# Paris for the day while in London - biting off too much?



## 3kids4me (Mar 13, 2008)

So what do you think?  Too much for one day, with a kid that needs to rest a lot, and a mom that doesn't know how to say anything in French besides "How much does it cost", "Where is the bathroom" and "Two hot chocolates please"?

I have this vision of surprising her with a day in Paris once we get there...however, to make it affordable I really would have to buy the train tickets way in advance, which also means picking the time and day in advance.

Should I forget it?

Sharon


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## mjs (Mar 13, 2008)

2 yrs ago we did just what you are thinking with 2 teenagers, and it was a great day.
We left about 5:30am on the high speed train, arrived about 2 hours later.
We got bus passes, explored the city, tower, churches etc.
I think we left Paris about 7pm.
Certainly we did not see all there was to see(DW and I going back this summer),  but I would highly recommend it-even for just one day.


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## Dave M (Mar 13, 2008)

Although it's a tremendous/exciting idea, I think the cost would exceed the benefit, considering the parameters you outline, Sharon. 

Figure a minimum of seven hours of getting to the train, waiting for it, riding on it, getting off and out of the station to anywhere you want to go and then reversing the process at the end of the day. That leaves precious little time in Paris.

If you want to do it for _you_, Sharon, go for it, but I question whether Rachel would think the effort was worthwhile.

I would either stay overnight (making the stay in Paris almost two days) or plan another trip for another time that included at least a long weekend in Paris. There are too many things to do to even get started in only a few hours of a single day.


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## Carolinian (Mar 13, 2008)

Paris is not a city I would want to try to see in a day.  If you are into art at all, the Louve alone can take more than a day.  Some sights, like th Eiffel Tower often mean standing in line.  Then there are the near-Paris sights, like Versailles Palace, a short suburban train ride away, that should take much of a day in and of itself.  A first trip to Paris should include at least 3 or 4 days, and a week is not too much.


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## julienjay (Mar 13, 2008)

We did 2 days in Paris and took the Eurostar from London. It was great! I would highly recommend it. I mean, you're SO CLOSE to Paris, why not? Go to the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and call it a day! (We didn't speak French either)


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## nonutrix (Mar 13, 2008)

I personally think that a week in London is too little.  I vote for doing Paris on another trip, and enjoy everything there is to do in London while you are there.

nonutrix


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## Laurie (Mar 13, 2008)

I was going to say not - but if the train ride is really only 2 hours, and that's where Rachel most wants to go... and if you can possibly nap on the train ... I'd say yeah, maybe!  

Then... I'd skip going into the museums (just because of the fatigue factor- you don't have time- unless there's something you really really want to see in the Louvre or other museum.) Ride a boat down the Seine, go up the Eiffel Tower, and IMO the one absolute must-see in Paris, Sainte Chapelle - and in-between, sit down and rest at a couple of cafes whenever you feel like it.

I was originally going to agree w/doing at least 1 overnite - but then you have to choose a hotel, find it, have luggage, yada yada. Unless you can travel really light and not worry about checking in at the hotel til the end of your day.


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## Janie (Mar 13, 2008)

You're only going to be in London for a week, aren't you?  If your trip is anything like mine, your first day will be need to be pretty low key as you recover from jetlag. Your last day will be spent packing and getting to the airport.  You're spending a day in the countryside--that only leaves four real days to see London.  You will barely scratch the surface in that time!  If it were me, I would probably leave Paris for another trip.


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## GrayFal (Mar 13, 2008)

It would be too much for Rachel - instead do a bus day trip from London to see the countryside.


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## JeffW (Mar 13, 2008)

We did a 1 day trip from Paris to London several years ago.  Wasn't that interested in a full trip to London, and figured that was the closest we might get to it.  We took the earliest train out, last train back, and then I think an all-day sightseeing bus tour of London.  It was definitely worth it.

Jeff


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## Lawlar (Mar 13, 2008)

*Not A Good Idea*



Dave M said:


> Although it's a tremendous/exciting idea, I think the cost would exceed the benefit, considering the parameters you outline, Sharon.
> 
> Figure a minimum of seven hours of getting to the train, waiting for it, riding on it, getting off and out of the station to anywhere you want to go and then reversing the process at the end of the day. That leaves precious little time in Paris.



I agree with Dave.

The train ride is exciting.  But there is a lot of time wasted getting to the station, waiting for the train, getting through the traffic in Paris, waiting in line to get into the Louvre, etc. [I spent four or five days in the Louvre, over two trips, which was not enough time to see it all. I felt really sorry for the tourists who ran through the Louvre just to see the Mona Lisa - which is behind a thick bullet proof frame.]

One week in London is not enough time to see that town.  But if you want to do something else, take a tour to another location in England.  Save Paris for when you can spend more time there.


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## JeffW (Mar 13, 2008)

Just to add, when I did Paris->London, it was just my wife and myself, and it was on a winter promotion, when First Class tickets might have been $80 one way.  We got to see all the sights _from the outside_, and go to an authentic English Pub for lunch (I think that was on our own).  I'm not sure we actually went into anything.  Sort of like getting the smell of London without having a taste.  

If you did Paris, you might forget about going into the Louvre.  Even going up the Effiel Tower, or into Notre Dame Cathedral, might take up too much time.

Jeff


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## pwrshift (Mar 13, 2008)

I'd forget it.  Paris is a world-class beautiful city and has many more different things to offer than London.  if you can't extend your holiday to include more time there, save it for a second honeymoon.  

Brian


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## merc (Mar 13, 2008)

Yes it is worth doing, for sure.  I've done it and it is no harder than any day trip out of London and more interesting in most ways.  Whether you should do it depends on your interests and future travel plans.  If this is likely to be your only chance at seeing Paris, or whether you will be able to come back another time for a longer visit, is the question which will determine how much benefit you will get out of such a day.   Don't get confused by all the options, just do what you feel will be important to you.  The logistics of the trip itself are not much of a factor.


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## Hoc (Mar 13, 2008)

Sharon--

I agree with Pat.  It would be ambitious for me, and I have a lot of stamina.  Given your daughter's limitations, you should generally plan a 2-3 day trip to Paris, and don't plan on doing it in a day with train travel on each side.  Fun, but too exhausting.

That said, a day trip to Southampton to see Hampton Court and (perhaps) Wimbledon would be both doable and worthwhile.  Or you could do a tour to Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral (do a "beyond the ropes tour" if you go to Stonehenge), where the Magna Carta is on display.  That's about a half-day tour, unless you add in Bath, in which case it's a whole-day thing.


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## Carolinian (Mar 14, 2008)

The trips out from London, I would look into are those close to London, certainly Hampton Court Palace, and possibly OXford, Cambridge, or even Bath.  Stonehenge is another good excursion from London.


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## helenbarnett1963 (Mar 14, 2008)

*not a good idea!*

Hi Sharon,
Like others have said, I'm not sure Rachel would enjoy just a one day trip to Paris.  It would be a long day.  The Eurostar will be packed and noisy (full of english kids off to EuroDisney!), the food on board is awful and you will spend ages queuing at both ends of the day - its more like an airport check-in than a normal train station.
There will be endless queues for everything in Paris, so unless you do a bus tour to see the sights from the outside, you won't see much in one day.

I know Paris is a lovely city, but its really worthy of a trip on its own.

Much better your other idea of a trip into the English countryside for a day.
Following on from your thread about that - I'd recommend, as others have done, that you take the train - a lovely way to see the countryside - if the destination station is convenient.  Or a bus/coach (not a tour, just for the joruney).
Cities like Oxford or Bath, whilst lovely and historic, will involve a lot of walking to get around and may not be particularly interesting for Rachel - lots of old buildings and lots of 'history' which possibly won't mean much to an American kid.
I'd recommend a specific site, such as Warwick Castle - check out their website, most weekends in the summer they have falconry displays, jousting competitions, a medeival marketplace or other events - together with a stop for 'afternoon tea' in a pretty village somewhere like Burton-on-the-water. 
Or maybe a trip to the coast - pick any seaside resort town and do what we Brits do and sit on the promenade with an ice cream cone and watch the world go by.


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## GrayFal (Mar 14, 2008)

Hoc said:


> Sharon--
> 
> I agree with Pat.  It would be ambitious for me, and I have a lot of stamina.  Given your daughter's limitations, you should generally plan a 2-3 day trip to Paris, and don't plan on doing it in a day with train travel on each side.  Fun, but too exhausting.
> 
> That said, a day trip to Southampton to see Hampton Court and (perhaps) Wimbledon would be both doable and worthwhile.  *Or you could do a tour to Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral (do a "beyond the ropes tour" if you go to Stonehenge), where the Magna Carta is on display. * That's about a half-day tour, unless you add in Bath, in which case it's a whole-day thing.




I did this when I was about 22 with a friend from work - we loved being in the country and to see Stonehenge 'up close' was thrilling!
Rachel could read about the area beforehand to make it even more special.

My DD and I did the train to Paris with an overnight and it was a VERY busy and tiring 2 days - while we enjoyed it, it wiped us out!
We waited in a line to go up the Eiffel Tower for 75 minutes - and there were LOTS of stairs going in and out of the subway (I know they call it something else )
We swore we would try to return to Paris and stay the week....never a 2 day trip again.


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## silvib (Mar 14, 2008)

I have friends in the south of England who go over to France for the day, just to fill up their car with lots of wine and other goodies that are apparently cheaper there.  Your trip is different though.  There's too much to see in both places to spend only a day in Paris.  As a much youger woman, I went there for the weekend - I was living in Belgium at the time - and went by train and had a wonderful timem mets lots of interesting people in a very short space of time, but again, different scenario.  Stick with London.  Do Paris another time, or extend your trip.


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