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Itineraries

Paris in Three Days: The Complete Route

Paris, FranceJuly 15, 20262 min read
By MASA Editors
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The Eiffel Tower above the Seine at violet dusk, with river boats moored along the bank01
The Eiffel Tower above the Seine at violet dusk, with river boats moored along the bank

The Louvre to Montmartre, the Latin Quarter to the Marais — a three-day route through Paris that balances the icons with time to simply live like the city does.

Three days will not show you all of Paris — nothing will — but it is enough to walk the city's great axis, cross the Seine a dozen times, and understand why every other city gets compared to this one. This route groups the landmarks by geography so you spend your hours in cafés, not on the Métro.

Key facts

  • Book the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and Sainte-Chapelle online well in advance
  • The Métro is fast, but central Paris is best covered on foot — most days here are under 8 km of walking
  • Museums typically close one day a week (often Monday or Tuesday); check before you plan
  • Café terraces are for lingering; no one will rush you

Day 1 — The grand axis and the Tower

Morning: the Louvre

Arrive for your timed slot at opening. Pick one wing and two hours — the Italian masters and the Grande Galerie, say — and accept that you are sampling, not completing. Exit through the Tuileries and walk the gardens to Place de la Concorde.

Afternoon: Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe

Stroll the avenue for the spectacle, then climb the Arc de Triomphe for the best orientation lesson in Paris: twelve avenues wheeling out beneath you.

Evening: the Eiffel Tower

Cross to the Trocadéro esplanade for the classic view, then get close enough to stand under the iron latticework as the tower begins to sparkle after dark — typically for a few minutes on the hour.

The Eiffel Tower rising over golden autumn trees on a clear Paris day
The Eiffel Tower rising over golden autumn trees on a clear Paris day

Day 2 — The islands and the Left Bank

Morning: Île de la Cité

Start at Notre-Dame, gloriously reopened after its restoration, then walk to Sainte-Chapelle for the wall of 13th-century stained glass — go early, when the light comes through.

Midday: the Latin Quarter and Luxembourg Gardens

Wander the old student streets past the Panthéon, lunch on a classic bistro menu, then claim a green chair by the fountain in the Jardin du Luxembourg like a local.

Afternoon: Musée d'Orsay

The Impressionists in a converted Beaux-Arts railway station — for many visitors, the best museum experience in the city.

Evening: Saint-Germain-des-Prés

Apéritif at a storied café terrace, dinner nearby, and a night walk along the Seine's book-stall quays.

Day 3 — Montmartre and the Marais

Morning: Montmartre

Climb (or funicular) to Sacré-Cœur before the crowds, then lose the main drag for the steep, villagey side streets and Place du Tertre's edges.

Afternoon: Le Marais

Cross the city to Paris's most atmospheric old quarter: Place des Vosges' perfect arcades, boutique streets, falafel stands and courtyard museums.

Evening: the Seine by boat

End with a river cruise at dusk — the city assembling its greatest hits along both banks, lit and unhurried.

Tip: Buy a carnet of Métro tickets or a contactless pass on day one, but resist underground shortcuts under 20 minutes' walk — the point of Paris is the street between the sights.

Three days in, you will already be planning the return. That, too, is a Paris tradition.

Still wandering?

Scroll the world one photograph at a time

Sixty places, each with the one fact worth knowing before you go

Open the feed
Sleep on it

Stay in Paris

Ritz Paris

9.6/10

The legendary palace on Place Vendôme — home to Coco Chanel and Hemingway's bar.

Official site

Hôtel de Crillon

9.5/10

An 18th-century palace on Place de la Concorde, with suites designed by Karl Lagerfeld.

Official site

Le Bristol Paris

9.7/10

France's first official Palace — a vast interior garden and three-Michelin-star Epicure.

Official site
Planning

Paris, place by place

Everything below is named in one of our own stories about Paris. The line under each is the sentence that recommended it, and the link goes to the piece it came from.

Where to stay

The areas and addresses our writers put first

  • The uniform stone arcades of Rue de Rivoli with shopfronts beneath, at a quiet street cornerMathias Reding

    Rue de Rivoli and Concorde

    Facing the Tuileries, Le Meurice has hosted royalty and eccentrics since the nineteenth century — Salvador Dalí famously treated it as a second home.

    The Storied Hotels of ParisCheck prices

  • Ritz Paris - Place Vendome

    Paris

    The hotel that invented the mythology, and still trades on it more successfully than any of its rivals.

    The 7 Iconic Palace Hotels of ParisCheck prices

  • Hotel Plaza Athenee - Avenue Montaigne

    Paris

    Opened in 1913 on the couture avenue, and the red awnings with their geraniums are a fixture of Paris fashion photography.

    The 7 Iconic Palace Hotels of ParisCheck prices

  • Le Meurice - Rue de Rivoli

    Paris

    The oldest of the group, trading on the Rivoli frontage since the 1830s and facing the Tuileries across the street.

    The 7 Iconic Palace Hotels of ParisCheck prices

  • Place Vendôme and the 1st

    Paris

    The octagonal Place Vendôme is the spiritual center of Parisian luxury, and the Ritz Paris is its anchor — the hotel where Coco Chanel lived for decades and whose intimate bar is named for Ernest Hemingway, its most d…

    The Storied Hotels of ParisCheck prices

  • The Golden Triangle

    Paris

    Between the Champs-Élysées and the Seine, the 8th arrondissement's famed triangle holds the Four Seasons George V, with its extravagant floral displays, and the Plaza Athénée on Avenue Montaigne, instantly recognizabl…

    The Storied Hotels of ParisCheck prices

What to see

The things that justify the trip

Things to do

Walks, tours and days out we would book again

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