London/Paris Cruise Oct 2013 - Paris Planning

The second part part of our trip takes us to Paris.  The first stop on the cruise is the port of Le Havre, France.  At this port we have the option to go to Paris, which is a little over 2 hours away by train.  When Lisa and I were considering going on the cruise, this option was one of the necessities and highlights for us.  Neither of us have been to Paris, so we were excited to be able to add it to this trip.

While researching our options to add Paris to our trip, we found two ways of doing it.  the cruise line offers a shore excursion for an overnight in Paris.  This was a very expensive option.  Instead, we chose the alternate option to plan it on our own.  We are in port for just under 48 hours so we would like to have as much time in Paris as possible.  The cruise docks at 7:00am.  The first train out of Le Havre is at 8:00 so we will have to hustle.  The train arrives at 10:15.  We depart the next day at 2:50 and arrive back at Le Havre at 4:55.  This will be a whirlwind while we are there.

We are staying at the Hotel Duquesne Eiffel.  We found this hotel in a USA Today article that listed the top hotels with a view in the world.  The hotel has rooms that have a view of the Eiffel Tower.  This was an immediate draw when we were reading about it.  It is only blocks from the Eiffel Tower so it is in a good locations.  It is also reasonably priced.

Now on to the fun stuff:  What to do in Paris?  Well, apparently there is a lot to do.  Our must dos are the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame Cathedral, Arc de Triumph and Champs-Elysees.  If we have time, Lisa would like to go to Monmartre and Sacre Coeur.  She heard that there is a great art market there.  Another spot I heard of is a shop called Fauchon.  From what I had heard, this is the Tiffany of food.  They have all kinds of luxurious foods in this shop.  I am guessing that will be enough to keep us busy for the short amount of time that we are there.  We will probably eat in in cafes for snacks and breakfast.  We are not planning anything for dinner because we really don't know what to look for.  I'm thinking we will just ask the hotel what they recommend and go from there.  We will be there on a Sunday night and I read that it is not easy to find dinner spots in Paris on Sundays.

Sacre-Coeur at Montmartre

Notre Dame Cathedral

I am most excited to see the Louvre.  Knowing me you wouldn't think so, but it sounds very interesting.  My interest in art has been sparked over the passed few years, thank you school and LIsa, and I think it will be cool to see all of the masterpieces together.  There is a lot of history in the collections there.

Le Louvre

Well, we only have 8 more days until the cruise.  The planning and packing has commenced.  It is going to be a busy, stressful week to prepare.

Stay tuned.  Next post may be from the trip.......