How To Spend 24 Hours in Paris: An Itinerary With A Difference

If you’ve been to Paris before and you’re planning a quick return trip, you might want to avoid the usual touristy parts. I’ve done many trips to Paris, and I discover something new and exciting each time I go. But with only 24 hours in Paris, you need to be organized.

So, if you’re a seasoned Paris visitor, I want to encourage you to try something different. Instead of going to the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, or Arc de Triomphe, try somewhere like the Latin Quarter, Île de la Cité, or Montmartre. Go for a stroll along the Seine and take in the booksellers of Paris, known as Les Bouquinistes.

If you’ve never been to Paris before, this article offers three different itineraries that include most of the iconic attractions. For those who want something a little different, I’m sharing my 24-hour Paris itinerary from my latest trip below.

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Planning For Your One-day Trip To Paris

Planning is key if you only have one day or 24 hours in the City of Love. You don’t want to spend half your time running around like a headless chicken with no direction or wasting time deciding what to see and do.

Create your itinerary beforehand with everything you need to know, including the metro stops if you need to use it or the street names if you’re walking.

It will save so much faffing when you’re there, and you can enjoy having fun instead of stressing.

My other big tip is to get your skip-the-line tickets ahead of time if you’re doing any kind of tour or visiting any Paris attractions. Seriously, those queues can be insane, and you might have to wait for over an hour to get in.

Who wants to waste one of their precious 24 hours queuing? I certainly don’t, and that’s not the only reason. Some tours won’t let you just rock up and buy a ticket. You have to book in advance to avoid disappointment. 

When I went to the Catacombs, I‘d pre-booked my tour, but when I arrived, there was a sign saying ‘full today.’

Even though I booked about a month in advance, there was still very little availability. So, forewarned is forearmed. Prebook to avoid disappointment.

Choose Your Arrondissement Wisely

As you’re only in Paris for such a short period of time, it’s important to stay in an arrondissement close to the places you want to visit. Or at least fairly central to everything, so it makes life easy.

For example, on my last trip, I wanted to see a few different places, but most of them were within walking distance from each other. One was the church from one of my all-time favorite movies about Paris, Midnight in Paris.

I wanted to see the church at night, so I chose a Latin Quarter hotel five minutes from St Etienne du Mont. It made it super simple for me to pop up there and walk back again without it being a major excursion.

The hotel I stayed in was a lovely, cozy, three-star place in the middle of the Latin Quarter. It was a short walk to the Panthéon in one direction and Notre Dame in the other.

It didn’t break the bank and was just right for a one-night stay for someone traveling solo. Minerve Hotel was perfect for what I needed and on budget.

Your Itinerary For 24 Hours In Paris

As I said earlier, planning is key, and whenever I know I’m going to be in Paris, I make sure I’ve created an itinerary before I go. This includes booking lunch, deciding which tours to do, and knowing where I want to go walking.

Planning For Lunch in Paris

I never like doing anything on an empty stomach, including exploring a city, so I always make sure I’ve nailed lunch.

On my last trip, I enjoyed a great lunch at Bouillon Chartier in Montparnasse as my train came into Gare Montparnasse, so it made sense to eat in this arrondissement.

The Bouillon restaurants are a good budget option set in some of Paris’ most beautiful Belle Epoque buildings. They offer a nostalgic trip back to the 19th century, serving up hearty, traditional French fare at wallet-friendly prices. 

Originating as workers’ eateries, these establishments are no-frills, authentic dining experiences. From steaming pots of bouillon (broth) that gave these eateries their name to classics like coq au vin and beef bourguignon, the menu celebrates French culinary heritage. 

They’re the go-to spots for anyone craving a slice of Parisian life, combining quality, history, and affordability, and I love going to them. 

And I wasn’t disappointed. I had a great spot where I could watch the traffic, admire the amazing decor, and enjoy a yummy beef bourguignon.

Choose One Main Attraction to See

Remember I told you that tours get booked quickly and often weeks in advance? Well, I took my own advice and booked a tour of the Paris Catacombs. However, it didn’t start until 5 p.m., and as I’d finished lunch by 1.00 p.m., I had plenty of time to do something else.

I’d already plotted my route and walked back to the Metro at Montparnasse, where I made my way to Pere Lachaise cemetery.

It was an easy journey that took around 30 minutes, and the metro stop was directly outside the graveyard.

All I can say is it was the best way ever to walk off my lunch! The cemetery is massive, and none of the graves I wanted to see were near each other, apart from Edith Piaf and Gertrude Stein, who were pretty close.

But the graves of Chopin, Heloise and Abelard and Jim Morrison were all in different parts.

Trying to navigate your way around isn’t easy, so take my advice and book a tour. You’ll find the graves much quicker and hear all the stories the tour guides always have, which are fascinating.

Once I’d finished, I made my way to the catacombs and prepared for my tour. And what a tour it was. I loved every minute, and our tour guide was full of great information you’d never find on Google.

I still can’t quite wrap my head around the fact that the bones of approximately six million people are down there. I’ve never seen so many skulls in one place before, and although I wasn’t freaked out, I wouldn’t want to be down there alone. 

The tour I did was a group tour with VIP access to areas you don’t have access on a self-guided audio tour, and well worth the money.

Take Time For a Coffee and Cake

One thing you’re not short of in Paris is coffee shops, tearooms, and cute cafes. So make sure you allow enough time in your schedule to go to at least one.

Life in Paris is all about sitting in a cafe, watching the world go by as you indulge in something yummy. Think about Emily in Paris. How often does Emily enjoy some cafe time with Mindy or even Luc?

One of my favorites in the Latin Quarter is Odette’s Tearoom. It’s a stone’s throw from Notre Dame and only sells one thing: cream puffs. It’s fabulous, and if you go upstairs, the views are amazing.

Before Going to Bed in Paris

We’ve already mentioned the Iron Lady, but I just want to add that it is worth seeing in the evening when it’s all lit up and sparkling. The five best places to see it at night are:

• Montparnasse Tower Observation Deck
• Place du Trocadéro
• The Champ de Mars
• Rooftop of Galeries Lafayette
• Pont Alexandre III

Breakfast in Paris

I never book breakfast in my hotel in Paris as part of the fun is going out for breakfast. There are so many places to choose from.

I knew that I would do my own walking tour of the Latin Quarter before having lunch and catching the train home, so I decided to go for breakfast at the Comptoir du Panthéon. 

Despite being mid-March, it was a beautiful sunny day, so I sat outside and had an uninterrupted view of the Panthéon building.

The Parisian Breakfast I had was great: coffee, orange juice, croissants, and bread with jam.

Create Your Own Mini-walking Tour

Part of the fun of being in Paris is walking around an area and seeing what you discover, so I always leave time where possible to indulge in Kylie’s Walking Tour. This time around, it was all about the Latin Quarter. On my way to breakfast, I stopped in Square Paul-Langevin, in front of the Ecole Polytechnique, the engineering school near the Sorbonne.

It’s a beautiful park named after Paul Langevin, a renowned French physicist (23 January 1872 – 19 December 1946). If I hadn’t been wandering, I’d never have found it.

After breakfast, my first stop was Shakespeare and Company Bookshop. I’d always wanted to go, and I wasn’t disappointed. I was there early and got in before the crowds descended.

After that, I just walked around the streets, looked at Saint Severin Gothic Church, and visited the other bookshop on my list, the Abbey Bookshop, which opened in 1989 and is run by a Canadian chap called Brian. 

It’s another fascinating place in an 18th-century building on a street that was once the home to the book industry in Paris in the 12th century.

Lunch was booked for 1 p.m. at La Rôtisserie d’Argent on the River Seine, so I had lots of time to enjoy my surroundings. I wandered down to the Seine, browsed the bouquinistes, and got myself a copy of an old Edith Piaf 78 record. 

The fact I don’t have a record player to play it on is irrelevant; it’s a good excuse to get one.

I was lucky enough to sit on one of the benches and watch the world go by for half an hour by the water. It was magical just to sit there and take in Paris in all her glory as the sun shone down on me.

Booking Lunch and Dinner in Paris

As I was short on time, I decided to enjoy lunch on both days rather than a big dinner. I chose one budget option, Chartier Bouillon, and another slightly more upmarket one, La Rôtisserie d’Argent. 

The latter is the sibling of La Tour d’Argent, the famous restaurant that inspired the Disney movie Ratatouille.

It exudes old-school French charm, offering dishes like half a rôtisserie chicken with potato purée at reasonable prices. Its wine prices are pretty good, too. I had filet boeuf sauce poivre, frites—steak with pepper sauce and chips—followed by crème brûlée, which I can never resist.

I can still taste it now; it was so good, and I’m fussy about steak. The view helped, too, as I was seated at a table with views over the Seine, which was lovely.

Instead of going out for dinner, I settled for a drink at one of the local bars. This was lovely, as I was able to sit outside and enjoy the view of the church steps from my favourite movie, Midnight in Paris. It was just magical.

Paris Travel Tips

The biggest advice I can give you when spending 24 hours in Paris is to give yourself time to breathe. France, as a country, is about taking time to enjoy the little things, not being in such a hurry, and really living your life. 

You shouldn’t rush around Paris. You need to take your time, and if that means coming back again and again to do that, so be it.

However, to do any of that, you need to plan accordingly so you can take time to soak up the magic of Paris. Below are some helpful tips to make your planning a little easier.

Using The Metro

Navigating the Paris Metro is an efficient and cost-effective way to explore Paris. It’s similar to the London Underground (the Tube) with its colour-coded lines and maps.

Here are a couple of tips for using the Metro in Paris

• Get a Map or Use an App: Before you dive into the underground, arm yourself with a Paris Metro map or download one of the apps. This will help you understand the network’s layout, identify your routes, and navigate between lines. The apps often offer real-time updates on train schedules, delays, and quickest routes, making your journey smoother.
• Purchase the Right Ticket: Familiarise yourself with the various ticket options available, such as single-use tickets or the more cost-effective “carnet” packs of ten. For those planning extensive travel across the city, consider a day pass or the Paris Visite pass, which offers unlimited travel for a set number of days and can include discounts on some attractions.
• Travel Off-Peak When Possible: To avoid the bustling crowds and make your journey more pleasant, try to travel during off-peak hours. The Paris Metro is usually busiest during the morning and evening rush hours on weekdays. Planning your trips mid-morning, early afternoon, or later in the evening means fewer crowds.

Paris Apps for Planning

There are some great Apps for Paris travel, many of which I’ve used myself. I love the Metro Apps as they make life so easy, and the toilet finder apps are brilliant if you don’t want to get caught short.

I recommend downloading them before your trip and putting them in a Paris folder so you have them handy.

Uber in Paris

We do have Uber in Paris, but it can be expensive. I tend to avoid using Uber where possible and take the Metro as it’s cheaper and not hard to use once you get used to it. 

But here’s a couple of tips if you have no choice but to Uber it:

• Confirm the Ride Details: Always double-check the driver’s name, car model, and license plate number in the app before entering the vehicle. This ensures you’re getting into the right car and starting the correct ride you booked, avoiding any mix-ups that could lead to overcharging.
• Use Fare Estimates: Before confirming your ride, utilize the fare estimate feature in the Uber app. This gives you an approximate cost of your journey, allowing you to compare prices for different Uber services or even against other modes of transportation. If a fare seems unusually high, it might be due to surge pricing, so consider waiting a bit or picking an alternative route or service.
• Review Your Route: While Uber drivers usually follow the most efficient route as suggested by the app, it’s wise to have a basic understanding of your destination’s direction. Keep an eye on the route during your ride (using your own maps app if necessary) to ensure it’s taking you to the right place via a sensible path. Don’t hesitate to discuss something with your driver if something seems off.

Travel Sim Cards for your Paris Trip

There is nothing worse than running out of data when you’re lost and need to use Google Maps. So do yourself a favor and make sure you’ve sorted out an eSim or travel sim for France before your trip. 

It’s not difficult to do, it doesn’t break the bank, and it will make your life so much easier. 

FAQS: A Day In Paris

Final Thoughts: Spending Only One Day In Paris

It’s impossible to see Paris in a day but if that’s all the time you have available then with careful planning you can see some sights and attractions.

If you need some help, remember to check out our podcast for inspiration and the best places to visit in France.