I read no tennis shoes, no zip jackets, dress up. We do not plan on going to 5 star restaurants but would like to be dressed appropriately. Husband and I are in our 50%26#39;s. Please some suggestions?
Thank you.
Donna in California
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Welcome to the forum.
Really, don%26#39;t worry about it. Dress comfortably during the day and perhaps a little smarter in the evening.
No zip jackets? I%26#39;ve never heard that one before.
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For 4 nights I%26#39;m taking:
Navy trousers - plain, a good weight for autumn
Blue, boatneck sweater, lightweight
A lightweight, red jacket
Navy shoes
A pink, swing raincoat, sounds hideous, looks smart, not gaudy
A navy/pink lightweight suit, more what they call a 2-piece dress these days; can be worn together or as separates
A jacket %26amp; trousers combo, dull goldish, not shiny
A blue, %26#39;posh%26#39; top for the j%26amp;t combo, 2 nights under the jacket, 1 night As the jacket
A pink, short-sleeved jumper, reminds me of %26#39;sloppy joe%26#39; jumpers of the 50s, pretty and casual
A navy dress with red trim - can be a dress or a top with trousers
A navy, soft shirt with a collar and a tiny amount of embroidery
A blue, knitted silk top
Ankle boots with a bit of heel, Very comfortable walkers.
An extra, thin, pink sweater, just in case of a cold snap (3rd week of October)
With that I can mix and match, go sightseeing, go to church, go shopping, do the Bastille walk, eat out and attend 3 operas.
I won%26#39;t bore myself (no-one else to see) and I won%26#39;t smell!
Comfortable shoes - a must.
Layers - a good idea.
Some people worry about %26#39;looking like tourists%26#39; - why? that%26#39;s what we are. Be comfortable!
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Wear what you are comfortable in. Really. It will make you confident and style in Paris is 90% attitude.
There are those who will tell you that sylish Parisiennes wear superior cuts and fine fabrics. Hogwash.
My french friends are affluent, elegant people. The women are wearing American Apparel hoodies and converse sneakers these days. Honestly. Not the ones going to work, but you won%26#39;t be working here.
The men do tend to wear shirts with collars. Anything from button up to polos is fine, but we have noticed, and we meaning my frenchman and me, and service can change considerably when he wears a collarless shirt.
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Parisians must not have gotten the memo about tennis shoes. They%26#39;re not white, usually, but plenty of sneakers (my favourite was a lady of a certain age wearing a pair of purple Chuck Taylor All-Stars -- high tops, no less!)
Look nice, but don%26#39;t worry -- we don%26#39;t wear little black dresses and pearls to go to the supermarket.
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There is such a myth going on that everyone in Paris wears designer clothing and that everyone is a fashion plate.
This isn%26#39;t true. Having just returned from Paris, I saw people dressed much like they would be dressed in any American city. Yes, there weren%26#39;t a lot of white bulky running shoes (which we so love here), but I did see a lot of sneakers in other colors and styles (I personally took a pair of black Keds that were super comfortable for all that walking). I also saw jeans and shorts and capris and sandals and even the dreaded *gasp* flip flop. And these were all on people who I believe to be locals.
So wear what you are going to be comfortable in. Remember that no matter what, you ARE a tourist and that this fact will be known the moment you open your mouth to speak. You%26#39;ll also be on your feet a lot, so comfortable shoes are a must. You do not have to be in your heels like the Parisian women who are walking around to and from work (I did see a lot of heels and I%26#39;m in awe of those women, by the way! LOLOL).
I%26#39;m not sure what you%26#39;re referring to, as far as zip jackets go, but I saw a lot of jackets that zipped up, so that shouldn%26#39;t be a problem. Generally speaking, Paris, as far as apparel goes, looked like any other city in the world.
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Here we go again. While I do not live in the most fashionable part of Paris, it is a place that is full of Parisians, and this is what they are wearing:
anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi…
anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi…
anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi…
And this is how tourists dress in Paris:
anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi…
Examine all of this and draw your own conclusions about how you should dress.
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Thank you Kerouac2 for sharing those links. I was getting a little concerned about what we plan to wear. Not that we don%26#39;t want to look like tourists, but don%26#39;t really want to stand out.
My husband (who is coming a a trip for the first time with me) plans to wear what he wears here....jeans, runners and t-shirts. He is bringing some short sleeve dress shirts and kahkis. I plan to wear mostly capris and shirts. I think comfy shoes is very important, so I may look geeky with my runners on also. Not going let our apparel ruin this wonderful lifetime opportunity of visiting Paris.
Nicole
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As you can see from my photos, that is no problem.
Never forget that in the main tourist areas like Notre Dame, the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower, 90% of the people surrounding you are going to be tourists anyway (including French tourists, naturally).
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Exactly :)
My first factor to count would be comfort.
Most essential thing is comfy shoes. It is a splendid city and you will want to make a lot of walking.
So, more of the %26quot;not seem as a tourist%26quot; concept, concentrate on the %26quot;i want to be comfortable%26quot; idea.
It is essential in a city like Paris where you %26#39;ll do a lot of walking and / or sightseeing.
( oh, dough! a little bit of style is needed too, it%26#39;s Paris, lol, just keep comfort, especially comfy shoes, as the first thing to consider. Style really follows but only after comfort and convenience ).
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It%26#39;s a large city with a vast mix of people from all over the place...so you%26#39;ll see a bit of everything. But one thing I can say that stood out to me as an American tourist was the lack of:
-people wearing t-shirts with words/writing all over them
-people wearing baseball caps
-men wearing shorts
-women immodestly dressed
Not to say these things were not there. It%26#39;s just that overall there were way fewer people dressing like that than they do in the US. It was refreshing to me. Overall in Paris it just felt like people dressed like grown-ups. It just was nice. The stark contrast hit me when I got off the plane in the US and was confronted with all of it in full force.
Wear what%26#39;s decent and comfortable to you. You%26#39;re really most likely the only person who will remember what you wear anyway. :) And be kind to your feet and wear shoes that you know and love.
Happy travels!
