The Best Paris Itinerary: How to Spend 3 Days in the City of Light

You could easily spend a week in Paris with all the museums, rich history, exquisite food, and endless shopping the city has to offer. However, most of us don’t have the time to spend an entire week in one city. If you only have 3 days to spend in France’s capital city, you should follow this Paris itinerary for the best experience.

Best Time to Visit Your Paris Itinerary

The spring months, April and May, and the fall months, September and October, are the best months for your Paris itinerary because crowds are fewer, weather is cooler, and costs are cheaper. Paris is the busiest and hottest during the summer months, June through August. If you really want the cheapest time to visit, come in January and February. However, the weather will likely be cold and dreary.

How to Get Around Paris

Paris is semi-walkable. There are several sights that are close enough together that you can walk between them. However, Paris is a very large city, so you will need to take some form of transportation. I would not advise renting a car.

Public Transportation. Like most major European cities, Paris has great public transportation systems. Metro, trams, and buses are available to get around the town. You can buy passes that last multiple days or single use tickets.

Ride Share. If you do not feel comfortable navigating public transportation and you do not care to walk, you can choose using a ride share app. Bolt is the app of choice when traveling in Paris. Uber is also available, but I found in my experience that Bolt is a little cheaper. Paris also has bike sharing, so you can pedal around the city instead of riding in cars.

Hop On/Hop Off. I love Hop On/Hop Off bus tours when I am visiting new cities. It is a great way to combine public transportation and a guided tour to learn more about a city. The Paris Big Bus offers a 1-hour boat cruise as part of its tour for you to take advantage of.

Where to Stay in Paris

If you want to stay near some of the major sights, you could stay in the areas near the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre (1st and 7th Arrondissements). For a more lively atmosphere, try staying in the Le Marais or Montmartre areas (3rd, 4th, and 18th Arrondissements). For classic Parisian charm, choose the Saint Germain des Pres or Latin Quarter (6th and 5th Arrondissements).

Important Things to Know

New Visa requirements for American travelers are coming soon to Europe, so make sure to check if you need to apply before your travels.
Currency is Euros.
Paris is known for their fashion, so if you want to dress like a local, you will want to elevate your style a little. They also seem to wear a lot of black and neutral colors. Do with that information what you will.
Parisians do not wear berets. If you wear one while visiting, you will definitely stand out as a tourist.
Parisians have gotten a reputation of being rude. From my personal experience, this could not be further from the truth. If you are letting this stop you from visiting Paris, don’t!
Make copies of passport. This is good practice for every time you travel outside your home country.
Bring comfortable shoes! You will be walking a lot!!

What to Pack for Your 3-Day Paris Itinerary

Sunscreen – The Barcelona sun can be unforgiving, and I learned the hard way that sunscreen is a must. If you have room in your luggage, bring your own because sunscreen in Spain is very expensive.
Comfortable shoes – Stylish but comfortable is the name of the game when walking around the city. Here is an option for men and women.
Rolling Luggage – You will need a durable and easy to maneuver piece of luggage for your 3-day Paris itinerary.
Packing Cubes – These make organizing your luggage super easy.
Plug Adapter – Keep your devices charged with this European plug adapter.
Portable Battery – This portable battery fits most electronic plugs and can be charged with the USB cord.
Hobo Bag – I often carry this cute hobo bag on my travels. It isn’t too big but big enough to carry small souvenirs I buy along the way. Plus this style bag helps deter pick pocketers.
Women Outfits Ideas:

Map of the 3-Day Paris Itinerary

Places mapped by Wanderlog, a trip planner on iOS and Android

Day 1 – Paris Itinerary

Eiffel Tower

The first thing you should do upon arrival to Paris is see the iconic Eiffel Tower. You will be able to see it most of the time while visiting the city, but make the trip to the landmark first, and get your good pictures. If you get there early enough in the morning, you will not have to deal with many crowds and may get lucky enough to have no people in your pictures. If you want to go to the top of the tower, you can get more information about that here. You can even have a champagne experience at the top!

Louvre Museum

The Louvre Museum is one of the most famous museums in the world and home to Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. Most people enter the museum via the pyramid entrance. I would recommend finding your way to the Carrousel du Louvre entrance located underground for less crowds.

If your goal is to see the Mona Lisa with as few other people as possible, you should go to the museum first thing in the morning before it opens or at the end of the day just before it closes. We arrived to the Carrousel du Louvre entrance about 30 minutes before it opened and there were already 100-150 people in line ahead of us. When you enter (after you go through security), make your way to Denon Wing. Once inside follow the signs to the Mona Lisa. (Or you could just follow the hoards of people headed to the same spot.) DO NOT STOP AT OTHER SIGHTS!! Many people stop to look at a painting or exhibit that catches their eye. Do not fall victim to this! There will be plenty of time to see all the other sights after the Mona Lisa.

I am not a huge museum fan, so there were just a few other art pieces I wanted to see before leaving the museum. However, if you plan to spend a significant amount of time in the Louvre, you will have to adjust this 3-day Paris itinerary to Visit the Louvre Museum website for tickets and operating hours. The days and hours that the museum opens varies depending on the time of year.

Walk along the Seine River

From the Louvre, we walked along the Seine River slowly making our way towards the Notre Dame Cathedral. There are plenty of street vendors, souvenir shops, boutiques, and cafes to stop at.

Notre Dame Cathedral

The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris may be one of the most well-known churches in the world and is the largest church in Paris. The French Gothic cathedral was originally built beginning in 1163 and was nearly completed in 1345. “Notre Dame” means “Our Lady” in French and is dedicated to the virgin Mary. After the fire in 2019, the cathedral closed for repair and just reopened in December 2024.

Because of the 6-year closing and recent reopening, the Notre Dame is more popular than ever. The lines to get in are insane. I highly recommend booking a guided tour through the church with a timed entry to avoid the long lines. You can try to book a free reservation through the Notre Dame website to avoid lines, but that was dang near impossible to get. We tried many times!

Marche aux Fleurs de Paris

After your Notre Dame visit, walk to the Marche aux Fleurs de Paris for the Paris flower market which was established in 1808. Check out the locally-grown seasonal plants and other products you can purchase as souvenirs.

Day 2 – Paris Itinerary

Croissant Making Class

France is known for its food, especially its pastries and sweet treats. While you are in Paris, take time to participate in a cooking class. Some of the most popular classes are croissant making and macaron baking. We opted for the croissant class which was super fun and interesting. The best part of the class is eating your creations after!

St. Germain des Pres

After your cooking class spend the rest of the day leisurely strolling the streets of Paris. First head to the St. Germain des Pres neighborhood (6th arrondissement) where you can lunch at literary cafes, marvel at the churches, and luxury shop at the high-end retail stores along St. Germain Boulevard. Eglise St. Germain des Pres is Paris’s oldest church founded in 543 AD, and its brightly colored interiors are far different than the other Gothic churches you will visit during your Paris itinerary.

Church of Saint Sulpice

The Church of Saint Sulpice is one of the newer Roman Catholic Churches by European standards. It was built between 1646 and 1760 with a neoclassical facade added later. This church is the second largest in Paris and has hosted many historical events including the baptism of Charles Baudelaire and the Marquis de Sade. It also hosted the wedding of Victor Hugo. The Church of Saint Sulpice is most famous for its role in The Da Vinci Code and was a key location in the search for the Holy Grail.

Luxembourg Palace and Garden

The Luxembourg Palace was once a residence commissioned by Marie de Medicis in the early 17th century with Italian-inspired architecture. The palace now is home to the French Senate. However the gardens that surround the palace is a public park. Spend time walking around the beautifully curated grounds.

Arc di Triomphe

From here, take a taxi or bus to the Arc di Triomphe. Visit the Arc di Triomphe website for a guided tour to learn about the history of the arc and get access to the terrace. From the top of the Triomphe, you can get a panoramic view of Paris with the iconic Eiffel Tower included.

Day 3 – Paris Itinerary

Versailles Palace

On the third day of this Paris itinerary, you will be taking a day trip to Versailles (pronounced Ver-sigh). The palace was originally a hunting lodge for King Louis XIII and was transformed into a grand royal residence by King Louis XIV. Louis XIV moved French court and government to Versailles in 1682. You can get your tickets here.

The most famous room in the Versailles Palace is the Hall of Mirrors (or Galerie des Glaces in French.) On one side of the room is 17 large arched windows, and the other side has 17 large mirrors. The ceiling is covered by paintings of Louis XIV’s victories by Charles Le Brun and adorns 43 crystal chandeliers. The hall was mostly used for diplomatic receptions, balls, and other ceremonies. It is most notably famous for the location where the Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919 ending World War I.

If you want to transport back in time, you should attend Le Grand Bal Masque held on the Versailles ground each summer.

Garden of Versaille

When you book your ticket to Versailles, make sure to select a ticket that also allows access to the Versailles Gardens. The 2,000-acre grounds are carefully curated with geometric designs and layouts and have many fountains and sculptures.

Paris at Night

After you get back to Paris and rest for a little while, it is time to head out for dinner and nighttime activities. The original Moulin Rouge is a dinner show in Paris that the movie and musical of the same name is based on. This is a risqué show that minors should not attend. We attended Moulin Rouge, and I’m not really sure how to describe what we saw. It was interesting but not really in a good way. The show definitely needs some professional help from a Las Vegas-caliber director/producer. I would not recommend.

If you decide Moulin Rouge is not for you, you could do a Seine River Dinner Cruise. I would have rather spend my evening on a dinner cruise!

Paris is a very large and very popular city to visit. You could add days or weeks to your Paris itinerary and not see it all! But if you only have a few days, these are my favorite things to do and a great itinerary to follow.