Insert 1,000 crying emojis here because alas, we are home from Paris. No more fresh croissants every morning, no more gorgeous architecture everywhere, no more constantly seeing a huge smile plastered across my teenager’s face. And like a million other things I’ll miss… until we go back one day. Because we will.

Paris surpassed every expectation I had for a Mother-Daughter vacation and then some. So whether you’re thinking about going there yourself or just want to see what we did, this is our itinerary along with a lot of fun pictures. 

Travel Agent

I love planning vacations. But when I decided to go with my teenage daughter to a foreign country with a foreign language, I got overwhelmed. So I jumped on a website called Zicasso. I’d never heard of it before, but there were so many positive reviews. They’re basically a middleman to match you with local travel agents in the area, and they matched me with one in Paris named Gastronomos (Karen Goldman).

Pardon my French, but holy merde, it was un-F’ing-believable. I cannot begin to explain how AMAZING this travel agent was. She listened to what I wanted and added ideas I’d never thought of. She put our itinerary on an app, so I could touch links to see how to get places throughout our trip. I highly highly HIGHLY recommend her. If you reach out to Karen, tell her I say hi s’il vous plait!

Hotel: Fontaines Du Luxembourg

I almost had a panic attack when we got to our hotel room. The buildings in France are old and gorgeous, which means they’re old on the inside too. With itty-bitty elevators that can only fit your luggage, and teeny tiny rooms that cannot fit your luggage. BUT after I unpacked, turned the desk into Zoey’s dresser, and slid the suitcases under the beds, I could breathe again. And appreciate how wonderful this hotel is. From the friendly people who man the front desk, the free breakfast spread every morning, and the location near the Luxembourg Gardens, it was perfect.

Eiffel Tower Tour

After a red-eye and the time change, our travel agent suggested a sunset tour of the Eiffel Tower. The perfect activity to keep us awake and introduce us to Paris. And having a tour guide meant we could skip the long line onto the insane hydraulic elevators. As a claustrophobe, I was nervous, but it’s not that bad. Best of all, our tour was perfectly timed so we got to see the sunset at the top and come down just in time to see the 20K lights that sparkle all over the tower at 9pm.

Bike Tours

We did 2 bike tours while we were in Paris. Deux! One around Paris and one around Versailles. They were both great! But very different.

Paris Bike Tour

The Paris bike tour took us to most of the major sites around the city, but it’s not for the faint of heart. There are busy intersections and lots of pedestrians. But totally worth it. We learned so much history about buildings and bridges that we came back to time and time again throughout our vacation. 

Versailles Bike Tour

So here’s the thing about Versailles. I think if I only did the palace, I would have been disappointed. It’s huge, it’s tacky, and it is PACKED. But with the bike tour, it was lovely! We started in a French market and gathered food for a picnic. Then we picked up our bikes and rode around the grounds of Versailles which is gorgeous. We had an AMAZING tour guide named Joe who taught us the history of the palace while we ate our picnic under the trees and then toured Marie Antoinette’s village. All before we went into the palace itself!  

Shopping

Galeries Lafayette

This is definitely the most gorgeous shopping mall I have ever seen. I wish I had a picture, but I was too busy drooling. It’s mostly eye candy we couldn’t afford but still worth the visit. And AMAZING public restrooms if you need one. We didn’t make it to the terrace on top, but it’s supposed to be beautiful.

Le Marais

A fabulous area that’s very LBGTQ+ friendly, has a historic Jewish area, and some of the best shopping around. DO NOT miss a store called Fleux. It’s actually about 3 or 4 stores on the same block with a ridiculous number of fun things. Home decor, funky bags, adorable toys, fun hair clips and keychains, etc.

Pylones

I can’t tell you how bright and colorful this store is. I wanted everything and ended up buying nothing. I couldn’t decide! They’re all over the place, so stop in when you see one!

Museums

I love museums… in small doses. So we hit up two museums while we were in Paris. And yes, I know we should have gone to the Louvre, but we just weren’t up to braving the crowds. Or being underwhelmed by the Mona Lisa. 

Musee L’Orangerie

A small museum that’s super easy to tackle quickly. You’ll enter an oval room encompassed by four of Monet’s Water Lilies. Are they phenomenal? Yes. Is the room pretty crowded? Yes. After that, you can walk around and see a lot of other beautiful French art. It’s a lovely museum, but if I had it to do again, I would have done Musee d’Orsay. Oh well, guess I’ll have to go back! 

Galerie Dior

This beautiful museum celebrates Christian Dior and tells the story of his life and his fabulous creations. Prepare yourself to be wowed by an insane number of Dior dresses you’ll wish you could try on. And wear a decent outfit for your visit! I constantly felt like What Not to Wear was going to jump out and berate me for looking so schlumpy.   

Macaron Class

Of all the things we did in Paris, this cooking class might have been my favorite! It’s an intimate class where you learn how to make macarons (or other French delicacies) from a super nice chef. It is fun, educational and delicious!!!

Luxembourg Gardens

Our hotel was next to these gardens, and we stupidly didn’t visit them until the last evening. During sunset. When the bells were ringing. And it was more magical than I possibly could imagine.

Montmartre

Before we arrived in Paris, I kept hearing people say Montmartre was their favorite area. And now I know why. It’s up on a hill with lots of narrow, old streets, and it makes you feel like you’re stepping back in time. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s packed with tourists and touristy stores, but there’s still something magical about it. You can see the artists painting beautiful scenes of Paris, and you can buy real art or get a funny caricature done. And of course, Montmartre is home to the Sacré-Cœur Basilica, a magnificent church sitting on the top of the hill. When you’re done, you can walk down manyyyyyyy steps or you can take the trolley cars!

 

Le Marais food tasting

This food tour in Le Marais gave us a taste of Paris in the best possible way. When our guide said it was going to be a 3-hour tour, I kindly said Zoey and I might not last that long. I was wrong. We lasted that long and lovvvvved it. An award-winning baguette, the strongest cheese I’ve ever tried, a croque monsieur that was to die for, delicious red and white wine, yummy falafel in the Jewish section, and last of all, dessert! I packed mine in a doggy bag because if I ate another bite, I might explode. And then within an hour of leaving the tour, I ate it. All. 

The Catacombs

Hundreds of years ago when Paris was running out of room in its cemeteries, the Parisians created the catacombs 65-feet deep under the city. They are home to the bones of SIX MILLION people. You’ll grab an audio guide and learn all about them as you descend down… wayyyyyy down. Make sure you get tickets before you go. They did sell out and I saw some very disappointed visitors! 

Restaurants

So the travel agent I used is a gourmet chef and knows her merde (translation: knows her shit). Her itinerary was filled with fabulous restaurants and cafes. Zoey is not a hugely adventurous eater, so we didn’t do many of them, but if you’re a foodie, Gastronomos is amazing at suggestions.

Ober Mamma

What a beautiful and fun restaurant! Make reservations for when they open. Everyone stood in line waiting to get in, and when they opened the doors, the staff all came outside to sing a fun song before letting us in.

Au Pere Louis

This restaurant was next door to our hotel and we ate here twice! The French onion soup was delicious, and the wine was even deliciouser. It’s tiny and cozy and adorable if you happen to be in the neighborhood.

Mostly we just grabbed food at cafes we stumbled upon! And ALWAYS saved room for gelato!

A Few Last Tips for Paris

Bring COMFY shoes!!!!! We walked a ridiculous amount in Paris. With that said, the Metro (subway) is amazing. And of course, you can always call an Uber.

This bag I bought for the trip was INVALUABLE!!!! I wore it everywhere. (I am an Amazon Associate and can earn off qualifying purchases) The zippers lock for safety, it can hold a water bottle/sunscreen, AND you can wear it on your front or back (perfect for bike rides!). Best investment everrrrr. You can get it here. 

Almost everyone in Paris speaks English and like a thousand other languages, so it it’s not hard to communicate, but learn a few French phrases so you don’t come across as an a-hole American who thinks the whole world should speak English. Bonjour, merci, au revoir, and ou est les toilettes are very helpful!

And one last thing, Parisians are sooooooooooo nice!!!!! Seriously. Everywhere we went! 

If you liked this, please don’t forget to like and share it, especially with anyone you know who’s headed to Paris. Merci!!!!!