Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Paris Virgins!

(ok, not that kinda virgin)



But I%26#39;m gonna be in Paris with a colleague in early December on business, but we%26#39;ll have 24hrs before our business appointment. Neither of us have been to Paris before.



So, we%26#39;re gonna pitch up at Gare Due Nord from the Eurostar, gonna stay close by (either the Taylor or Libertel).





Where to go what to do in 24hrs?? what%26#39;s to see within walking distance of the station? do you recommends a sightseeing bus tour? where from how much (website?) any other advice gratefully received, with thanks.



Bo




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Yo Bo!





Can%26#39;t say there%26#39;s much of interest in the immediate vicinity of the Gare du Nord... L%26#39;Open Tour (the HOHO) does pass it by - ratp.info/picts/…bus_touriste_simple.pdf - and here%26#39;s the details - www.ratp.info/touristes/index.php…





What would you like to see? Paris has great museums/galleries, good shopping, great food and a lot of stunning views.




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Arriving on a Sunday early afternoon tho, so is there much open then or will everything re-open Monday? we have all day Monday too.





Thks JD; any Parisians with anything to throw in?




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%26gt; ... any Parisians with anything to throw in? %26lt;





LOL!





Monday is municipal closing day so some places (e.g Musée d%26#39;Orsay) are closed. Most things are open Sunday.





What, generally, would you like to do?




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eat %26amp; drink, and meet beautiful women? is there anything else that matters? ;-)





Museums/Art would be the easy option i guess, or just mooch around, but where%26#39;s the Paris equiv of London W1/Soho ??




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The the closest to a Soho equivalent in Paris (I reckon, anyway) is the Pigelle area of Montmartre. You%26#39;ll find the infamous Moulin Rouge there, plus lots of sexy shops, the Musuem of Erotic Art and the like.





The equivalent to W1, I suppose, would be the 1e, the Grand Boulevards, Champs Elysée down to the Chatelet les Halles.





Montmartre has a lot to see and is very lively on a Sunday. Worth going up to Sacre Coeur and seeing the view, there tend to be lots of buskers and the like around and a very nice place to sit and have a beer before walking down through the gardens. As the previous poster has suggested a lot of the museums are closed on the Monday (d%26#39;Orsay is closed, but not the Musée National du Louvre).




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thks Riot, how easy are those places to get to from Gare Du Nord?




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Montmartre is a short walk from Gare du Nord. Pigalle is at one side. Pigalle has sex shops and can been seedy (or a lit of fun!) and up the hill (Mont..., hill, geddit?) is all the quaint, charming picture-postcard goodness you could want. Sacre Coeur tops the hill.





DK Eyewitness Paris has a great self-guided walk of the area in about 90 minutes. Plenty of bistros and cafés. For me Montmartre IS Paris.





Have a look on Google Maps to get an idea of things.





The 1e is too far to walk (unless you%26#39;re really keen but it%26#39;s an easy journey on public transport.





You might be best getting a %26#39;carnet%26#39; at Gare du Nord - it%26#39;s ten single tickets that you can share with your friend (e.g. 5 each) and they are good for a bus, métro or RER (suburban train) journey in central Paris. €11,60.




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Good eateries near GduN include Chez Michel on rue de Belzunce and La Grille on rue du Faubourg Poissonniére. Not sure if either is open on Sunday though. If you%26#39;re interested google them and if you can%26#39;t find the answer I%26#39;ll dig it out. It%26#39;s round here somewhere...




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Both areas are very easy to reach by Metro:





…ircam.fr/equipes/…metro.gif





As you can see, Pigelle is only two stops away from the Gard du Nord (by ligne 2 on the Metro) and Chatelet Les Halles just one by RER.





One recommended eatery in the 1e is Maceo:





maceorestaurant.com/maceo_paris_welcome.html





Very innovative food, a %26#39;green%26#39; veggie menu and a meaty one for a couple of euros more (€36 and €38 without wine), recommended in the 2007 and 2009 Michelin Guide for Paris.




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Pigalle, I should say! Sorry my spelling - in both English and French - is simply atrocious!

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