I’d always wanted to jump on the Eurostar and go to Paris for lunch, spend a day wandering around the city and then get back on the train and be back in London by midnight.
While I was in home in London visiting friends and family in July, my travel buddy C and I decided to do just that. We woke up early one morning and just a couple of hours later we arrived at Gare du Nord in time for croissants!
Arrive in Paris: 11:18am
Get the 8:01am Eurostar from Paris, and you’ll arrive into Gare du Nord around 11:18am Paris time. It’s then a short walk to Montmatre, where we started our day…
11:45am: Montmatre & Renoir’s Gardens
We started our day by walking to Montmartre, and wandered the winding lanes and streets up towards the Sacre Coeur, before getting croissants from a boulangerie and heading up to Musee de Montmatre, which is the location of Jardin Renoir.
It’s a very small museum but worth visiting, it’s reasonably priced at about 8 Euros each, and you only really need half an hour or so there. The gardens are super cute, and there’s a collection of vintage Le Chat Noir posters.
1pm: Lunch at Hotel Amour
We then walked over to Hotel Amour for lunch (but not before stopping off at La Mere Catherine for my traditional photo with it, haha).
If you’ve read my review you’ll know how much I adore this restaurant, and along with La Gare it’s one of my favourites in Paris. We went all out and treated ourselves to a rather healthy mix of Croque Madame’s and fries, and it was pretty much the perfect lunch!
After our relaxing lunch we walked over to Palais Garnier via Sephora, and then got the Metro from Lafayette to Trocadero to see the Eiffel Tower!
2pm: Walk to Palais Garnier & Eiffel Tower
After our relaxing lunch we walked over to Palais Garnier via Sephora, and then got the Metro from Lafayette to Trocadero to see the Eiffel Tower!
Unfortunately there’s currently scaffolding around the fountains, so it didn’t look as pretty as it usually does, but we took a few photos and then walked down towards the river.
3:30pm: Walk along the river to Jardins des Tuileries
We walked along the river, chatting and catching up on our lives over the 10 months I was away, until we got to the Pont Alexandre III bridge for a different view of the Eiffel Tower.
4:30pm: Hot chocolate at Angelina
After our crepes we continued with our quest to eat all the food, and ambled over to Angelina for an afternoon hot chocolate.
Sadly though it was a very hot day, and when we arrived the longings for hot chocolate disappeared, and I instead opted for an Iced Chocolate, which was just as delicious but didn’t have the same soothing qualities as the hot version.
After resting our weary feet we then walked across to the Louvre, and then down to Le Palais Royal.
Every time I go to Paris I try and see at least one attraction or ‘sight’ I haven’t seen before, and Le Palais Royal along with Musee de Montmartre were the things on the list this time!
5:30pm: Wander around Saint Germain des Pres
We were pretty exhausted at this point, so opted to get the bus over to Saint Germain des Pres instead of walking.
If you’ve read any of my previous Paris posts you’ll know that Saint Germain is my favourite part of Paris, especially Saint-Sulpice Church and the square at the front of it.
It’s one of my favourite churches in the world, and I love just taking some quiet time to wander the church, site and reflect, and light a candle. As Catholics we light ‘prayer’ candles (you basically light a candle and say a prayer for someone), and growing up I’ve always lit a candle for the loved ones we’ve lost as a prayer for them every time I go into a church.
7pm: Metro to Gare du Nord to get the Eurostar home!
After Saint-Sulpice we walked around the corner to Monoprix to stock up on French goodies to take home with us. We also bought baguettes, cheese, and cold meats to have as a Parisian picnic dinner on the train home!
With heavy bags on our arms we headed over to Notre Dame, and then around 7pm we caught the Metro back to Gare du Nord to get the Eurostar home.
I’d definitely recommend getting the second-to-last train home. I never get the last train because if that one is cancelled for whatever reason, you’re then stuck. The second-to-last train from Paris to London usually leaves around 8:15pm, so if you get the metro to Gare du Nord from Notre Dame around 7pm, you should get there in-time for your train home (you need to arrive at Gare du Nord at least 30-mins before it leaves).
We spent the train journey home eating our baguettes and cheeses, and giggling at our mini adventure.
We well and truly conquered Paris in one day!
If you’re planning a day trip to Paris and want to see as much as possible in your day, feel free to follow my itinerary. I’m kinda biased, but I think it’s a good one 😉
Catherine Lux is a veteran travel blogger by night and the Head of Content Marketing at Amazon by day. Originally from Surrey, she spent four years living in Australia (2007-2009, and 2016-2018), and now lives in London. An ex-party girl sometimes prone to relapses, she loves nothing more than sharing her fine dining and luxury travel experiences with her loyal readers.
Ah this looks like the perfect day out. Who doesn't love Paris?!
Sophie
x
A Story of a Girl
You always do everything with elegance and style!
Aw, I love Paris! Would also love to do the day trip from London at some point – you saw a little bit of everything in a day!
Haha, thanks Angie! I try 😉
C x
It was so much fun, you should definitely do it! I think it helped that I've been so often before so didn't feel pressured to do absolutely everything in detail (like going up the Eiffel Tower, inside the Louvre etc).
C x
We had the best time!!
C x
Absolutely love this Catherine. I have done Paris in a day a few times and it's so nice to escape London, eat a few crepes, see the Eiffel Tower and smell some flowers.
I'm off to Paris in a few weeks, so this is very useful. I'll definitely be adding Renoir's Gardens to the list. Cheers!
You covered a lot of ground! I've done the usual work day trips around Europe and day trips to Washington DC and to New York for work (don't ask) but never thought about an enjoyable day on the continent as a better option! Good plan!
I love Paris, I don't know why I don't do this! It's such a great city for people watching and carb-loading! We're clearly very similar as I'd also head straight to Montmartre then focus on food all day!! Glad you had a good one!
I love Paris and it is soooo close!! PS I will be using your Hong Kong posts as I am going there in November xx
The Eurostar makes visiting Paris from London so easy. I've never done it in a day but it's certainly doable!
This sounds fabulous. I've always wanted to do Paris in a day and will definitely be following your itinerary. Do you mind me asking what tickets you got for the metro?
Jaz xoxo
http://www.thelifeofasocialbutterfly.co.uk