The Perfect 3 Day Itinerary for Paris 2022

I recently returned from a 16 day trip to Europe, and had the most incredible time! I kicked off the trip with three days in the city of love, and truly adore this city every time I visit. From delicious food to lots of walking/sightseeing, the whole city of Paris can be a lot to tackle in just a few days. If you only have a weekend in Paris, or a couple days, here is how I would do it! Keep on reading for the perfect 3 day itinerary for Paris 2022!

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO FLY TO PARIS?

I am based out of New Jersey and was able to get a great flight through French Bee airlines at a decent price. My flight was roughly $450 roundtrip from Newark airport to Paris Orly Airport for early September 2022. I found the flights to be much more reasonable for September as compared to June-August (which is peak tourist season). Besides the flights typically being cheaper, I personally love Paris in September as the weather starts to cool down a bit, and scenery starts to embody the fall aesthetic more. If you are looking to avoid massive crowds and have good weather, then your best bet is to visit during April, May, Late September or October.

GETTING FROM THE AIRPORT TO THE CITY CENTER

Getting from either airports (Charles-de-Gaulle or Orly) to the Paris city center is quite easy and less expensive with public transportation.

We flew in through Paris Orly Airport, and arrived at Terminal 4 (terminal sud). From the terminal, you can take the OrlyVal Tram to Antony RER Train Station. You can purchase tickets for €12.10 per person as you make your way towards the entrance of the tram from a person working there. This ticket will include your ride on the OrlyVal Tram and the RER B train to Paris. The tram ride to Antony lasts about 6 minutes, and once you arrive at Antony RER Station, you will transfer to the RER B train and take this to your desired stop within the city center to get you to your accommodations. Do not throw out your tickets until your have made it to your destination and exited the stations, as sometimes you need to present your ticket to leave the station.

To get from Charles-de-Gaulle (CDG) airport to the City Center, you will need to take the RER B train (about  €10- €12 per person) to the stop closest to your accommodations. For instance, if you are staying near the Louvre, you would take the RER B train from CDG to Chatelet Les Halles. The RER B has select stops within Paris, so choose the one most convenient for you, and then either take a metro or bus to your hotel, or walk. You can also utilize taxis, but these are much more expensive.

WHERE TO STAY ON A BUDGET

If you are looking for budget-friendly accommodations, then I recommend staying at Café Hôtel de l’Avenir, which is where my boyfriend and I stayed. I found this hotel on Hostelworld, and this was one of the cheapest options I could find in Paris that offers a private room and bathroom. We stayed three week-nights from September 6-9, and paid roughly $280 total. The hotel (or more like a poshtel since we booked through hostelworld) sits above their restaurant/bar, which we personally didn’t eat at, but it attracted many visitors/locals.

To get to our hotel from the Orly airport, we took the OrlyVal Tram mentioned above to Antony RER station (6 minutes), and then transferred to the RER B line. We took the RER B from Antony to Chatelet les Halles (25 minutes), and then walked a few minutes to the Chatelet metro station. From here, we each purchased a single metro ticket, and took the metro 14 line to Marie de Saint-Ouen (15 minutes), and then walked about 8 minutes to our hotel.

Finding cheaper accommodations ($100 or less per night) can be hard to come by in the main city center of Paris, so this hotel is actually located right outside of the city center in the Saint Ouen neighborhood. It is only a 2 minute walk from the Garibaldi metro station, which can take you easily into the city center. We used google maps to figure out our metro routes for each day, and found it to be very smooth and easy.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

I highly recommend utilizing the public transportation system in Paris if you are looking to save some energy and money on getting around to all the sights! If you are there for 3 or more days with 2+ people, I definitely recommend buying a 10-pack of metro standard fare tickets. This discounts a single fare from €1.90 to €1.69 per ticket. Tickets for the metro can be purchased within every metro station from their machine kiosks. Once you have your ticket, you simply insert it into the turnstile slot, and walk through. Make sure you enter the correct metro station for the specific train your trip requires, and pay attention to the direction the train is going. Google maps is very helpful with telling you which train(s) to take to get to your desired destination.

In addition to the RATP Metro (subways) in Paris, they also have public trains called the RER lines. If you plan to go to Versailles for the day like we did, then this is the best and cheapest way to get there. We took the RER C train to the Versailles Château-Rive Gauche Station which costed us €3.60 per person each way from our departure station. Be mindful of the strict rules for the train here as you can be fined for a multitude of different offenses. Check out this article on the 7 violations you can get fined for on the trains in Paris.

There is also the public bus system (BUS) which offers over 60 bus lines running throughout the city. Most of the bus lines run alongside the metro lines, and this is another quick way to get around town. If you purchase the 10-pack of metro tickets, I recommend purchasing the book that includes tickets valid for the tram, BUS, and metro, as you can then use the same type of ticket for the subway or the bus. The fare for the bus is the same as the metro: €1.69 per ticket with the 10-pack discount, or normally €1.90.

DAY 1

Day 1 is your arrival day to the airport, and if you take a red-eye (which I recommend), you should land sometime in the late morning/early afternoon at either CDG or ORY airport. Budget about an hour to get from the airport to your accommodations. Reference the sections above for information on how to get from either airport to the city center.

Assuming it is around 2pm or so at this point, and you’ve made it to your hotel, give yourself a little time to freshen up after the long flight and settle in. Since the first day can be tiring after all the air-travel, I wouldn’t plan to go overboard with the sightseeing personally! We took a nice half-day to explore Paris and get ourselves a lovely dinner. Here is the order of how we spent our first day in Paris.

Arrive to your accommodations

• Land at the airport in the early-afternoon and arrive to your accommodations mid-afternoon & settle in

Sacré Coeur

• Take the metro or walk from your accommodations to the Sacré Coeur
• Explore and walk around the Sacré Coeur
  • lots of quick bites, sit-down restaurants, shops etc… near here
  • quick lunch option near Sacré Coeur: BUFFET LOCAL
  • sit-down lunch option: The Hardware Societé (Australian inspired, closes at 3:30pm on weekdays, 4pm on weekends)
  • you can admire the Basilica of the Sacré Coeur for free like we did, or also purchase tickets for around €5-€10 to tour/go up the dome inside. This is open from 10:30am to 8:30pm.

Walk through Montmartre

• I suggest putting these spots in your maps app to walk by and get some photos: Le Consulat → La Maison Rose → Moulin Rouge
  • grab a delicious pastry at at Aux Merveilleux de Fred as you are walking to Moulin Rouge

Dinner

• Dinner at Pink Mamma (trendy Italian restaurant)
  • I suggest making a reservation in advance as this is an extremely popular (and instagrammable) spot for dinner
  • make sure you walk up to the top floor of the restaurant as you will have some beautiful views and great photo-ops
  • great handmade pasta dishes & pizzas
  • Address: 20bis, Rue de Douai, 75009 Paris

• Take the metro or walk back to your accommodations

DAY 2

If you are only doing three nights in Paris like we did, then you’ll only have two and a half days to sightsee. This is your first full day in Paris to really explore, eat and wander the city! I suggest getting an early start to make the most of it and to be able to see all the things I list below.

Breakfast (9-10AM)

• Breakfast/brunch at Zia
  • food such as breakfast burritos, pancakes, eggs, toasts, juices…
  • ideally would arrive when they open which is 9am on weekends, or 10am on weekdays
  • address: 22 Avenue de Tourville, Paris 75007 France
  • first come, first serve – no reservations
  • if you stay at our hotel (Café Hôtel de l’Avenir), then take Metro 13 line (11 stops) from Garibaldi Station to Saint Francois-Xavier, and walk nine minutes to restaurant
  • this restaurant is about a 10-15 minute walk from the Eiffel Tower

Eiffel Tower & Surrounding Areas

• Take a ten minute walk to the Champ de Mars from Zia
  • was under construction when we visited in Sept. 2022, so was partially blocked off in some areas
• Make your way to the Eiffel Tower
• Check out Rue de l’Université – famous street with panoramic views of the tower

• Walk to and across the Pont d’lena – bridge directly in front of tower
  • there is a carousel next to this bridge

• Walk to the Avenue de Camoens
  • a more secluded & beautiful photo spot with the Eiffel Tower in the background

• Walk to & check out Trocadero

Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysées, Pont Alexandre III

• Walk about 25 minutes to the Arc de Triomphe & then down the famous Avenue Champs Elysées
  • lots of shopping on the Champs Elysées, but note that this street tends to be quite crowded

• Walk to the famous Pont Alexandre III bridge

• It is an 11 minute walk to the Jardin des Tuileries from the Pont Alexandre III bridge
  • we skipped this since we slept in that morning a little and had a later start, but if you have time, you can check it out/walk through it

Lunch

• Lunch at Açaí & You – Odèon
  • quick spot for nutritious food including refreshing açaí bowls
  • 30 minute walk from the Pont Alexandre III bridge, or about 15 minutes by bus
    • you can ride the Bus 63 line from Pont Alexandre 7 stops to Seine-Buci, and then walk 3 minutes to the restaurant

Louvre

• Walk about ten minutes to the Louvre Museum from the smoothie bowl place
  • closes at 6pm on all days, except Friday it closes at 9:45pm, and Tuesday they are closed
  • we just walked around the grounds/exterior for free, but you can pay to tour the interior of the art museum, where you will find the famous Mona Lisa painting

Luxembourg Gardens + Some Stops

• Walk about ten minutes from the Louvre to Ladurée for French macaroons
  • Address: 21 Rue Bonaparte, 75006 Paris, France

• Walk about three minutes to Café de Flore & get some photos
  • iconic cafe to walk past and get photos

• Walk ten minutes to Jardin du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Gardens)
  • you also will see the Luxembourg palace from the outside
  • the gardens are free, and the museum costs $ to enter

Notre Dame + Île Saint-Louis

• Walk through the Latin Quarter on the way to Notre Dame

• Check out the Notre Dame Cathedral
  • still closed to go inside due to damages a few years ago from fires, but you can still see and admire it from the outside
• Walk through the Île Saint-Louis across from the Notre Dame Cathedral

Dinner

• Get to dinner around 7:30-8:30pm at Au Bourguignon du Marais
  • reservations can be made here
  • they have incredible beef bourguignon & onion soup, plus a tasty burger
  • I recommend the profiteroles for dessert
  • this is our favorite restaurant we ate at while in Paris

• Take transportation or walk back to your hotel

DAY 2 NOTES

If you follow this day 2 itinerary, then you are looking at around 4+ hours of walking. Most of the walks between these attractions are short (10-15 minutes or less), but some are a little longer. It is up to you if you prefer walking, or would prefer to take the metro, bus or a taxi between some of these attractions. Our feet were definitely tired at the end of this day!

DAY 3

Breakfast

• Breakfast at Kafkaf
  • address: 7 Rue Keller, 75011 Paris, France
  • great sit-down breakfast/brunch cafe

Rue Crèmieux

• Walk about 15 minutes from Kafkaf to Rue Crèmieux, which is a beautiful and colorful street great for photos

Versailles

• Take the RER C train from the Austerlitz station (18 minute walk from Rue Crèmieux) to the Versailles Château-Rive Gauche station
  • this ride costs about €3.60/pp one way, and you can purchase tickets at the station
  • the train ride is about 40 minutes

• Tickets to tour Versailles can be purchased online in advance for €21.90/pp or at the gate for €20/pp
  • I recommend the ticket that includes admission to the palace, gardens, and the Trianon estate

• Give yourself the entire afternoon to explore Versailles & tour the Château/grounds as this place is massive

• There is a mini Ladurée cart here, as well as an outdoor cafe where you can order a simple lunch on the property if you want

DINNER

• Take the RER C train from Versailles Château-Rive Gauche to Paris Invalides station
• Walk 15 minutes from the station to dinner at Le Soufflé
  • soufflé restaurant with a more unique food experience
  • I thought this restaurant was cute

Enjoy the Eiffel Tower at Night

• Enjoy a 30 minute walk towards the Eiffel Tower at night for stunning views with the river
  • starting at 10pm, the Eiffel Tower twinkles for about five minutes on the hour, and this is so fun to watch

• Make your way back to your accommodations

DAY 4 (early departure day)

This is a travel day. We personally stayed 3 nights in Paris and then had an early flight that next morning to our next European destination. We flew out of CDG airport and made our way to Italy for the next leg of our trip. You can take the same RER B train to get back to CDG airport. If your next flight departs from Orly, then you can take the RER B train to Antony station, and then the tram from Antony station to Orly Airport. You can also taxi or ride-share to the airport.

OVERALL

Paris is a vast city with miles and miles are things to do and see! While three days may not be enough to see everything the city of love has to offer, it is an adequate amount of time to make your way around most attractions! Paris has an easy and organized public transit system that I recommend utilizing if you are trying to reduce your travel expenses like us. You can enjoy so much amazing food here as well! This Perfect 3 Day Itinerary for Paris 2022 is ideal for those who like to go-go-go, and do lots of walking. If you want a more relaxed and slow-paced vibe while visiting Paris, then feel free to pick-and-choose some of these attractions and take your time experiencing/touring them.

CHECK OUT MY VLOG OF OUR TRIP TO PARIS HERE

Comment down below if you’ve ever visited Paris before, or if you plan to one day! (: