Travel Diary : Paris, France

Paris has been on my radar for as long as I can remember and when I finally landed in this dreamy place, I shed tears of joy. I couldn't believe that I had finally made one of my biggest wishes come true and I got to enjoy it all with my husband and our son. Paris stole my heart and I can't wait to return and enjoy the city for a longer period of time. Our vacation to Paris started with my discovery of www.TripMasters.com which made the booking of flights and hotel a breeze and at an unbelievably affordable price.


Our flight was non-stop from Miami to Paris on Air France. We didn't fly first class this time but the flight was not long enough to truly be uncomfortable. I think I was too excited about being in Paris with several hours to care. My son and I enjoyed Boss Baby on the flight, as did plenty of other people on board the aircraft. I did look around and see that many people or all ages were enjoying Boss Baby as well, despite having plenty of other great movies to choose from. I thought it was quite cute.

Transportation to Paris

Upon landing in Paris the panic set in. "We're overseas and I don't speak this language. Where do we go? How do we get to central Paris from the airport? Will we find our hotel? Is there Uber? A train? Where is the train station?" So we began our journey at the concierge desk asking how to maneuver our way to our hotel. From the airport, you will have to take a main train to central Paris as the airport is located right outside. The train ride is about a good hour. We purchased our train tickets and hopped aboard our train and enjoyed the views as it took us at a nice pace directly to the main train hub in Paris; Gare Du Nord, from which we hopped onto the Paris metro subway system and found our way to our hotel. TripMasters really came through for us as our hotel was very close to the Arc de Triomph and a 1 minute walk to a metro station.



Eiffel Tower

We settled into our hotel and were ready to go explore the city within minutes. We did not waste any time to get our and enjoy ourselves. Our first stop was the Eiffel Tower! See hopped on the metro and headed to the train station for Trocadero.

My eyes watered up as we walked and came to the edge of a building that opened up a view of the beautiful structure that I had only seen in pictures and in my dreams.







Arc de Triomph

Our next adventure took us to visit the Arc de Triumph and enjoy some shopping down Champs-Élysées.





We then revisited the Eiffel Tower that evening to watch the light show that happens every hour on the hour starting at 6pm every evening. The Eiffel Tower is lit up, but every hour for 5 minutes the magnificent structure literally sparkles as lights flash turning the tower into a dazzling spectacle.


The Louvre

Our next days adventure took us to the famous Louvre. This is the largest art museum in the world and houses some of the most famous paintings and sculptures. The museum building itself is a historical landmark originally built as a fortress in the 12th century and altered frequently as it was expanded and modernized. The original medieval fortress portions can be found within the museum and are on display. It truly was amazing to see.

Inside the Louvre you will find amazing pieces like the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo!




















The Paris Catacombs

We decided to explore Paris' darker side and pay a visit to the catacombs. The Paris catacombs are underground ossuaries that hold the remains of nearly 6 million people in a tunnel network. These ossuaries were built in an effort to make room for Paris' ancient stone mines. I would recommend buying the tickets to visit this site beforehand online because the wait in line can be around 2-3 hours and you just may wait in line with no luck to get in. Once the closing time comes, the doors close and your time in line is just wasted. We were lucky to have arrived just in time to be some of the final people allowed in for the day after a 2 1/2 hour wait.

I would also recommend wearing comfortable closed toed shoes as the ground is uneven and you will have to descend and ascend a long winding flight of stairs.








The Palace of Versailles

The Palace of Versailles was probably the highlight of Paris for me. It's funny because we had not originally planned to visit this place. We were supposed to go to London on this day but since we missed our train, we decided to make the most of our day and explore the Palace Versailles and I am so grateful that we did!

The architecture of this place is straight out of a dream. To think that royals roamed these halls is incredible to me. The rooms are beautifully decorated and preserved, as if the royals had just left yesterday. It is frozen in time and absolutely amazing.











Cathedral de Notre Dame

Our final stop was the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral which is a marvel to see. The beautiful church overlooks a river with beautiful picturesque views. The surrounding area is park-like with people gathered around to enjoy a picnic, rollerblade, and take a scenic walk.