level. A lot of pictures are taken here also . The climb down is much easer. We walk to The RER and take the St. Michael/ Notre Dame train and 4 stops later a shot ride we are at Notre Dame its 1:00pm. We enter the cathedral ~free ~ We take some pictures and just sit inside for a few minutes .The place is so full of history. Now starts the walking part of our day. We pass by The Concierge on our way to Point Neuf .I wanted to cross the Seine by using the oldest bridge in Paris. We walked along side the Louve and entered the first courtyard… Its breath taking…The museum is closed on Tuesday so there are not many people about. Someone is playing a flute and there are pigeons cooing. The walls of the courtyard block out the noise from the street. it’s a wonderful place…We walked into the next courtyard-. This is where the glass pyramid is. From there it’s a straight walk to the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and into the Jardin des Juileries with its fountains and Greek statues. The Palace de la Concorde is next with its Obelisk tipped in gold… Its so cool . This is a very hard intersection to cross. It has several lanes of traffic and no cross walks. The Champs des Ely sees… the first part is almost a park. A wide walkway lined with trees. The second part of the street is where all the shops and cafes are. Lots and lots of people. We were going to try to make it to The Arc de Triomphe but it’s 4:15 so we take the Avenue of George V to the Liberty Flame… the unofficial Diana Memorial .We arrived back at the Eiffel Tower at 4:35.. We sat in the park at the base of the Tower and took a few more pictures. We left for the ship at 5:00 and arrived back on board at 7:30 .We had supper that night at The Windjammer even though dinner that night was open seating. We sat on our balcony that evening and watched the ship leave La Havre…. An Amazing Day

You can also get into Paris from Le Harve by train ( faster).. but you might feel more comfrtable doing the ships transfer and day on your own. In any event it is always worth it to see Paris ;-)

An easier way to get around once you are there is to look for the Hop on Hop off double decker buses. You buy the ticket on board ( I am not positive price today, but something like 20 Euro per person) you get a ticket and it takes you to all the "sights" where you can hop off and look and hop on the next bus to the next place.. or stay on the bus for the complete tour ( it's narrated in many languages) and you will get a whole overview of where things are. You can go all day.

P.S. If the ships bus drops you off at Tour Eiffle the bus stops there-right in front by all the tourist tee shirt stands ..

I absolutely hate the notion of spending six hours on a bus to get in five hours of sightseeing...

I took a look at the Paris shore excursion offered and it looked to me like mostly touring Paris by bus as well...

I want a little more out of a trip to Paris...

So, when we visit LeHavre while on the Constellation next July, we will choose an excursion or tour in the Normandy region...perhaps Rouen/Giverny...

Of course, I've been to Paris a few times before...If I'd never before been to Paris, I might feel differently...

Of course, if I'd never been, this is what I might choose to do:

Rather than fly into London for the cruise, I'd fly several days early into Paris...I'd tour Paris...experience the night life, visit the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, the Champs d'Elysees, the Arc d'Triomphe, etc....I'd take a day and go visit Versailles...and another day or two and explore the chateaux of the Loire Valley, especially Chambord and Chennonceau...and visit Tours, Chartres and Orleans...then I'd head to London for the cruise...and when the cruise hits LeHavre, I'd stick to Normandy...

Again, though, if I'd never been to Paris and didn't think I'd ever get back, well...you take what you can get...

We just returned from a Paris land trip last week. We used the L'Open Tour bus (it's lime green) and it was a superb overview of Paris. The cost was 25 Euros per person (28 Euros if you want a two-day pass--for those staying longer). As previously mentioned, just get on and pay the driver. You get headphones for English/French recorded commentary.

This tour has three routes, all included in the fare. The Green Route is by far the most comprehensive. You probably won't be able to do all three routes, so if you have a chance to choose, choose green. But don't stress too much over it, because all of the routes were interesting.

There is another double-decker open tour bus available and I think it was called Bus Rouge or something like that.

Thanks for all the info. We will try and sort it all out.

Can you get on the lime green/ green tour at The Eiffle Tower?

Can you get on the lime green/ green tour at The Eiffle Tower?

Yes!!!

This is from a website of the bus ( called what else?)

L'OpenTour

Get a bird's eye view of the cobbled streets of the Left Bank, the Napoleonic splendor of the École Militaire and of course the structure that they thought wouldn't last more than a few years - the Eiffel Tower! Take time out to explore the Paris you've been looking for; historical, romantic, fashionable, fun and shopper friendly.

You can hop on and off as many times as you like aboard this open-top double-decker bus. The four tour routes are inter-connected so you can hop easily between them. All tickets are valid for 2 days!

Discover Paris using four tour routes. Your ticket is valid on ALL routes.

Paris Grand Tour

The entire route takes 2 hours. Buses departs every 10 - 30 minutes from each stop. Highlights include Madeleine, Opéra, Louvre Museum, Notre-Dame, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Orsay Museum, Concorde, Champs-Elysées, Arc de Triomphe, Trocadéro, Eiffel Tower and Invalides.

If we choose to take the train from LeHarve to Paris could someone please tell me how far the train is from the port & if there is an easy way to get to the train? Also, how long is the train trip to Paris & where do you get off the train in Paris?

Thanks so much for the help,

Kim